Last season race fans witnessed one of the craziest championship battles ever in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. In a few days we will begin the lucky 13th season for the series. Our broadcast team welcomes Adam Alexander to the Speed television crew.

As I began packing my bags for Daytona a few questions came to mind about the upcoming 25 race season. While we will have to wait until almost Thanksgiving to find out the answers, here are a few things I would like to know….

Will the Toyota brand dominate AGAIN in 2007? The development of their 2007 Camry, and new Nextel Cup teams has definitely pulled resources away from the Truck teams. The driver line-up forToyota is still hard to beat. Can theDetroit three step up to the battle?

Along the same lines: Will Todd Bodine become the first driver ever to successfully defend his title? The #30 team ripped off five wins in ’05 and came out of the box with three victories early in ’06. However, the second half saw a much less productive team. Was that a result of points racing, or the competition catching up to their level? The Germain racing team put up a goose egg in the win column for 2005 champ Ted Musgrave. His wins per season since 2001 are ( 7-3-3-2-1-0 ) That is not a good trend.

Dennis Setzer joins the #75 Spears manufacturing team. Both had a truly miserable 2006.
Setzer saw his eight season winning streak come to an end, while the 75 truck struggled with rookie Aric Almirola. Will the series’ most veteran team benefit from a veteran driver?

Many pundits have proclaimed Roush Racing’s hiring of Travis Kvapil the greatest thing since pickles in a jar. The 2003 champion brings a “Steady Eddy” approach to a team that won six races with Mark Martin last year. That combination should be hard to beat. My next question is: Will Erik Darnell have a breakout year? The 2006 Raybestos rookie of the Year may just be the next “first time winner”.

Circle Bar racing becomes a two truck team. Rick Crawford fell like a rock in the point standings the final three races of ’06. Will the late addition of David Starr and Dennis Conner (26 career wins) be the right combination to take this team to the next level? Starr was outstanding on the short tracks last year and Crawford took over Mike Skinners role as the king of flat tires.

Bill Davis racing came very close to the title with Johnny Benson last year. However, crew chief Rick Ren left the team over the winter. Will JB and Trip Bruce pick up where the team left off? Mike Skinner’s team is virtually unchanged and could be a contender. The #5 truck seems to encounter a lot of bad luck. If the BDR teams don’t break drive shafts, don’t have flat tires, and don’t beat themselves, 2007 may be their year.

Now back to Rick Ren…my pick for the 2007 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Champion is Ron Hornaday. Kevin Harvick racing is finally going to be a contender. This I believe is partially due to an increase in funding from Chevrolet, partially because it takes time to build a team to championship form and partially because the addition of the #2 team will bring valuable information and support. I predict KHI will challenge Roush racing for the most team victories in 2007.

Will Jack Sprague and the Wyler racing team put together a total effort? This group rounded out the year with five top-10 finishes. Two victories are nice, but they must eliminate the multiple finishes of 28th or worse.

Will the Brendan Gaughan that dominated in 2003 show up? Will Bill Lester mesh with the Billy Ballew team that expects to win races? Will Ken Schrader revitalize a down and out Bobby Hamilton racing team? Can Terry Cook help improve the Harris Trucking team? Will Matt Crafton EVER win a race? If Tyler Walker wins a race and does a back flip, will people think he stole the idea from Carl Edwards? Can Morgan/Dollar motor sports get back to form without RCR engines? Will Mark Martin win any races now that he is not in a Roush truck?

10. Most importantly; can the truck series drivers finish a race at Daytona or

Talladega under green? This series is known for having great racing on the super speedways, but 2006 saw both events finish under yellow after crashes.

My final question is who do YOU think will hold the big trophy after the final race in Homestead? What will be the determining factor, consistency, luck, or preparation?

So here are the predictions from the so called experts.

Rick Allen:      1.Rick Crawford  2.Todd Bodine  3.Mike Skinner  4. Jack Sprague  5.Travis Kvapil  
Phil Parsons:    1.Travis Kvapil 2. Johnny Benson 3. Todd Bodine  4. Ron Hornaday 5.Rick Crawford

Ray Dunlap:    1.Ron Hornaday  2.Travis Kvapil  3. Todd Bodine    4. Jack Sprague  5. Ted Musgrave 
Adam Alexander: 1. Travis Kvapil  2. Johnny Benson  3. Ted Musgrave   4. Todd Bodine  5. Ron Hornaday

Notice that Travis Kvapil and Todd Bodine make each list, however nobody picked Bodine to repeat as NCTS Champion.

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