Stacy Compton

Stacy Compton, a native of Hurt, Va., built a strong foundation in the NASCAR Weekly Racing Series, logging 36 victories and 39 poles in seven years of Late Model Stock Car competition. He also had more than 100 victories and 10 championships in nine years of kart racing. In two full seasons in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, Compton progressed from an unknown short-tracker -- who did make a startling Winston Cup debut by qualifying ninth at Martinsville Speedway in 1996 -- to a legitimate championship threat and the circuit's best qualifier. He won two truck races in 1998, finished 7th in the championship and was named the series' most popular driver. Compton competed in 3 of the final 4 Winston Cup races of 1999 with the Melling team after completing his Craftsman Truck Series season with Impact Motorsports, in which he finished 4th after compiling 17 top-10s in 25 starts.

Compton proved he had raw speed on NASCAR's restrictor plate tracks in 2001, with a pair of Bud Poles at Talladega and an starting spot on the outside of the front row for the Daytona 500. In 2002, Compton finished ninth in the Busch Series title hunt, with 5 top-five finishes and 11 top-10 efforts in 34 starts. He had just three DNFs all season.

His Winston Cup efforts were not as successful. In 19 starts, his best finish was 18th at Martnisville in April. He was released by A.J. Foyt Racing in July, but returned to Winston Cup when Melling Racing re-hired him to drive its No. 92 Dodge in August.