Trucks champ Matt Crafton in fight for third straight title

In terms of drama and tension, perhaps only a Kardashian weekend reunion rivals the stretch run of the Camping World Truck Series, where the circuit’s king of the road is fighting to regain his throne for a third consecutive season.

His main rival — and the front-runner — is one of NASCAR’s new generation of wonder boys.

For Crafton, Jones and Tyler Reddick, also 19 and in third, the mindset is just win, baby, while all three and their camps work over worry beads trying to avoid the bad mojo that can wipe out the best of intentions.

The race begins at 7:30 p.m. Qualifying starts at 3:40.

“I’m not worried about it,” Crafton, 39, said of visions of a third consecutive title. “I’m just going to go into the next three races and try to lead the most laps and win the race. I know how it was trying to win my first championship. The sleepless nights when you’re points leader and wondering what can go wrong.

“It’s his championship to lose and ours to win. He’s got to be on defense and all we have to do is play offense and try not to make any mistakes.”

Crafton charged into Jones’ rear view mirror with his fifth victory of the season last week at Martinsville. His reputation as a master on the 1  1/2 -mile tracks, such as TMS, would seem to give him an edge.

Before a dominating performance at Martinsville, Crafton and his No. 88 Toyota appeared all but done after a dismal finish at Talladega in which he encountered every type of adversity, including running out of fuel, on the way to a 24th-place finish.

Nonetheless, he led the most laps there before all his troubles, and he did the same at the Rhino Linings 350 the week before that at Las Vegas in placing eighth.

In addition to June, Crafton has won one other time here, in the spring race of 2014.

Despite his age, Jones seems to be as composed as a 75-year-old chess player.

Though this is his first run at a title in the minor league’s of NASCAR, he comes with some experience in closing championship seasons in late models.

He’s coming off a 10th place at Martinsville.

The truck series is a stopping-off point for Jones and Reddick, both of whom figure to have bright futures in NASCAR’s top circuits. Crafton is a trucks lifer, having found his niche and a good living working for ThorSport Racing.

So, though he continues to say let the chips fall where they may, it’s hard to believe Crafton doesn’t have a competitive urge to protect his territory.

“There’s a reason I’ve stayed in the truck series — it’s great racing,” Crafton said. “If you want to watch a great race on Friday night or Saturday you’re going to watch the truck race. We just have to keep doing the same thing we’ve been doing the last couple of months.

“We all three have fast trucks. May the best man win.”

This story was originally published November 5, 2015 at 5:04 PM with the headline "Trucks champ Matt Crafton in fight for third straight title."