No. 88 Shasta/Menards Ford F-150
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Chicagoland Speedway – Overton’s 225
Race No. 11 of 23
Team Info/Stats:
Crew Chief: Carl “Junior” Joiner, Jr.
Driver Point Standings: 7th
Owner Point Standings: 9th
Spotter: Stevie Reeves
News and Notes:
- This Week’s No. 88 Shasta/Menards Ford F-150… The No. 88 ThorSport Racing team will unload chassis No. 66 for Friday night’s NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) Overton’s 225 at Chicagoland Speedway. This chassis, which was built new in 2018, made its debut at Texas Motor Speedway earlier this month, finishing fifth. Additionally, this chassis was renumbered chassis No. “26” by crew chief Carl “Junior” Joiner for good luck. Juniors lucky number is 26, he celebrated his birthday Tuesday, June 26, and his grandfather drove car No. 26.
- Windy City Stats… Crafton has nine career starts at Chicagoland Speedway since 2009. The Menards driver’s success includes one pole (2009), and 38 laps led en route to three top-five, and five top-10 finishes.
- Intermediate Track Stats… No current NCWTS driver is better at intermediate-size (1.5 or 1.54-mile) tracks than Crafton. In 148 starts, the ThorSport Racing driver has nine wins, eight poles and has led 1,210 laps en route to 14 runner-up finishes, 48 top-five and 91 top-10 finishes.
- Take me back – Chicago, 2017…. Starting fifth, Crafton finished seventh in Stage 1, and third in Stage 2, but a spin on lap 107 of 150 relegated the ThorSport Racing driver to a 16th-place finish.
- Race Rewind – Gateway… Crafton started sixth at Gateway Motorsports Park Saturday, but an alternator issue late in the 160-lap event left the No. 88 Menards team with a 20th-place finish in the 10th race on the 2018 NCWTS schedule.
- 2018 Stats… In 10 starts this season, Crafton has led 35 laps en route to three top-five, and four top-10 finishes. The Menards driver has a season-best start of second (Atlanta & Martinsville), and a season-best finish of second (Dover).
- Veteran-Size Stats… Crafton holds the record for consecutive starts (417) in the NCWTS. Among his success in the past 17 seasons, the two-time champion has earned 13 poles, and led 2,491 laps en route to 14 wins, 105 top-five and 246 top-10 finishes.
- About Shasta… Shasta Beverages is an American soft drink manufacturer which markets a value-priced soft drink line with a wide variety of soda flavors under the brand name Shasta Soda. For more information visit:com
Chatting with Matt Crafton…
“Chicago’s widened out a lot, and it widened out fairly quick. There are multiple grooves, and the bottom’s fast, without a doubt. When the tires start to fall off, you can run all the way against the fence. This race usually puts on a great show, and hopefully it does the same thing again this year.”
