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  • Ty Gibbs earns dominant win at Salem

    Ty Gibbs earns dominant win at Salem

    In what was a dominating win in dominating fashion. Ty Gibbs was able to put the No. 18 Monster Energy Toyota Camry back into ARCA victory lane for the second time this season in Saturday night’s ARCA Menards Series Kentuckiana Ford Dealers Fall Classic 200 at Salem Speedway.

    It was a clean sweep for Gibbs who led the way in the only practice session and qualified on the pole with a time of 17.14 seconds to equal 116.535 miles per hour.

    “That’s all due to my right foot, the guys who build these great racecars and the man upstairs,” Gibbs said in victory lane. “It’s great to come out here and get our second win of the season. We aren’t racing for the championship so it’s all about wins for us.”

    It didn’t take long for Gibbs to get out front, in fact he led the first 172 laps and fended off battles from Venturini Motorsports drivers Michael Self and Christian Eckes to score the second win of the year. It wasn’t all that easy though for the Charlotte, North Carolina native.

    The race featured five cautions for 34 laps. The first caution flag was flown on lap 23 for debris, as the second caution was seen on lap 75 with the No. 55 of Gavin Harlein who suffered mechanical problems and the car came to a stop right before pit road.

    The third yellow of the night was for the No. 06 machine of Tim Richmond. Richmond’s night was done early as the car would have engine woes that took him out of the race. The No. 11 of Ed Pompa wound up spinning around bringing out the fourth caution. Then the final yellow came out on lap 186 for debris.

    After the last caution, this saw drivers come down pit road in hopes of making one last adjustment in trying to beat Ty Gibbs for the win.

    One driver came close to doing so and that was Eckes and his No. 15 Venturini Motorsports team. The team put Eckes out front, but just for four laps before Gibbs retook with a nine lap run to the finish.

    Eckes would have to settle for a second place finish, but gained some points on championship points leader Michael Self after Self had his problems earlier in the night.

    “It’s great to have Salem behind us,” Eckes said. “This isn’t my favorite track and to come out of here with that big of a gain on Michael is huge for us. It sucks we couldn’t get up there and race Ty for the win but we’ll take second and head to Indianapolis and go race for the win there.”

    Eckes sits second in the standings, 70 points behind with two races remaining on the ARCA schedule.

    Self on the other hand had to settle for a 14th place finish after a broken left control arm was experienced while he was running second at the time.

    “We’ve had too many mechanical problems this season,” Self said. “All we want to go is come out here and race for wins. We’re going to put tonight behind us and go to Indy and Kansas to go win some races.”

    In the meanwhile, lost in all the shuffle during the run to the championship is a championship within the championship. The CGS Imaging Four Crown Championship was crowned Saturday night following the race. In the running for the title was Michael Self, Bret Holmes, Travis Braden and Joe Graf Jr.

    With Self suffering from mechanical woes and was many laps down when returning to the race, Holmes stayed on track and finished fourth, just enough to lock up the prestigious title at Salem. Holmes has had a impressive 2019 season so far with seven top fives and 16 top-10 finishes with an average finish of 7.4.

    Up Next: The ARCA Menards Series drivers takes a couple of weeks off before heading to the short-track of Indianapolis Raceway Park on Saturday night October 5.

    Official Results

    1. Ty Gibbs, led 196 laps
    2. Christian Eckes, led four laps
    3. Corey Heim
    4. Bret Holmes
    5. Sam Mayer
    6. Joe Graf Jr
    7. Carson Hocevar
    8. Chandler Smith, one lap down
    9. Travis Braden, one lap down
    10. Colby Howard, one lap down
    11. Ed Pompa, 10 laps down
    12. Scott Melton, 10 laps down
    13. Mike Basham, 16 laps down
    14. Michael Self, 66 laps down
    15. Tim Richmond, OUT, Overheating
    16. Gavin Harlien, OUT, Engine
    17. Brian Finney, OUT, Vibration
    18. Brad Smith, OUT, Oil Pressure
    19. Tommy Vigh Jr, OUT, Brakes
    20. Dick Doheny, OUT, Transmission
    21. Benjamin Peterson, OUT, Clutch
  • ARCA Menards Series Preview-Salem II

    ARCA Menards Series Preview-Salem II

    After a few weeks off, the ARCA Menards Series drivers are back on-track this Saturday night at the historic and rough racetrack at Salem Speedway.

    It will be the 18th of 20 races of the 2019 season and will mark only three races left until the season finale at Kansas Speedway in October. Just two drivers are more than likely fighting for the championship at this point in the season and it’s the two Venturini Motorsports driver Christian Eckes and Michael Self. It would take something catastrophic to happen to these two drivers to bring in a third driver and even then, they would need a lot of help.

    If Eckes loses the championship this season, it might be because he missed this race back in April when the Venturini Motorsports driver was sick the night before due to food poisoning. However, Eckes does not think about that night and is focused on winning this weekend.

    “I try not to think too much about what happened at Salem early on in the season,” says Eckes who takes a mature approach to the situation. “Sure, it happened and set us back in the standings, it sucks. But there’s nothing I can do to change the past. It’s all about now and what we do moving forward. We’ve had plenty of opportunities after that race that we could have closed the gap further and didn’t. Those are the races that I think about the most in this championship battle, not so much that one.”

    With Eckes and Self pretty much the only two competing for the championship, Eckes looks forward to the next three races.

    “I’m really looking forward to battling with Michael to end this year out, Eckes added. “Self and his entire 25 team have been on their game the entire year and definitely made it interesting. I’m just really looking forward to continuing the momentum we’ve built over the last few races.”

    Eckes will be pulling double duty this weekend by driving the No. 51 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota Tundra at Las Vegas Friday night and he will then head to Salem to drive his No. 15 Toyota. At Salem, Eckes has four starts with one win that occurred in the April 2018 race. His other stats include one top five and three top-10s with 163 laps led.

    One driver hoping to keep Eckes from the win is his teammate and previous race winner Michael Self. Self is hoping to better his fourth-place finish at DuQuoin on Labor Day weekend.

    “Salem is probably my favorite short track on the schedule so I’m excited to get back and race it again, but expectation-wise I know this is a different day with different conditions than we had in the Spring,” says the 28-year-old driver from Utah. 

    Not only is Self the defending winner of this race, but the team will also be bringing back the same car he won with in April and it will likely boost his confidence.

    “While we’re bringing back the car we won with, we have to expect that things will be different and we aren’t just going to walk in and pick up where we left off without some work and adaptation.”

    Having an impressive track record that includes one win with three starts and one pole, Chandler Smith is hoping to go back-to-back in the fall race. He won last year’s fall race after leading all but one lap. Smith has an average finish of 5.0 with 319 laps led.

    “It’s always nice having some time off but I’m ready to get back at it,” says Smith. Salem is easily one of my favorite places to run. We only have the one win to show, but I feel the other two races we ran there just got away from us. Last year during the spring race we were battling our teammate (Christian Eckes) for the lead on the final lap and blew a tire. And back in April, we had the car to get it done but the race ended early because of the rain. Sometimes that’s how it goes in racing. I’ll be ready this week.”

    Rounding out the Venturini Motorsports powerhouse stable is rookie and up-and-comer, Gavin Harlien, who will be piloting the No. 55 Toyota paying tribute to Tony Venturini. It will be Harlien’s first start at Salem this weekend.

    “There’s only so much you can do to prepare for a track like Salem,” added the University of Arizona senior. “Knowing it’s going to be a dog fight I’ve watched lots of film and have spent a good amount of time talking with my crew chief Frank Kimmel to get a better idea of what to expect. This race surely will test my endurance. It looks fun. I can’t wait to get back in the car and feel those bumps flying through the turns in three and four. Everything I’ve seen and heard about Salem points towards having to manhandle the car to have success.”

    On the other hand, rookie Corey Heim hopes to break up the Venturini Motorsports powerhouse team. The Chad Bryant Racing driver competed in the April race earlier this year, where Heim started sixth and recorded a fifth-place finish. This season, the youngster has six top-fives and 10 top-10 finishes in the 2019 season.

    “I feel good about going to Salem Speedway,” said Heim. “The is the first time I get to use prior knowledge of an ARCA track to improve on it, so that should help me out a lot this weekend. “I feel like our No. 22 Chad Bryant Racing team is carrying a lot of momentum, we just need to execute on Saturday and win the race.”

    Heim and his No. 22 team tested at Salem last Friday to give him more track time. The Marietta, Georgia native is hoping for a win in Saturday night’s short-track.

    “I want to win on Saturday night, I think we’ve proven we’re capable of winning, just need everything to go our way. If for some reason we can’t win on Saturday, I’ve got one more chance at Lucas Oil Raceway next month, where there’s nothing else that matters to me except winning.”

    His teammate Joe Graf Jr. has three starts at Salem with a best finish of ninth this past April. Graf Jr. has one DNF which came in the fall 2018 race and an average finish of 10.3.

    “It feels good getting back to short track racing,” said Graf Jr. who sits fifth in the ARCA championship standings. “I genuinely like Salem Speedway, but it’s a not an easy track to negotiate. It’s a track that takes a lot of concentration and focus.”

    “It keep getting better and better with every race on Salem, but I’d like to leave there on Saturday night with our best finish of the season.”

    It has been a difficult season for the No. 77 for the Mahwah, New Jersey native who has recorded one top-five and 10 top-10 finishes. Despite those stats, Graf Jr. is wanting nothing more than a win this Saturday night.

    “I want to win so bad,” added Graf. “That’s why I get behind the wheel of our race car every week. I need to win for a lot of reasons. I have a great partner in EAT SLEEP RACE who has stuck through our team through the bumps in the road this season and my guys at the Chad Bryant Racing team who have given everything they can to bring me the fastest racecar possible.”

    Like his teammate Heim, Graf Jr. also participated in the test last Friday at Salem.

    Sitting third in the championship points standings is Bret Holmes and his No. 23 family owned team. Holmes finished 10th in the April race and his stats at Salem have been decent. In five starts, he has one top-five and four top-10 finishes with a best finish of third in his first outing at Salem three years ago in 2016.

    “I like the tracks with a worn-out, rough surface. I’m just kind of used to racing at places like Salem (Speedway). Tire management is big at a short track like Salem. The two corners are completely different, too. It’s just a fun track to race. Earlier this year, we tried something a little too extreme on the setup and it didn’t work out the way we wanted it to. We’re going into this weekend with a set up that we know will be better and I’m excited to unload and get on track for practice. We’ve run well there in the past and I don’t see this weekend being any different.”

    With Salem being a throwback race, Ed Pompa and the No. 11 Andy Hillenburg team have chosen to pay tribute to the retired NASCAR broadcaster Darrell Waltrip.

    “With Darrell retiring from the broadcast booth this year, I thought it would be cool to do a DW throwback, as a ‘thank you’,” Pompa said. “We are running the No. 11, which Darrell ran at various times, but this particular scheme was from his No. 17.”

    At Salem, Pompa has seven starts with no top-fives or top-10 finishes, but his best finish was 14th twice (2013, 2017), both while driving for Hillenburg.

    Colby Howard and the No. 32 Kevin Cywinski team will be competing once again at Salem this weekend. It will be Howard’s first start since Iowa, where he recorded a 10th place finish. The Simpsonville, South Carolina native has just one start at Salem where he finished eighth in his first start at the track driving for former team owner Mason Mitchell.

    “I am really looking forward to returning to Salem. We had a good run in the test on Tuesday and should have had a top-five finish in last year’s race until I made a mistake on pit road. This time around, it should be better, because our car is really solid on old tires, which is critical on Salem’s worn out surface.”

    Sam Mayer and the No. 21 GMS Racing team are hoping to gain one more spot after they finished second in April after starting ninth.

    “Going to Salem for the second time I feel like Mardy (Lindley, crew chief) and I will be even better than we were in the spring. Mardy and the team have worked really hard this year and have made my cars better and better as we go, and I feel no different this weekend. I also know I’m a better, more experienced driver than I was earlier this year. I feel confident that we can compete for a win with our Chevy Accessories Chevrolet. The weather forecast looks good so far, so hopefully, we can run the whole race this time.”

    Other drivers on the entry list include Dick Doheny, Tommy Vigh Jr., Ty Gibbs, Travis Braden, Carson Hocevar, Mike Basham, Brad Smith, Scott Melton, Brian Finney, Tim Richmond and Ben Peterson.

    In the April 2019 race, Michael Self and the No. 25 team started fourth and led 72 laps before rain came on Lap 101 just past halfway, and gave Self his second win of the season.

    Salem Speedway has seen various winners including Austin Theriault, Dalton Sargeant, Christopher Bell, Grant Enfinger, Ken Schrader, Tom Hessert III, Alex Bowman, Chris Buescher, Brennan Poole, Dakoda Armstrong, Justin Lofton, Steve Arpin, Frank Kimmel, Justin Allgaier, Brian Keselowski, Billy Venturini, Joey Miller, Chad Blount, Jason Jarrett, Bill Baird, Tim Steele, Bob Strait, Bob Schacht, Bob Brevak and Bob Keselowski, to name a few.

    It will be a one-day show as always for the ARCA Menards Series drivers. On-track action begins on Saturday afternoon with an hour and a half practice beginning at 1 p.m. ET with coverage on arcaracing.com. General Tire Pole Series Qualifying is scheduled for 4 p.m. ET where all drivers will have two laps to record a time.

    Then a little after 7:15 p.m. ET the Kentuckiana Ford Dealers Fall Classic 200 will begin with 200 laps live on MAVTV and live timing/scoring on arcaracing.com.

  • Venturini Motorsports – It’s their title to lose

    Venturini Motorsports – It’s their title to lose

    The Venturini Motorsports team has been a force to be reckoned with in the 2019 ARCA Menards Series season, winning 12 of the scheduled 20 races. At this point, it seems likely it’s their title to lose.

    It all started at Daytona where current Truck Series regular and part-time ARCA competitor Harrison Burton kicked off their season with a win at the famous superspeedway. Christian Eckes also qualified on the pole, looking to capture his first-ever ARCA title this year.

    Then race fans saw Michael Self and the No. 25 team win back-to-back at Pensacola and Salem. Former driver Todd Gilliland won at Talladega before the Venturini’s went back to victory lane at Nashville with Eckes and rookie sensation Chandler Smith at Toledo.

    There was a small dry spell from Charlotte to Pocono when we saw Ty Majeski outsmart them and grab the victory. However, some might say that Self should have won at Charlotte after leading 91 laps before spinning out late and finishing fifth. Despite some frustrating runs at those races, Self and the team found victory once again at Michigan passing Majeski on the last lap in the last turn. With Self winning at Michigan, we saw Smith and the No. 20 team win again at the short-track in Madison.

    After Chicago, the Venturini Motorsports team went on a tear, winning five races in a row. Smith won from Elko to Iowa, Eckes at Pocono, Self at Springfield and Eckes recently at DuQuoin this past Saturday night.

    It has been a dream season for Venturini Motorsports who do a great job with developmental talent in prepping them for their next step. However, it hasn’t been all that easy. There have been a few bumps in the road but that’s to be expected.

    Current championship points leader Self has only recorded two DNF’s (Nashville and Gateway). Eckes has just one DNF which occurred at Talladega after being involved in a wreck. Smith does not have a DNF but finished a disappointing 16th at Gateway many laps down.

    Even with the small hiccups, the team has recorded 12 wins, 890 laps led, a combined 1,549 laps led among all drivers, 33 top fives and 40 top-10 finishes combined for the 2019 Venturini Motorsports team.

    While there are three races left and another driver could slip in and challenge for the title, it’s the Venturini’s to lose. Self and the No. 25 team lead Eckes and his No. 15 team by 105 points. Bret Holmes is in third, 135 points behind and will likely need a lot of help in order to catch the dominating 25 and 15 teams. However, it’s unlikely at this point in the season with only three races remaining, especially if the Venturini’s keep up their dominating performance.

  • Will Power wins the NTT IndyCar Grand Prix of Portland

    Will Power wins the NTT IndyCar Grand Prix of Portland

    When Will Power starts winning, he becomes really hard to beat; first at Pocono, then the IndyCar race at Portland International Raceway where he earned his second win in three races.

    Power led the most laps of the day with 59 and seemed to have the race under control once Scott Dixon had a battery issue on lap 52, even a late Caution with Santino Ferrucci did not slow down Power, he was able to pull away on the final restart, and cruise to victory. Felix Rosenqvist finished second, with Alexander Rossi finishing third and early leader Colton Herta finishing fourth.

    “It was a pretty tough race,” Power said. “I had constant pressure from Rosenqvist at the end, we could pull away and I thought ‘oh this is going to be good’, and then the yellow flew and I thought, ‘oh come on, man’. Stoked to get in victory lane. Awesome, man. I’m exhausted. Mentally exhausted.”

    “I’ve had enough rough luck in races, I’ll take them anywhere I can get them,” when asked whether he could have caught Scott Dixon.

    After the first caution, there was a second caution right after, Ryan Hunter-Reay trying to keep his teammate Alexander Rossi back he overshot turn one and slammed right into Jack Harvey, taking out Harvey and putting himself several laps down. Then the race calmed down with Herta leading the field until lap 37 when his tires gave out and Scott Dixon and several other cars got past him. Dixon led until lap 52 when he had a battery issue and his car just stopped on pit road, costing him three laps. From there Will Power led the rest of the laps outside of cycling pit stops. Santino Ferrucci’s mechanical failure on lap 98 caused a quick caution which bunched up the field but did not change the overall outcome. As a whole the race had five leaders, eight lead changes, three cautions for 16 laps, and 16 cars finishing the race.

    The championship now only has three drivers left in contention, Josef Newgarden leading with 593 points, Alexander Rossi in second with 552 points and Simon Pagenaud in third with 551 points.

    The season finale for IndyCar will be on September 22 on NBC at 2:30 pm EST at Weathertech Raceway at Laguna Seca, with double points at it can be any of the three’s title to win.

  • Eckes takes home dirt win at DuQuoin

    Eckes takes home dirt win at DuQuoin

    After falling short to his teammate Michael Self last time on a dirt track, Christian Eckes broke through and won the Southern Illinois 100 for the first time in his career. The Venturini Motorsports driver took the lead on lap 10 and never looked back, as Eckes led 91 laps en route to victory.

    “I don’t know if you can call me a dirt track expert just yet,” Eckes laughed in victory lane. “I tried to drive Springfield and DuQuoin like dirt tracks last year and burned everything off the car I could. We tried some new things here tonight and I drove the track more like a pavement track and it really paid off.”

    Dirt track ace Ken Schrader was back in the field for the first time since Gateway last year. Schrader qualified his No. 52 Federated Auto Parts Toyota on the pole with a time 33.62 seconds. By qualifying first, Schrader set a new record in the ARCA Menards Series by being the oldest pole winner in ARCA. It was Schrader’s 22nd of his ARCA career.

    Though, Schrader was out front for only the first lap as he struggled to get back to the front, especially the top five. On lap 2, the No. 16 of Kelly Kovski took the lead for a short while and led for eight laps, before Eckes took the top spot on lap 10.

    Only two cautions slowed the pace in the Southern Illinois 100. One on lap 33 for debris on the back stretch and the final caution on lap 46 also for debris.

    Despite the cautions, nothing could stop the Middletown, New York native who had a flying pace and never let the lead up. Eckes went on to take his third win of the season, thus getting him back into the title fight.

    Ecke’s other teammate and dirt track standout, Logan Seavey wound up second after starting 10th in the race he won last year. Seavey was disappointed with the runner up finish.

    “It stinks coming back here and finishing second,” Seavey said. “We worked our way to the front and caught a good break in traffic to get past Michael but we didn’t quite have enough to close in on Christian.”

    Rounding out the top three finishers was Chad Bryant Racing’s No. 22 driver Corey Heim. Heim placed third in his first time at the fairgrounds in DuQuoin.

    It’s a little bittersweet,” Heim said. “We should have finished no lower than third at Springfield but ended up seventh. We had a great night here today but I would have liked to have started a little closer to the front. If we qualified a little better we wouldn’t have had to have worked so hard to get to the front and might have had a shot at running Christian down for the win.”

    Michael Self, Kovski, Riley Herbst, Travis Braden, Schrader, Bret Holmes and Ryan Unzicker rounded out the top-10 finishers in the Southern Illinois 100.

    There were two cautions for 12 laps and three leaders among two lead changes.

    With the win, Eckes sits second in the points just 105 points behind his Venturini Motorsports teammate Self.

    Up Next: The ARCA Menards Series takes a short break before returning on-track at the short-track at Salem on Saturday Sept 14.

    Official Results

    1. Christian Eckes, led 91 laps
    2. Logan Seavey
    3. Corey Heim
    4. Michael Self
    5. Kelly Kovski, led eight laps
    6. Riley Herbst
    7. Travis Braden
    8. Ken Schrader, led one lap
    9. Bret Holmes
    10. Ryan Unzicker
    11. Joe Graf Jr, One lap down
    12. Bobby Gerhart, Four laps down
    13. Tommy Vigh Jr, Four laps down
    14. Tim Richmond, Seven laps down
    15. Carson Hocevar, OUT, Overheating
    16. Brad Smith, OUT, Overheating
    17. Tyler Speer, OUT, Overheating
    18. Will Kimmel, OUT, Overheating
    19. Dick Doheny, OUT, Handling
    20. Wayne Peterson, OUT, Suspension

  • ARCA Menards Series Preview-DuQuoin State Fairgrounds

    ARCA Menards Series Preview-DuQuoin State Fairgrounds

    While much of the United States will be celebrating what is called “The Official Last Weekend of Summer,” the ARCA Menards Series drivers are spending part of their weekend competing in race No. 17 of the season. It’s also the final dirt race of the season.

    Flashing back, Michael Self and his No. 25 Venturini Motorsports team gambled halfway through the race at Illinois State Fairgrounds to score their fourth win of the season, Self’s first since Michigan in June. The Venturini’s have been a force to be reckoned with this year in the ARCA Series, winning 11 races out of the 20 race season. They look to continue their dominance this weekend in DuQuoin.

    One driver looking to continue their momentum and dominance is previous race winner, Self. As in Illinois, he will also be making his first start at DuQuoin this weekend. However, that proved no problem when he won in his first-ever ARCA dirt race. Self hopes the momentum from that win at Illinois carries over to Saturday night’s race at DuQuoin.

    “I had an absolute blast learning how to drive the ARCA car on dirt at Springfield and I’m hoping some of the knowledge I gained there will help out for my first time at DuQuoin. I’ve got the same mindset going into this race as Springfield and that’s that I just have to be open-minded and that I don’t necessarily know what to expect, so learning is really what’s going to be key throughout the day. I’ve been told that while they’re both dirt, they’re completely different racetracks. I’ll be leaning on a lot of the people around me for insight again.”

    His teammate Christian Eckes fell one spot short to Self after having a shot to win on a late-race restart. The Middletown, New York native has one start in last year’s race where Eckes started third and finished fourth.

    “I had a lot of fun at DuQuoin last year,” says Eckes. “We fought track position for most of the day but felt like we had a pretty solid car. We’re excited to get back to business. We’ve got four races to go; we’re down but not out by any means. Ready to give it our all.”

    While some of the Venturini Motorsports drivers have little dirt experience, dirt standout Logan Seavey returns for his final ARCA race of the season in the No. 20 Venturini Motorsports Toyota. Seavey is the defending race winner at DuQuoin in his only start at the track. He started fourth and led 35 laps. Seavey is ready for Saturday night’s race at the fairgrounds.

    “I’m ready to go again with Venturini Motorsports this weekend at DuQuoin,” said Seavey. “Springfield didn’t quite go as planned, just being a little too tight to be as good as we needed to be. But I know DuQuoin races well and fits a dirt racer style a lot better so it makes me look forward to it even more. I know the 20 Craftsman Camry will be just as good as it was last year. We just need to put the whole day together and I think we will be tough.”

    Like Seavey who isn’t competing full-time in the ARCA Series, there two other one-off drivers that are also competing this weekend at the dirt track in DuQuoin. One of them is FALS Late Model Champion Ryan Unzicker who will be piloting the No. 24 Toyota. Unzicker has seven starts at DuQuoin, earning two top-fives and five top-10 finishes with 42 laps led and a best finish of fourth in the 2017 race.

    “It is really tight at the front of the field for these ARCA races right now,” Unzicker said. “It doesn’t really matter if some of these young kids have any dirt experience or not. They are really talented and they’re going to pick up on it really quickly. Sometimes all they need is a 30-minute practice session and they’re set.”

    Despite there being a packed field with a load of talent, Unzicker recalls his race at Illinois where he finished ninth after starting fourth.

    “We had a great car in practice,” he said. “We were the fastest by far all day long. We had made some changes that worked really well for practice and qualifying when the track was still tacky but when the feature started they didn’t work at all. They weren’t anything we could undo on a pit stop so we were stuck with it. I think when we get to DuQuoin you’ll see what we’re really made of. I’ve always had better results at DuQuoin than I do at Springfield anyhow. It’s only two weeks after Springfield so I am already used to the car and the driving style. I don’t have to readjust to it after a year away from it.”

    Like Unzicker who is making only two starts this season, Kelly Kovski is also competing in the two ARCA dirt tracks in 2019. Kovski is piloting the No. 16 Mike Allgaier machine with the help from Truck Series regular and former ARCA competitor, Grant Enfinger. Kovski has 13 starts, two top-fives and seven top-10 finishes with 33 laps led and a best finish of second in 2016.

    “We seem to take a little time getting up to speed and to get going,” Kovski said. “The driver needs to show up. I own this car with my dad and we get a lot of help from Mike Allgaier so the last thing I want to do is go out early in practice and tear it up. I didn’t get a lot of practice at Springfield because the track was really wet and muddy early in the day. We just lacked speed at Springfield. We need to come to DuQuoin with something different so we’re going to take a shot in the dark and come with a different setup. It’s going to be more of a traditional dirt car setup and less of an ARCA car setup. It’s going to be quite different.”

    As mentioned, Kovski can lean on Enfinger for advice whenever he needs it.

    “Grant’s one of my best friends,” he said. “We go back to when he was driving for the Allgaier’s in 2011. We had a lot of ups and downs. We’ve yelled at each other a little. We’ve had a lot of really good times together. I worked with him almost throughout his entire ARCA career. I love that he wants to come back and work these two dirt races. I absolutely know that the Truck deal is a priority but it really makes me feel good to know he wants to be here and he puts as much effort into this as he does.”

    Chad Bryant Racing’s Joe Graf Jr. is hoping to break the dirt standouts and the Venturini powerhouse team, Graf pilots the No. 77 Eat Sleep Race machine and had a great race going until he was involved in an accident at Illinois, but he was able to come back and finish 10th. Graf has one start with a finish of 11th in 2018.

    “I feel like we got robbed a little bit at Springfield,” said Graf who sits fifth in the ARCA Menards Series standings. “We had a decent day, made some strides, but just had some misfortune that kept us from a better day.”

    Graf hopes to have a better outing this weekend at DuQuoin.

    “I’m ready to get after it,” Graf added. “Night racing on the dirt should be a lot of fun. It’s going to be a little different and we’re going to have to make sure we keep up with the adjustments from practice and qualifying but once that green flag drops, it’s go-time and I’m going to do everything I can to get our No. 77 EAT SLEEP RACE Ford Fusion up front and stay there.”

    Graf’s teammate Corey Heim will be making his first DuQuoin start Saturday night. Heim raced at Illinois and had a shot to win in an overtime restart before checking up and falling back to finish seventh after restarting on the outside front row.

    “We were so close,” said Heim. “I know things got very interesting and bumpers were used late at Springfield and I’m sure if roles were reversed, I would have done the same thing – but our finish wasn’t any indication of our performance throughout the race and that’s frustrating for me as a driver because I don’t settle for anything less than perfection.”

    “At Springfield, we were almost perfect. “He (Self) was down on the inside and he pushed me up the track and used me up. I got up into the loose dirt and gave up a lot of spots. It’s disappointing to go from second to seventh but that’s part of racing for the win.”

    Bret Holmes is making his second ARCA DuQuoin start in his family-owned No. 23 machine. Holmes competed in this race two years ago, starting 11th and finishing 12th, one lap down. In the previous race at Illinois, he earned a third-place finish. Holmes is hoping to better his DuQuoin finish from 2017.

    “We didn’t get the finish that we should have gotten two years ago at DuQuoin (State Fairgrounds). We actually got wrecked as we were taking over the lead. DuQuoin is a little bit different than Springfield. It’s a little bit slicker and harder on tires. I have the experience on dirt tracks. Two weeks ago, we ran really well. I think we’ll have the same showing this weekend and hopefully go for the win this time.”

    Carson Hocevar, who competed in the Eldora Dirt Derby earlier this month, is excited for another start on dirt. This will be Hocevar’s second dirt ARCA start in his career.

    “I am really pumped up for DuQuoin this weekend. My confidence going in is at an all-time high based off our speed at Springfield. Our finish doesn’t show it but we were the fastest car there and we’ve got even more ideas going into this weekend to improve our speed. It’s been a little bit of a frustrating year based on results, but if we execute in every area throughout the day we should be in the right spot to finally win in our No. 28 GMPartsNow Chevrolet.

    Drag boat driver Tyler Speer will be making a rare ARCA appearance this weekend. Speer has starts mainly on the dirt tracks in the ARCA Racing Series with the exception of Rockingham, Talladega and Mobile. However, it will be Speer’s first race in over two years in the ARCA Menards Series, where he finished 14th in the 2017 DuQuoin race.

    “Last year we only planned on doing a couple of boat races but we got off to such a great start that we stayed with it the whole year,” he said. “We set a fast time and won the first two races of the year so we decided to chase the championship after that. We always like coming and running these ARCA races and we’re happy the schedule lined up just right to let us do it this weekend. I wish we could do more of them.”

    Other drivers on the entry list include Wayne Peterson, Dick Doheny, Tommy Vigh Jr., Bobby Gerhart, Riley Herbst, Travis Braden, Brad Smith, Will Kimmel, Tim Richmond and dirt track ace Ken Schrader.

    There have been tons of race winners at DuQuoin State Fairgrounds. The include names like Lee Raymond, Dean Roper, Bob Keselowski, Bob Strait, Bob Brevak, Bob Schacht, Billy Thomas, Jeff Finley, Frank Kimmel, Tony Stewart, Ken Schrader, Parker Kligerman, Steve Arpin, Chris Buescher, Grant Enfinger, Tom Hessert, Austin Theriault and Logan Seavey.

    It’s a one day show for the ARCA Menards Series drivers with practice starting at 2:30 p.m. CT Saturday and lasting an hour. General Tire Pole Qualifying follows at 5:30 p.m. CT. There is no live TV coverage for either event but you can follow along at arcaracing.com.

    The Southern Illinois 100 is slated to get underway Saturday, shortly after 8 p.m. CT, 9 p.m. ET. The race is 100 laps and 100 miles and can be seen live on MAVTV.

  • Newgarden frustrated with last lap incident

    Newgarden frustrated with last lap incident

    Josef Newgarden was in prime position on the last lap to have a good points day until Santino Ferrucci’s car got loose and came down on Newgarden. Newgarden went off the track and almost wrecked his car. Though he was able to stay off the wall, he lost a few points to Alexander Rossi, as Rossi barely beat Newgarden at the line to gain some points on Newgarden.

    “It’s important to know he (Santino Ferrucci) is a rookie, but what he did was just dangerous,” Newgarden told NBCSN. “He came over and talked to me and said he was loose while he was down there. I was in the exact same position tonight. I know what it’s like to get up in the marbles, got there a couple of times. He came back down in the racing line directly which there was no real reason to.”

    “I gave him the position twice because I was suffering with vibrations all night and my car was getting difficult to drive at the end of that stint. So, I let him go two times in the night but he’s gotta learn in big time auto racing, if you do a move like that on an oval, particularly high speed oval, you will cause a very serious wreck. He’s just got to know that. I really drilled it to him. You cannot come directly into the racing line; that was his instinct. He’s a racer and you’re going to have instincts like that but you can’t do that in oval racing. That’s not okay, so it’s a lesson. I hope he learns that and I hope he gets that in his head.”

    Newgarden started on the pole and finished seventh in the event. He leads his teammate Simon Pagenaud by 38 points and Alexander Rossi by 46 points.

    Ferrucci had a solid night barring the last lap incident. He led 97 laps and finished fourth.

    “I was trying to bring home some hardware,” Ferrucci said to NBCSN. “We were running out front all night, quite frankly, our racecar was good enough to win this thing. At the end there, I was really trying to get to TK (Tony Kanaan) and I lost the car, and I wanted to get out of the marbles. I didn’t close the line on him too much but obviously, we’re fighting for two different championships.”

    “At the end of the day, I did what I had to do to save the car. Unfortunately, he got the worst of it, but you know he did finish the race and still picked up some good championship points. Overall, I could have gave him a little more room, but I really wanted that hardware.”

  • Sato holds off Carpenter in thrilling finish at Gateway

    Sato holds off Carpenter in thrilling finish at Gateway

    After facing criticism throughout the week due to the Pocono crash, Takuma Sato was able to fend off a hard-charging Ed Carpenter at the line in a thrilling finish at World Wide Technology Raceway.

    “Just the support, thank you to all the IndyCar fans, everyone around the world, “Sato said to NBCSN. “The team, the people made this happen. The last couple of days was tough, we kept our heads down, did our job and obviously was a little lucky, but we were fast, so it was great.”

    Championship points leader Josef Newgarden started on the pole. The race already had a caution for the 7 of Marcus Ericsson spin. From there, there was a long green-flag run before the first round of pit stops began on Lap 46 with Sato making a stop that was followed by Simon Pagenaud and Will Power. Power was in the wall on Lap 53, which ended his night and he wound up with a disappointing last-place finish.

    “I just put it like an inch in the marbles, out last, cold tires,” Power said. “Straight to the wall, like ice, it would take off so bad. Such a good car man. I had a very bad vibration, very bad. It wasn’t ideal, but we were still hanging on with faith. We had a good car.”

    Also under the caution, Scott Dixon came down pit road for a problem with his radiator. The problem later turned out to be water coming out of the radiator, which sent him to the garage so the team could fix the issue. However, Dixon called it quits late in the race, as the margin of laps was too significant to make up. He would wind up 20th.

    After the caution, there was a change in the race up front, which saw Canadian James Hinchcliffe and rookie sensation Santino Ferrucci battle for the lead, until Ferrucci took control of the race on Lap 83. Just a few laps later, the next round of pit stops occurred on Lap 96.

    As green-flag pit stops were taking place, the third caution came out on Lap 120 again for Ericsson who was in the wall. Ferrucci cycled out as the leader with Marco Andretti making his scheduled pit stop under yellow. A restart would take place but another caution flew on Lap 132 for Spencer Pigot. Pigot hit the wall after a battle with Charlie Kimball, as Kimball pinched Pigot down. The incident was under review by IndyCar officials but no action was taken.

    Despite the long green flag runs, whenever there was a caution, there would be thrilling restarts that took place diving into Turn 1 with the cars so spread out. This happened between Zach Veach and Sebastian Bourdais. The leaders began to pit again on Lap 174 with Rossi, Hinchcliffe, Colton Herta, Simon Pagenaud and Newgarden.

    After the stops, Hinchcliffe and Pagenaud made slight contact with each other. Pagenaud called for blocking, however, IndyCar officials reviewed the incident with no action taken.

    Race leader Ferrucci finally made his stop on Lap 188 from the lead but he had a slow stop which cost him some time on the track. However, he would catch a lucky break when there was another caution on Lap 190 for Bourdais who hit the wall on the straightaway. Sato pitted from the lead under caution which was a lucky break for him, as well.

    That would be the final caution of the race as the leaders would battle it out under a green flag stint. Some interesting developments took place with 20 to go for Rossi, as he could not make it all the way on fuel and had to make a pit stop. Graham Rahal also had a problem with his car that forced him to retire from the event.

    Ferrucci was trying to make a comeback happen with less than 20 to go until he got way high up the track and had to check up with eight to go in Turn 1. This ultimately cost him a shot for the win.

    The action didn’t stop there as a battle for the win ensued up front. Carpenter was trying to run down Sato late in the race. On the last lap, Carpenter made one last try on Sato before falling short at the line with Sato barely finishing in front of him for the win at Gateway.

    “We went three-wide or four-wide, and we gently touched with (James) Hinchcliffe, I don’t remember,” Sato said to NBCSN about his race early. “It was tough, I lost the moment twice. We made it happen today, a really big thank you to the team, an incredible team.”

    Carpenter finished in the second position by inches to Sato in the thriller.

    “Yesterday was one of the hardest days I’ve had in a car,” Carpenter described to NBCSN. “Just confusing. Both teams, the 20 and 21, we were never good yesterday. We just kept our heads down and we didn’t have to change much to get into the window. We were really good on the long runs tonight, that’s what was good for us. Just needed a little more time to get to Takuma.”

    This was Sato’s second win of the season and his first since Barber Motorsports Park earlier this season. The victory marked his fifth career win in IndyCar. The margin of victory was 0.0399 between Sato and Carpenter at the line.

    Up Next: The NTT IndyCar Series heads to Portland next Sunday for the Grand Prix of Portland, live on NBC at 3 p.m. ET.

    Official Results

    1. Takuma Sato
    2. Ed Carpenter
    3. Tony Kanaan
    4. Santino Ferrucci
    5. Simon Pagenaud
    6. Conor Daly
    7. Josef Newgarden
    8. Ryan Hunter-Reay
    9. Colton Herta
    10. Marco Andretti
    11. Felix Rosenqvist
    12. James Hinchcliffe, One lap down
    13. Alexander Rossi, One lap down
    14. Zach Veach, One lap down
    15. Charlie Kimball, One lap down
    16. Marcus Ericsson, One lap down
    17. Matheus Leist, Two laps down
    18. Graham Rahal, Retired
    19. Sebastian Bourdais, Retired
    20. Scott Dixon, Retired
    21. Spencer Pigot, Retired
    22. Will Power, Retired
  • NTT IndyCar Series Preview-Gateway

    NTT IndyCar Series Preview-Gateway

    The NTT IndyCar Series heads back to the Midwest this weekend for race No. 15 of the 2019 season. With Will Power winning the rain-shortened race at Pocono last weekend, he was able to close the points gap a little but he is still far behind fifth in points, 128 behind his teammate Josef Newgarden. Due to the win at Pocono, Power is mathematically eligible to win the championship but will need a lot of help to do so with just three races remaining.

    Here’s a look at who might win the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 at World Wide Technology Raceway.

    1. Josef Newgarden – Newgarden has two starts at Gateway with a win in 2017 after dominating the race by leading 170 laps. His previous finish was seventh in last year’s race after qualifying third. The Team Penske driver has an average start of 2.5 and an average finish of 4.0. Newgarden has been a beast on ovals this year, finishing fourth in the Indy 500 and winning at Texas and Iowa. Should Newgarden win again this weekend, I expect some drivers to be mathematically eliminated to compete for the championship.

    2. Scott Dixon – Trying to run Newgarden down in the championship is CGR driver Scott Dixon, who currently sits fourth in the standings, 52 points behind Newgarden. At Gateway, Dixon has three starts with a best finish of second in 2017 and he also earned a pole here last year. Dixon has an average finish of 6.7 and has led 223 laps. He led 145 laps in last year’s race before ultimately finishing third. On ovals this year, he has finishes of 17th in the Indy 500 and Fort Worth and second at Iowa and Pocono. Expect Dixon to be in contention to win on Saturday night and try to close the points gap a little bit on Newgarden.

    3. Will Power – Counting out last week’s winner would be a head-scratcher for sure when it comes to Gateway. While the 2017 race wasn’t the best outing for the Aussie, Power came back to win the race last year after leading 93 laps and starting fourth. In the two outings, Power has an average finish of 10.5, but his starts have been great. Keep an eye on Power who might be up front.

    4. Spencer Pigot – Looking to put the disappointing Pocono outing behind him, Pigot and the No. 21 Ed Carpenter Racing team are looking forward to returning to Gateway this weekend, a track where they were good at last year. In one start, Pigot finished sixth after starting 14th. The 2019 oval season has been so-so for the Ed Carpenter driver, finishing 14th at Indy and Fort Worth, fifth at Iowa and 17th last week at Pocono after crashing out of the race. Pigot and company are hoping to bounce back after last week’s events.

    5. Alexander Rossi – Speaking of someone hoping to bounce back we can’t forget Alexander Rossi who has two starts at Gateway. Rossi was involved in the Lap 1 crash at Pocono last Sunday. He was able to finish the race but was many laps down when the race was over. Rossi came to Pocono with a 16 point deficit but is now 35 points behind. Gateway might be the place where Rossi can overcome the points gap a little bit, as he finished second there last year and led four laps. The Andretti Autosport driver has finishes of second at Indy and Fort Worth and sixth at Iowa. Don’t ever count out Rossi and his No. 27 Napa team.

    World-Wide Technology Raceway has hosted four races under the CART/CCWS name and five races under the NTT IndyCar name. The first race for CART was back in 1997 when Paul Tracy won after starting second. Over the next three races, legendary names like Alex Zanardi, Michael Andretti and Juan Pablo Montoya have all won here.

    However, when IndyCar came in 2001, drivers like Al Unser Jr., Gil de Ferran and Helio Castroneves have won here as well. The series took a 16-year hiatus before returning two years ago in 2017. Since then, it’s been all Team Penske who have taken the checkers with Newgarden and Power winning.

    The NTT IndyCar Series drivers will get on track Friday afternoon with two one hour practice sessions. The first practice is scheduled for 2 p.m. ET and the final practice set for 9:15 p.m. ET live on NBC Gold. Qualifying will also be held on Friday evening at 6:15 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

    Saturday night is race day for the Bommarito Automotive Group 500. The race will have 250 laps and will be live on NBCSN. The pre-race show is slated for 8 p.m. ET and the green flag will fly at 8:45 p.m. ET.

  • Will Power wins rain-shortened race at Pocono

    Will Power wins rain-shortened race at Pocono

    After pitting from the lead on Lap 112, Will Power was able to come out ahead of Scott Dixon on the track after the pit stops. Power held on until Lap 128 when the race was red-flagged due to weather conditions including lightning in the area. With threatening skies and lightning around the track, NTT IndyCar officials declared the race official and Power as the winner of the ABC Supply 500.

    “If this cloud cover comes over and it doesn’t rain, it’s just not my year,” Power jokingly told NBC Sports. “I’m over the moon, had a few issues during the race and kept coming back. Full credit to the team, great car, kind of hung there and saved fuel, when it was time to go, I went. I was so determined, I really wanted to win. It’ll be my 13th year in a row winning races, I wasn’t thinking about that. I just simply wanted to win a race for Verizon.”

    “These guys worked their asses off all year and then, I just hadn’t had the results.”

    The ABC Supply 500 got off to a wild start. There was a big wreck in the tunnel turn as Takuma Sato’s car came down on Ryan Hunter-Reay. Alexander Rossi, James Hinchcliffe and Felix Rosenqvist were all involved. Rosenqvist’s car violently went up toward the catch fence while Sato went upside down.

    Miraculously, all drivers would be okay but were handed some additional penalties. Rossi, Hinchcliffe and Hunter-Reay each received a 10-lap penalty after working on their cars during the red flag, which is not allowed in IndyCar.

    “Takuma (Sato) just turned down on two cars and I was in it,” Rossi told IndyCar Radio. “I don’t know what the point of that was, what he was trying to accomplish. That’s what happened last year, I don’t know why people are making decisions like that. I didn’t get a good start, so it’s on me, I put us in that position. It’s just one of those instances, shouldn’t have been put in that situation, sucks that I did.”

    Sato gave his side of the incident.

    “Exit Turn 1, Ryan (Hunter-Reay) and I were racing together and the wheels, so Alex (Rossi) probably got something too. We overtook right and left, and there was one little issue. Once it caught them, it jumped on the car and were very crossed together, I kept on steering the wheel straight, but unfortunately, we tangled together.”

    Rosenqvist was later sent to a local trauma center for precautionary measures. Later in the broadcast, NBCSN reported that he was medically cleared after the incident.

    After a 45 minute red flag, the race resumed after repairs were completed in the Tunnel Turn. The next caution was not until Lap 40 in Turn 1 as Spencer Pigot was involved in an accident. The next caution occurred on Lap 74 for Colton Herta, as he was wrecked off the Tunnel Turn as well. On Lap 88, Rossi returned to the track to collect points.

    With the race off to a slow start, it was off to the long green-flag run that normally happens at Pocono. Dixon and Santino Ferrucci were pulling away from the field and the battle was on for the top spot with Power behind them. On Lap 106, green flag pit stops began to take place with Graham Rahal pitting, as well as Ferrucci.

    Dixon pitted one lap later on Lap 107, coming out ahead of Ferrucci. However, Power pitted on Lap 108 and came out second. He eventually passed Dixon for the lead on Lap 115. The IndyCar drivers got to race for 13 more laps before lightning was seen within a seven-mile radius.

    The cars were brought down pit road in case there was any potential to go back green. That was not the case, however, due to a band of storms approaching. IndyCar officials declared the race official and Power scored his first win of the 2019 season.

    Knowing that he was out of the championship hunt at this point in the season, Power was able to focus on winning instead of points racing.

    “Yeah, I kind of just let it go,” Power said to NBCSN regarding the championship. “It’s just not going to happen for me this year, just whatever. Still do my homework, we definitely had the car today, great stops, strategy was right. I worked harder this year than any other year. I was very determined, it just didn’t work for me.”

    The rain-shortened win was Power’s first victory of the season. It was also the 13th consecutive year that the Team Penske driver has scored a win each season, dating back to his first start in 2008.

    Power led once for 31 laps to earn his 34th career win, his third win at Pocono.

    There were four cautions for 23 laps, with 12 lead changes among four leaders.

    In the penalty summary, Takuma Sato was awarded a post-race penalty for avoidable contact. James Hinchcliffe, Alexander Rossi and Ryan Hunter-Reay received a 10-lap penalty for working on their cars during the red flag and Colton Herta also received a post-race fine for a pit safety infraction.

    Josef Newgarden continues to lead the points standings over Alexander Rossi by 35 points with three races remaining.

    Official Results

    1. Will Power, led 31 laps
    2. Scott Dixon, led 32 laps
    3. Simon Pagenaud, led 64 laps
    4. Santino Ferrucci
    5. Josef Newgarden, led one lap
    6. Ed Carpenter
    7. Sebastien Bourdais
    8. Tony Kanaan
    9. Graham Rahal
    10. Charlie Kimball
    11. Conor Daly
    12. Marcus Ericsson
    13. Zach Veach, One lap down
    14. Matheus Leist, One lap down
    15. Marco Andretti, Two laps down
    16. Colton Herta, OUT, Crash
    17. Spencer Pigot, OUT, Crash
    18. Alexander Rossi, 89 laps down
    19. Ryan Hunter-Reay, OUT
    20. James Hinchclifee, OUT
    21. Takuma Sato, OUT
    22. Felix Rosenqvist, OUT

    Up Next: The NTT IndyCar Series heads back to the Midwest on Saturday night August 24 at World Wide Technology Raceway.