2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series preview

Friday night at Daytona International Speedway, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series kicks off its 17th season with Todd Bodine leading the charge as the two-time and defending champion. The Chemung, N.Y. native has the opportunity to win back-to-back titles, something that has never been done in the Truck Series and Daytona is the perfect place to start for Bodine, a facility where he has two wins and was the runner-up to Timothy Peters in this race last year.

While Bodine earned the driver's title, Kyle Busch Motorsports won the owner's championship in its inaugural year on the strength of Busch's eight victories last year. Despite missing nine events, the 2009 NASCAR Nationwide Series champion still finished 14th in driver's points. Busch and Brian Ickler will split time in the No. 18 Truck again this year with TJ Reaid driving the No. 51.

While it seems KBM is a safe bet to take the owner's title again in '11, the driver's title is up in the air. The calling card of the Truck Series has always been its mixture of veterans and young drivers and this year is no different. Drivers such as Bodine, Ron Hornaday, and David Starr will continue to race for the championship, as will young guns Austin Dillon, Timothy Peters, last year's sixth-place finisher in the final season points, and Justin Lofton.

The NCWTS superteam this year will be Germain Motorsports. In addition to being the longtime home of Bodine and providing trucks for him for both his titles and all 21 of his wins, Max Papis returns to the team in a fulltime capacity this season. Also joining the team are Brendan Gaughan, returning to the Truck Series after two years in the Nationwide Series with Rusty Wallace Racing and Lofton, the 2009 ARCA Series champion.

Other series' regulars expected to run strong again this year are Johnny Sauter and Matt Crafton of the Ohio-based ThorSport Racing. While Sauter has run strong since his arrival into the Truck Series fulltime, earning Rookie of the Year honors in 2009 with two wins, his teammate Crafton is a different story. Crafton continues to have consistent runs, finishing fourth in points last year behind Sauter and Aric Almirola, now racing a full Nationwide Series schedule for JR Motorsports, he has only a single win (Charlotte, 2008) in ten full seasons in the series. This year's group of drivers aren't going to make it any easier to get to Victory Lane, either.

While the season championship is likely to come down between Bodine and Hornaday, Dillon could be a serious contender. The grandson of Richard Childress won two races last year and sat on the pole seven times en route to Rookie of the Year honors. He has the skill and driving for RCR means he definitely has the equipment. If he can run more consistently this year, he could be a real threat.

One driver absent from the title talk in the Truck Series this year is Mike Skinner. Until last week, it didn't appear that the 1995 champion would make it to Daytona, but a last-minute contract with Eddie Sharp Racing puts him in the race Friday and possibly the second event of the year in Phoenix. Although Skinner finished eighth in points last year with no wins, the former NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Rookie of the Year can still get it done on the track and is a fan favorite off the track. However, NCWTS veterans tend to quietly fade away and Skinner could easily join the ranks of drivers such as Ted Musgrave, Jack Sprague, Dennis Setzer, and Johnny Benson.

Returning to the fold is Skinner's one-time teammate at the now-defunct BANG Racing and 2003 NCWTS champion, Travis Kvapil. Ironically, it's Kvapil who is replacing Skinner in the No. 5 Toyota at Randy Moss Motorsports. The Wisconsin native is definitely in the position to win races, but another title is probably out of reach.

The Rookie of the Year contenders are a large, diverse group that include Jeffrey Earnhardt, Miguel Paludo, Snowball Derby winner Johanna Long, former Formula 1 driver Nelson Piquet Jr., Joey Coulter, Craig Goess, open-wheel standout Cole Whitt, and Chase Mattioli. While Earnhardt, the son of former series driver Kerry Earnhardt, will no doubt be the sentimental favorite to earn the ROTY title, it will be drivers with strong equipment to compliment their talent who have the best shot. These drivers are Coulter (RCR), Piquet Jr., (Kevin Harvick Inc.) and Whitt (TurnOne Racing with backing from Red Bull). Of the three, look at Coulter to take it as he has the strongest stock car background of the three.

So to summarize, here's how the 2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season should look after the final race at Homestead Miami Speedway in November:

Final driver points