Almirola takes Truck victory

BROOKLYN, Mich. – Aric Almirola looked to be in a bad position.

As it turned out, he ended up in the best position possible – Victory Lane.

With eight of 100 laps remaining, Almirola was racing three-wide for the win with Kyle Busch to his left and Todd Bodine to his right. A wreck appeared not only possible, but likely.

The three of them held position for nearly a lap before Almirola inched out to the lead and held off Bodine to win Saturday’s VFW 200 at Michigan International Speedway.

“I raced my butt off with those guys,” said Almirola, who earned his second NASCAR Camping World Truck Series win of the season and his career.

“I didn’t think it was the greatest place to be. I knew I was going to run wide-open through the corner, and we were going to crash or we were going to make it out the other side.

“I knew it was my only shot to get out in the lead.”

He was right. The last seven laps were the only ones Almirola led the entire race, which featured a track record 20 lead changes.

While three-wide racing at the wide 2-mile oval may look easier, Bodine said the battle with Almirola and Busch was dicey.

“Aric was in the middle and it was a little harder for him because I was taking some of his air, but I made sure I gave him plenty of room. Kyle was on the inside and he had it the toughest,” Bodine said.

“It looked spectacular. It was fun. It was such fun racing and that’s what this is all about.”

Busch finished third, Ron Hornaday was fourth and pole-winner and rookie Austin Dillon rounded out the top five. Bodine continues to lead the series standings with a 55-point advantage over Almirola.

While the Truck series takes a break until July 11 at Iowa, Almirola will have other work to keep him busy. He will remain on standby for Sprint Cup driver Jimmie Johnson as Johnson and his wife, Chandra, await the birth of their first child.

“I’m going to hang out with his team (Sunday), listen and see how they operate,” Almirola said.