Mooresville, NC | 09-27-2005

Billy Ballew Motorsports returned to Las Vegas Motor Speedway this past weekend for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race with hopes of repeating their 2004 victory.  However, luck wasn’t on their side this time around and the No. 15 ditech.com Chevrolet with driver David Gilliland finished in 22nd position.  Gilliland, who was making his NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series debut, was BBM’s eighth driver this season.

The two morning practice sessions were critical for Gilliland and the No. 15 team.  With Gilliland having limited experience in a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series vehicle, the goal was to get him acquainted with the No. 15 ditech.com Chevrolet Silverado and Las Vegas Motor Speedway as quickly as possible.  The first session had him as 26th quickest, although he complained of being too free.  The team made several changes during the practice session, as well as during the brief break between the two practices, including changing the right front spindle.

The second practice session proved to be dramatically different than the first.  Gilliland went out and said the truck was much better and he was happy with the changes.  The team made some small adjustments and hoped to send Gilliland out to make a mock qualifying run.  However, two trucks got in the way of the No. 15 ditech.com Chevrolet in their attempt at the mock run, so the team never truly knew what the truck and driver were capable of doing.

“It’s tough for a rookie to come in here (the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series) because of the tire rule,” said Gilliland.  “We need to practice, but we need to save tires for the race too.  So, how much time do you spend in practice trying to get the truck right but not wearing out your sets of tires?  We got messed up in our mock qualifying run when two guys drove in front of me, but I knew the truck was good and ready for qualifying.”

The truck might’ve been good in the final practice session, but Gilliland found out the No. 15 was still a bit free during qualifying.  Gilliland lost control of the truck in turns three and four during the first of his two qualifying laps.  The momentum he lost cost him in turning in a faster second lap, clocking in with an official time of 33.984 secs., placing the No. 15 ditech.com Chevrolet 30th on the starting grid.

Good luck did fall Gilliland’s way on lap two when a multi-car crash occurred right in front of him.  Gilliland drove through the melee, safe from harm, as some of the other competitors Gilliland was battling did not have the same fate.  “I just eased off the gas and picked a line,” explained Gilliland during the red flag.  “It was like ‘Days of Thunder’.”

After running several laps, Gilliland radioed into crew chief Richie Wauters about the handling of the truck.  “It’s way too tight in the center,” said Gilliland.  “I’m super tight behind people.  I can’t get on the gas coming off and it’s sliding both front tires.”  A long green flag run caused the No. 15 Chevrolet to go a lap down on lap 40.  The team was forced to make a pit stop under green.  Wauters called for several changes during the stop, including adjustments to the track bar, wedge and left front shock.  During the second caution period 10 laps later, Gilliland brought the No. 15 back down pit road for more changes.

On lap 90, the No. 15 ditech.com Chevrolet suffered a flat right front tire and was forced to come back down pit road for right side tires under green flag conditions, dropping Gilliland from one down to three laps down to the leaders.  Gilliland still had a tight condition that didn’t seem to be able to be cured with Wauters’ numerous adjustments to the No. 15.  Gilliland would ride the remainder of the race to finish in 22nd position.

“The race didn’t turn out as good as we’d liked it to,” said Gilliland following the race.  “The truck was tight the entire race and we made a lot of adjustments, but the changes just didn’t work.  I wish I could’ve had a better showing for ditech.com and Billy Ballew Motorsports.  It’s always easy to think about how much better you can do, but you do all you can do.  Luck wasn’t on our side tonight.”

The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series takes a three-week break before returning to action at Martinsville Speedway in Martinsville, Va.  Kyle Busch will once again be behind the wheel of the No. 15 Chevrolet when racing resumes on Saturday, October 22.

Mooresville, NC | 09-20-2005

Gilliland to Take Reigns of No. 15 at Las Vegas

Billy Ballew Motorsports returns to Las Vegas Motor Speedway where the team captured the coveted victory in 2004.  It was the first NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series win for Billy Ballew Motorsports who has since captured two more victories with Kyle Busch piloting the No. 15 ditech.com Chevrolet Silverado.  Busch is unable to compete in this weekend’s event due to his NASCAR NEXTEL Cup obligations, but recommended good friend David Gilliland to team owner Billy Ballew.  Gilliland, 29, will make his NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series debut in Saturday’s Las Vegas 350.

“I’m really excited and looking forward to making my NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series debut at Las Vegas,” said Gilliland, a Calif. native.  “I’m running with a well known team and this is the best opportunity I’ve ever had.  I want to have a good run for Billy (Ballew, team owner) and Richie (Wauters, crew chief).  Just like everybody else wanting to move up through the ranks, I have to go out and prove myself because I know there are going to be people watching me.”

“We’re excited to welcome another young, eager driver into our program,” said team owner Billy Ballew.  “David came highly recommended by Kyle (Busch) and Kyle’s word is worth a lot to me.  David’s had much success in the West Series and we’re looking forward to seeing what he can do in the No. 15 ditech.com Chevrolet.  He has a lot to live up to since we return as defending champions, but we won’t put too much pressure on him.”

Gilliland recently tested with the BBM team at Richmond International Raceway to get a feel for the Chevrolet Silverado and establish a level of communication with Wauters.  “The test went really well at Richmond,” Gilliland continues.  “Richie and I work really well together and having that confidence in each other is going to help us when we roll onto the track at Las Vegas.”

Gilliland currently competes in the NASCAR Grand National Division, West Series.  He has one victory and two poles this year and currently sits fourth in the series points standings.  Gilliland’s father, Butch, competed in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series in the mid to late 90s, as well as competing in the West Series, where he captured the 1997 championship with David serving as crew chief.  Gilliland has two previous starts at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway which he hopes will help in the learning curve for the NCTS.

“I love Las Vegas (Motor Speedway),” Gilliland added.  “I have run there twice in West competition and seem to run well at the bigger tracks.  The team isn’t putting any extra pressure on me to repeat their victory from a year ago, but it’d be nice to be able to run well and have a good showing for Billy Ballew Motorsports and ditech.com to thank them for the opportunity.”

“As far as the city of Las Vegas is concerned,” Gilliland continues, “it’s always fun to travel to.  I like to gamble, so I’m sure you’ll find me in the casino or since we’re staying at the Stratosphere, I’ll be sure to ride the roller coaster there.  I’m looking forward to the whole trip.  It will be a good time.”

Gilliland will be signing autographs at the Stratosphere Hotel & Casino on Friday, September 23 from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.  The Stratosphere will also be featured on the No. 15 ditech.com Chevrolet in the race from Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

The Las Vegas 350 gets underway at 9:15 ET from the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.  Check out all the action live on SPEED Channel, MRN and XM Satellite Radio.

Mooresville, NC | 09-19-2005

With less than 30 laps remaining in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series’ Sylvania 200 at New Hampshire International Speedway, Kyle Busch and the No. 15 ditech.com Chevrolet charged from 22nd position to capture seventh place honors when the checkered flag waved.  A late pit stop cost the Billy Ballew Motorsports team valuable track position, but Busch forged ahead and made the most of what he had to gain 15 spots within 28 laps.

Busch’s first laps on “The Magic Mile” were Friday morning under overcast skies.  Within minutes on the track, Busch radioed in to crew chief Richie Wauters.  “I like it,” said Busch.  “It’s really good.  I’m a little loose off, but it’s good.  I’m afraid if you try to fix the loose condition, it’ll hurt the center.”  The only changes made during the practice session were for new front shocks.  A serious chance of threatening rain showers forced the Billy Ballew Motorsports team to make their mock qualifying run during the first practice where they posted the third fastest time.  During the second practice, Busch and the No. 15 Chevrolet made several laps on the one-mile oval, seeing how the tires and truck would react to long green flag runs.  Busch had no complaints and was ready for qualifying on Saturday.

An early draw for qualifying hurt Busch’s chances of getting a top-10 starting position.  The track got faster as the session continued.  A lap of 30.084 seconds placed Busch in the 16th starting spot for the 200-lap race.

By lap 10, Busch had gained four positions, but was complaining the No. 15 ditech.com Chevrolet was super tight.  “The right rear tire is not as responsive as it used to be.  I’m still tight in the center and up off the corner.”  When the second caution flag waved on lap 56, Busch brought the No. 15 down pit road to the attention of the Billy Ballew Motorsports team.  The crew changed four tires, adjusted the track bar and air pressure, and pulled one piece of tape off the nose.  Unfortunately, Busch lost four spots on pit road after being blocked in by another competitor and had trouble getting out of his stall.

Busch restarted in 19th place and within 10 laps had moved up to the 11th position.  Busch radioed into the crew during the third caution on lap 74 saying the truck was a lot better. “It’s still a bit snug off, but we’ll keep messing with it and see.”  By the halfway mark of the race, Busch had charged up to the fifth position.  Knowing they wouldn’t be able to make it on fuel, the team pitted during the fifth caution on lap 108 for four sticker tires and fuel.  When the race resumed, Busch was on a rampage to make his way to the front.  He went three wide for fourth position, and by lap 125 had taken the lead.  The lead was short-lived, as a caution flag waved on lap 129 for an incident on the track.  Still going to be short on fuel, Wauters made the call to bring Busch back down for a gas-only stop.  Busch restarted in 12th position and was up to ninth when the yellow flag waved for the eighth time.  Thinking most of the leaders were going to be unable to make it on fuel, the call was made to come back down pit road for tires and a trackbar adjustment.  The stop proved costly, as the leaders didn’t pit and moved the No. 15 ditech.com Chevrolet to the 22nd position for the restart.

Busch was determined to make his way back up to the front with less than 30 laps remaining.  One last caution on lap 193 helped Busch make up some ground and from the restart on lap 196, he gained five spots in four laps to complete the race in seventh position.  The top-10 finish moved Billy Ballew Motorsports up from ninth place to sixth place in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Owners Points Standings.

“We got killed on track position when we pitted on lap 170,” said Busch.  “We thought more were going to pit and we’d be in good position.  The guys did a great job with the No. 15 ditech.com Chevrolet.  We were a little tight during the race, and we had a better truck than that, but we’ll go get them at the next one.”

Busch’s next race with Billy Ballew Motorsports will be October 22 at Martinsville Speedway in Martinsville, Va.  The next race for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is this Saturday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Mooresville, NC | 09-14-2005

After a disappointing run last week in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series’ event at Richmond International Raceway, Kyle Busch aims to recapture the momentum he carries while piloting the No. 15 Ditech.com Chevrolet Silverado for Billy Ballew Motorsports.  This weekend, Busch will take to the New Hampshire International Speedway for the running of the Sylvania 200 on Saturday afternoon.

“I am looking forward to running in the Craftsman Truck Series at New Hampshire,” said Busch. “I have never run there in a truck so it’s going to be a good learning experience for me. It will help me learn about the race track and what to expect for Sunday’s race. Racing for Billy Ballew is so much fun and even though we had a tough night last week in Richmond, we are hoping for a much better performance and this team is totally capable of that.”

Busch has two previous starts at NHIS, once earlier this year in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series and n last year’s NASCAR Busch Series race, but will be making his first start in a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series event.  Busch had an impressive run in his debut in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series race at NHIS back in July, qualifying seventh and finishing in fourth position.  The Billy Ballew Motorsports team qualified in the eighth position in this race last year, and was the most dominant truck until running out of gas with less than 10 laps to go, placing the No. 15 Chevrolet in 20th position in the final rundown.

Ditech.com also returns as the primary sponsor on the No. 15 Chevrolet Silverado.  Originally planned as a two-race deal with Busch at Bristol and Richmond, Ditech.com’s support has increased to include this weekend’s event at New Hampshire International Speedway.

Last week’s misfortune cost the team three spots in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Owners’ Points standings.  Billy Ballew Motorsports and the No. 15 team sit in ninth position, after being as high as fourth earlier this year.  With seven races remaining, the team remains optimistic about regaining those lost spots and finishing in the top-five, especially returning to Las Vegas Motor Speedway next weekend, where the team captured their first victory last year.