Las Vegas’ Kingsland to attempt run in Bristol truck event

Friday, Aug. 8, 2003 | 9:10 a.m.

Casey Kingsland may not have qualified for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race last Friday at Indianapolis Raceway Park, but he obviously made an impression on series officials.

Kingsland, a Las Vegas native, will be allowed to attempt to qualify for the Aug. 20 Truck Series race at the steeply banked Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway -- an unusual move by the sanctioning body. Drivers with no experience in NASCAR rarely are allowed to race at the half-mile track that is considered one of the toughest to drive on the circuit.

"(NASCAR) said they never let any other rookies into Bristol, but he's had a lot of half-mile experience (in the Mechanix Wear Speed Truck Challenge) and he handled himself well (at IRP) and they said they would go ahead and let him (attempt Bristol) so he could keep making his progression in NASCAR," Kingsland's father, Roger, said.

Because he did not make the race at IRP, Kingsland would not have been allowed to attempt the Sept. 4 race at the three-quarter-mile Richmond International Raceway -- the next race in his five-race audition with MLB Motorsports. If he had not raced at Richmond, Kingsland would not have been allowed to attempt the Sept. 27 truck race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

"That's what we're trying to do the most -- to get into this Vegas race," Casey Kingsland said. "That's why we're doing all the ones in between, Bristol and Richmond, so we can get cleared to run the big tracks."

NASCAR will not clear rookie drivers to race on superspeedways until they have proven themselves capable on shorter tracks.

Kingsland, 18, said he was looking forward to racing at Bristol, a track known for its steep banks and intense fender-rubbing racing.

"It's going to be a blast," Kingsland said. "Hopefully we can qualify and put a good show on and make everybody happy.

"I've walked that track when we've taken a family trip back there and it's a neat little track."

Kingsland just missed gaining a provisional starting spot in last Friday's truck race at IRP in the No. 66 Spring Air/Amerimist Dodge. His practice time on the track was limited to only 18 laps because the team was scrambling to prepare a truck that had been wrecked the week before by driver Michael Dokken at Michigan International Speedway.

Kingsland said he will drive the same truck at Bristol that he had at IRP and is confident the team will be better prepared.

"I know the team is going to be a lot better this time -- we weren't too happy with them last time," he said. "This time, we'll just have (to put the) setup on it. Everything's in place this time so they're not putting together a wrecked truck or anything."

A graduate of Eldorado High, Kingsland is a former Mini Stock track champion and Late Model driver at The Bullring at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. He spent last season driving in the Mechanix Wear Speed Truck Challenge, where he finished seventh in points and second in the Rookie of the Year standings.