Bodine Finally Finds Victory Lane at Daytona

AP
Published: February 15, 2008

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) - It took Todd Bodine 17 years to get
his first victory at Daytona International Speedway.
Bodine held off a late push from Kyle Busch and Johnny Benson to
win the season-opening truck race at Daytona on Friday night.
Bodine needed 34 tries at NASCAR’s most famous track to get to
Victory Lane, winning the Chevy Silverado 250.
The 2006 Craftsman Truck Series champion passed Erik Darnell
coming off pit road with about 13 laps to go, then stayed out front
the rest of the way.
Busch was second, followed by Benson, David Starr and Rick
Crawford - giving Toyota the top four spots.
Busch waited patiently to make a move on Bodine and drove high
with a few hundred feet to go. Bodine blocked him up the track,
which allowed Benson to get a run on the inside. It wasn’t enough,
though.
Bodine edged both by a bumper.
It set off a wild celebration for Bodine, whose brother, Geoff,
won the 1986 Daytona 500.
“I tell you this is my 20th year coming to this speedway, three
years as a crew member, 17 as a driver,” Bodine said. “I’ve
finished second and third, crashed hard, burned up. Seventeen years
of getting here, and we’re here.”
Darnell looked like he would be the guy to beat in the second
half of the caution-filled race.
But Darnell lost the lead coming off pit road - Bodine simply
drove by him - then lost any chance he had of winning a few seconds
later.
Believing he had a loose wheel, Darnell slowed down coming off
turn four to head to back pit road and got hit from behind by
Justin Marks.
The final accident of the night certainly made it easier for
Bodine.
There were several early wrecks, hardly uncommon for a truck
race at Daytona.
The biggest and most dramatic of the bunch came on lap 20, when
Busch, Mike Skinner and Brendan Gaughan started a nine-truck crash
that ended with P.J. Jones jumping out of his enflamed Ford.
Gaughan nudged Skinner on the backstretch, turning Skinner into
Busch who was diving from the top to the bottom of the track.
Andy Lally, Jon Wood, Chad Chaffin and Matt Crafton also got
caught up in the mess. Several drivers blamed Busch, who sustained
less damage than everyone else.
“Kyle will just say, ‘I’ll race tomorrow,” Gaughan said. “He
doesn’t care about this. It’s just fun time.”
Added Skinner: “Awfully early in the race to be making those
moves all over the track.”
Afterward, Busch said he apologized “if I was to blame for
that.”
Racing resumed after a 17-minute stoppage and four laps under
caution. But it didn’t last.
Joey Clayton spun Mike Bliss, who darted up the track and
slammed Terry Cook into the wall. Bliss then slid back down and
collected Colin Braun and Justin Marks with him.