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Other series racing

  • Mason Mingus; Win-Tron Racing Earn Top-10 Finish In ARCA Opener

    Mason Mingus; Win-Tron Racing Earn Top-10 Finish In ARCA Opener

  • John Wes Townley Goes to Victory Lane at Daytona; Gives Venturini Motorsports First Win at ‘World Center of Racing’

    John Wes Townley Goes to Victory Lane at Daytona; Gives Venturini Motorsports First Win at ‘World Center of Racing’

     

    Photo Credit: David Yeazell
    Photo Credit: David Yeazell

    Daytona Beach, Fla. (Feb 17, 2013) – Venturini Motorsports driver John Wes Townley took the checkered flag Saturday after an amazing sequence of events inside the finals 10 laps left him at the front of the Lucas Oil 200 presented by MAVTV American Real.

    Townley won from the pole in what was the 50thannual ARCA Racing Series event at Daytona International Speedway.

    “It’s one thing to win your first race in ARCA, it’s another to win at Daytona,” Townley said after the first win in the 31-year history of Venturini Motorsports at Daytona International Speedway.

    “This is just a great day for Venturini Motorsports,” Townley said. “This is priceless. I almost wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world. It’s a real honor.”

    The final 49 laps were all under the green flag.

    Kyle Larson finished second, Ricky Ehhrgot third and Frank Kimmel fourth. Sean Corr came in fifth.
    Townley passed eight-time Daytona winner Bobby Gerhart with seven laps to go when Gerhart slowed.

    “I don’t really know what happened there,” Townley said. “He checked up. We made a little contact.”

    After going green after the third caution at lap 22, Gerhart, Townley, Ehrgott and Larson broke away from the pack along with the lapped car of Chris Buescher, which tucked in right behind Gerhart and remained there for about 50 laps. The five cars created their own pack and coasted for nearly 40 laps while the second set of cars were much further back, but continued on the lead lap.

    Things remained in that order until Buescher moved out of the way with just under 10 laps to go and Gerhart slowed, eventually rocketing down pit lane at high speed. He returned to the track before eventually pulling off the track and finishing 29th because of a fuel pump problem. Gerhart was attempting to win his ninth time at Daytona.

    In the pre-race drivers meeting, ARCA officials stressed to the drivers to remain patient and be courteous to others. Townley, of Watkinsville, Ga. said that wasn’t an easy thing to do.

    “It’s a tough thing to do,” he said. “A few times I wanted to duck out and see what I could do. I’m glad that I didn’t.”

    Larson, racing in the No. 4 Cessna Chevrolet, said he couldn’t get any closer to the front. “The race went pretty smooth,” he said. “But, I couldn’t really make any moves. I was wide open. We’ll take second.”

    Milka Duno was the early race leader until her car had troubles and she had to make repairs and ended up four laps down in 28th. Matt Kurzejewski and Josh Williams also led laps during the race.

    The crash on lap 19 sent drivers Justin Boston, Darrell Wallace and Steve Kemp to the infield care center. They were treated and released. Julien Jousse caused the first caution when his motor blew up. The final caution came during a six-car crash that occurred after the green flag dropped and several cars never got up to speed.

    There were only three cautions for 19 laps in the event and five different leaders. The race was completed in 1:29:18.

    Billy Venturini, general manager for the VMS team, said the win meant everything for his family and team.

    “This is the first time I cried in victory lane,” he said. “This was definitely the highlight of our entire racing career. I think we’ve won at just about every other track we go to except here.”

    -ARCA RACING SERIES

    About Venturini Motorsports
    Venturini Motorsports (VMS), fielding cars for over 30 years in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards, is one of the premier NASCAR driver development programs in the country. With multiple team championships and consistent on-track success, VMS has evolved into one of the most recognizable names in motorsports. Since 2007, VMS has assisted in the career development of notable NASCAR drivers such as Joey Logano, Justin Allgaier, Ryan Blaney, Alex Bowman, Brian Scott, Kevin Swindell, Miguel Paludo, John Wes Townley, Josh Richards, and Ryan Reed. In 2012, VMS was inducted into the National Italian Sports Hall of Fame, and 2013 will highlight the team’s debut in the NASCAR Nationwide Series.

    Official: www.VenturiniMotorsports.com  |  Twitter: @VenturiniMotor  |  Facebook: Venturini Motorsports

    About the TRUTH Band
    National Recording Artists, THE TRUTH BAND, formed in Pittsburgh, PA by lead vocalist and guitarist Paul Benson, brings a driving rock and roll sound back to the forefront from the days when bands rocked arenas. This eclectic group of musicians’ debut album, “Can’t Let Go”, was produced by Kid Rock’s Kenny Olson and features original songs written by the band and co-writers Jeff Thurston and legendary, number one song writer Bernie Nelson. Founder, Paul Benson has had a passion and uncanny musical ability from a very young age. Both Paul, a veteran performer of the big stage, and drummer Josh Gerba, a road warrior, have performed hundreds of live shows with various bands. Shayne MacLaughlin brings the distinct guitar sound Paul has been searching for. Beautiful and multi-talented vocalist Ayesha Scott, who joined Paul after several guest appearances on his live shows, has been collaborating on music and lyrics ever since, gelling their musical styles together to form the sound of The Truth. The band will be touring this summer with the ARCA Racing Series, serving as the official ‘Music Partner” of Venturini Motorsports and has a full fall college tour scheduled.

    About EverFi
    EverFi is the leading education technology company focused on teaching, assessing, badging, and certifying students in critical skills. We combine cutting-edge personalized technology, deep education research and data, and a dedicated implementation team that allows each teacher to feel as though they have a blended learning assistant in their classroom. Most importantly, EverFi partners with the private sector and foundations that sponsor this innovation across the country. EverFi is headquartered in Washington, D.C. with offices in Boston, San Francisco, and Chicago. We also have team members in Florida, Iowa, Louisiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Texas. www.everfi.com

    About Susie’s Hope
    The mission of Susie’s Hope™ is to help end the epidemic of animal abuse that has spread throughout our nation by creating awareness of the problem and providing education about its solution. Susie and Donna Lawrence have embarked on a personal journey to educate people of all ages about animal abuse and the proper way to care for their pets. They visit schools, churches, special needs community groups, pet adoption fairs and fund raisers, and other organizations that offer information and inspiration to the public. Susie’s Hope, the movie, will premier in early 2013 at selected theatres across America. An extraordinary story based on true events, Susie’s Hope follows a family who triumphs over tragedy and changes lives in their community. A survivor of a horrific pit bull attack, Donna Lawrence, adopts a pit bull-mix puppy, Susie, who has been beaten, set on fire and left for dead. Together, they learn to heal, love and forgive as they lead a historic effort to seek justice and protection for all animals. www.SusiesHope.com

    About Mudd Adverting
    Mudd Advertising is a leader in direct marketing, audio-visual production, media, digital marketing and point of sale advertising. Headquartered in Cedar Falls, Iowa, the Mudd campus features a 3,000 square foot state-of-the-art production studio. Mudd partners with over 3,000 clients across the nation and is highly regarded for its results-driven advertising in the automotive, academic, agriculture and entertainment industries. Mudd has been helping clients succeed since 1981. www.Mudd.com

  • NASCAR Canadian Tire Series Champ D.J. Kennington to tackle UNOH Battle of the Beach

    NASCAR Canadian Tire Series Champ D.J. Kennington to tackle UNOH Battle of the Beach

    “Last season’s over, on to 2013. We had a great year last year.”

    Photo Credit: Todd D Walden/Nedlaw Photos
    Photo Credit: Todd D Walden/Nedlaw Photos

    With his NASCAR Canadian Tire Series Championship, D.J. Kennington guaranteed himself a starting position in one of the UNOH Battle of the Beach races – the race being his choice.

    Kennington will make good on that guaranteed starting position this Tuesday, entering the K&N Pro Series event on Tuesday night.

    “Pretty excited,” he said. “We have a really good car, good team, and hopefully if we can have any luck at all, we miss the carnage and have a good day.”

    Kennington will drive the No. 28 Castrol Toyota at Daytona International Speedway for Bill McAnally Racing.

    “We are grateful for the opportunity to compete in this exciting new event,” said BMR President Bill McAnally. “We anticipate it will attract the best caliber teams in NASCAR regional touring and we are glad to be a part of it. We want to thank all of our sponsors who made this possible – NAPA Auto Parts, Toyota, NAPA Filters, NGK and Castrol.”

    McAnnally and Kennington have worked together in the past, teaming up for the 2010 running of the NASCAR All-Star Showdown at Irwindale Speedway. The event paired Kennington against 38 of the top drivers from the K&N Pro East Series, K&N Pro West Series, along with the NASCAR Mexico Series Champion. In that event, he started 15th and worked his way to the front, finishing second.

    The St. Thomas, Ontario native won the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series Championship last year after winning seven races, including six in a row to become the sixth driver in NASCAR Touring Series history to do so. The season was so impressive that Kennington finished in the top five in every race, except one. He finished 21st at Barrie Speedway after fuel pump issues.

    The two-time series champion got started in racing at the age of four in go-kart, and continued to move up the ranks from there.

    “Loved the sport and it’s in my blood and unfortunately, I can’t get rid of it,” he said.

    Kennington is set to return to the Canadian Tire Series in 2013, set to defend his title and possibly become the first driver to win three championships in the series. Kennington is currently one of three drivers that have won two championships; Scott Steckly and Andrew Ranger are the other two.

    With the variety of tracks that the Canadian Tire Series goes to, it’s easy for a driver to have more than one favourite.

    “Obviously, I like Delaware – it’s close to home,” he said of his favourite tracks. “It’s my home track. Saskatoon is really fun and beautiful facility, and so is Riverside. We got a lot of great places to race in Canada. As long as it’s a race track, I’m happy.

    One neat addition to the 2013 schedule is the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series will be at Canadian Tire Motosports Park on Labour Day weekend with the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. There is a chance that you may see Kennington running both races.

    “We’re working on it trying to put together a program for that race,” Kennington said of the truck race. “If we can get a good ride secured, we will be there.”

    When it comes to those looking to follow in the champ’s footsteps, he says get out and get involved in the sport.

    “Get involved and try to get in with a team, even if you’re helping out just working on the cars,” he said. “Get to know people. I found that the more people you know, the easier it is to perform because it’s people that make this sport. If you don’t get out there and get involved, nobody will know who you are so if you get out and get involved, they’ll know who you are.”

  • Kimmel/ThorSport Lucas Oil 200 Daytona ARCA Race Recap

    Kimmel/ThorSport Lucas Oil 200 Daytona ARCA Race Recap

    ThorSportRacingDAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Feb. 16, 2013) — On a night in which Daytona International Speedway and ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards legend Bill Venturini claimed his first victory in 31 years of competing at the “World Center of Racing,” Frank Kimmel was pleased to get out of town with a fourth-place finish in Saturday’s Lucas Oil 200 presented by MAV TV American Real.

    Kimmel scored his eighth career top-five finish in 22 career starts — but his first since 2008 — when he started his No. 44 Ansell/Menards Toyota Camry in 19th, but took advantage of adept pit strategy, track position and a good drafting car to drive from outside the top-10 to his final finishing position.

    Kimmel, who leaves Daytona fourth in the standings and more than 100 points ahead of where he was last season — when a yellow-line violation penalty knocked him back to 21st in the final rundown — was well aware of that fact.

    “It’s a good start to the season,” Kimmel said. “It ran good and battled all day — I think I probably passed more cars than anybody out there, it seemed like, so it was a good day. We got a good finish out of what we had and that’s all we can ask for.

    “I was able to get up to the front of that second pack — I drafted a lot with the 32 (Mason Mingus) and the 82 (Sean Corr) and that helped a lot. Once we got up there we was just able to hang on.”

    The respect given to Kimmel — a nine-time ARCA Racing Series champion — was obvious as both youngsters sought out the veteran Kimmel post-race in the impound area to swap notes and bench-race while another youngster, John Wes Townley, celebrated in Daytona’s Victory lane with his Venturini Motorsports crew.

    Kimmel pitted only twice during the race and true to his pre-race plan with crew chief Jeriod Prince, took only Sunoco race fuel under cautions at about lap 10 and again at about lap 20, while running their Hoosier tires for two laps of qualifying and the 80 laps of the race without a change.

    “I’ll take a fourth-place at Daytona any day,” Prince said. “Normally you come out of here with a lot of crashed, torn-up race cars so I’ll take fourth at a superspeedway. We had some (left-front) fender damage and the car wasn’t as quick as it needed to be on account of that, but we got out in front of that second pack and picked up three tenths (of a second) while leading, so it was good to know it was better out front.”

    Kimmel’s biggest “moment” of the night came during an accident on lap 19, when at least five cars got tangled up on the frontstretch with the fracas starting in a side-by-side draft right in front of Kimmel’s neon-yellow Toyota.

    “There were some exciting moves out there, for sure,” Kimmel said. “But I told my guys at ThorSport Racing all weekend how good that car drives. With a little luck, you can drive through anything and fortunately — you see the mess happening, you don’t panic and you try to drive through it.”

    “That accident was scary,” Prince said of the mood on the pit box, “but not as scary as the fuel mileage at the end (because) the computer was showing we were gonna be out of fuel with five (laps) to go. So we had our fingers and toes crossed at the end.”

    But bolstering Kimmel and ThorSport’s spirits even more is the fact that Kimmel’s about the only driver in the top 10 in Daytona’s opening rundown that’s contesting the full ARCA Racing Series schedule.

    The series’ second event is in three weeks at Mobile (Ala.) International Speedway on March 8-9. Menards Pole Qualifying presented by Ansell is Friday, March 8 with the main event on Saturday afternoon, March 9.

    ABOUT THORSPORT RACING
    ThorSport Racing, based in a state-of-the-art 100,000-square-foot facility in Sandusky, Ohio, is the longest-tenured active NASCAR Camping World Truck Series team. ThorSport, which has run full season Truck Series schedules annually beginning in 1998, in 2013 will run the No. 88 Menards Toyota Tundra driven by Matt Crafton, the No. 98 Carolina Nut Co./Curb Records Toyota Tundra driven by Johnny Sauter and the No. 13 Mattei Air Compressor Toyota Tundra for Todd Bodine in the Truck Series and the No. 44 Ansell/Menards Toyota Camry driven by Frank Kimmel in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards.

  • Rating the Race – ARCA at Daytona

    Rating the Race – ARCA at Daytona

    Photo Credit: David Yeazell
    Photo Credit: David Yeazell

    Why I watched…

    ARCA’s offering promised to showcase 19-year old Darrell Wallace Jr, who has a lot of folks gushing but I had yet to lay eyes on him. Seemed a good enough reason as any to watch some stock cars at the big track to open the new season. Other tidbits included a 78-year old James Hylton beginning his 50th and final season, Bobby Gerhart was seeking his 9th win in this race, while Frank Kimmel sought his 77th career win but his first at Daytona. Still, the very fact they were running stock cars at Daytona to break the two month hiatus seemed a good enough reason to me.

    The race…

    Daytona is one of those tracks that just lends itself to stimulating visuals, with those high banks and close formation racing. Even when it lacks drama, it still is cool to watch.

    We had the unexpected in the late going. It appeared Bobby Gerhart was cruising to a win comfortably up front, but that changed with six laps to go. Earlier, from the broadcast booth, Kyle Busch observed that Gerhart might have bolted from pit row before getting a full tank and he proved prophetic when the 8-time race winner coughed and sputtered with six laps remaining to wind up parked and 28th.

    We had some drama, when we saw Darrell Wallace Jr race for all of 19 laps. Too bad about the folks checking in front of him, which caused him to bump Justin Boston. When Boston’s car swerved right back to return the favor, Wallace was out of the race. At least he gets to return to run in the NASCAR truck series on Friday.

    Frenchman Julien Jousse was blowing water from the start, did not get it cooled on the track and did not pit so it came as no surprise to see him blow up after ten laps. If the goal was to blow engine parts everywhere and go up in flames, they succeeded brilliantly.

    On the downside, those two early cautions brought us lots of caution laps, some delay in getting the field back in order, and a lot of commercials to watch. As I watch the race between 30 minutes and an hour behind live time so I can analyze the race as I go, the PVR is my friend. If you were watching it live, it had to be painful.

    Of note, the first lap was led by a woman. Milka Duno was there on the first lap, but the 40-year old Venezuelan filtered back as things progressed to wind up 29th at the end of 80 laps.

    Frank Kimmel led the second pack, well behind the leaders, to finish fourth. James Hylton, who began his career as a mechanic for Rex White when he won the Cup title back in 1960, was 25th.

    In the end, it came down to 23-year old Georgian John Wes Townley trying to stave off 20-year old Nationwide rookie Kyle Larson for the win. Thanks to a trio of lapped cars on the final lap we did not get to see any last moment drama at the finish line.

    Rating this race (7/10)

    The fact I did not feel compelled to fast forward through the action must mean something. It might have been the main thing, but also the unexpected element that kept Gerhart from walking away with the win in the end rewarded me for watching.

  • John Wes Townley wins ARCA Lucas Oil 150 Giving Venturini First Daytona Victory

    John Wes Townley wins ARCA Lucas Oil 150 Giving Venturini First Daytona Victory

    Photo Credit: David Yeazell
    Photo Credit: David Yeazell

    For 30 years, Venturini Motorsports has been a fixture in the ARCA Racing Series. However, one thing has alluded them – winning at Daytona International Speedway. That all changed in their 31st year at Daytona as John Wes Townley took the victory in the Lucas Oil 150.

    “This is just a great day for Venturini  Motorsports,” Townley said. “This is priceless. I almost wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world. It’s a real honor.”

    It also marks the first career victory for Townley.

    “I’m exastic,” Townley said in victory lane. “I have no words to say.I just got to thank Zaxby’s and Venturini Motorsports for this opportunity. It’s one thing to win your first race in ARCA, it’s another to win at Daytona.”

    Townley was in second place with seven laps to go while Bobby Gerhart led. However, as the field came off turn four, Gerhart slowed immediately, moving to the inside which allowed Townley to get by.

    “I don’t know what happened,” Townley said of Gerhart. “At some point, he got out of the throttle.”

    Gerhart would stall on the inside of the track a lap later, out of gas. There’d be no caution due to his Chevrolet being out of the way. Townley then held off rookie Kyle Larson to take the checkered flag.

    “Well, as far as I know, we just had luck on our side,” Townley said. “At a place like this, that’s just what you need. You just need to bide your time and not do anything stupid.”

    Townley had taken a break from racing due to having a season of multiple wrecks in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, however returned to tackle the ARCA schedule this year with Venturini Motorsports.

    “Realized at some point, when you quit something you never get any better,” he said. “So I decided to come back out here.”

    Venturini Motorsports car owner Billy Venturini says the win is the most meaningful in his family’s entire racing career.

    “This is the first time I cried in victory lane,” he said. “This was definitely the highlight of our entire racing career. I think we’ve won at just about every other track we go to except here.”

    Meanwhile, young Kyle Larson would finish the race second on the road to getting ready to run the Nationwide Series opener next weekend.

    “It wasn’t a bad race,” Larson said. “I had a good time and I’m really looking forward to the NASCAR Nationwide Series race next weekend.”

    Larson had tried planning a move with other drivers, but it just wasn’t there.

    “The race went pretty smooth,” he said. “But, I couldn’t really make any moves. I was wide open. We’ll take second.”

    Coulter Motorsports driver Ricky Ehrgott finished third, followed by Frank Kimmel and Sean Corr. Brennan Newberry finished sixth, followed by Mason Mingus, Mark Thompson, Matt Kurzejewski and Chad Boat.

    The 150 mile race saw three cautions, including a big wreck involving eight drivers. On lap 20, Darrell Wallace Jr. would get into the back of of his Venturini Motorsports teammate Justin Boston, causing to go sideways, collecting Steve Kemp, Brett Hudson, Drew Charlson, Mason Mitchell, Caleb Armstrong and Martinsville Speedway President Clay Campbell.

    “I don’t know what to say,” Wallace Jr. said. “I just ran into the back of him. Just disappointing.”

    “It’s definitely a tough deal to come down and race and end up with a torn racecar,” Boston said. “It sucks that we have two torn up cars. It’s just disappointing.”

    The first caution came out on lap 10 for Julien Jousse blowing a motor while the third caution came out on lap 27 for debris after Will Kimmel blew a motor.

    Milka Duno, who started second in her Venturini Motorsports Toyota, led the race early on till the first pit stop at lap 18. She would have transmission problems on lap 27, causing her to go behind the wall for five laps.

    Another driver with bad luck was Chris Buescher as he went behind the wall for six laps due to electrical issues.

     

    Race Results

    2013 ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards Event #1    
    Daytona Int’l Speedway, Daytona Beach Florida, 2-16-13    
    Lucas Oil 200 presented by MAVTV American Real    
                 
    Final Results
    FIN STR NO DRIVER/HOMETOWN TEAM & CAR LAPS STATUS
    1 1 15 John Wes Townley/Watkinsville GA Zaxby’s Toyota 80 Running
    2 11 4 Kyle Larson/Elk Grove CA Cessna Chevrolet 80 Running
    3 7 16 Ricky Ehrgott/New York NY Sandvik Coromant-Rev1 Power Services Chevrolet 80 Running
    4 19 44 Frank Kimmel/Clarksville IN Ansell-Menards Toyota 80 Running
    5 18 82 Sean Corr/Goshen NY Warriors In The Workplace-RoushYates Ford 80 Running
    6 15 92 Brennan Newberry/Bakersfield CA Fight For Life Chevrolet 80 Running
    7 9 32 Mason Mingus/Brentwood TN 811 Call Before You Dig-Diamond Equipment Toyota 80 Running
    8 16 62 Mark Thompson/Cartersville GA Phoenix Air Chevrolet 80 Running
    9 29 54 Matt Kurzejewski/Mansfield PA Costy’s Energy Services-Lexington Daytona Dodge 80 Running
    10 12 52 Chad Boat/Phoenix AZ Curb Records Chevrolet 80 Running
    11 14 22 Michel Disdier/Nice France auto-us.com Dodge 80 Running
    12 10 77 Tom Hessert/Cherry Hill NJ Barbera’s Autoland-Cunningham Motorsports Dodge 80 Running
    13 23 99 Mason Mitchell/W. Des Moines IA Roulo Brothers Racing Ford 80 Running
    14 24 08 Clay Campbell/Martinsville VA Mountain Dew Ford 80 Running
    15 30 02 Josh Williams/Port Charlotte FL Southwest Florida Cable Construction Ford 80 Running
    16 22 42 Bo Lemastus/Louisville KY Crosley Radio Dodge 80 Running
    17 40 88 Buster Graham/Lafayette LA Don Mashburn Inc Ford 79 Running
    18 26 19 Donnie Neuenberger/Edgewater MD Eagle Convenience Stores Chevrolet 79 Running
    19 28 75 Benny Chastain/Tallahassee FL Bob Schacht Motorsports Chevrolet 79 Running
    20 39 06 Dexter Stacy/Kahnawake Quebec Maddie’s Place Chevrolet 79 Running
    21 32 23 Spencer Gallagher/Las Vegas NV Allegiant Air Chevrolet 79 Running
    22 34 2 Thomas Praytor/Mobile AL ARCA Mobile 200-RoushYates Ford 78 Running
    23 37 34 Rick Clifton/Circleville OH BASF Chevrolet 78 Running
    24 25 30 Terry Jones/Amherstburg Ontario J-ARR Excavating Dodge 78 Running
    25 36 10 Ed Pompa/Ballston Spa NY Milton Cat-Double H Ranch Chevrolet 77 Running
    26 38 48 James Hylton/Inman SC Radon.com Ford 77 Running
    27 31 97 Roger Carter/Sunfield MI RoadRunnerTheMovie.com/I-96 Speedway Dodge 76 Running
    28 2 35 Milka Duno/Caracas Venezuela CANTV-Milka Way Toyota 76 Running
    29 3 5 Bobby Gerhart/Lebanon PA MAVTV TV American Real Chevrolet 75 Fuel Pump
    30 8 17 Chris Buescher/Prosper TX Roulo Brothers Racing Ford 74 Running
    31 13 25 Justin Boston/Baltimore MD ZLOOP Computer & Electronics Recycling Centers Toyota 41 Accident
    32 35 40 Galen Hassler/Columbia MO CheapGasPromo.com Dodge 39 Engine
    33 20 68 Will Kimmel/Sellersburg IN Gary Yeomans-Clarksville Schwinn Ford 26 Accident
    34 21 6 Caleb Armstrong/New Castle IN Eddie Sharp Racing Chevrolet 20 Accident
    35 4 55 Darrell Wallace/Mobile AL Toyota Manufacturing Toyota 19 Accident
    36 27 11 Brett Hudson/Owensboro KY Hudson Performance Drivelines-Warrick Tubing Dodge 19 Accident
    37 33 69 Steve Kemp/Justin TX AntlerHuntRanch.com Ford 19 Accident
    38 17 3 Drew Charlson/New Bremen OH Aluma Aluminum Trailers Chevrolet 19 Accident
    39 6 09 Grant Enfinger/Fairhope AL Motor Honey-Casite.com Ford 12 Rear End
    40 5 94 Julien Jousse/St. Tropez France Dave Leiner Racing-Barbarac.fr Toyota 9 Engine
    Menards Pole Award Presented by Ansell:  John Wes Townley 49.638 (181.313 mph)
    Margin of Victory:  0.173 seconds Cautions:  3 for 19 laps
    Time of Race:  1:29:18 Average Speed:  135.900 mph
    Lap Leaders:  Duno 1-11 (11); Townley 12, 73-80 (9); Kurzejewski 13-14 (2); Williams 15-17 (3); Gerhart 18-72 (55)
  • ARCA Lap by Lap: Lucas Oil 200 won by John Wes Townley

    ARCA Lap by Lap: Lucas Oil 200 won by John Wes Townley

    Photo Credit: Eric Uprichard/SpeedwayPhoto.ca
    Photo Credit: Eric Uprichard/SpeedwayPhoto.ca

    In a dramatic change of events late in the race, pole sitter John Wes Townley would grab the lead in the Lucas Oil 200, taking the victory at Daytona International Speedway. It marked the first win for Townley in ARCA and the first win for Venturini Motorsports in their 31 years of racing at Daytona.

     

    Lap 1 – Milka Duno leads John Wes Townley

    Lap 2 – Tom Hessert has problems

    Lap 3 – Duno leads Townley

    Lap 5 – Duno leads Townley, Bobby Gerhart, Julien Jousse, Ricky Ehrgott

    Lap 7 – Ehrgott passes Jousse for fourth as Jousse moves up to get air into the front grill.

    Caution Lap 10 Julien Jousse blows the motor up……Leaders pit. Bobby Gerhart first off pit road ahead of John Wes Townley. Some cars stayed out. Chris Buescher stalled on track – no fire, no spark. Serious electrical issues.Grant Enfinger broke a yoke off the driveshaft.

    Restart lap 18 as Josh Williams has the lead after not pitting.

    Lap 19 Williams and Gerhart side-by-side for the lead.

    Lap 20 Wreck – Darrell Wallace Jr., Steve Kemp, Justin Boston, Brett Hudson, Drew Charlson, Wallace Jr., Mason Mitchell, Caleb Armstrong, Clay Campbell got into the back of Boston, turning sideways and starting the wreck. Wallace made contact with Boston as the field began to accordion. Chris Buescher back on track after changing the ignition box.

    “I don’t know what to say. I just ran into the back of him. Just disappointing.” Bubba Wallace

    “It’s definitely a tough deal to come down and race and end up with a torn racecar. It sucks that we have two torn up cars. It’s just disappointing.” Boston

    Restart Lap 26 as Bobby Gerhart leads John Wes Townley. Milka Duno has problems. Will Kimmell just blew a tire.

    Caution lap 27 for debris. Milka Duno to the garage. The tranny linkage got stuck. She got back on track, five laps down.

    Restart lap 31 Gerhart leads Townley, Praytor. Buescher, who is many laps down, to help Gerhart.

    Lap 33 Gerhart leads Praytor, Townely, Boat, Ehrgott. Townley passes Praytor with help.

    Lap 37 Ehrgott passes Boat for fourth, Larson is in sixth.

    Lap 38 Gerhart leads Townley, Praytor, Ehrgott and Larson as Boat falls through the field.

    Halfway

    27 to go Through lap traffic, Ehrgott and Larson get by Praytor.

    26 to go Gerhart leads Townley, Prayor, Ehrgott, Larson and Praytor

    7 to go Buescher slid up track, Gerhart down pit road full speed after possible contact from behind, Townley to the lead ahead of Larson, Ehrgott.

    John Wes Townley wins. Larson. Gerhart. Kimmel. Corr. Newberry. Mingus. Thompson. Kurzejewski. Boat.

  • OSCAAR Modified Rookie Davey Terry looks for success in 2013

    OSCAAR Modified Rookie Davey Terry looks for success in 2013

    DaveyTerry_YounggunPanelWhen Davey Terry started the season with the OSCAAR Modifieds, there were a lot of questions of how the rookie would do.

    “We were real late getting into the modified deal,” Davey Terry said. “My dad came up with the idea real late to get a car, with pretty much a month left. It was kind of a mad thrash to get the car done. Started the season with no practice on the car, no laps at all. We didn’t have any goals when the season started. We set goals as the season went on.”

    By the end of the season, Terry answered the skeptics as he took home the OSCAAR Modified Rookie of the Year Award while finishing third in points.

    For the Erin, Ontario native, he says the turning point to his season was the top five finish at Varney Motor Speedway mid-season.

    “It wasn’t a track that I thought I’d do really well at because I never really did well there in a mini stock,” Terry said during the 2013 Canadian Motorsports Expo. “With a little guidance from guys like Gary McLean and Brent McLean had a huge impact on me.”

    Terry picked up many lessons through the season and one of the important lessons was patience.

    “Just make sure you take care of your equipment and everything else falls into place,” he said.

    In learning those lessons, there were driver that Terry went to for advice.

    “Anyone who’s last name is McLean,” Terry said. “They’ve been racing modifieds forever. It’s such a great group of guys. You can almost go to anyone and get some advice. Everybody will help each other out.”

    DaveyTerry_velocityWhile it marked the first year for Terry in the Modified ranks, it was also the first ever season for the Modifieds under the OSCAAR banner, touring around Ontario.

    “I think it exceeded expectations,” he said. “I think it was neat to see all of the drivers come out of the wood works.”

    Terry also sees growth for the 2013 season, noting the number of drivers that have contacted series director Dave Gainforth looking to how to buy a car to get started.

    “It’s just good news for OSCAAR in general,” Terry added. “The cars, they look cool and everyone wants to drive one now so it’s good news for everybody.”

    One thing that Terry would like to see maybe is one race have a time trials worked in deciding the starting line-up rather than double heats.

    “Well, some fans don’t like time trials – they like heat races,” Terry started. “So what I’d like to see is time trials and then 1 set of heats so fans can have the best of both worlds. I’d like to see time trials for the added challenge.”

    With the success in 2012, there’s one thing that the sophomore driver wants to accomplish in 2013 – winning his first modified race. That win may come early in the season after he ended the season with a second in Sunset’s Velocity 250 and a fifth at Autumn Colors.

  • Kimmel qualifies 19th for ARCA Racing Series Daytona opener

    Kimmel qualifies 19th for ARCA Racing Series Daytona opener

    daytonalucasoil2013at180DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Feb. 15, 2013) — Frank Kimmel qualified his No. 44 Ansell/Menards Toyota Camry 19th — right about where he expected to Friday in Menards Pole Qualifying presented by Ansell at Daytona International Speedway.

    But it’s in Saturday’s ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards season-opener, the Lucas Oil 200 presented by MAV TV American Real, that Kimmel, the nine-time ARCA champion, expects to shine despite a qualifying lap in 50.755 seconds, an average speed of 177.322 mph.

     

    “This car is a really, really nice piece that my team at ThorSport has put together, and we’re expecting it to race really well Saturday,” Kimmel said. “That’s how we run, and it’s about as fast as we’ve run since we got it off the trailer. That’s about how we expected to run by ourselves, but we think this car will work well in the draft and we’ll find that out in Happy Hour, [Saturday].”

     

    Final practice is scheduled on Saturday from 10 – 10:45 a.m. ET and the 50th annual Lucas Oil 200 is scheduled to go green at 4:30 p.m.

     

    Kimmel, who has an ARCA-second-best 76 career wins, has never won at Daytona. But his career record in 21 starts is impressive, with seven top-five finishes and 13 top-10s, including second-place runs in 2004-2005.

    “I get asked all the time what it takes to win at Daytona, but it’s been pretty darned hard for me — it’s the best race track in the world and we just haven’t managed to get the job done, yet,” Kimmel said with a chuckle, after qualifying.

    John Wes Townley, a regular competitor in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, won the pole with a lap in 181.313 mph in a Venturini Motorsports Toyota. He’ll start alongside Venezuelan ARCA Series regular Milka Duno.

     

     

     
    ABOUT THORSPORT RACING

    ThorSport Racing, based in a state-of-the-art 100,000-square-foot facility in Sandusky, Ohio, is the longest-tenured active NASCAR Camping World Truck Series team. ThorSport, which has run full season Truck Series schedules annually beginning in 1998, in 2013 will run the No. 88 Menards Toyota Tundra driven by Matt Crafton, the No. 98 Carolina Nut Co./Curb Records Toyota Tundra driven by Johnny Sauter and the No. 13 Mattei Air Compressor Toyota Tundra for Todd Bodine in the Truck Series and the No. 44 Ansell/Menards Toyota Camry driven by Frank Kimmel in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards.
  • Townley on Pole as Venturini Motorsports Sweeps Daytona Front Row

    Townley on Pole as Venturini Motorsports Sweeps Daytona Front Row

    townleypoledaytonaDaytona Beach, Fla. (Febuary 15, 2013) – John Wes Townley earned his first career Menards Pole Award in the ARCA Racing Series, leading a front row sweep for Venturini Motorsports with a qualifying lap of 49.638 seconds (181.313 mph) at Daytona International Speedway.

     Townley (No. 15 Zaxby’s Toyota) edged teammate Milka Duno (No. 35 CanTV/Milka Way Toyota), who completed a lap at 180.505 mph for the second position.

    “I’m so excited,” Townley said. “It’s great for Venturini Motorsports, and certainly great for Zaxby’s. Tomorrow’s going to be the day that really counts, but it means a lot to be able to come here and get the pole. We just need to come out tomorrow and back it up. The car is working very well in the draft too, so I think it’ll hold up very well in the race.”

    Townley’s position up front will give him an excellent chance to improve on his best career finishes, both of which came at the 2.5-mile superspeedway with the Venturini team. He finished fourth in 2009 before a third-place finish the next year.

    Duno, who has made 26 ARCA starts but will make her first with Venturini, will start tomorrow’s race on the front row in 2nd.

    “This is wonderful,” she said. “I now have the tools and the right people around me. This is my first race with Venturini Motorsports, and we’re going to do a super job in the race tomorrow.”

    Venturini Motorsports, which last year celebrated its 30th year of competition, has won 26 races across four decades but has never won at Daytona.

    Darrell Wallace Jr. (No. 55 Toyota Manufacturing Toyota) gave Venturini three of the top four cars by qualifying fourth, and Justin Boston (No. 25 ZLOOP™ Computer & Electronics Recycling Toyota) qualified 13th. Both drivers will be making ARCA debuts with Venturini.

    A final practice at 10 a.m. Saturday will precede the 80-lap Lucas Oil 200 presented by MAVTV American Real – ARCA’s 50th race at Daytona – which will air live on SPEED at 4:30 p.m.

    About Venturini Motorsports
    Venturini Motorsports (VMS), fielding cars for over 30 years in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards, is one of the premier NASCAR driver development programs in the country. With multiple team championships and consistent on-track success, VMS has evolved into one of the most recognizable names in motorsports. Since 2007, VMS has assisted in the career development of notable NASCAR drivers such as Joey Logano, Justin Allgaier, Ryan Blaney, Alex Bowman, Brian Scott, Kevin Swindell, Miguel Paludo, John Wes Townley, Josh Richards, and Ryan Reed. In 2012, VMS was inducted into the National Italian Sports Hall of Fame, and 2013 will highlight the team’s debut in the NASCAR Nationwide Series.

    Official: www.VenturiniMotorsports.com  |  Twitter: @VenturiniMotor  |  Facebook: Venturini Motorsports