archives

Scroll down to view past ARCA Menards Series news and rumors.

July 2019

  • Logan Seavey Returns to Venturini for Springfield and DuQuoin: Logan Seavey is ready to make his return to the seat of Venturini Motorsports’ (VMS) No. 20 Turn One Steering / Craftsman Toyota in the ARCA Menards Series for back-to-back appearances on two of Illinois’ legendary dirt tracks - Springfield (August 18) and DuQuoin (August 31). A native of Sutter, California, Seavey made two ARCA starts in 2018 with VMS. During his ARCA debut at the Illinois Fairgrounds in Springfield, Seavey started fourth and finished third. In his second series race the 21-year old driver tapped into his new found stock car experience and drove to victory lane just weeks later at the DuQuoin State Fairground’s Magic Mile. “I’m super excited and thankful to get another chance to run the dirt races in the ARCA series with Venturini Motorsports,” said the 21-year old driver. “With the success of last year’s races and all of the knowledge I’ve gained since then I know we will have a really good shot at both races this year. I have more experience with pit road, restarts, and just driving stock cars in general so I feel like I have a better grasp to put together all the variables it takes to win a stock car race.” (In part from Venturini Motorsports PR) (07-30-19)
  • ARCA to race at ISM Raceway (Phoenix) in 2020: ISM Raceway has announced two regional series races in 2020 as part of the track’s continued support of grassroots racing. The first of the two events will be an ARCA Menards Series event during the FanShield 500 NASCAR weekend. The spring event, set for March 6, 2020, is a new addition to ISM Raceway’s schedule and will feature the best of the ARCA Menards Series as well as the top regional series stock car drivers from the East and West. The series is the top developmental ladder for drivers looking to make the next step to one of NASCAR’s three national series as well as a proving ground for some of the best short-track veterans. They are all battling it out for bragging rights, checkered flags and championship trophies. (In part from ISMRaceway.com) (07-28-19)
  • Christian Eckes wins at Pocono Raceway: Christian Eckes (No. 15 JBL Audio Toyota) made a statement that he will be a threat for the ARCA Menards Series championship with a dominant victory in Friday’s FORTS USA 150 at Pocono Raceway. Eckes took control on lap 35 when the dominant driver in the early stages of the race, General Tire Pole Award winner Todd Gilliland (No. 18 Frontline Enterprises Toyota), was penalized for a blend line violation after his only pit stop of the afternoon. Eckes led the final 26 laps of the caution free race to score his second win of the season and fifth overall. Once Eckes was alerted by his crew that he would be the leader after Gilliland’s penalty, he kept his head in the game to minimize mistakes. "Once they told me what happened to the 18 it was all about keeping our heads down and not making any mistakes," Eckes said. "We knew there was a long way to go and we needed to be perfect to close it out." With his second win of the season, Eckes closes the gap on his Venturini Motorsports teammate and championship leader Michael Self (No. 25 Sinclair Lubricants Toyota), who finished third. Full Results (In part from ARCARacing.com) (07-27-19)
  • Willie Mullins set for Pocono Raceway debut: Willie Mullins and Mullins Racing are heading to the picturesque Pocono Mountains for their third start of the ARCA Menards Series campaign. Mullins, the owner/driver of the No. 3 Mullins Racing Ford, will be making his debut at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pa., during the FORTS USA 150. The race at the track known as the ‘Tricky Triangle’ will serve as a bit of a home game for several members of the Mullins Racing crew. "A lot of our crew live in the Pocono area, so it’s a homecoming for them to get to run their local track," Mullins explained. "Kevin Belmont, our spotter, is from up there. George Kerner and all of those guys, that is where their home is. It’s kind of a homecoming for them and I’m glad we can run their local track." The FORTS USA 150 will mark the third race for Mullins and company during the ARCA Menards Series season and they’ll be looking to turn their luck around after two difficult races at Daytona Int’l Speedway in February and Charlotte Motor Speedway in May that saw the team register finishes of 35th and 17th, respectively. "We want to come out of there and not tear up a race car," Mullins said. "We’ve raced two times this year and we’ve left the track with torn up cars two times this year. We’re expecting a top-15 finish, we just need to go out there and not tear up the car." Joining Mullins at Pocono Raceway will once again be veteran crew chief Tony Furr, who has worked with Mullins and Mullins Racing in both of the organization’s previous ARCA starts this season. (In part from Mullins Racing PR) (07-24-19)
  • Chandler Smith scores fourth win at Iowa Speedway: Chandler Smith (No. 20 Craftsman Toyota) put a period on a clean sweep of the ARCA Menards Series Fans with Benefits 150 with a dominant victory Friday night at Iowa Speedway. Smith led the first 106 laps before losing the lead on pit road during the penultimate caution flag of the night. Once back under green, it took him just 10 laps to knife his way through the field to retake the lead from Ty Gibbs (No. 18 Monster Energy Toyota) to lead the final 35 laps. The win is Smith's fourth of the season, and his fourth consecutive ARCA Menards Series short track victory. Smith wasn't hampered at all by traffic or the dreaded aero push as he sliced his way through the field. "The only time I ever felt the car respond to aero all night was when I passed a lap car on the outside," Smith said. "Other than that it was perfect. I can't thank Billy and the rest of the Venturini Motorsports team for giving me such a great car here. To have four wins on the season is a dream come true." Full Results (In part from ARCARacing.com) (07-22-19)
  • Colby Howard joins Win-Tron Racing for Iowa Speedway: Thirteen months ago, teenager Colby Howard made his most recent start in the ARCA Menards Series with a top ten result at Madison International Speedway. This weekend, he returns to the national touring series with Win-Tron Racing and the Project HOPE Foundation at Iowa Speedway for the third start of his career. A year ago, Howard was a relatively unknown driver who performed well with a pair of top ten finishes in two ARCA starts after graduating from late model stock cars in South Carolina and surrounding areas. This year, he brings a much beefier stat sheet, having won multiple pro late model races with Anthony Campi Racing including a handful of statement wins over short track veterans like Bubba Pollard and Augie Grill at tracks like Five Flags Speedway and Montgomery Motor Speedway. "I'm really excited to be back in the ARCA Menards Series and making my first start with Win-Tron this weekend," said Howard. "With our pro late model success, I was really wanting to try my hand at a bigger car again. I feel like I've grown as a driver and my management team at PMG hooked me up with Kevin Cywinski and Win-Tron to give me the opportunity to showcase my talents at this level once more. I've always enjoyed tracks where there are multiple grooves, and that's one reason I'm looking forward to Iowa this weekend. It's the biggest and fastest track I've ever been on, too." (In part from ARCARacing.com) (07-18-19)
  • Chandler Smith wins at Elko Speedway: Chandler Smith (No. 20 Craftsman Toyota) recovered from a mid-race spin to win the Menards 250 at Elko Speedway on Saturday night. Smith, who started seventh, was dominant throughout the race, able to drive way to a full straightaway lead on several occasions on his way to his third series victory of the season. Although he had the dominant car, Smith did have to work for it. He slid in oil laid down in turn one by another competitor and spun on lap 146 and dropped to the tail of the lead lap. By virtue of a fast car and numerous mid-race cautions that continued to jumble the running order, Smith was able to knife his way back to the lead by lap 209. From there, he was able to drive away to nearly a full straightaway lead crossing the stripe 4.147 seconds ahead of second-place finisher Ty Gibbs (No. 18 Monster Energy Toyota). Full Results (In part from ARCARacing.com) (07-18-19)
  • Howie DiSavino III to make debut at Elko with Win-Tron Racing: Howie DiSavino III announced he will make his ARCA Menards Series debut at Elko Speedway on July 13. DiSavino will be racing a car prepared by WinTron Racing in the 250-lap event. "It’s insane how quickly all this has happened, but I’m stoked to be making my ARCA debut at Elko Speedway next weekend," DiSavino said. "I think Elko will fit my style well, as I’ve grown up on bullrings like Southside Speedway in Virginia, and Elko is one of those kinds of places. I can’t thank Kevin Cywinski enough for putting faith in me to drive one of his cars and to PMG for making it all come together so fast." Prior to making his ARCA debut, DiSavino has competed exclusively on short tracks near his home outside Richmond, Va. Appropriately, Brad Gramm and Mass Mutual Greater Richmond is assisting in DiSavino’s jump to the ARCA Menards Series as the primary sponsor for next weekend’s event. (In part from SpeedSport.com) (07-10-19)
  • Venturini crew chief Kevin Reed penalized after Chicagoland: Based on activities during the ARCA Menards Series Bounty 150 at Chicagoland Speedway Thursday June 27, Venturini Motorsports crew chief Kevin Reed has been penalized for 2019 ARCA Rulebook violations. The violations include page 12, Section 4, #5 which references professional conduct and page 64, #4 H iv. which references presenting ECU to Ilmor for data download. Reed has been fined $250 and placed on probation for an indefinite period of time. (In part from ARCARacing.com) (07-03-19)