Nascar

Cole Coster wins first race in Trucks series with late rally at Gateway

Associated Press
Published | Updated

Erik Jones (4) leads Matt Crafton (88) down the back straight during the NASCAR Truck Series auto race at Gateway Motorsports Park on Saturday, June 13, 2015, in Madison, Ill. (AP Photo/Scott Kane) (The Associated Press)

Cole Custer (00) makes his way around the track during qualifying for the NASCAR Truck Series auto race at Gateway Motorsports Park, Saturday, June 13, 2015, in Madison, Ill. (AP Photo/Scott Kane) (The Associated Press)

Cole Custer won his first NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race Saturday night, taking the weather-delayed 200-mile event at Gateway Motorsports Park.

Custer, 17, took the lead on a restart on the 155th lap of the 160-lap event.

Spencer Gallagher was second. Veteran Johnny Sauter finished third.

Custer, a native of Ladera Ranch, California, passed Tyler Reddick to take the lead for good at the 1.25-mile oval. He started from the outside of the front row with a practice speed of 136.591 mph; the qualifying event was rained out earlier in the day.

The start of the race was delayed 1 hour, 57 minutes by rain.

Matt Crafton, the series leader, finished 21st, but remained 12 points ahead of Reddick, who finished eighth, in the series standings after the eighth of 22 races.

Erik Jones led more than half the race before a late accident doomed him to a 23rd-place finish. Brandon Jones, who skipped his high school graduation ceremonies at Lake Norman High in Lake Norman, North Carolina to compete, finished 12th.