NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Hanes 250 Preview: #16, Ron Hornaday

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23 September 1997

 #16 Ron Hornaday, NAPA Chevrolet 
 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series
 Hanes 250 Advance
 Martinsville Speedway

             HORNADAY LOOKING FOR TOP FINISH AT MARTINSVILLE


MARTINSVILLE, VA - The NAPA Brakes team heads to Martinsville
Speedway, Martinsville, Va., this weekend looking for a top finish in
the Hanes 250 NASCAR Truck Series race. This will be race 21 of 26 for
the series. NAPA Brakes driver Ron Hornaday is third in the
championship point standings (159 behind leader Rich Bickle) and is
looking for a good finish at Martinsville to keep him in the fight for
the prestigious NASCAR title.  Hornaday was the points leader last
year leaving Martinsville. He led Mike Skinner by 132.

 - Hornaday and the NAPA team tested at Martinsville for two days this
past week. The team was pleased with the test. NAPA crew chief Fred
Graves (this will be Grave's first truck race at Martinsville) hopes
to record a top finish at the flat, tight 0.526-mile track. He feels
that leaving Martinsville with the NAPA Chevy in one piece, and having
a strong run, will keep the team pumped up for the season-ending West
Coast swing (the series concludes the season with five races in six
weeks out West).

 - The NAPA team will use the Chevy truck named "Melissa" this weekend
in Martinsville. She last won at the short track in Flemington, NJ
(Hornaday's last win). Melissa has 11 career victories. She comes to
Martinsville after getting cosmetic surgery after her last start in
Nashville, Tenn., in August (finished second). Not only did she
receive a face life (new nose piece), but the old gal toned up her
body (new sides).

 - With a win at Martinsville, Hornaday would tie the series record
for most wins in a season: 8 (held by Mike Skinner).

QUOTES:

NAPA Brakes driver Ron Hornaday on this weekend's Martinsville race:

"Martinsville is a tough place. It is real tough on your equipment,
especially the brakes. It has tight, flat turns. It takes a lot of
brake to slow down these trucks that weight 3,400 pounds and have 700
horsepower under the hood. The NAPA Brakes Chevy has great brakes, and
I feel we have some of the best equipment. It will be up to me to race
the track for the first 200 laps to make sure we have something to
race for the last 50."

Comments from Ron Hornaday on the championship battle:

"We need to keep doing what we have been doing. Coming to the track
with our NAPA Chevys well-prepared. Fred Graves (crew chief) has done
a great job with this team. I feel we will be a contender for the
championship again this year. We are racing to win every weekend. That
is all we can do. If Sprague (points leader) or Bickle (second) slip,
we will be able to capitalize on that."

               Ron Hornaday's Martinsville Statistics

          Date     St   Fn   Laps     Money Won      Status
          9/21/96   7    4  255(255)    8,450        Running
          9/25/95   3   13  150(150)    3,300        Running

Ron Hornaday is currently third in NASCAR Truck Series points. 

By Champion Sports Group