Bobby Hamilton Jr. and his No. 18 Fastenal Dodge fell victim to the tight demanding corners of one of America¡¦s most challenging short tracks. Martinsville Speedway, a diminutive .526 mile short track nestled in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, is notorious for the toll it takes on race drivers and their equipment, and on Saturday afternoon it claimed another casualty when Hamilton Jr.¡¦s Dodge suffered a rear end gear failure on lap 88 of the Kroger 200 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series event. As a result Hamilton Jr. finished the event in the 32nd position.

No. 18 Fastenal Dodge Martinsville Race Recap

•  Hamilton Jr. qualified his Fastenal Dodge in the 14th position during Friday¡¦s late evening qualifying session.
• Hamilton Jr. brought his Fastenal Dodge down Martinsville¡¦s extremely tight pit road for the first time on lap 33 of the 200 lap event. His crew changed two left side tires, added fuel and made an air pressure adjustment designed to provide him with more forward bite. Hamilton Jr. entered the pits in the 16th position and exited in the 17th spot.
• During the ensuing green flag run Hamilton Jr. informed crew chief Danny Gill that his truck was not responding to the two tire change. ¡§We still don¡¦t have enough forward bite. I can back up the corner and get it to turn but I am still spinning the wheels coming off the corner. We need to put four tires on this thing when we get a chance.
• On lap 66, under caution, Hamilton Jr. once again brought his Fastenal Dodge to the attention of his crew. This time they bolted on four fresh Goodyear tires and made two significant chassis adjustments in order to bolster the performance of Hamilton¡¦s Dodge. Hamilton Jr. left the pits in the 26th position.
• 20 laps into Hamilton Jr.¡¦s next run misfortune struck the Fastenal Dodge. Hamilton Jr. asked his crew, ¡§Am I leaking something?¡¨ Two laps later NASCAR black flagged the No. 18 and Hamilton Jr. headed to the garage area where the rear end gear failure was diagnosed. His Fastenal crew worked feverishly to install a new rear end gear and quickly as possible made the repairs. Hamilton Jr. returned to the fray on lap 132 in the 35th position. He was able to reclaim three spots over the closing laps and finished in the 32nd position.  

Jack Sprague won the Kroger 200. David Starr, Eric Darnell, Mark Martin and Johnny Benson rounded out the top five finishers.