2012 NASCAR Truck Series preview

Preseason Top 10

1. Johnny Sauter, ThorSport Racing: He's finished sixth, third and second in the past three seasons. The championship awaits.

2. Ty Dillon, Richard Childress Racing: Dillon won the ARCA title last season and is driving for the team that won the 2011 Truck championship.

3. James Buescher, Turner Motorsports: Buescher didn't win last season but made a gallant battle for the championship. Expect some visits to Victory Lane this year.

4. Parker Kligerman, Brad Keselowski Racing: A new crew chief, solid funding and a year of experience should combine for a strong season.

5. Ron Hornaday, Joe Denette Motorsport: He might not be with a team as strong as Kevin Harvick Inc., but the four-time series champion still should be a contender.

6. Matt Crafton, ThorSport Racing: Crafton has finished among the top 10 in points seven times but has only two wins. He needs more victories if he's going to earn a title.

7. Jason Leffler, Kyle Busch Motorsports: Right now, Leffler is scheduled for 14 races, but don't be surprised if he ends up doing the full season - and earns some wins.

8. Justin Lofton, Eddie Sharp Racing: Looking for this team to make significant improvement. It has all the tools and a talented driver.

9. Joey Coulter, RCR: Last season's rookie of the year finished seventh in points. He should add wins to his resume this year.

10. Cale Gale, ESR: This will be Gale's first full-time schedule in the series. He's made 10 starts in the past three years.

Observations

• The closure of Kevin Harvick Inc. means the loss of a successful organization in the Truck series, but the drivers who contributed to that success still will be around. Ron Hornaday moves over to Joe Denette Motorsports and Nelson Piquet Jr. will run with Turner Motorsports. Much of KHI's truck inventory went to Eddie Sharp Racing, which will field trucks for Justin Lofton and Cale Gale. The season opener at Daytona has 44 entries, so the series looks like it will continue to provide plenty of excitement.

• Lots of eyes will be watching Ty Dillon, the younger brother of last season's Truck champion, Austin Dillon. Ty will be running for the same team that won the title last year and he comes into the series with an impressive resume, having won seven races and the ARCA season title in 2011. Without a doubt there will be lots of comparisons made, but hopefully Ty will have the chance to establish his own credentials in the sport. Rather than focusing on whether Ty can match his brother's success, perhaps we should wait to see whether he might even surpass it.

What they're saying

• "I think coming out in 2012 with the Toyota support and changing manufacturers, new sponsors - essentially my whole team is back and my crew chief. I feel like we can pick up right where we left off and ultimately try to win races and a championship." - Johnny Sauter

• "I've got the trucks that won a championship last year, so I have all the resources and the ability to do it. I have confidence in myself and my guys that we can go out there and get it done. It's just going to be overcoming our bad days and making them good." - Ty Dillon

• "We've worked hard over the offseason. It's been an interesting offseason for me because I haven't been having to look for money, so it's not been about how we're getting to the race track, but how fast are we when we get to the race track." - Parker Kligerman

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