| | Associated Press
Results
MADISON, Ill. -- Jack Sprague settled a season-old score
with Gateway International Raceway, steamrolling the opposition
Sunday to win the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series' Ram Tough 200.
The defending series champion, winless in six prior starts in
2000, led 145 of the $500,000 race's 160 laps around the 1.25-mile
superspeedway.
Unchallenged after the 125-lap mark, Sprague's Chevrolet held a
7.032-second lead over Jimmy Hensley's similar Silverado at the
checkered flag.
Sprague's average speed of 113.726 mph was a record for the
200-mile distance. He won for the 17th time in a record-matching
five consecutive seasons, picking up $50,440 for the victory.
A year ago, Sprague was similarly dominant, leading four times,
but a poor pit stop cost him track position and led to a
third-place finish. On Sunday, he was as perfect on pit road as on
the race track.
"We never changed lefts (left side tires) the whole day and I
couldn't believe it," said Sprague, who took the lead for good on
the 23rd lap when he passed polesitter and defending race champion
Greg Biffle. "This thing just hauled the mail.
"The pit stops were great. I just can't say enough about my
guys."
The late-race drama involved the second-place position, which
Randy Tolsma's Dodge had held since before the 40th lap. Hensley,
forced to pit under the race's first caution to fix a miss in his
engine, rallied back to catch and pass Tolsma on the 155th of 160
circuits on the 1¼-mile track.
Tolsma settled for third-place, his first top-five effort of the
season. Biffle, lapped briefly by Sprague on Lap 120, was fourth in
his Ford. Joe Ruttman, forced to start 30th on the field after
NASCAR invalidated his qualifying effort for a fuel infraction, was
fifth in a Dodge.
The first five finishers were the only drivers on the lead lap
at the end.
Steve Grissom, a lap behind, finished sixth, followed by point
leader Mike Wallace, Bryan Reffner, Terry Cook and Randy Renfrow.
Wallace, who started the season's seventh race with 39-point
lead over Andy Houston, stretched the advantage to 60 over Sprague.
Houston, who finished 24th after hitting the wall twice and making
unscheduled pit stops for repairs, dropped to third in the
standings.
Sprague and Biffle were the only leaders of the race, exchanging
the No. 1 position three times.
Just one of three caution flags was caused by accident. Doug
George's Dodge was eliminated by a collision with the outside wall
in the second turn.
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AUDIO/VIDEO
 Jack Sprague trucks through his competition at the Gateway International Raceway
avi: 2169 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
 Jack Sprague wins NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series' Ram Tough 200 without a tire change.
wav: 186 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
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