Nov. 15 (Bloomberg) -- Johnny Benson's gamble on strategy last night won him Nascar's Craftsman Truck Series title as his seventh-place finish in the Ford 200 at Homestead-Miami Speedway was enough to edge defending champion Ron Hornaday.

Todd Bodine won the race.

Benson opted not to make a pit stop during a caution period with 10 laps left in the race, gaining positions on Hornaday who stopped for tires. Hornaday made up five spots in the closing laps and finished eighth, 0.4 second behind Benson.

``Ron had a great truck,'' Benson told reporters after claiming the title in the Bill Davis Racing-owned Toyota Tundra. ``We just ended up beating them on a little bit of strategy.''

The 45-year-old Michigan native finished the season with 3,275 points, seven more than Hornaday, in Nascar's third-tier series. Benson said 2008 would be his last season with Bill Davis Racing and hasn't announced plans for next season, leading to speculation he might retire.

It was the first Nascar championship for the Davis team, which also fields a car in the top Sprint Cup Series. Benson won the second-tier Busch Series title in 1995 and has one win in what is now the Sprint Cup.

Race winner Bodine, also driving a Toyota, was 0.232 second ahead of rookie Brian Scott in a Ford. Kevin Harvick, owner of Hornaday's truck, was third, followed by Kyle Busch in a Toyota and Dennis Setzer in a Dodge.

Slim Lead

Benson held a three-point lead over Hornaday going into the Florida race. Harvick led early and moved out of the way to give Hornaday the top spot, which gave him five bonus points and a temporary lead in the standings. Benson gained the points back after a two-tire pit stop put him ahead of the field.

``It was a good race, Johnny and I raced hard,'' Hornaday said. ``It's just one of those things. Track position was everything.''

Benson will be the last Craftsman champion as Sears Holdings Corp. will cede the title sponsorship for the series to Camping World in 2009. The race was part of Nascar's championship weekend, with titles in all three of its top series to be decided. The final race in the Sprint Cup Series is scheduled tomorrow.

To contact the reporter on this story: Gene Laverty in Charlotte, North Carolina, at glaverty@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: November 15, 2008 00:25 EST