So, a bit of Alt-History, which has no foundation in ever being true and people hate it because reasons.
Well, I got a theory I'm going to share. Everyone cool with that?
*crickets chirp*
Cool. Glad yo see people excited.
So, we all know who Ron Hornaday and Jack Sprague are. Multi-Time Truck Series champions and legends in the NASAR Trucks division. Both saw large success in the Trucks but minimul in BGN and Cup. Ron would leave the trucks in 1999 and run the NASCAR Busch Series in 2000 full time for DEI. Jack would also drive in the Busch Series and both would move to cup.
Ron would win 2 races in 2000, with 1 win in 03 and 1 in 04. He would have 4 wins to his name.
Jack would win 1 race in 2002. His only win.
Both men would go Winless in Cup, Jack would only attempt 18 of the 36 Cup races that season, being let go from the NetZero #0 car. Ron would compete in AJ Foyt's #14 Conseco car, and would only race in 32 of the 36 races, DNQ'ing 4 races. He was let go after the season.
In 2004, Jack Sprague returned to the Trucks and ran full time. Ron would return in 2005. Both men would go back to winning. Ron would win more championships and Jack would win more races.
Ron would compete at least once in 17 seasons in the trucks compared to 14 for Jack. Ron would have 51 wins to his name, 28 for Jack.
But...what if both men decided that it was best for them to stay in trucks, seeing a youthful revolutions by guys like Busch, Harvick, Kenseth, Biffle, and many more. What if the Truck series truely became a land of the old timers? By the time 2002 hits, Ron is 44, Jack is 37. Not 21, 22 like this Newman and McMurray kid working up the ranks. That Johnson guy? A flash in the pan after that Watkins Glen wreck!
In this history, Ron and Jack run Busch, but would instead drop back to Trucks, instead of moving up. But who would sponsor them? Hendrick closed the truck shop in 2001, and DEI Truck team shut down in 1999. So who, and where would they go with for the coming seasons? Well, Jack could probably get NetZero to follow, but no dice. They want to go to Cup. So Jack most likely runs a partial in 2002, this team wouldn't be new, and this Carl kid and Wood guy should get Vet to help them and someone to takes Carls place in the 99 next season.
Yes, Jack Sprague signs a part time schedule with Roush to run a partial schedule in the Trucks. in 2002, he's helped guys like Jon Woon to 2 wins in 2002 and fifth, and Carl to 3 in 2004 in a 8th place points paying finish. Jack would drive the #97, since Harvick has the #6 wrapped up, more on that to come.
Roush is the Mega Team in the mid 2000's. Jack Sprague, multi time truck champion, Rookie Carl Edwards, and Jon Wood round out the lineup in 2003, and thanks to Roush, Sprague is gonna make a run at the 2003 championship. Jack would fish with 2 wins, one at Richmond after Tony Stewart (Real world winner) cuts a tire down late, and 21st race of the season at Pheonix, bump and running Harvick (Real world winner) late to get the win. He finished 9th in the championship, with various DNFs to stop him from the title. Roush keeps him in, only to replace Carl in the 99 for 2004. But Jack gets a better offer, and heads to the #16 to for 2004. Edwards would run the Busch and Truck schedule, and a handful of Cup starts.
Decent numbers, nothing ground breaking in 2003. This guy can still drive. So, what about Ron?
Well, Hornaday in the real world DID compete in 2002, winning the race at Homestead in 1 of 2 starts that season. Ron, enjoying that success, get s a call from Kevin Harvick. Harvick has this truck, and he can easily get Goodwrench on the truck and use the #6. But he's got this eye for this Crafton kid. So, Ron agrees to run the 2003 season, in hope to help get the team running, and in hopes of getting Crafton into a team that can run up front. Ron agrees, and the #6 Goodwrench truck breaths life at Daytona. Ron would win once, at Dover, after Jason Leffler has a bad pit stop late and Ron cruises to a win. He would finish 6th in the championship, late season engine woes taking him out of contention. Ron would give up the truck, but he doesn't go anywhere, when Harvick gets the #92 truck, thanks to RCR, and gets Crafton a team mate in legend Hornaday. Hornaday isn't full time, but he still racks off a win at Martinsville, a bump and run with 10 to got to move McMurray's #2 out of the way.
As we know, the future would be largely the same. Crafton goes to the #88 and Hornaday to the #6, eventual #33.
Sprague would move the #16 when Kvapil leaves for Toyota.
So yeah, the rest, is history. This only paints a small moment in time, where two legends saw the writing on the Cup wall, that the old timers were a thing of the past in cup, and Young Guns were here to stay.
Say, I hear Mike Skinner is looking for a ride, and that he's probably out of the #4 car. Lets get him back into a truck! That Benson guy out of the ride too? I wonder if they're busy for 2003?
So, I turn it to you, thoughts? Could you see this happen? Or complete fantasy? Let me hear it.
Well, I got a theory I'm going to share. Everyone cool with that?
*crickets chirp*
Cool. Glad yo see people excited.
So, we all know who Ron Hornaday and Jack Sprague are. Multi-Time Truck Series champions and legends in the NASAR Trucks division. Both saw large success in the Trucks but minimul in BGN and Cup. Ron would leave the trucks in 1999 and run the NASCAR Busch Series in 2000 full time for DEI. Jack would also drive in the Busch Series and both would move to cup.
Ron would win 2 races in 2000, with 1 win in 03 and 1 in 04. He would have 4 wins to his name.
Jack would win 1 race in 2002. His only win.
Both men would go Winless in Cup, Jack would only attempt 18 of the 36 Cup races that season, being let go from the NetZero #0 car. Ron would compete in AJ Foyt's #14 Conseco car, and would only race in 32 of the 36 races, DNQ'ing 4 races. He was let go after the season.
In 2004, Jack Sprague returned to the Trucks and ran full time. Ron would return in 2005. Both men would go back to winning. Ron would win more championships and Jack would win more races.
Ron would compete at least once in 17 seasons in the trucks compared to 14 for Jack. Ron would have 51 wins to his name, 28 for Jack.
But...what if both men decided that it was best for them to stay in trucks, seeing a youthful revolutions by guys like Busch, Harvick, Kenseth, Biffle, and many more. What if the Truck series truely became a land of the old timers? By the time 2002 hits, Ron is 44, Jack is 37. Not 21, 22 like this Newman and McMurray kid working up the ranks. That Johnson guy? A flash in the pan after that Watkins Glen wreck!
In this history, Ron and Jack run Busch, but would instead drop back to Trucks, instead of moving up. But who would sponsor them? Hendrick closed the truck shop in 2001, and DEI Truck team shut down in 1999. So who, and where would they go with for the coming seasons? Well, Jack could probably get NetZero to follow, but no dice. They want to go to Cup. So Jack most likely runs a partial in 2002, this team wouldn't be new, and this Carl kid and Wood guy should get Vet to help them and someone to takes Carls place in the 99 next season.
Yes, Jack Sprague signs a part time schedule with Roush to run a partial schedule in the Trucks. in 2002, he's helped guys like Jon Woon to 2 wins in 2002 and fifth, and Carl to 3 in 2004 in a 8th place points paying finish. Jack would drive the #97, since Harvick has the #6 wrapped up, more on that to come.
Roush is the Mega Team in the mid 2000's. Jack Sprague, multi time truck champion, Rookie Carl Edwards, and Jon Wood round out the lineup in 2003, and thanks to Roush, Sprague is gonna make a run at the 2003 championship. Jack would fish with 2 wins, one at Richmond after Tony Stewart (Real world winner) cuts a tire down late, and 21st race of the season at Pheonix, bump and running Harvick (Real world winner) late to get the win. He finished 9th in the championship, with various DNFs to stop him from the title. Roush keeps him in, only to replace Carl in the 99 for 2004. But Jack gets a better offer, and heads to the #16 to for 2004. Edwards would run the Busch and Truck schedule, and a handful of Cup starts.
Decent numbers, nothing ground breaking in 2003. This guy can still drive. So, what about Ron?
Well, Hornaday in the real world DID compete in 2002, winning the race at Homestead in 1 of 2 starts that season. Ron, enjoying that success, get s a call from Kevin Harvick. Harvick has this truck, and he can easily get Goodwrench on the truck and use the #6. But he's got this eye for this Crafton kid. So, Ron agrees to run the 2003 season, in hope to help get the team running, and in hopes of getting Crafton into a team that can run up front. Ron agrees, and the #6 Goodwrench truck breaths life at Daytona. Ron would win once, at Dover, after Jason Leffler has a bad pit stop late and Ron cruises to a win. He would finish 6th in the championship, late season engine woes taking him out of contention. Ron would give up the truck, but he doesn't go anywhere, when Harvick gets the #92 truck, thanks to RCR, and gets Crafton a team mate in legend Hornaday. Hornaday isn't full time, but he still racks off a win at Martinsville, a bump and run with 10 to got to move McMurray's #2 out of the way.
As we know, the future would be largely the same. Crafton goes to the #88 and Hornaday to the #6, eventual #33.
Sprague would move the #16 when Kvapil leaves for Toyota.
So yeah, the rest, is history. This only paints a small moment in time, where two legends saw the writing on the Cup wall, that the old timers were a thing of the past in cup, and Young Guns were here to stay.
Say, I hear Mike Skinner is looking for a ride, and that he's probably out of the #4 car. Lets get him back into a truck! That Benson guy out of the ride too? I wonder if they're busy for 2003?
So, I turn it to you, thoughts? Could you see this happen? Or complete fantasy? Let me hear it.
