Mike Skinner has not won a race since the Kroger 200 at Martinsville Speedway in 2007. (Photo Courtesy of Toyota Motorsports) ยป More Photos
Mike Skinner, the first champion in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, has had a solid but somewhat disappointing 2008 season so far. And while he’s not giving up on trying to win another title this season, Skinner said he has and his team are looking ahead to 2009 to get back to true championship form.
Last year, Skinner lost the NCTS title in the final race of the season, due to wheel issue on his No. 5 Toyota Tundra. But while he was expected to challenge reigning champion Ron Hornaday Jr. again this season, Skinner has yet to win a race and after 15 of 25 races on the NCTS schedule, sits fifth in points, 235 back of his teammate at Bill Davis Racing, Johnny Benson.
Benson has won four out of the last five NCTS races, and that’s the kind of performance Skinner wants his Truck team to have, if not this season, than certainly in 2009. It’s not like Skinner’s having a bad season, mind you. He leads the NCTS with 12 top-10 finishes is tied with Benson for most poles with three. He’s just not quite where he wants to be yet, especially since he’s still hunting his first victory of the year.
And that has the team looking down the road at what it can do to improve.
Skinner said the team likely will make a crew chief change next season. Jeff Hensley began the season atop the pit box for Skinner but left the team in June, ultimately moving to Bobby Hamilton Racing as competition director.
Hensley was replaced by Joe Lax, who had been working with BDR development driver Michael Annett. “Joe Lax, we’ve kind of thrown him to the lions and he’s trying to figure out all this stuff and try to patch this team that’s been broken up a little bit and put it back together,” said Skinner. “It’s been a real challenge for him.”
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The team roster is expected to change next year, Skinner said, with BDR hoping to add a NASCAR Nationwide Series team with Annett as driver and Lax as crew chief. “I think he (Lax) is going to do the Nationwide program with them next year if they get that together with Michael Annett,” said Skinner. “We’re working on the long-term fix for the 5 team and we’re talking to a couple of guys who are very, very qualified to come in there and get us back on track.”
Skinner said the BDR No. 5 NCTS team could make personnel moves later this season. “Hopefully, we’ll be able to implement some of that before this year is over, so when we come out in February (2009), we’ll be strong and have a chance to legitimately run for the championship,” he said.
As for the rest of the 2008 season, Skinner added, “We’re not throwing in the towel by any means. We’ve got some good race tracks coming up.”
Tom Jensen is the Senior NASCAR Editor for SPEEDtv.com, the former Executive Editor of NASCAR Scene and a contributing Editor for TruckSeries.com. He is the author of “Cheating: The Bad Things Good NASCAR Nextel Cup Racers Do In Pursuit of SPEED,” and has appeared on television and radio shows to discuss NASCAR racing. Jensen is the President of the National Motorsports Press Association. Jensen is the 1997 National Motorsports Press Association Writer of the Year and has won numerous national and state awards for news reporting, columns and feature writing. The Answer Man is back at SPEEDtv.com. Tom Jensen answers your questions during every race week and looks forward to hearing from you - please e-mail it to
