Bristol: Toyota Motorsports preview

THIS RACE: The O'Reilly Auto Parts 200 will be the ninth NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (NCTS) race at Bristol Motor Speedway. There will be eight Toyota Tundras in the field at the Tennessee short track -- the 17th NCTS race of the 2006 season.

LAST RACE: In the most recent race of the 2006 NCTS season -- the Toyota Tundra 200 at Nashville Superspeedway (Aug.12) -- Tundra drivers Mike Skinner and Todd Bodine got tangled together while running first and second on the final lap. Johnny Benson passed both drivers on the final lap in his No.23 Toyota Certified Used Vehicles Tundra and crossed the finish line first. Tundra drivers Jack Sprague (second) and Ted Musgrave (fourth) also registered top-five finishes at Nashville.

BENSON BACK: Johnny Benson's win at Nashville enabled him to return to victory lane for the third time this season. Earlier this year, Benson recorded back-to-back NCTS wins at Michigan (June 17) and Milwaukee (June 23). "Anything goes on the last lap," said Benson, following the race. "I was thinking we were going to finish third until I saw them (Mike Skinner and Todd Bodine) going into turn one. They were nowhere near the racing groove and I knew they had their hands full. They weren't worrying about me -- they were worrying about themselves. I didn't think either one of them was going to make the corner -- and I was able to clear them."

TOYOTA NOW HAS 21: Johnny Benson's victory in the Toyota Tundra 200 at Nashville Superspeedway was Toyota's 21st NCTS win since the Tundra began competing in the Craftsman Truck Series at the beginning of the 2004 season. Along with eight wins this year -- three by Benson (Nashville, Milwaukee and Michigan), three by Todd Bodine (Texas, St. Louis and Atlanta), one by Jack Sprague (Memphis) and one by David Star (Martinsville) -- Toyota had four wins in 2004 and nine wins in 2005.

TOYOTA HAS 26: Toyota has 26 NCTS pole positions since the Tundra began competing in the Craftsman Truck Series at the beginning of the 2004 season. Tundra drivers who have recorded poles include Mike Skinner (13), David Reutimann (six), Bill Lester (two), Brandon Whitt (two), Todd Bodine (one), Travis Kvapil (one) and Jack Sprague (one).

POINTS PACE: After the first 16 races of the 2006 season, Toyota drivers hold down four of the top-six positions in the NCTS championship point standings. Todd Bodine continues to sit atop the championship standings with 2,454 points. Trailing Bodine in the standings are second-place Johnny Benson (2,310 points), third-place David Reutimann (2,260 points) and fourth-place Ted Musgrave (2,215 points). In addition, Tundra driver Jack Sprague (2,152 points) holds down the sixth spot in the standings.

ENGINE CHASE: Toyota holds onto the top spot in the NCTS manufacturer's championship through the first 16 races of the 2006 season. Toyota has 111 points in the standings, eight more points than second-place Ford and 33 points ahead of third-place Chevrolet.

TOYOTA TAKES TENNESSEE: Tundra drivers have registered five consecutive Craftsman Truck Series wins in the state of Tennessee. Along with Johnny Benson's victory at Nashville, Jack Sprague finished first earlier this year at Memphis (July 15). Last season, Toyota drivers swept the three Craftsman Truck Series races in Tennessee. Tundra drivers David Reutimann (Nashville), Mike Skinner (Bristol) and Brandon Whitt (Memphis) recorded wins in each of the races in the `Volunteer State.'

LAST YEAR HERE: In last year's NCTS race at Bristol (Aug.24, 2005), Tundra driver Mike Skinner started on the outside of row one and led 190 laps en route to the checkered flag. It was his first win since returning to the Craftsman Truck Series full-time at the beginning of the 2004 season -- and the first NCTS triumph for Bill Davis Racing. Following Skinner across the finish line were Tundra racers Todd Bodine (second), Johnny Benson (fourth) and Mike Wallace (ninth).

WIN ONE: Mike Skinner's victory at Bristol was his first NCTS win driving a Tundra and the 17th victory of his NCTS career. Before the Bristol race a year ago, Skinner last visited `victory lane' in the series in 1996 when he registered a NCTS victory at Mesa Marin Raceway in Bakersfield, Cal. (10-14-96).

BODINE HAS BEEN TO BRISTOL: Although Todd Bodine will be making his NCTS debut at Bristol, he does have a pair of wins at the Tennessee short track. In 31 NASCAR Cup and Busch starts at Bristol, the Chemung, NY-native has registered Busch Series wins at the track in 1992 and 1993.

-credit: toyota motorsports