Texas trucks is Todd Bodine country

By Jared Turner
Special to the Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

(June 2, 2010)

Being the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series points leader isn’t Todd Bodine’s only reason to smile.

After taking the series lead with a runner-up finish May 21 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Bodine heads to Texas Motor Speedway for Friday night’s WinStar World Casino 400 as the undisputed master of Texas’ 1.5-mile quad-oval.

Bodine, who holds a two-point lead in the standings over Aric Almirola, has rolled up a Texas-record five wins in his eight top fives in 11 starts at TMS.

But perhaps just as important as his impressive record at Texas is the momentum Bodine carries into Friday’s race—six top fives in the first seven races of the season. All that’s missing is a win—and there’s probably no place where he’s more likely to find victory lane than Texas.

“You go there with a little kick in your step knowing that you’ve got the opportunity to win and that you can do it knowing that you’ve had the success in the past there,” said Bodine, the 2006 series champion and a winner of 17 truck races. “You can’t be cocky, you can’t be overconfident, because you’ve still got to go do it again, but just the fact we know we’ve been there, we can get around good, we’ve had good trucks, we feel like it’s our house and its ours to go win at.”

Just what exactly makes Bodine so strong at Texas, a track where horsepower and handling are equally critical to success?

“It’s a fast track,” Bodine said. “You’ve got to carry a lot of momentum through the corner. The truck’s got to really roll the center of the corner well, and that’s one thing I’ve always concentrated on doing as a driver is making sure I roll the corner well and being able to get off the corner fast. And I think if there’s anything (to my success) that would be it.”

As much as Bodine would like to bag his sixth Texas victory, he is also mindful of the points situation. With a slim lead over Almirola and the top 10 in the standings separated by 193 points, Bodine could lose the series lead with the slightest misstep.

But unlike Almirola and third-place Timothy Peters, who are both relative newcomers to the trucks, he has the advantage of experience in championship battles.

Bodine, 46, has finished no worse than fourth in points the past five years. He also has a handful of top-five points finishes in the Nationwide Series, including runner-up in 1997.

“Todd has ‘been there and done that,’ and he probably feels a lot less pressure about it than I do,” said Almirola, 26. “He’s already proven that he can win a championship. I think he has that going for him. We’re really trying to not worry or concentrate on who we’re racing in the points. We’re just racing ourselves. We’ve done the math. We know that we have to run 10th to sixth, if not better, every single weekend. It’s going to be tough all year long, and everybody’s going to have to be on their A game.”

Bodine’s experience is definitely an advantage.

“The last four weeks is when it gets really tough,” Bodine said. “I think anybody that hasn’t been in that position, that’s when their toughness is going to show up. I’ve done this battle thing a couple times in Nationwide and now in the trucks a couple times, so it’s kind of old hat. We don’t worry about it even if it’s time to worry. We just go do the best we can and whatever happens, happens.”

Fast facts

What: WinStar World Casino 400K
Where: Texas Motor Speedway; Fort Worth, Texas
When: 9 p.m. ET Friday
TV: Speed, 8:30 p.m. ET
Radio: MRN/SIRIUS Satellite Ch. 128
Track layout: 1.5-mile oval
Race distance: 167 laps/400 kilometers/250.5 miles
Qualifying: 7 p.m. Thursday
2009 winner: Todd Bodine
2009 polesitter: Johnny Sauter
Points leaders: 1. Todd Bodine, 1,068; 2. Aric Almirola, 1,066; 3. Timothy Peters, 982; 4. Ron Hornaday Jr., 965; 5. Matt Crafton, 902; 6. Johnny Sauter, 888; 7. Ricky Carmichael, 886; 8. Mike Skinner, 884; 9. Jason White, 875; 10. David Starr, 875.