Bobby Hamilton Jr. qualified his No. 18 Fastenal Dodge in the top five and ran strongly in the top ten for a good portion of the New Hampshire 200 on Saturday afternoon until an ailing alternator sapped the power from his Dodge. The 28 year-old NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series competitor from White House, TN was forced to make a costly green flag pit stop, losing several laps in the process. The end result was a 26th place finish.

No. 18 Fastenal Dodge New Hampshire Race Recap

„X On lap 21 Hamilton Jr. informed his crew that ¡§I can¡¦t put any wheel into it at all. It is just too free getting into the corner. It is starting to tighten up getting off the corner but it is still too loose getting in.¡¨

„X On lap 38 he once again radioed his crew that ¡§The right front has a hop in it in the center of the corner and I am a little tight off the corner.¡¨

„X Hamilton Jr. brought his Fastenal Dodge down pit road under caution on lap 45 for four fresh Goodyear Wrangler tires and a full load of Sunoco fuel. His crew also made a chassis adjustment ¡V two rounds up on the track bar.

„X On the ensuing restart Hamilton fought to control his finicky Fastenal Dodge telling crew chief Danny Gill that ¡§you simply cannot drive this thing on new sticker tires. You are just hanging on for the ride.¡¨

„X Hamilton Jr. narrowly avoided disaster on lap 73 when Brendan Gaughan¡¦s Dodge slammed hard into the concrete retaining wall coming off of turn two and bounced out into oncoming traffic. The front nose of Gaughan¡¦s truck missed Hamilton Jr.¡¦s rear quarter panel by mere millimeters. Mark Martin, Terry Cook, Bobby East and Chase Miller were not as fortunate as they were swept up in Gaughan¡¦s wake.

„X On lap 95 Hamilton Jr. came over the radio with the news that no crew wants to hear. His Fastenal Dodge was losing voltage and power. Hamilton Jr. kept his Dodge on the racetrack hoping for a timely caution flag that never came. On lap 113 he was forced to pit under green flag conditions. His crew quickly replaced the depleted battery but by that time the entire episode had cost the team four laps to the leader. Hamilton Jr. reentered the event in the 27th position.

„X Hamilton Jr. came down pit road again on lap 120 for four tires and fuel and again on lap 132 for a right front shock absorber change. Hamilton Jr.¡¦s lap times over the last fifty laps were impressive but to no avail. He finished in the 26th position.

Johnny Benson won the New Hampshire 200, marking his fourth NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series victory - all this season. Mike Skinner, Kyle Busch, Todd Bodine and David Starr rounded out the top five. The next stop for the NCTS competitors is the Smith¡¦s 350 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Saturday September 23rd at 9:15pm ET.