NASCAR Trucks: Is a top 10 in the 'Stars' for David Starr?
12 August 1999
With 17 races under his rookie belt, David Starr has a lot of things left to accomplish, but foremost on his mind is adding a top-10 finish to his resume by the end of the season. "Actually, I am hoping that we can have at least two top-10 finishes by the end of the season," Starr clarified. "That's one of my goals, the other being to finish the top-20 in points." The driver of the No. 73 Nitro Fish Chevrolet said he knows he can race with the fastest trucks but has his eyes set on three of the remaining seven races as his best opportunity for that elusive top-10. "I think that Texas, California and Las Vegas are going to be my best shot at finally meeting that goal," Starr admitted. "I am really looking forward to getting back to Texas." In June, Starr ran in the lead draft throughout much of the Pronto Auto Parts 400 at Texas Motor Speedway until a slow pit stop late in the race put him out of contention. He finished the event in 14th place, a career-best finish in the Craftsman Truck Series. "Texas was a disappointment," Starr reflected. "I was running in the top-10 and even the top-5 for nearly the entire race and then we had a slow green-flag pit stop that put us down a lap. But now we have a good idea on the setup so we will be ready to come back in front of our home crowd and show them what we can do. We've got a fast superspeedway truck so all the big tracks should be good for the team." Las Vegas Motor Speedway has also been a successful track for Starr. Last November he started in 30th and worked his way through he field to finish seventh in the Winston West event. He plans to run both the Winston West and Truck Series races come September. "Yeah, Vegas will be busy since I'm going to run in both races, but it will give me an opportunity to get some extra time on the track. I think that the double effort can help both race programs," Starr claims. Starr currently stands 20th in the Craftsman Truck Series standings and hopes to maintain his position, though he sees Joe Ruttman coming up from behind. He also sits third in the USG SHEETROCK Brand Rookie-of-the-Year standings and admits that it will be tough to make any gains on points leader Mike Stefanik. "Our goal was to finish in 20th place or better and that is right where we are now. That's pretty good considering we missed the first race of the year (at Homestead). But Joe (Ruttman) is only a few points back and he has been gaining by leaps-and-bounds since the Dana truck hired him," Starr said. "If he passes me then I need to make up some points on someone else to stay in 20th. That may be easier said than done with the competition so close in the Truck Series, but if I can accomplish my top-10 goals then everything else should fall in place. "As for the rookie title, Mike (Stefanik) has pretty well got it wrapped up at this point. He has had a great season and is a talented driver. Honestly, I think the best we could do is finish second there and I'm running out of races to make up points on Scott Hansen," Starr said. Nitro Fish has been a sponsor of Starr's Chevrolet truck for the past three events, and while the company is new to NASCAR, they currently have a motorsports presence via sponsorship of an NHRA Top Fuel Funny Car. The company sells apparel, decals, and other items featuring their unique prehistoric fish logo. Fans interested in their products can see their trailer at the track or visit the web site at www.nitrofish.com. Starr, 31, is a resident of Ft. Worth, Texas, and started his career dirt track racing in Street Stock and Late Models divisions. While he ran in five events last year, this is his first complete season in the Craftsman Truck Series. For more information visit his web site at www.davidstarr.com. The Craftsman Truck Series has this week off but will return to action on August 20 at 8:30 p.m. EDT for the Ram Tough 200 at Gateway International Raceway. Most of the teams, Starr's included, are using the break to prepare their equipment for the final seven-race home stretch of the season. "We dropped a cylinder the last couple of races. It is really tough to race on seven cylinders so this break will give us time to freshen our engines. And it looks like the two trucks that were damaged in accidents (at Nashville and Michigan) are finally getting the new sheet metal finished. I am ready to go racing and put the Nitro Fish truck on the leaderboard," Starr said, eager to make good on his goals.