Five Toyota Tundras finished among the top-20 -- led by Mike Skinner’s fifth-place finish -- in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (NCTS) Kroger 250 at Martinsville Speedway.

Skinner started eighth and led 38 laps (164 to 201) en route to his fifth-place finish at the halfmile Virginia track. It was Skinner’s second consecutive top-five finish this season in the No. 42 Bang! Racing Toyota Tundra. Last month, the 1995 NCTS champion, finished second at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

“We didn’t have the best handling truck today,” said Skinner, after the race. “But my crew did a phenomenal job all day in the pits. We’ll keep ‘knocking on the door’, because if you keep finishing in the top-five – pretty soon you’ll win one.”

Following Skinner to the checkered flag was rookie David Reutimann, who drove his No. 17 NTN Bearings Toyota Tundra to an eighth-place finish. The Zephyrills, FL-native was the first rookie to cross the finish line and recorded his third consecutive top-10 finish of the season. Earlier this year, Reutimann was ninth in Daytona and third in Atlanta.

Hank Parker Jr. (12th), defending NCTS champion Travis Kvapil (13th) and Bill Lester (17th) were the other Toyota drivers placing among the top-20. Parker registered his best finish of the season in the No. 21 Innovative Motorsports Toyota Tundra, despite battling brake problems throughout the day. Kvapil finished outside the top-five for the first time this season in the No. 24 Bang! Racing Line-X Tundra and Lester earned his third consecutive top-20 result in the No. 17 Bill Davis Racing Tundra.

Darrell Waltrip, making his first start of the year in the No. 11 Toyota Tundra, crossed the finish line 24th. Waltrip, whose Darrell Waltrip Motorsports teams fields the Tundra of Reutimann, will return to the driver’s seat at Indianapolis Raceway Park (August 6) and again at Martinsville Speedway (October 23).

The two other Toyota drivers in the field were rookies Shelby Howard and Robert Huffman. Howard guided his No. 23 Bill Davis Racing Tundra to a 23rd place finish and Huffman was 34th in his No. 12 Innovative Motorsports entry, after his Tundra was damaged when he was caught in an on-track incident involving other trucks.

After the first three NCTS races of the 2004 season, three Toyota drivers sit among the top-five in the championship point standings. Kvapil is second in the standings with 464 points and Reutiman is fourth in the standings with 455 points. Skinner completes the trio of Tundra drivers among the top-five in the standings with 424 points.

The next race on the NCTS schedule is May 16 at Ohio’s Mansfield Motor Speedway. It will be the inaugural NCTS race at the Ohio half-mile oval.