The last time the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series competed at the Atlanta Motor Speedway, the No. 15 Chevrolet of Billy Ballew Motorsports rolled into victory lane with 20-year-old Kyle Busch behind the wheel. When the series heads to AMS for this Friday night’s John Deere 200, there’s still a 20-year-old Kyle piloting the No. 15 ditech.com/Krud Kutter Chevrolet. However, it’s Raybestos Rookie of the year contender Kyle Krisiloff, and he’s hoping the results are the same when the race concludes.

“Atlanta is a really big race for us,” said Krisiloff. “Billy Ballew Motorsports has run well in the past and Kyle Busch won the last truck race there. It is definitely the kind of race track I enjoy running. It shouldn’t take me too long to get used to the track because of my limited experience in ASA at the track. I really want to run well for all of Billy’s close friends nearby and more importantly everyone at Krud Kutter who will be in attendance.”

Team owner Billy Ballew is from nearby Blairsville, Ga. and the team’s major associate sponsor, Krud Kutter, is based in Cumming, Ga. The team’s thrilling victory in October helped secure Krud Kutter’s support for the 2006 season, when their first foray into NASCAR resulted in a win. The team also has the help of numerous other local sponsors, including Alpharetta Self Storage, Woodstock Furniture Outlet, Spondivits and the Crowne Plaza Hotel-Airport.

“We’re lucky enough to have the support of several area businesses,” said Ballew. “With this being my home track, it’s nice to have them on board. We were able to pick up the victory last year with Kyle Busch here, and that was my most exciting moment since getting into the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. I’m sure Kyle (Krisiloff) will do his best to get the No. 15 ditech.com/Krud Kutter Chevrolet up front and in contention for a great finish.”

Although Krisiloff is a rookie in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, he has competed at the 1.54-mile quad-oval of Atlanta Motor Speedway previously. In 2004, Krisiloff ran in the now-defunct ASA Series’ race at AMS, and was running in the top-10 before getting caught up in an accident with less than 10 laps to go.

Krisiloff is running the same truck he raced at California Speedway where he finished in 19th place. Krisiloff currently sits in second place in the Raybestos Rookie of the Year standings, while the team sits in 22nd place in the Owners Standings.

The John Deere 200 gets underway at 9:15 p.m. from Atlanta Motor Speedway. The race will be broadcast live on SPEED Channel and PRN Radio.