Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
After heading into the unexpected at Kansas Speedway, Matt Crafton found the opportunity to reach victory lane for the third time in his career.
Crafton took the lead after making a late race charge to the front in one of the final restarts in a race that was filled with wrecks. After taking the lead it was a race to the finish with Joey Coulter for the win, with Crafton taking the checkered flag and his first win of the year.
The win at Kansas ends Crafton’s winless streak, his last win was at Iowa in 2011.
Closing out the top five were Coulter, Ryan Blaney, Brendan Gaughan and Johnny Sauter.
In a race that was crash-filled, it definitely brought the unexpected. The cautions begin to flag when Kyle Busch spun and went in to the grass. Following the caution with Busch plenty of more wrecks occurred as well as engine problems with a couple of teams.
The red flag even made an appearance for 12 minutes after a wreck between Brennan Newberry and Todd Bodine. Bodine took a hard hit and it left debris scattered all over the track.
At the start of the race, the Turner Scott Motorsports drivers began the race at the front after dominating for most of the weekend. Teammates James Buescher and Miguel Paludo raced each other hard for the lead until Paludo’s day came to an end after contact between the two.
Leaving Kansas some drivers left the track with great results. Points-leader Sauter extended his lead after capturing a top-five finish. Coulter was able to capture a great finish and improve after a bit of a slow start to the season. Jennifer Jo Cobb also improved on her season after capturing a 17th place finish after issues earlier in the year.
The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series heads into a break until they return at Charlotte in May and when they return many drivers will be anxious to return and to improve from their results in Kansas.
Christy Valdez is a NASCAR writer for Rant Sports. Follow her on Twitter @Knowursports and on Facebook at On The Sidelines With Christy
