Mooresville, NC | 08-31-2005

John Andretti passed more trucks in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Nashville Superspeedway this past Saturday than any other competitor.  Although he finished in 11th position, and according to the stats, only passed 14 trucks from his 25th place starting position, Andretti moved his No. 15 Memphis Convention and Visitors Bureau Chevrolet through the field three times to gain numerous positions.

During the two practice sessions held on Friday afternoon, Andretti complained the truck was tight off the corners.  Crew chief Ritchie Wauters called for shock and spring changes, as well as trackbar adjustments.  Time ran out during the last practice for the team to get back on the track for a mock qualifying run.  Andretti would find out what he had during qualifying held on Saturday morning.

Qualifying was held on race morning during the heat of the day.  Andretti qualified the Billy Ballew Motorsports-entry 25th on the grid.  As in the previous races with the No. 15 team, Andretti knew starting in the rear would not be a factor in his goal of making his way to the front.  Within two laps and the first caution, Andretti had already picked off four spots and was in 21st position.

During the second caution on lap eight, Andretti radioed, “The truck’s pretty good.  I can get into (turn) three, there’s no bumps, but I hit the bumps in (turn) one.”  Around laps 24-34, Andretti noted the truck was starting to get a little loose, but he had worked his way all the way up to the 11th position in 30 laps.

Andretti’s first pit stop came during the third caution on lap 42.  A disastrous stop for the No. 15 team cost Andretti at least 10 spots.  He returned to the track to restart the race in 21st place, determined to make up ground from the pit stop.  Within three laps, he had gained five spots and when the fourth caution waved on lap 54, Andretti said, “I’m trying something totally different and it seems to be working.  I’m having more fun racing these guys than I would if I was leading.”

Before the race went back green, Wauters told Andretti to try and get all he could get during the next few laps.  Being quite comical during the caution, Andretti called back and said, “I try to get all I can every lap.  It just doesn’t seem to be working during qualifying.”

The fifth caution flag waved on lap 72 and the No. 15 Memphis Convention and Visitors Bureau Chevrolet was up to the ninth position with just a few laps shy of the halfway point.  On the restart, Andretti went high, appearing to have a flat tire.  The No. 15 dropped all the way to the rear of the field and was about to make a pit stop when the caution waved for an accident on the track.  Andretti brought the truck in for four new tires and a trackbar adjustment to cure the loose condition.

Andretti restarted in the 25th position and by lap 113 when the seventh caution came out, Andretti was up to the 14th spot and was pitting for another set of tires and three more rounds down on the trackbar.  The No. 15 restarted in 18th place and made its way back to the 11th position when the checkered flag waved.

“I put myself in that one hole,” said Andretti following the race.  “I should’ve known better.  I’ve got more experience than that.  I went into (turns) one and two and got loose, and then I went into (turns) three and four and about nearly lost it.  They told me I didn’t have a flat, so maybe I didn’t scrub the tires well enough.  I could get through the traffic pretty well, and we weren’t bad by ourselves.  We had a good truck and kept adjusting on it.  I was having a lot of fun out there.  I want to thank Billy Ballew and the whole team for their hard work and the opportunity to drive the No. 15 Memphis Convention and Visitors Bureau Chevrolet these past few races.  I’ve enjoyed it a lot and hope to be able to drive again in the future.”

The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series takes a weekend off before heading to “The World’s Fastest Half-Mile” in Bristol, Tenn. to compete in the O’Reilly 200 on Wednesday, August 24 at 9:15 p.m. ET.