ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards

Graham’s morning lap of 48.229 seconds (186.61 mph) in the No. 88 Ford gave him the lead in the weekend’s fifth testing session, and in turn the only top 10 time outside of Saturday afternoon’s drafting session. Duno, Jared Marks, Will Kimmel, and Alex Bowman comprised the remainder of the morning top five.

Only 30 cars participated in the last afternoon session, which Duno led with a best lap of 48.34 seconds (186.161 mph). She was followed by Joey Coulter, Brandon McReynolds, Bowman, and Josh Richards. Full speed charts for both Sunday sessions are available at ARCARacing.com.

Overall, Venturini Motorsports ended the weekend with the top positions among 79 drivers who took laps over 21 hours. Bowman’s Saturday afternoon lap of 47.787 seconds (188.336 mph) in the No. 25 Chevrolet will stand as the test’s top effort, just ahead of teammates John Stancill, Brennan Poole, and Ryan Reed. Marks, driving a Tony Marks Racing Dodge, ended the weekend fifth.

Duno’s Saturday afternoon lap in the Sheltra Motorsports Ford ended the test sixth overall, just ahead of Venturini’s Nelson Canache, DC Racing’s Drew Charlson, Graham, and Coulter Motorsports’ Matt Lofton.

The overall weekend results are listed below.

CAR # DRIVER MFG TIME SPEED

1 25a Alex Bowman Chevy 47.787 188.336
2 55 John Stancill Toyota 47.811 188.241
3 25 Brennan Poole Chevy 47.812 188.237
4 15 Ryan Reed Toyota 47.821 188.202
5 12 Jared Marks Dodge 47.832 188.159
6 63 Milka Duno Ford 48.166 186.854
7 35 Nelson Canache Chevy 48.212 186.676
8 51 Drew Charlson Chevy 48.221 186.641
9 88 Buster Graham Ford 48.229 186.610
10 16 Matt Lofton Chevy 48.234 186.590
11 94 Steve Blackburn Chevy 48.245 186.548
12 69a Fain Skinner Ford 48.251 186.525
13 58 Chad Hackenbracht Chevy 48.340 186.181
14 61 Joey Coulter Chevy 48.363 186.093
15 4 Brandon McReynolds Chevy 48.364 186.089
16 32 Chris Windom Toyota 48.380 186.027
17 66 Josh Richards Toyota 48.438 185.805
18 68 Will Kimmel Ford 48.488 185.613
19 08 Ross Chastain Ford 48.569 185.303
20 12 Maryeve Dufault Dodge 48.573 185.288
21 75 Ginny Quinones Toyota 48.674 184.904
22 44 Frank Kimmel Toyota 48.773 184.528
23 6 Cale Gale Chevy 48.803 184.415
24 14 John Ferrier Chevy 48.839 184.279
25 05 Derrike Cope Chevy 48.846 184.253
26 00 Ed Kennedy Chevy 48.865 184.181
27 66 Mark Thompson Toyota 48.931 183.932
28 1 Alli Owens Ford 48.953 183.850
29 90 Zachary Ralston Ford 48.971 183.782
30 29c Bobby Pelland Dodge 49.076 183.389
31 29a Sam Edwards Dodge 49.092 183.329
32 5a Bobby Gerhart Chevy 49.169 183.042
33 82a Sean Corr Ford 49.190 182.964
34 61 T.J. Duke Chevy 49.193 182.953
35 11b Rick Clifton Chevy 49.340 182.408
36 75a Benny Chastain Toyota 49.392 182.216
37 17 Chris Buescher Ford 49.417 182.124
38 29b Sloan Henderson Dodge 49.461 181.962
39 5b Damon Lusk Chevy 49.469 181.932
40 14a Josh Williams Ford 49.609 181.419
41 05 Spencer Gallagher Chevy 49.625 181.360
42 1a Jeremy Petty Chevy 49.725 180.995
43 40a Michelle Therault Dodge 49.745 180.923
44 10a Dennis Strickland Ford 49.793 180.748
45 13 George Cushman Dodge 49.985 180.054
46 69 Chris Brown Ford 50.133 179.522
47 18 Michael Affarano Chevy 50.207 179.258
48 10b Ryan Glenski Chevy 50.223 179.201
49 90a Grant Enfinger Ford 50.258 179.076
50 40t Nick Tucker Dodge 50.390 178.607
51 11 Paul Harraka Chevy 50.403 178.561
52 11c Trevor Edwards Chevy 50.517 178.158
53 10 Derrick Griffin Ford 50.539 178.080
54 1b Thomas Praytor Ford 50.560 178.006
55 11a Ed Pompa Chevy 50.579 177.939
56 29 Bob Bryant Dodge 50.606 177.845
57 11e Sunny Hobbs Chevy 50.617 177.806
58 29d Andy Jones Dodge 50.626 177.774
59 18f Chris Coker Ford 50.640 177.725
60 04c Danny Esposito Dodge 50.651 177.687
61 04 Scott Edwards Dodge 50.695 177.532
62 1c Alexsander Gregory Ford 50.715 177.462
63 40b Trent Mayo Dodge 50.926 176.727
64 04a Juan Carlos Blum Dodge 51.029 176.370
65 40d Larry Barford Dodge 51.054 176.284
66 11d Bill Coffey Ford 51.162 175.912
67 40d Josh Watkins Dodge 51.162 175.912
68 06 Ricky Byers Chevy 51.173 175.874
69 11h James Hylton Ford 51.243 175.634
70 10f Brad Lloyd Chevy 51.257 175.586
71 10b Daryl Eustice Ford 51.277 175.517
72 18c Tyler Speer Chevy 51.348 175.275
73 89 Chris Lafferty Chevy 51.563 174.544
74 40c Ryan Rust Dodge 51.605 174.402
75 7 Brent Cross Chevy 51.792 173.772
76 40 Michael Bockler Dodge 51.795 173.762
77 40b Roger Carter Dodge 51.827 173.655
78 89a Korbin Forrister Chevy 52.314 172.038
79 74 Jimmy Nowell Chevy 60.220 149.452

The ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards will return to central Florida in less than two months, as the February 18 Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 at Daytona International Speedway will open ARCA’s 60th Anniversary Season. The 80-lap, 200-mile race is scheduled as the first of 20 races in 2012 and will air live on SPEED, with additional coverage available at ARCARacing.com.

The complete 2012 event schedule is available at ARCARacing.com.

The ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards has crowned an ARCA national champion each year since its inaugural season in 1953, and has toured over 200 race tracks in 28 states since its inception. The series has tested the abilities of drivers and race teams over the most diverse schedule of stock car racing events in the world, visiting tracks ranging from 0.4 mile to 2.66 miles in length, on both paved and dirt surfaces as well as a left- and right-turn road course in its most recent season. This year, the series will visit Alabama’s Mobile International Speedway and Minnesota’s Elko Speedway for the first time; ARCA’s first visit to Minnesota will give ARCA a race in a 29th state.

Founded by John Marcum in 1953 in Toledo, Ohio, the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) is recognized among the leading sanctioning bodies in the country. Closing in on completing its sixth decade after hundreds of thousands of miles of racing, ARCA administers over 100 race events each season in two professional touring series and local weekly events.

- Automobile Racing Club of America Press Release

ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards Thumbnail

Ryan Reed drove the No. 15 Toyota to a best lap of 48.857 seconds (184.211 mph) in the second session of ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards open testing at the 2.5-mile oval, just edging teammates Brennan Poole, John Stancill, and Mark Thompson for the day’s best times. T.J. Duke, driving for Coulter Motorsports, finished the day fifth.

Poole led the three-hour morning period with a best lap of 48.915 seconds, and he and Reed were the only drivers to top that mark in the four-hour afternoon session.

Reed has never competed in the ARCA Racing Series, but is a track champion and super late model Rookie of the Year and race winner at Toyota Speedway at Irwindale in California. Just months past his 18th birthday, Reed enters ARCA with three NASCAR K&N Pro Series starts to his credit. In February, as he prepared to move to North Carolina from Bakersfield, Calif., Reed was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes.

Rick Clifton, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Rookie of the Year Joey Coulter, Chris Windom, Nelson Canache, and Sloan Henderson filled out the top 10 for the first day. Seven-time and defending Daytona winner Bobby Gerhart ended the day 13th, and 2011 Daytona runner-up and ARCA Rookie of the Year Chris Buescher finished 27th.

Open testing for teams and drivers will continue Saturday and Sunday at Daytona International Speedway.

The full list of every driver’s best speed is available below.

CAR # DRIVER TIME SPEED

1 15 Ryan Reed 48.857 184.211
2 25 Brennan Poole 48.862 184.192
3 55 John Stancill 48.921 183.970
4 66 Mark Thompson 48.931 183.932
5 61 T.J. Duke 49.193 182.953
6 11b Rick Clifton 49.340 182.408
7 61 Joey Coulter 49.350 182.371
8 32 Chris Windom 49.360 182.334
9 35 Nelson Canache 49.439 182.043
10 29b Sloan Henderson 49.461 181.962
11 5b Damon Lusk 49.469 181.932
12 82a Sean Corr 49.475 181.910
13 5a Bobby Gerhart 49.502 181.811
14 58 Chad Hackenbracht 49.552 181.627
15 4 Brandon McReynolds 49.553 181.624
16 99 Buster Graham 49.637 181.316
17 14 John Ferrier 49.666 181.210
18 94 Steve Blackburn 49.717 181.025
19 16 Matt Lofton 49.725 180.995
20 00 Ed Kennedy 49.761 180.865
21 12 Jared Marks 49.772 180.825
22 63 Milka Duno 49.787 180.770
23 1 Alli Owens 49.813 180.676
24 69a Fain Skinner 49.862 180.498
25 68 Will Kimmel 50.016 179.942
26 6 Cale Gale 50.034 179.878
27 17a Chris Buescher 50.035 179.874
28 90 Zachary Ralston 50.114 179.591
29 08 Ross Chastain 50.131 179.530
30 69 Chris Brown 50.133 179.522
31 18 Michael Affarano 50.207 179.258
32 10b Ryan Glenski 50.223 179.201
33 90a Grant Enfinger 50.258 179.076
34 75 Ginny Quinones 50.278 179.005
35 11 Paul Harraka 50.403 178.561
36 75a Benny Chastain 50.461 178.356
37 11a Ed Pompa 50.579 177.939
38 11c Trevor Edwards 50.681 177.581
39 04 Scott Edwards 50.695 177.532
40 51 Drew Charlson 50.744 177.361
41 05 Spencer Gallagher 50.903 176.807
42 13 George Cushman 50.928 176.720
43 04a Juan Carlos Blum 51.029 176.370
44 04c Danny Esposito 51.089 176.163
45 11d Bill Coffey 51.162 175.912
46 06 Ricky Byers 51.173 175.874
47 10b Daryl Eustice 51.277 175.517
48 04b Nick Tucker 51.405 175.080
49 40d Larry Barford 51.511 174.720
50 04d Josh Watkins 51.674 174.169
51 40b Roger Carter 51.827 173.655
52 40 Michael Bockler 51.990 173.110
53 05a Derrike Cope 52.067 172.854
54 7 Brent Cross 52.376 171.834

2012 will be the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards’ 60th Anniversary Season, featuring 20 races at 18 tracks. The season begins with the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday, February 18. The event will air live on SPEED.

The complete 2012 event schedule is available at ARCARacing.com.

The ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards has crowned an ARCA national champion each year since its inaugural season in 1953, and has toured over 200 race tracks in 28 states since its inception. The series has tested the abilities of drivers and race teams over the most diverse schedule of stock car racing events in the world, visiting tracks ranging from 0.4 mile to 2.66 miles in length, on both paved and dirt surfaces as well as a left- and right-turn road course in its most recent season. This year, the series will visit Alabama’s Mobile International Speedway and Minnesota’s Elko Speedway for the first time; ARCA’s first visit to Minnesota will give ARCA a race in a 29th state.

Founded by John Marcum in 1953 in Toledo, Ohio, the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) is recognized among the leading sanctioning bodies in the country. Closing in on completing its sixth decade after hundreds of thousands of miles of racing, ARCA administers over 100 race events each season in two professional touring series and local weekly events.

- Automobile Racing Club of America Press Release

ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards Thumbnail

The Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 will set the tone for 2012 from the historic 2.5-mile superspeedway oval at 4 p.m. on Saturday, February 18. The race will air live on SPEED.

The race will be the 49th for ARCA at Daytona, which has hosted the series’ season opener every year since ARCA’s first visit in 1964. The race will also open ARCA’s 60th Anniversary Season, and will precede Saturday night’s feature race, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Budweiser Shootout. Those events will lead into pole qualifying for the Daytona 500 the next day.

Bobby Gerhart has won a record seven times at Daytona, including a victory over 2011 Rookie of the Year Chris Buescher this February.

“We race on the same day, at the same track, just a couple of hours before the Bud Shootout, and a week in advance of the season-opening Daytona 500,” said Ron Drager, president of ARCA. “It’s a great opportunity for us, and a great platform at a track where so much of our history has been written.”

On-track activity will begin with practice Thursday, February 16 and continue with Menards Pole Qualifying presented by Ansell on Friday, February 17. Start times will be announced shortly.

ARCA officials also announced today that the season’s second superspeedway event will take place Friday, May 4 at Talladega Superspeedway, leading off a weekend of NASCAR Nationwide Series and Sprint Cup Series action.

“These race tracks are great facilities in important racing markets, and speak to the long-standing relationship between ARCA and the International Speedway Corporation tracks, which dates back to ARCA’s first race at Daytona in 1964,” Drager said. “This is a real opportunity for our teams and drivers to be on track during the high-visibility ISC race weekends.”

The 2012 race at Talladega will be the 50th since 1969. Grant Adcox is ARCA’s all-time leading winner on the 2.66-mile superspeedway oval with five wins, but 2011 series champion Ty Dillon is the most recent ARCA winner at Talladega. Dillon passed nine-time ARCA champion Frank Kimmel just before the checkered flag to win this April.

More detailed schedule information for the season will be available shortly. The following race dates for the 2012 ARCA Racing Series schedule have been announced:

February 18 – Daytona International Speedway

March 10 – Mobile International Speedway

May 4 – Talladega Superspeedway

July 1 – New Jersey Motorsports Park

The ARCA Racing Series will wrap up the 2011 season with the Championship Awards Banquet at the Northern Kentucky Convention Center in Covington, Ky., near Cincinnati, on Saturday, December 10.

The ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards featured 19 events at 16 tracks on its 2011 schedule. The series has crowned an ARCA national champion each year since its inaugural season in 1953, and has toured over 200 race tracks in 28 states since its inception. In 2011, the series has tested the abilities of drivers and race teams over the most diverse schedule of stock car racing events in the world, visiting tracks ranging from 0.4 mile to 2.66 miles in length, on both paved and dirt surfaces as well as a left- and right-turn road course.

Founded by John Marcum in 1953 in Toledo, Ohio, the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) is recognized among the leading sanctioning bodies in the country. Closing in on completing its sixth decade after hundreds of thousands of miles of racing, ARCA administers over 100 race events each season in two professional touring series and local weekly events.

- Automobile Racing Club of America Press Release

Team BCR Racing

The effort by the Mooresville, North Carolina-based team was also a strong recovery after debris sliced a tire on the team’s No. 99 Elevator Transportation Services Ford Fusion sent Evans Jr. into a spin a week before at Kansas Speedway in practice and ultimately forced the team to withdraw from the Kansas Lottery 98.9 to focus on the third short track race together.

Leadership from Motorsports veteran Howard Bixman at the controls as crew chief, rookie Charles Evans Jr. returned to the Northern Ohio short track on the heels of a solid private testing session just several weeks prior.

With the United States Auto Club (USAC) sharing Saturday with the ARCA Racing Series at Toledo Speedway, practice which was normally run as one session would now be combined into two forty minute-efforts. Mounting the 18th quickest times in each practice respectively, Team BCR team was optimistic about qualifying.

Charles Evans Jr.

In qualifying, the Friendswood, Texas native knocked off the 16th fastest qualifying lap, ahead of some of ARCA’s most notables including nine-time champion Frank Kimmel, Tim George Jr. and Bobby Gerhart. Stoked about their fast run in time trials, the team aimed at moving forward during the race the next day.

Unfortunately, teams returned to the ARCA-owned racetrack on Sunday under gloomy skies and consistent rain showers. Ultimately, the start of the contest would be pushed-back nearly two hours before the command to fire engines was given. ARCA would choose to utilize the 35-car starting field to finish the track drying process throwing both the green and yellow flags simultaneously for the first 40 circuits of the contest. With the yellow flag retracted and the green “officially” given to the field, Evans Jr., quickly tried to filter his way through traffic and mix himself into a comfortable position.

Heavy racing would soon settle in around Evans Jr., forcing the rookie driver to hover between 16th and 20th over the first 50 green flag circuits. Informing Bixman of a loose-handling No. 99 Elevator Transportation Services Ford Fusion, the leader informed his driver that they would make a chassis adjustment on their first stop of the day which ultimately occurred shortly after lap 118. Four tires, fuel and a chassis change was the call from atop of the pit box sending their driver back into battle 19th and on the lead lap.

Shortly after the restart on lap 124, Evans Jr. remained 19th on the half-mile oval for the first 15 laps of the run before finding himself in the groove to climb into 13th by lap 144.

Cheerleading and coaching from his team would continue to boost their driver’s confidence behind the wheel as he moved into the 12th position on a lap 161 restart.

Using the “give and take” method paid off for the upcoming driver as he plugged his way into the top-10 by 175. Evans Jr. was able to lift himself into ninth by lap 183 where he took the checkered flag which included a one-lap dash in overtime competition.

“It was such a great day for Team BCR, ETS, Casite, RoushYates Parts.com and everyone involved with this organization,” said the 21-year old. “We knew we were bringing a good piece to the track and we kept making adjustments and I raced smart to stay on the lead lap all day and be where we wanted to be when it counted. We can only build off this for 2012 and I’m excited about that.”

For Bixman, who also serves as car owner of the No. 99 entry, he showered praise about his driver’s Toledo Speedway debut. “I had little doubt if we didn’t get involved in a wreck, and we just road the first 150 laps or so that we would finish inside the top-10,” the Michigan native said. “CJ did what he needed to behind the wheel all weekend long and I’m extremely proud of him. For only three ARCA Racing Series starts and to already have a top-10 finish to his credit, I think it just shows what kind of talent and ability he really has.”

He added, “I want to thank everyone who supports our race team. We’re lucky to have some great companies aboard our racecar and to be affiliated with an organization like ETS, RoushYates Parts.com. Also, Greg White from Casite attended the race, so that just added icing on the cake. We’ll be back in 2012 and look forward to it.”

Next up for the ARCA Racing Series is the 2011 championship banquet which is set for Saturday, December 10th at the Northern Kentucky Convention Center in Covington, Ky., near Cincinnati. The top-20 drivers and top-10 owners and drivers will be recognized for their participation in the series this year.

For more information on Team BCR Racing and Charles Evans Jr., please log onto teambcr.com.

Connect with RoushYates Performance Products and RoushYates Engines through their official web site at roushyatesparts.com.

To check out the latest products available from The Casite Company, please click on casite.com.

- Team BCR Racing Press Release

No. 12 VR-12 / Dodge Motorsports Dodge Charger

After enduring the tracks of Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway, Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, Salem (Ind.) Speedway, Toledo Speedway and most recently the challenging road course of New Jersey Motorsports Park – Dufault was set to make her ARCA intermediate track debut at the 1.5-mile speedway.

Despite not testing at Chicagoland Speedway, Dufault and her TMR team entered the sixth race of the season with confidence that a large oval track would allow the Sorel, Quebec native to strut her stuff and show improvement from start to finish.

Gains from the start of practice had the No. 12 VR-12 / Dodge Motorsports Dodge Charger going in the right direction by posting the 21st fastest lap during the hour and a half practice session. Changes made by crew chief Darren Wolfe would allow Dufault to throttle hard in Menards Pole by Ansell qualifying lining up her automobile in the 20th position.

An hour before the sixth race of the season was to take the green flag; Mother Nature invaded Chicagoland Speedway and completely drenched the facility, ultimately forcing officials from ARCA, NASCAR and Chicagoland Speedway to postpone the start of the event until the conclusion of the NASCAR Nationwide Series’ STP 300.

Several hours later and nearly 20 degrees cooler, the ARCA Racing Series would be given the command to start the engines.

From the drop of the green flag, Dufault did an excellent job to click off laps and gain experience around the extremely fast 1.5-mile speedway. Hovering inside the top-18 for much of the event’s first quarter, Despite posting respectable lap times Dufault would lose a lap to the leaders by the time routine pit stops occurred on lap 37.

Four tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment was the call from atop of the pit box which sent the former NASCAR Canadian Tire Series back into the hunt. Continuing to mount laps and gain priceless experience, Dufault would safely hover inside the top-20 racing with the likes of Bobby Gerhart, Sean Corr, Brent Brevak and Stefan Rzesnowiecky.

Eight laps past the half-way mark, Dufault and her TMR team received a welcome break when the yellow flag waived allowing the No. 12 VR-12 / Dodge Motorsports Dodge Charger to retain their lost lap back courtesy of the Aaron’s Lucky Dog.

Back on the lead circuit, Dufault was determined and focused to move her Chrysler nameplate towards the top-10. Methodically moving her way forward, Dufault nicely hit her marks and utilized the give and take method to steer her TMR entry towards a career-best finish.

Despite inching up the leader board, Dufault would again lose a lap to the ultra-quick Chad Hackenbracht with 26 laps remaining, putting the No. 12 VR-12 / Dodge Motorsports Dodge Charger once again one lap off the pace. Running solidly in the 13th position with 17 laps to go, Dufault was biding her time waiting for the perfect opportunity to pass the No. 3 of Brent Brevak and the No. 96 of Stefan Rzesnowiecky.

When leader Chad Hackenbracht blew a tire with 15 laps to go, the yellow flag was displayed allowing the lone female driver in the event to catch her breath and gather her thoughts for the closing laps. As an added bonus, the No. 12 VR-12 / Dodge Motorsports Dodge Charger once again became the beneficiary of the Aaron’s Lucky Dog.

Restarting in 12th, Dufault was able to move up two positions over the race’s final 10 circuits to cross the start finish line in 10th, the team’s best finish since their series debut at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway in February.

Maryeve Dufault

As for Tony Marks, owner of TMR, he was one of the happiest car owners in the garage area Saturday night. “I’m tickled,” Marks explained. “Maryeve did a fantastic job of showing maturity and patience. We were going to be satisfied with a solid top-15 finish but to leave Chicagoland with a top-10, I’m thrilled. I have to thank VR-12, Dodge, Victory Water and all those who stand behind and support TMR. A huge congratulations to the team as the finish was a total team effort. Hopefully we can go to Pocono next weekend and make it back-to-back top-10 finishes.”

With their performance Saturday night, Dufault climbed into the top-10 in the ARCA Racing Series championship standings where she currently occupies 10th, 65 markers behind ninth place competitor Sean Corr.

Next up for the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards is the first of two trips to Pocono (Pa.) Raceway for the running of the Pocono ARCA 200, round seven of 19 on the 2011 schedule. Dufault and TMR will make their inaugural start at the 2.5-mile triangle on Saturday, June 11.

For additional information on TMT, Inc. please visit; tmtcompanies.net.

For more on Maryeve Dufault, please log onto Maryeveracing.com.

To learn more about Tony Marks Racing, please click over to Tmr-racing.com.

See the buzz that VR-12 is creating by clicking over to their website at VR-12.com.

Quench yourself with Victory Water, see how at Victoryh20.com.

About Tony Marks Racing (TMR):

Tony Marks Racing was founded in 2009 through the passion for racing of team owner and former driver Tony Marks. Marks is the successful owner of TMT, Inc., a logistics, warehousing and packaging company with over 400 employees whose customers are mainly comprised of Fortune 100 companies.

Marks began his racing career in 1985 getting behind the wheel of everything from drag racers, Dirt Late Models, SCCA Formula Fords, USAC F2000 Open Wheel and ARCA cars. Tony personally raced until 2005 amassing numerous wins, championships and track records along the way until he then changed his focus from driver to owner and began building racing programs for his children Jared (16 years old) and Rachel (13 years old). Under the auspices of TMR, Jared began his racing career in 2002 in quarter midgets and now competes in late model, CRA, ASA and ARCA Series events while Rachel continues her development program racing quarter midgets and Bandoleros.

TMR has been at the forefront of charitable giving through its’ “Driving Against Hunger” and “Million Meal Challenge” race programs which have raised over $200,000 for Forgotten Harvest in 2010 at the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and NASCAR Nationwide Series events at Michigan International Speedway.

For the NASCAR events TMR along with TMT, Inc. partnered with Forgotten Harvest for the “Million Meal Challenge For Our Kids” which helps to bridge the hunger gap while schools are out of session and feeds 20,000 children per day in the Detroit metro area. Forgotten Harvest was significantly displayed on the entry of Chase Austin during both the Truck and Nationwide events at Michigan International Speedway along with logos of “Million Meal Challenge” sponsors Walgreen’s, United Race Group, Holyfield’s Choice Alka-Power Water and Vitamin Spice. Evander Holyfield was also instrumental in the challenge, acting as Grand Marshall for the August race and announcing his “Fight Against Hunger” on behalf of Forgotten Harvest.

As the first race team to “Drive Against Hunger” through their partnership with Forgotten Harvest, TMR plans to continue their alliance with Forgotten Harvest and once again “Drive Against Hunger” during the 2011 season.

- Tony Marks Racing Press Release

ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards Thumbnail

The 100-lap, 150-mile Messina Wildlife Animal Stopper 150 – the sixth of 19 races this season – is scheduled for 5 p.m. Central on June 4, with live timing and scoring presented by ARCA Nation at ARCARacing.com. SPEED will air a tape-delayed broadcast of the race the same evening, at 11 p.m. Eastern.

The race is the third speedway race of the year, following Bobby Gerhart’s win at Daytona in February and Ty Dillon’s victory at Talladega in April. The event kicks off a string of three consecutive speedway events (Pocono, June 11; Michigan, June 17), which will play a significant role in the 2011 Hoosier Tire Superspeedway Challenge. The Challenge consists of seven races (Daytona, Talladega, Chicagoland, Pocono, Michigan, Pocono, Kansas). 2010 ARCA Racing Series champion Patrick Sheltra won the Challenge last season.

In ten races since the track’s opening in 2001, 10 different drivers have won, and 10 different drivers have qualified on the pole. Four of the 10 race wins have come from the pole. Nine-time series champion Frank Kimmel won from the first starting position in 2003; former series competitors Chad Blount (2002), Steve Wallace (2006), and Michael McDowell (2007) also won from the pole. In the last two seasons, eventual series champions Justin Lofton (2009) and Sheltra (2010) won at Chicagoland.

After five races in 2011, Dillon (No. 41 Richard Childress Racing Development Chevrolet) may appear the primary favorite on the 1.5-mile oval. Dillon, an ARCA rookie with four wins in eight career starts, won at the similar Kansas Speedway last fall and finished with the top time of 30.195 seconds (178.838 mph) to lead a list of 15 drivers who tested at Chicagoland on May 17.

Dillon has won the Menards Pole Award presented by Ansell three times this season. In addition to his win at Talladega, he won at Toledo Speedway on May 15. A grandson of Richard Childress, Dillon leads the ARCA point standings by 90 points over Frank Kimmel (No. 44 Ansell/Menards Ford).

In addition to his 2003 win at Chicagoland, Kimmel has four other top-fives and seven other top-10s at the track, including a fourth-place finish last year. The highest returning finisher from 2010 is Grant Enfinger (No. 36 Hoosier Tire Midwest/RaceTires.com Dodge), who was third after finishing second in his only other Chicagoland race (2009).

Enfinger is currently fourth in points and in the midst of what he hopes is his first full ARCA Racing Series season, driving a car from Springfield, Ill.-based Allgaier Motorsports. The family team fielded the 2008 championship car for Justin Allgaier, who is now a NASCAR Nationwide Series driver for Turner Motorsports.

“We’re going as far as (team owner) Mike Allgaier wants to go,” Enfinger said. “We’ve been trying to find a little bit of help along the way to keep him motivated and keep everybody pumped up. I think staying up there in the points would help that as well. If we can just stay up there toward the front and have a shot at it, and have some guys help us along the way, I think we’ll keep it going for a while.”

The Messina Wildlife Animal Stopper 150 sponsorship is part of a comprehensive marketing program that includes not only an Official Company sponsorship with ARCA, but also a special award sponsorship with the Messina Halfway Leader Challenge. Teams leading at the advertised halfway point of a race will earn a $500 cash bonus for that event, provided the Messina logo is properly displayed on the team’s car and uniforms. The partnership between Messina and ARCA also includes opportunities for Messina guests and customers to attend race events.

“We are thrilled to bring our name to Chicagoland Speedway and to the thousands of race fans in the Chicago market as we continue to raise our brand awareness,” said James Messina, vice president of Messina Wildlife Management. “We’ve seen a tremendous response from the racing community as they’ve gotten to know the Messina Wildlife brand over the past year, and we’re excited to use this event to let fans in Chicago and around the country know that safe, effective and pleasant to use products are out there to help them stop animal damage.”

Started in 2001 after 13 years of research and development, Messina Wildlife Management has become a nationally recognized brand of organic animal repellents for a variety of domestic and wildlife pests under the brand name Messina Wildlife’s Animal Stoppers, including Deer Stopper®, Cat Stopper®, Dog StopperTM, Rabbit Stopper®, and others. Messina Wildlife’s Animal Stoppers can be found nationwide at thousands of independent retailers, including Menards, or online at MessinaWildlife.com.

Messina Wildlife’s Animal Stopper line of products features repellents that are pleasant to use, and dry clear and odor-free, while remaining rain fast for 30 days. Safe for the environment, humans, pets, and animals, these products encourage harmony with wildlife.

Messina’s motorsports involvement and partnership with ARCA began in 2009 when the company joined a business-to-business vendor program with series presenting sponsor Menards, allowing Messina the opportunity to sell products through more than 250 Menards Home Improvement locations nationwide.

Practice begins at 2:30 p.m. Central (3:30 Eastern) on Thursday, June 3, with Menards Pole Qualifying presented by Ansell taking place Friday at 1:30 p.m. Central (2:30 Eastern) before the 5 p.m. race. Live audio coverage and live timing and scoring of all events will be available at ARCARacing.com.

The ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards features 19 events at 16 tracks on its 2011 schedule. The series has crowned an ARCA national champion each year since its inaugural season in 1953, and has toured over 200 race tracks in 28 states since its inception. The series tests the abilities of drivers and race teams over the most diverse schedule of stock car racing events in the world, annually visiting tracks ranging from 0.4 mile to 2.66 miles in length, on both paved and dirt surfaces as well as a left- and right-turn road course.

Founded by John Marcum in 1953 in Toledo, Ohio, the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) is recognized among the leading sanctioning bodies in the country. Closing in on completing its sixth decade after hundreds of thousands of miles of racing, ARCA administers over 100 race events each season in two professional touring series and local weekly events.

- Automobile Racing Club of America Press Release

No. 32 Champion Brands Toyota Camry

And for the second consecutive race, Merrell looked more like a veteran rather than an inexperienced rookie when it comes to the intense, mind boggling restrictor plate racing. Armed with the same Toyota Camry that Merrell wheeled at Daytona, the team utilized the three hour practice on Thursday to dial in their newly sponsored automobile.

Producing the 20th fastest time overall, Merrell and his team went to work with veteran crew chief Mike Chafee to made adjustments to their machine in hopes of find additional speed for qualifying. In time trials, Merrell picked up the pace considerably and qualified his No. 32 Champion Brands Toyota Camry 12th in the 39-car field.

The excitement to start the second race of the 2011 ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards season would be delayed until Saturday morning after severe storms rattled through the Talladega area shortly before the original start time on Friday afternoon, ultimately forcing officials to move the event to 8:00 a.m. the next morning.

Once the green flag flew, Merrell blasted his Japanese nameplate quickly into the top-10. By lap six, Merrell found himself sitting ninth. Less than 10 laps later, the No. 32 was on the move and had climbed into the sixth position.

When Terry Jones lost a motor on lap 16, Chaffee elected to bring his protégé down pit road for fuel only – deciding to utilize some pit strategy.

Restarting just outside the top-10, the No. 32 Champion Brands Toyota Camry rocketed back to the front and by lap 27 had moved into the fifth position.

Throughout the remainder of the 94-lap event, the see-saw battle of the draft saw the No. 32 fluctuate between sixth and eighth respectively.

When the final restart of the day came with less than eight laps remaining, Merrell restarted sixth but found himself attacked by a slew of race cars in the draft which resulted in the No. 32 being shuffled back to the 10th position when the checkered flag was thrown.

Matt Merrell

Thiesse, who served as the backstretch spotter for Merrell during the race offered his thoughts. “Matt continues to impress everyone at Win-Tron Racing. He does a magnificent job in the draft. He was able to come from the back to the front on multiple occasions. Unfortunately, we just ran out of time. This was our first race with Champion Brands aboard and we’re all happy with the results.”

With his 15th career ARCA Racing Series start in the rear-view mirror, Merrell sits fifth in the ARCA Racing Series championships standings just 55 markers behind point’s leader Bobby Gerhart entering the next ARCA race on the schedule, the Kentuckiana Ford Dealers 200 at Salem (Ind.) Speedway set for Sunday, May 1.

Further information including driver opportunities with Win-Tron Racing is available by visiting win-tronracing.com or contacting Nate Thiesse at 952.469.1839.

For more on Champion Brands LLC and their products, please logon to championbrands.com or championsusechampion.com.

- Win-Tron Racing Press Release

ARCA Series 3 Amigos 250 at Talladega Superspeedway

TALLADEGA, Ala. –

Breakfast at Talladega turned out to be a satisfying meal for pole-sitter Ty Dillon, who passed Frank Kimmel coming through the trioval on the final lap to win the 3 Amigos 250 by half a car length.

Dillon stayed tucked in behind Kimmel at the bottom of the track throughout most of the final lap. But at the last possible moment he shot to the high side in front of Bobby Gerhart and used an old-fashioned slingshot move to slip past Kimmel.

“That looked like a classic Dale Earnhardt move on the last lap at the right time,” said Dillon’s grandfather, Richard Childress, who was Earnhardt’s longtime car owner. “You can have a good car, but you have to know what to do with it, and he does. He puts a lot of work and effort into it.”

Dillon, who now has three victories in only five career ARCA starts, said winning at Talladega Superspeedway is special for him.

“This is awesome,” the 19-year-old Dillon said. “I always went to Talladega as a kid. I’ve always loved to see how they race, the big packs and the wild finishes. To have my own wild finish and to win at Talladega is really cool.”

Kimmel finished second, followed by Gerhart in third, Brett Hudson fourth and Chris Buescher fifth. Alabama native Grant Enfinger was in the lead only eight laps from the finish but got shuffled out of the draft and slipped back to 13th.

The second-place finish was frustrating for Kimmel, who led 32 of the 94 laps in the race, including the final seven leading to the white-flag lap.

“I’ll re-live this one many times,” Kimmel said, shaking his head. “You know if you let them have the bottom (of the track) they’re going to beat you to the line here, so I was kind of extra-protective of that coming off four.

“Ty did a great job. He had a good run. I just got beat, unfortunately. It’s very disappointing.”

Dillon said he wasn’t certain he could pass Kimmel on the outside without any drafting help. So he was ready to settle for a second-place finish until he noticed Gerhart making a hard charge on the outside as the pack roared through the trioval.

“I didn’t think the outside was going to have a good enough run to make a pass,” Dillon said. “I was really waiting to come across the finish line in second and be happy with that. But once we got about halfway down the frontstretch I saw (Gerhart) coming so hard, and I knew that was going to be our last chance.

“I thought we were done. I thought the race was going to be over. But that frontstretch got longer and I knew I had to go hard or finish second. It just worked out perfect.”

To purchase or for more information on tickets to Talladega Superspeedway, please visit www.talladegasuperspeedway.com or call 1-877-Go2-DEGA

WTDR Thunder 92.7 FM

“WTDR Thunder 92.7 has been a great partner with Talladega Superspeedway over the years,” said Talladega Superspeedway chairman Grant Lynch. “I’m glad that they’ll be broadcasting the ARCA race again, as it always is an exciting and breathtaking event. Jim (Jacobs) and his crew truly have a passion for all things racing and we’re fortunate to have them so close to Talladega Superspeedway.”

Jim Jacobs, president of Jacobs Broadcast Group, which owns the station, has been there every step of the way.

“The ARCA broadcast has really been a progression of a lot of hard work and dedication of some very talented people over the years,” said Jacobs.

“Let’s see, the first ARCA race we did there was in 1993. Tim Steele beat Jeff Purvis, and as I recall, it was a very good race. Jim Freeman, who was the PR guy at the track at that time was a little concerned about us doing the whole race, so they let us do the start, give some updates along the way, and the finish.

“I’ll never forget it. I stood on top of a hauler in turn one and Larry Nuber stood on a hauler in turn four – that was it. We had two rented wireless systems that barely worked. Fortunately, it wound up being a very good race and, of course, Larry was so good he could make anyone sound like a pro.

“But then we got so much positive feedback, the next year they let us do the whole thing from the old press box in the middle of the tri-oval. Larry Nuber and Mark Garrow anchored it for us.”

From there, the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards race event at Talladega grew into an annual staple for the station that took on new character and popularity in the coming years.

“We eventually started adding people in the turns. One year, I was down in turn four; I think Chuck Carlin was doing turn two – the only time he ever worked for us. We were using rented equipment and it literally took us all week just to set it up. Well, I realized if we were going to be successful at this, we had to go out and buy our own stuff. I asked MRN (Motor Racing Network) what they used; they shared the information and we went out and bought the same stuff. By that time, we had moved up into the press box above the grandstand.”

And by now, Jacobs has turned the broadcast into a high quality piece of programming, complete with pit road announcers and turn announcers, anchored by Jacobs in the tower. Joining Jacobs in the booth for this year’s broadcast will be veteran announcer Grady Sapp and, potentially, some special guests. Veterans Mike Ledbetter and David McDaniel are slated as turn announcers with Mike Burson and newcomer James Burton on pit road.

While the broadcast may appear seamless, it is anything but.

“For only doing it once a year, we think we do it pretty well. Our guys are good. We’ve had a core group of people, which helps to have a seamless broadcast. That’s not to say that it’s not extremely difficult to pull off, mostly because we only do it once a year. And I think it’s especially difficult to do at Talladega because the place is so big, so it’s technically hard to put it on. ARCA has so many new players each year with all the development drivers and such that our guys literally have to learn these drivers overnight, and I think they do a really good job of it, all things considered.

“We’re actually going to put our turn people out during Sprint Cup final practice, which is right before the ARCA race – so we’re warmed up. (We’ll) make sure the technical glitches are out of the way, so when we come on for the ARCA race, we’ll have basically been on the air for an hour.

“But we really enjoy doing it. It lets us step out of our day-to-day element. It really gives me a great appreciation for what the MRN guys do every week, because it’s not easy.”

Jacobs also recalls with fond memories his time in the tower for the ARCA events.

“Honestly, there have been so many great ARCA races at Talladega over the years. I thought last year’s race was one of the best races I’ve ever seen at Talladega. I think the length of the ARCA race lends itself to exiting racing. They’re relatively short races, for Talladega, so you just can’t go out there and ride. When they split (Grant) Enfinger on the last lap last year three-wide for the lead, it was just incredible.

“Tim Steele’s run of winning four (three consecutive) was very special, as I look back. It’s hard to win two in a row at Talladega, let alone three. And of course, we’ve seen some pretty spectacular crashes, but for some reason, those don’t stand out in my mind. What mostly stands out is the great racing we’ve seen, and a lot of it has come from the ARCA regulars.

“The year that Frank Kimmel won it was interesting because it literally ended in the dark.

“The series has definitely had its share of interesting characters over the years. Juan Montoya’s first stock car race was here was in the ARCA Racing Series.

“Looking at some of the veterans, I was always a little surprised Mark Thompson has never been able to win here. He always has good equipment and he’s a good restrictor plate racer but he’s never been able to pull it off.

“Bobby Gerhart’s another one. He’s only won it here once but he’s so dominant at Daytona, but it’s almost like he’s snake-bit here.

“It’s really been interesting how the development drivers have come into this series. It’s amazing how these kids come here, jump in top-notch equipment and do so well.

“I still love it though when the ARCA regulars do so well – the guys that travel the series.”

In addition to doing live shows for Menards Pole Qualifying presented by Ansell Thursday, April 14 beginning at 5 p.m. Central, Jacobs and his team of broadcasters will cover the ARCA Racing Series 250 with live flag-to-flag coverage Friday afternoon, with the green flag scheduled just after 4 Central.

“We’re also going to have people in the garage doing updates starting Thursday morning,” said Jacobs.

In addition to all the live broadcasts at WTDR Thunder 92.7, ARCA qualifying and the race will be available in live streaming audio at www.wtdrthunder.com, as well as ARCAracing.com.

The ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards has crowned an ARCA national champion each year since its inaugural season in 1953, and has toured over 200 race tracks in 28 states since its inception. The series tests the abilities of drivers and race teams over the most diverse schedule of stock car racing events in the world, annually visiting tracks ranging from 0.4 mile to 2.66 miles in length, on both paved and dirt surfaces as well as a left- and right-turn road course.

Founded by John Marcum in 1953 in Toledo, Ohio, the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) is recognized among the leading sanctioning bodies in the country. Closing in on completing its sixth decade after hundreds of thousands of miles of racing, ARCA administers over 100 race events each season in two professional touring series and local weekly events.

- Automobile Racing Club of America Press Release

Patrick Sheltra

Sheltra, who drove 28 laps, was at the test to assist Milka Duno, who plans to make her first Talladega Superspeedway start on Friday, April 15 in the ARCA Racing Series 250. Sheltra owns the No. 63 Sheltra Motorsports entry and also secured the owner championship in the series last season.

Dakoda Armstrong, last season’s winner at Talladega, finished the day second after a lap of 50.589 seconds (189.29 mph) in the No. 22 Cunningham Motorsports Dodge. Tim George Jr., who led the three-hour morning session, was third for the day in 50.732 seconds (188.757 mph). Kyle Fowler and Hal Martin, teammates at Venturini Motorsports, rounded out the top five.

Ty Dillon, Max Gresham, Pierre Bourque, Tom Hessert, and Maryeve Dufault comprised the remainder of the top 10 in a session which saw nine drivers top George’s leading time of 51.936 seconds from the morning. The four-hour afternoon test session was the first to allow drafting practice on the 2.66-mile Alabama oval. In all, 18 drivers charted a lap on the first day. The full list of speeds from the afternoon session is below.

ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards

POS CAR DRIVER/HOMETOWN TEAM AND CAR TIME SPEED

1 63a Patrick Sheltra/Indiantown FL Sheltra Motorsports Toyota 50.575 189.343

2 22 Dakoda Armstrong/New Castle IN Ferrellgas-Syngenta Dodge 50.589 189.290

3 31a Tim George Jr./New York NY RCR Development Chevrolet 50.732 188.757

4 15 Kyle Fowler/Smyrna GA Venturini Motorsports Chevrolet 50.747 188.701

5 55 Hal Martin/Galliano LA Venturini Motorsports Toyota 50.757 188.664

6 41 Ty Dillon/Lewisville NC UNOH Chevrolet 50.758 188.660

7 25 Max Gresham/Griffin GA Venturini Motorsports Toyota 50.850 188.319

8 6 Pierre Bourque/Ottawa Ontario ESR Toyota 51.460 186.086

9 52 Tom Hessert/Cherry Hill NJ Federated Auto Parts Toyota 51.617 185.520

10 12 Maryeve Dufault/Sorel Quebec TMR Dodge 52.115 183.748

11 5a Bobby Gerhart/Lebanon PA Lucas Oil Chevrolet 52.959 180.819

12 31b Tim George Jr./New York NY RCR Development Chevrolet 53.011 180.642

13 17a Chris Buescher/Prosper TX David Ragan Fan Club Ford 53.124 180.258

14 63 Milka Duno/Caracas Venezuela Citgo Lubricants Toyota 53.319 179.598

15 44 Frank Kimmel/Clarksville IN Ansell-Menards Ford 53.774 178.079

16 82a Sean Corr/Goshen NY Empire Racing Ford 53.924 177.583

17 5b Damon Lusk/Kennewick WA Bobby Gerhart Racing Chevrolet 53.991 177.363

18 82b Sean Corr/Goshen NY Empire Racing Ford 54.108 176.979

19 7 Drew Charlson/New Bremen OH Aluma Aluminum Trailers Chevrolet 54.263 176.474

20 23 Nick Igdalsky/Long Pond PA Fox Realty Chevrolet 54.556 175.526

Testing at Talladega Superspeedway will continue Wednesday with three hours of single-car runs starting at 9 a.m. Central, and four hours of drafting practice at 1 p.m. Central. ARCARacing.com will continue to carry live timing and scoring coverage from the track.

On-track activity for the ARCA Racing Series 250 at Talladega Superspeedway begins with practice and Menards Pole Qualifying presented by Ansell on Thursday, April 14, and concludes with the final practice and the 94-lap, 250-mile race on Friday, April 15. The race will air live on SPEED at 5 p.m. Eastern.

The ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards has crowned an ARCA national champion each year since its inaugural season in 1953, and has toured over 200 race tracks in 28 states since its inception. The series tests the abilities of drivers and race teams over the most diverse schedule of stock car racing events in the world, annually visiting tracks ranging from 0.4 mile to 2.66 miles in length, on both paved and dirt surfaces as well as a left- and right-turn road course.

Founded by John Marcum in 1953 in Toledo, Ohio, the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) is recognized among the leading sanctioning bodies in the country. Closing in on completing its sixth decade after hundreds of thousands of miles of racing, ARCA administers over 100 race events each season in two professional touring series and local weekly events.

- Automobile Racing Club of America Press Release

Richard Childress Racing

RACE: ARCA 200

TRACK: Daytona International Speedway

DATE: February 12, 2011

Race Highlights:

- Ty Dillon earned his second career Menards Pole Award and set the fastest qualifying time in the ARCA Racing Series since 2001.

- Dillon led the field to the green flag and ran in the second position for the first 17 laps of the race.

- Tim George Jr. started ninth and ran as high as eighth during the 80-lap contest.

- The race was slowed five times for 30 laps; not since 2004 has an ARCA race at Daytona been halted by so few caution periods.

- RCR teammates finished 11th (Ty Dillon) and 27th (Tim George Jr).

- Veteran ARCA Racing Series competitor Bobby Gerhart earned a historic seventh win in ARCA’s season-opening race at Daytona, a series record. He was followed to the finish line by Chris Buescher, Matt Merrell, Ricky Carmichael and Jason Bowles.

Bad Luck Prevails in Closing Laps of Season Opener for George Jr.

After posting quick laps in practice sessions and qualifying ninth for the season-opening event at Daytona International Speedway, Tim George Jr. and the No. 31 Gere Kennon-led Richard Childress Racing team suffered a couple of setbacks in the closing stages of the 80-lap ARCA race that resulted in a 27th-place result.

Although the finish doesn’t reflect how the New York, N.Y., native ran in the beginning and middle stages of the showdown, drafting between the eighth and 26th spots, contact made to the left-rear quarter panel of the No. 31 Chevrolet during a multi-car incident left George Jr. with a tire rub when the field returned to green-flag racing on lap 70. The unfortunate circumstance forced him to visit pit road a couple laps later and, upon exiting, ARCA officials penalized George Jr. for speeding.

The punishment was in the form of a pass-thru penalty that returned the 30-year-old driver to competition two laps down where he finished 27th in the rundown.

Start - 9

Finish - 27

Laps Led - 0

TIM GEORGE JR QUOTE:

“Our strategy was to hold back and push Ty (Dillon) up to the front late then battle for the lead. With 10 laps to go or so, I got tapped trying to avoid a multi-car spin. The RCR Chevrolet had a tire rub and I had to pit under green (flag conditions) but had to return a lap later to serve a speeding penalty, even though I saw all green on my tachometer. It was unfortunate. That car could have won.

The No. 31 RCR crew did a great job preparing the car for drafting and I was turning 46′s (seconds) while most were running in the 47′s. Plate racing for Richard Childress is a great experience. It just didn’t work out for us this time, but we are going to be a contender at Talladega.”

Ty Dillon Earns Pole Award and Finishes 11th in ARCA Race at Daytona

Ty Dillon earned his second career Menards pole award and gained valuable experience en route to an 11th-place finish in Saturday’s ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards race at Daytona International Speedway.

The 18-year-old grandson of Richard Childress, driving a No. 41 University of Northwestern Ohio Chevrolet, posted a 185.533 mph/48.509 second lap during qualifying on Friday, making him the fastest qualifier in the ARCA Racing Series since 2001. Dillon led the 41-car starting field to the green flag for Saturday’s 200-mile/80-lap race.

He settled into the second position until attempting to pass using the outside line on lap 17, a move that relegated the Chevrolet to a position midway through the field. Just one lap later, a car spun directly in front of Dillon and made slight contact with the left front fender of the No. 41 Chevrolet.

Dillon promptly drove down pit road, where RCR’s No. 31 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team pit crew made a series of repairs to the vehicle. Restarting the race in the 37th position on lap 22, Dillon was able to work his way up to 11th before the checkered flag flew.

Start – First

Finish – 11

Points Position - Eighth (tied)

TY DILLON QUOTE:

“The car in front of me started spraying oil, and then he got a little bit loose off of the corners, so at that point I made the decision to try and go around him on the outside, but nobody went with me and I got shuffled to the back of the field. Looking back, if I would have just waited a couple of more laps we had that caution flag come out and it would have turned out much differently. But, we learned, and that is what is most important. It was a wild race. There were a couple of crashes that I had to steer through. You just learn from things like that.”

- Richard Childress Racing Press Release

Win-Tron Racing

After being out of an ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards race car for a little over a year, Matt Merrell reunited with Lakeville, Minnesota’s Win-Tron Racing for the 2011 season-opener at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway looking to rekindle some of their magic from the past. And when the checkered flag was thrown, it was evident that the magic never faded.

Having only tested at the newly re-paved 2.5-mile superspeedway once before practice on Thursday, Merrell, the Portland, Texas native was relying on the craftiness of his Win-Tron Racing team led by crew chief wizard Mike Chaffee.

During the four-hour practice run on Thursday, Merrell in the No. 32 Bemm Boatworks / Red Line Oil Toyota Camry placed seventh overall in the rundown after participating in a light draft with some of his other competitors.

“The car is pretty good,” said Merrell. “I think we would like it to be a little faster but we still have some time to do that. I’m just thankful to be back with these guys and be here at Daytona.”

Qualifying took place on Friday afternoon and the Win-Tron Racing team was one of the nice surprises during the session as Merrell had stalked his Toyota Camry into the top-five before landing fourth overall.

“I’m pretty stoked about the race,” sounded Merrell. “The guys made some changes to the car before qualifying and it’s obvious we went in the right direction. I’m enjoying myself immensely in Daytona and I’m just hoping that we’ll have a good run in the race.”

At the start of the 80-lap event, Merrell quickly placed his Toyota Camry on the yellow line following leaders Kyle Fowler, Steve Arpin and Bobby Gerhart around the 2.5-mile superspeedway.

The first yellow flag of the day waived on lap four for a one-car incident involving the No. 94 of Brett Hudson. Merrell remained quiet on the radio but anxious to get back to green-flag conditions.

Back to racing, Merrell continued to keep his machine in the top-five until Tom Hessert was turned on lap 18 bringing out the second yellow flag of the event. It was during the yellow that the former USARacing Pro Cup Series driver brought his red and white machine to the attention of his team where Sunoco Racing fuel was inserted into the No. 32 Bemm Boatworks / Red Line Oil Toyota Camry.

Restarting mid-pack, Merrell found a strong group of race cars where he quickly made his way back to the front.

The red flag would be displayed after a lap 45 incident involving the No. 58 of Chad Hackenbracht. During the cessation, Merrell remained focused inside the cockpit trying to plan a strategy inside his head for the approaching thirty laps.

Once racing resumed, Merrell continued to follow the same routine he had been doing most of the race, keeping his automobile pinned to the bottom of the race track and sucked up tightly in the lead draft.

The “big one” broke out on lap 64 with Merrell well-ahead of the carnage. Setting up for nearly a 10-lap shootout, the development driver was paying close attention to the lead cars of Bobby Gerhart, Chris Buescher and Joey Licata Jr., studying his prey and ready to pounce on any hiccups they would display.

Tucked in fourth and within inches of a six-car draft coming to the white flag, Merrell took advantage of Licata Jr., jumping his Dodge to the outside line with Merrell quickly slamming the door shut and moving into the podium position.

Merrell gave one last attempt to pass the No. 17 of Buescher coming to the checkered flag but ran out of time. The Win-Tron Racing team led the brigade of Toyotas with their third place finish ahead of fellow Toyota teammate Jason Bowles in the fifth position.

Matt Merrell

Thiesse expressed his thoughts on Merrell’s performance in his superspeedway debut. “Matt did an exceptional job,” said Thiesse, a former driver himself. “He was a rookie Saturday but he looked more like a veteran. He knew what to do and when and he listened to the team very well. It was his effort behind the wheel that gave us a great foundation to start the season. Hopefully, we can put something together to put Matt back in the seat for Talladega.”

The ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards will take nearly an eight week pause before action resumes at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway on Friday, April 15th, 2011 live on SPEED.

Further information including driver opportunities with Win-Tron Racing is available by visiting win-tronracing.com or contacting Nate Thiesse at 952.469.1839.

For more on Bemm Boatworks, please log on to Bemmboatworks.com.

- Win-Tron Racing Press Release

Joey Licata Jr.

With 24 laps of practice on Thursday, Joey and the Cunningham Motorsports #77 team put up a 49.10 on the speed chart, which was almost a second behind the quick time of Hal Martin. After qualifying 25th on Friday, the team found a problem with the oil heating system that wasn’t allowing the oil to heat to optimum temperature. Saturday morning, race day brought 45 minutes for drafting practice.

Joey took his WrongInc.com Dodge out for 10 laps of practice, posting the 11th quickest speed and allowing him to get comfortable in the draft. After drafting practice, Licata commented, “I am thrilled to be with this championship team-a team of this caliber. It has been a great experience.”

Like most first timers at Daytona, Joey couldn’t believe how long the day was between drafting practice and driver introductions. As soon as he strapped his helmet on after driver intros, he was in his comfort zone. And he showed everyone what this young guy from California was all about. With all of the youthful enthusiasm of a rookie at Daytona, Licata took the green flag from the 25th position. When the first caution flag flew on lap 4, Joey had moved to 19th. Crew chief Jonathan Davis brought the #77 Dodge into the pits for a fuel only pit stop—the only stop of the day for the team.

Coming back to the track in 36th, Licata picked off one position after another as soon as the green flag flew. He picked up a number of spots when most of the leaders pitted under the next caution on lap 19. After the green came out on lap 22, Licata restarted in 4th. Two laps later he made the pass for 3rd and held on to that position, with the guidance of NASCAR veteran spotter, Tim Andrews, until the final lap.

Through the next 56 laps, Joey drafted, was bump drafted (even in the corners), participated in several three and six car breakaways, sat through a red flag and contemplated the last lap of the 80 lap event. On the final lap, still in the 3rd spot, Licata stepped out of line, expecting someone to hook up with him, to try for the race win. All alone, Licata made it even with the 2nd place car of Chris Beuscher, but began falling back. He took his first ARCA Series checkered flag in 6th.

After the race, an elated Licata said, “Wow, that was fun! The WrongInc.com / Cunningham Motorsports Dodge drove really, really well. If I had someone go with me, we could have won the race. I couldn’t have slept tonight if I hadn’t tried it.” Tonight Licata showed what ‘true racers’ are made of—that ever-present desire to win.

The top five finishers were Bobby Gerhart, Chris Buescher, Matt Merrell, Ricky Carmichael and Jason Bowles. The next race for the Rookie of the Year contender is April 15 at the 2.66 mile Talladega Superspeedway for the Talladega ARCA 250. In the two months between Daytona and Talladega, Cunningham Motorsports plans to do a lot of testing in preparation for the rest of the season.

- Cunningham Motorsports Press Release

No. 44 Ansell / Menards Ford Fusion

The action started early for Frank, as a few teams, including the Ansell-Menards Ford, elected to bring their cars down pit road before the green flag dropped, which resulted in them having to start in the back. The plan was to be patient in the early portion of the race and let the action play itself out in the front of the field.

“We decided to move to the rear early. I’ve been around long enough to see that it can get chaotic at Daytona instantly, especially with so many rookies in the race,” said nine time ARCA Racing Series Champ, Frank Kimmel.

The initial gamble paid off, as Frank was able to stay out under an early caution, when a majority of the other teams had to pit for fuel. The result was a restarting position of 3rd by lap 23. Unfortunately, Frank’s second risk was not as successful. Frank quickly moved the Ansell-Menards Ford out of line on the restart in hopes of taking second place. However, the top lane wasn’t the preferred groove throughout the race and the other drivers elected to stay on the bottom, which left Frank without a drafting partner. The outcome temporarily dropped the No. 44 Ansell-Menards Ford back to 16th.

“I wanted to get behind Bobby (Gerhart). I thought with it being early that someone would go with me but I was wrong. I only lacked a few feet to make the pass but I needed that help,” said Frank.

From that point on the Ansell-Menards team fought a battle to get back to the front – one position at a time. In the end, the No. 44 Ansell-Menards Ford took the checkered flag in the 10th position. “It was difficult…the only way you could pick up a spot was when a driver decided to try and pass up top. We were able to race our No. 44 Ansell-Menards Ford back to 10th there at the end. Overall, it’s a top ten finish and that’s encouraging heading into Talladega,” concluded Frank Kimmel.

Watch for Frank Kimmel in the No. 44 Ansell-Menards Ford at Talladega Superspeedway for the Talladega ARCA 250 in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards. The race can be seen live on SPEED Channel on April 25, 2011 at 5:00 pm EST. More information can be found at www.frankkimmel.com and www.arcaracing.com.

- SportsONE, Inc. Press Release

Granny Grump

Seems to be that he headed to Daytona and left Milton and Marvin Moran (better known around these parts by not very nice townfolk as the Moron brothers) in charge. They said Walter wasn’t going to the race. He didn’t have a ticket. He was just goin’ to park at the track and soak up the atmosphere they said, whatever that is suppose to mean. They informed me and the rest of the townfolk I am certain, that he didn’t even make it that far. He was a victim of some sort of road rage incident to be explained at a later date in some “podunk town” somewhere along the way. Wound up havin’ some fine to pay and then didn’t have the money to go down to Daytona and get back home, so he was enroute back as they were speakin’. I must admit to a wicked granny chuckle that he missed the race altogether. Seems to be yet another moron around these parts. I’m not meanin’ to be mean in this particular instance, I’m just sayin’.

Now none of that is neither here nor there, if ya know what I mean. I’m just tryin’ to explain the preparation that Duck and I go through for the first raceday events of the season. So we got our plates all heapin’ ready and headed for the TV. Lord have mercy, loyal readers and other folks, that was some crazy racin’ out there! I was havin’ enough trouble tryin’ to remember who is where now and by the end, my memory failed me ever so slightly and I was yellin’ go Ward. Go go go! Duck reminded me in his ever so cute duckie way that I was rootin’ and cheerin’ for Kurt Busch. After that shock wore off, I yelled even more. Now I know I have taken those Busch boys to task quite a bit for their not so nice ways in the past, but, I have to say Granny was a bit impressed with those two little buggers today. Sweet Mark Martin wrecked Kyle accidentally and Mark was more upset than Kyle. Why Granny was so proud of that boy, I can tell you that right now! And Kurt was just as cute as he could be in Victory Lane, thankin’ Jamie and all. Of course Kurt’s a whole lot richer because of Jamie, but those boys are good friends as they tell it, so good for them both I say.

There was a lot of destruction in both races. Is it just me or did it seem more nerve wrackin’ out there? A newly paved track, redesigned cars, rule changes and some crazy moves had a good deal to do with it all. Those boys are goin’ be plumb tuckered out at the end of the 500. So will Duck and I, I can tell ya that much right now.

Bobby Gerhart did a fantastic job today winnin’ the ARCA race. Why he looked like a young whipper snapper standin’ in the window of his car with that big, winnin’ smile on his face. See there loyal readers and other folks. The older guys still can do what needs to be done. That’s why I have become such a fan of the truck series in recent years. I admit to lovin’ to see the older guys take the younger ones to task. Hornaday is a big favorite of mine, bein’ so handsome and all. But the main thing is that man can drive his hiney off!

Now for the other stuff. Richard’s grandsons are just amazin’, aren’t they? Those younguns are goin’ to be BIG! I admit to bein’ somewhat bothered seein’ a black #3 out there again, but, time marches on I guess. Still, in granny’s old eyes that will always be Dale’s car. I understand it though, I just get a bug in my bonnet when I dwell on it too much.

And I see that rat of a thing Digger is still out and about. Lord have mercy! He ain’t any cuter is he? And I love the Waltrip boy’s commercials. Now you all know how I feel about those rippin’ off shirt commercials of you know who’s, but, I have to say Mikey can rip his shirt off like that and shake his booty anytime he wants as far as I’m concerned. If ya know what I mean. He is just the cutest tall thing, isn’t he? And Darrell, why he looked down right handsome tattooin’ that young man’s neck. I couldn’t make out what that black thing by his eye was, but, some men do look good with black tattoo things by their eye. Know what I mean?

Well that’s it for now loyal readers and other folks, I guess. Duck and I are pert near worn out. We still have dishes to do. Tonight I’ll wash and he can dry. It takes him a bit longer than me, but, he needs to do his part. A lazy duck is an unhappy duck, I always say. I do hope he is over the Aflac duck lovin’ deal. That has been a big source of irritation around here for quite sometime. Lord have mercy! Time will tell I guess.

Ya’ll can write me with your thoughts if you like. Just keep in mind I am a very busy woman and a worn out one this evenin’. Just a note to my Evie. I miss hearin’ from you girl! We’ll catch up real soon! Until next time, and as my daddy used to say, be good and if ya can’t be good, be careful!