May 18, 2003

Hardee’s 200
May 16, 2003
Lowes Motor Speedway

Bill Lester Made History Friday Night at Lowes Motor Speedway

On Thursday, May 15, 2003 at around 7:00 PM Eastern Time with rain clouds surrounding the Lowes Motor Speedway, Bill Lester and the No. 8 BHR Dodge Motorsports team made history. Lester turned a lap of 175.753 MPH to set on the pole for the first time in his NASCAR career. It erased a 41-year old record, held by the late Wendell Scott, of the last time an African American driver set on a pole in a major NASCAR event.

“We were loose on the first lap, and I was beginning to wonder if we could stick on the second one,” said Lester. “I just kept it to the mat. I knew the Bobby Hamilton Racing Team gave me a terrific truck. We were good all through practice, and I was just hoping the rain was going to hold off. I thought all along this was going to be our weekend. I can't say enough for this team. We knew we were going to be strong because we were good in practice. We were a little dicey the first lap out there. We came too far for me to go lifting, so I kept my foot on the mat. I can't wait until tomorrow night's race.”

When Lester started the race the next day, he was all business. Lester led the field of 36 trucks down for the start. He was leading when the third place truck took the leaders three wide down the back straightaway. So Lester, knowing it was too early to do anything crazy, let them go and began to settle into a solid place to run.

Lester remained in the top ten in the running order until the truck began to develop a handling problem. He fell back saving the truck, but that is when the team was dealt a costly blow. Exiting turn four on lap 32, the air came off the rear end of the No. 8 truck, sending it spin into through the tri-oval. Lester did a masterful job of missing the walls and the other trucks. Unfortunately, the caution did not come out, and Lester lost one lap to the leader.

Lester pitted on the next caution, and the team changed tires and sent him back into action. From that point on, Lester battled his way back from 28th position. But the night was not over for Lester. Just 15 laps after his first spin, he and the No. 52 got together, and Lester spun again. This time, he sustained damage on the right front. But the “never say die” attitude of the No. 8 team got the truck fixed, without losing another lap and got it back into the race.

Over the final 80 plus laps of the race, the No. 8 truck made several more pit stops to help the truck, and Lester drove his heart out. By the time the checkered flag came out, he had battled his way back to a 15th place finish.

“That's not what we wanted,” said Lester. “I've never cut so much grass in my life. I'd get up underneath somebody and loose all the air off the rear and spin around. The second time I was low and Schrader was high, and he cut down and chopped me and the next thing I know, I was cutting the grass again. It was a long evening, but we learned something out there and we know we were fast. We're going to get one of these. Everything considered we'll take 15th.”

All in all, it was not a bad night for the No. 8 team. The 15th place finish helped them maintain the 14th position in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series points standings.

“We’re coming up on my time of year,” said Lester. “We’re going to be running at the bigger tracks, so I feel we’ll be able to shine. Our goal is to get into the top ten in the points, and we’re posed to do that.”

Driver: Bill Lester, No. 8 Dodge Dealers Dodge Team
Starts Pole Wins Top Fives Top Tens Earnings Points Position
5 1 0 0 0 $ 54,025 14th

Race-by-Race Run Down:
Location Start Finish Laps Status Money Won
Daytona 8 18 97 of 106 Accident $ 15,165
Darlington 15 12 144 of 147 Running 9,465
Bakersfield 23 13 255 of 255 Running 8,190
Martinsville 17 19 250 of 250 Running 9,315
Charlotte 1 15 135 of 136 Running 11,890
Dover (Next Event)

Totals 881 of 894 (98.5%) $ 54,025


Driver: Bobby Hamilton, No. 4 Square D Dodge Team
Starts Pole Wins Top Fives Top Tens Earnings Points Position
5 0 1 4 5 $ 98,125 1st

Race-by-Race Run Down:
Location Start Finish Laps Status Money Won
Daytona 13 4 106 of 106 Running $ 26,000
Darlington 14 1 147 of 147 Running 39,075 Bakersfield 2 4 255 of 255 Running 12,650
Martinsville 2 5 250 of 250 Running 9,075
Charlotte 5 7 136 of 136 Running 11,325
Dover (Next Event)

Totals 894 of 894 (100%) $ 98,125

NEXT EVENT: MBNA America 200 at Dover International Speedway in Dover, Delaware on May 30, 2003. The event will be televised live on SPEED Channel at 4:30 PM Eastern Time, and also live on MRN radio at 4:30 PM Eastern Time.