GM Flex Fuel 250
The GM Flex Fuel 250 is the first race of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at Daytona International Speedway, as of 2004, held under the lights. Past winners include Mike Wallace, Joe Ruttman, Robert Pressley, Rick Crawford, Carl Edwards Bobby Hamilton, and in 2006 Mark Martin.
The inaugural running of the race in 2000 featured one of the most horrific wrecks in NASCAR history. Just past the halfway point of the race, Kurt Busch's truck made contact with Geoff Bodine's truck, sending Bodine careening airborne into the wall & catch fence just past the start-finish line. Bodine's truck burst into flames and flipped at least 10 times before coming to a stop toward Turn 1, causing a major wreck involving 14 trucks. Despite serious injuries, Bodine survived & raced again later that year in May at Richmond.
The Craftsman Truck Series does not run restrictor plates, devices used by the Busch Series & Nextel Cup cars to reduce horsepower & slow the cars down at Daytona International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway. However, a restrictor in the space, a "spacer plate", and aerodynamic disadvantages in the trucks compensate for the lack of a restrictor plate.
Despite the 2006 General Motors sponsorship of the race, a Chevrolet has never won at Daytona; in 2006, the best finish for a Silverado was 13th.
[edit] Past Winners
- 2006: Mark Martin
- 2005: Bobby Hamilton
- 2004: Carl Edwards
- 2003: Rick Crawford
- 2002: Robert Pressley
- 2001: Joe Ruttman
- 2000: Mike Wallace
