SEASON PREVIEW: Camping World Truck Series top-20 rankings

By Bob Pockrass

Tuesday, February 09, 2010

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DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The logical pick for the 2010 Camping World Truck Series champion would be Ron Hornaday. He does have a new crew chief in Dave Fuge, but he and his Kevin Harvick Inc. team shouldn’t lose a step from their 2009 championship season.

Hornaday has won two of the last three titles and his team has been the most consistently strong the last few years.

But just as it’s hard to pick Jimmie Johnson to win Sprint Cup titles year after year, it’s hard to believe that Hornaday and his team won’t have a few hiccups. That said, here’s an educated guess on how the top 20 drivers will end up at the end of the season.

1. Mike Skinner

Skinner is with the same team this year, which has been renamed Randy Moss Motorsports with HTM to reflect new co-owner Jim Harris' involvement, but he actually has a solid group of sponsors to start the year with International trucks and Monaco RVs joining Exide. He won the title in 1995. He’s been close in other years – he was second in 2007 and third in 2009 – and is primed for his second title. Crew chief Gene Nead knows how to set up trucks.

2. Ron Hornaday

Hornaday was pretty awesome last year as he won his second title in three years thanks in part to a five-race winning streak. He also will have a solid teammate to lean on as Kevin Harvick or Elliott Sadler will be in the other KHI truck much of the year.

3. Johnny Sauter

Sauter finished sixth in the standings in what was his first full season in the series. Granted, he has several years of NASCAR experience, but a second year in trucks should help. But having crew chief Joe Shear for a full season will mean even more. Shear was paired with Sauter in the middle of last season, and they made a good combination.

4. Matt Crafton

Crafton finished second in the standings last year but couldn’t find his way to victory lane. He very well could get a win this year. So why isn’t he ranked higher? It’s more a testament to how much better Skinner and Sauter will be this year than they were a year ago.

5. Todd Bodine

Bodine has finished in the top four in each of the last five years. He has a championship-caliber team but with tenuous sponsorship, there are concerns about its ability to be as consistent throughout the season as it needs to be.

Rest of the top 20:

6. Timothy Peters: Wouldn’t be surprised to see him in top five.
7. Justin Lofton: His 2009 ARCA title was no fluke. Seriously.
8. Aric Almirola: Should get his first Truck win in 2010.
9. Tayler Malsam: Kyle Busch’s trucks will be strong. Very strong.
10. Ricky Carmichael: Full-time ride will allow him to shine.
11. Austin Dillon: Fans will love seeing the black No. 3, and Dillon won’t disappoint.
12. David Starr: A teammate to Skinner this year.
13. Jason White: Running full season with SS Green Light Racing.
14. Kyle Busch: Will be driving only 15 races but should win some of them.
15. Johnny Benson: Not sure if he will be able to piece together full season.
16. Chad McCumbee: Like Benson, not sure what his schedule will be.
17. Nelson Piquet Jr.: If he can find sponsorship, should be respectable as a rookie.
18. James Buescher: Will be driving all but a half-dozen races this year.
19. Jennifer Jo Cobb: Planning on running the full season.
20. Rick Crawford: Much like others, sponsorship issues bring questions about full season.