NASCAR Craftsman Truck Stevens Beil/Genuine Car Parts 200 Preview: #24, Jack Sprague
7 August 1997
#24 Jack Sprague, Quaker State Chevrolet NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Stevens Beil/Genuine Car Parts 200 Flemington Speedway QUAKER STATE DRIVER SPRAGUE READY TO DEFEND POINTS LEAD AT FLEMINGTON SPEEDWAY FLEMINGTON, NJ - Quaker State's Jack Sprague is literally in the driver's seat for the Stevens Beil/Genuine Car Parts 200 race this weekend at Flemington Speedway. Sprague, driver of the Quaker State Chevrolet, overtook the NASCAR Craftsman championship points lead from Rich Bickle last week at Indianapolis Raceway Park with a second-place finish in the Cummins 200. "We've worked hard all season to get here and I'm not going to let it (points lead) get away," said an excited Sprague. "It's ours to win or lose and I'm confident we're going all the way." Ironically, Sprague's success in the Craftsman Truck Series started with a one-race sponsorship from team owner Rick Hendrick at Flemington Speedway midway through the 1995 season. After going from purse to purse for the first 13 races with team owner Butch Miller, the team ran out of money, and in mid-August, Sprague was without a ride. Hendrick was so impressed with Sprague's success with an underfunded team that he provided Sprague with a one-race deal. Sprague placed fourth in that race, then the best short-track finish of his career. "Flemington is our best short track on the circuit," noted Sprague. "This is the track where it all began for me with the #24 Hendrick truck and I'm not going to let Rick or the team down." The Quaker State team looks to improve on last year's fifth-place finish at the 0.625-mile track at Flemington. The team has spent a lot of time and energy testing on short tracks in preparation for the championship this year. Sprague has compiled an impressive run on the short track this season with three top-10s with three top-fives in seven events. "Short tracks are tricky. You can't make mistakes because you don't have time to catch up if you do make a mistake," Sprague said. "Flemington is a lot like that. You've got to be careful. You can't really go full throttle. One mistake can really hurt you." Sprague is currently leading Rich Bickle by 10 points in the standings with 2,386. Sprague has 13 top-10s, nine top-fives and two wins in 16 races this year. He has four Busch Pole Awards and surpassed the million dollar mark in career earnings with his second-place finish last week in Indianapolis, bringing his total to $1,008,067. By Muhleman Marketing