Stratford’s Kraus still in playoff mix

FOR HUB CITY TIMES

LEXINGTON, OH – Stratford native Derek Kraus drove his No. 19 NAPA AutoCare Chevrolet Silverado truck to an eighth-place finish on July 9, as he narrowed the gap in the chase to make the playoffs.

The 20-year-old Kraus and his McAnally-Hilgemann Racing teammate Colby Howard both battled their way through the field to grab top-10 finishes in a thrilling NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race on the 2.258-mile road course at Mid-Ohio. With the eighth-place finish, Kraus scored his fifth top-10 of the year and closed to within just 19 points below the cutline for the playoffs – with one regular season race remaining.

After qualifying 23rd, Kraus was up to 20th by the end of the first stage of the race, 16th at the end of Stage 2 and 10th by the final restart – with three laps remaining. He was able to gain two additional spots before the checkered flag dropped.

“The day was pretty long, but we were able to come out of it at the end with a good finish,” Kraus said after the race. “We had to start at the tail and slowly made our way to the front. The guys brought me a fast Chevy Silverado and that’s all I can ask for. It was a good, fun race overall.”

Kraus, 11th in the championship standings, was able to trim 10 points from his margin below the cutoff line for the playoffs.

The next race for Kraus and his team is the CRC Brakeleen 150, scheduled for July 23 at the 2.5-mile oval Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, PA.