Ron Hornaday, Jr. runs up front at Memphis Motorsports Park. (Photo by John Sommers II/Getty Images) » More Photos

On Lap 44, Hornaday took the lead for the first time and immediately pulled out to a two-truck lead over Benson. Hornaday bumped Benson a little in Turn 4 to take the lead. Four laps later, Crawford muscled past Darnell into fourth place. And that’s the way they ran at Lap 50, the one-quarter distance: Hornaday, Benson, Sprague, Crawford and Darnell.

Caution No. 3 was for Bodine’s second spin, and on Lap 54, the leaders pitted. The order at the Lap 58 restart was Stacy Compton, Colin Braun, T.J. Bell in the Heathcliff's Cat Litter Chevrolet, Chad Chaffin’s Key Motorsports Chevrolet, Marks, Musgrave, Hornaday, Benson, Brendan Gaughan’s International Maxxforce Diesel Ford and Crawford. The first five all stayed out because they had pitted earlier, while Musgrave took fuel only. Sprague, meanwhile, lost a lug nut and had to make a second pit stop, which dropped him to 27th.

By Lap 66, Hornaday was back up to third, behind Compton and Braun, with Benson fourth and right on Hornaday’s bumper. The top four had broken away clean by Lap 70, with Compton’s Red River Dodge Dodge Ram, Braun’s Con-Way Freight Ford, Hornaday and Benson all running in lockstep.

Hornaday and Benson quickly reassumed the point, then it was Caution No. 4 on Lap 77 as Dennis Setzer’s Tahoe Dodge got spun in a chain reaction crash on the backstretch involving Mike Skinner’s Toyota Tundra-sponsored Toyota and Shelby Howard’s Bobcat Chevrolet.

The track went green on Lap 83, and Benson’s truck wouldn’t come up to speed, his transmission stuck between gears. That made the order Hornaday, David Starr’s Red Horse Racing Toyota, Crawford, Compton and East. By Lap 92, Hornaday had pulled away to a 3.5-second lead. Benson’s woes were costly, as they dropped him out of the NCTS points lead in one of the tightest title races in years. “I got stuck in second gear and when I got it out, I over-revved it and I think it broke a valve,” said Benson, who was credited with a 33rd-place finish.

At halfway, Hornaday led Crawford, Starr, Darnell, East, Compton, Braun, Brian Scott’s Albertsons Chevy, Matt Crafton’s Menards/Ideal Door Chevy and Musgrave.