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  • Ernie Francis Jr. fends off Labonte for SRX win at Lucas Oil Raceway

    Ernie Francis Jr. fends off Labonte for SRX win at Lucas Oil Raceway

    After multiple late-race cautions, 23-year-old Trans Am racing driver and young SRX standout, Ernie Francis Jr., fended off Bobby Labonte following a late restart.

    Francis won over Labonte by 0.649 seconds to take home his first career Superstar Racing Experience victory.

    “Me and Scott Speed went at it for a few laps there, side-to-side, and I didn’t know how that was going to end up. I ended up with a few donuts on the car, but man, couldn’t be happier with it, super incredible. I want to thank everybody from SRX, Ray Evernham and Tony Stewart for giving me this opportunity.”

    “I was playing around with gearing trying to see what would work,” Francis said. “Second gear was spinning off of turn four as I tried to roll through third, and that last restart I got really sideways, but I stayed in it. I didn’t want to lift there. And I thought, man, when I saw that I cleared Labonte there – that was a good feeling knowing I just had to get through a few turns cleanly and I just ran my race and took it home. This is going to make that drive back to Road America a lot better.”

    Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis was the fourth event on the SRX Racing Series schedule. As usual, there were two heat races that lasted 12 minutes each.

    This week, “The Ringer” was former NASCAR star Scott Speed. Speed started on the pole and led all the laps to pick up the first heat race win. Tony Kanaan, Michael Waltrip, Tony Stewart and “Local All-Star” Bobby Santos III finished fifth in the heat.

    When the field was inverted for heat 2, Willy T. Ribbs started up front with Paul Tracy alongside him. However, Ribbs and Tracy wouldn’t last long at the front as Castroneves took the lead on Lap 5. The 2021 Indy 500 winner went on to lead the rest of the way and take home his first heat race win in the SRX Series. Labonte, Stewart, Francis and Andretti were the top five. This was the first time in SRX history, there would be no on-track incidents during the first two heats.

    Then came the main event which was a 76-lap feature with a unique twist added. Caution laps would count until there were six laps to go, although that would eventually change toward the end of the race.

    Following the green flag, Francis took the lead on Lap 11 from Scott Speed going into Turn 1. Francis had the dominant car as the Davie, Florida native maintained the lead through three cautions on Lap 25, Lap 48 and Lap 66.

    The field lined up for the restart with seven laps to go, but as soon Francis and the field got to the backstretch, Tony Kanaan went spinning around and flat-spotted his tires creating another caution with six laps to go.

    With the restart at two laps to go, Francis once again was able to get the lead briefly before there was more contact behind him. Santos spun out Tracy on the backstretch while Indy 500 winner Castroneves retaliated against Scott Speed by spinning Speed around after Speed had gotten into Castroneves one lap earlier.

    For the final time of the night, Francis had to hit his marks as he had racing veteran and 2000 NASCAR Cup Series Champion Bobby Labonte right beside him on the restart. Fortunately, Francis kept Labonte on the back bumper of his car and went on to claim the victory after numerous restarts.

    “All night, my car was really good,” Labonte said. “I got a little too tight at the end, and then Scott and Ernie got together and I was having to decide whether to go high or go low. I thought they were going to wreck, and then I was three-wide. Scott was sideways, somewhere, and we might have touched, and I got by him. We ran well from there. He was always dogging me off the bottom of (turn) four and he always seemed to be right there on my left rear. And then, that last green-white-checkered when it was just me and Ernie, my car was just too tight and I didn’t want to get into him too hard – just needed to keep it together and bring it home.”

    Speed was battling hard with Castroneves late in the going when he got turned around during the last yellow. Despite being turned, Speed rebounded to finish third on the podium.

    “Man, we had such a good battle, me and Francis,” said Speed, who won the first heat race. “We were definitely the best two cars and we were playing cat-and-mouse with our tires, saving them. And then, with 10 to go, it was ‘game on.’ We were both going to charge and we had such an awesome side-by-side race. I just got a little bit too loose underneath him with a couple laps to go and fell back, lost a couple of spots. But it was a great race. I had so much fun.

    “We came out of turn four and I got into Helio (Castroneves) a little bit. I didn’t do it on purpose. I’m having a good time here regardless of where I finish. But I’m happy for a guy like Ernie because for a kid like that, we’ve all had our careers in motor racing, but stuff like this can help him establish himself and that’s the big picture here.”

    The SRX victory was big enough for Francis as it caught the attention of series sponsor Marcus Lemonis, who hinted at an opportunity for Francis in a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series ride if Francis is interested.

    Francis will now make the five-hour drive back to Road America for the Trans Am TA2 event at 8 a.m. CT.

    Labonte, Speed, Marco Andretti and Santos rounded out the top five.

    Official Results following the SRX Racing Series event at Lucas Oil Raceway:

    1. Ernie Francis Jr
    2. Bobby Labonte
    3. Scott Speed
    4. Marco Andretti
    5. Bobby Santos III
    6. Michael Waltrip
    7. Tony Stewart
    8. Paul Tracy
    9. Helio Castroneves
    10. Tony Kanaan
    11. Willy T. Ribbs
    12. Bill Elliott

    Championship Points Standings

    1.     Tony Stewart (160 points)

    2.     Ernie Francis Jr. (130 points, -30)

    3.     Helio Castroneves (120 points, -40)

    4.     Bobby Labonte (115 points, -45)

    5.     Marco Andretti (111 points, -49)

    6.     Michael Waltrip (86 points, -74)

    7.     Paul Tracy (83 points, -77)

    8.     Tony Kanaan (65 points, -95)

    9.     Bill Elliott (52 points, -108)

    10.   Willy T. Ribbs (45 points, -115)

    Up Next: The Superstar Racing Experience will continue their summer stretch by visiting Slinger Speedway Saturday night, July 17, live on CBS.

  • Chandler Smith drives to Victory Lane after a dominating performance

    Chandler Smith drives to Victory Lane after a dominating performance

    Under a hot steamy day in the Indianapolis region, Lucas Oil Raceway hosted the fifth race of the 2020 ARCA Menards Series season. With a limited capacity of spectators on site to watch drivers take on the famed race track, fans watched Chandler Smith, the Talking Rock, Georgia native go back to back at Lucas Oil Raceway with a dominating victory.

    Smith started on the pole but didn’t really take the lead until 39 laps in as he beat and banged with Joe Gibbs Racing driver Ty Gibbs. Eventually, Smith never looked back and scored his second victory at Lucas Oil Raceway.

    “Man, I was just running for all of us, to be honest,” Smith said about the victory when Sam Mayer closed in late to MAV TV. “It’s a hot night. This is my second or third ARCA race of the year. I feel like, I’m not in the best shape I need to be. Hats off to my JBL guys, who recovered from practice earlier, I’m proud of these guys. Thanks to General Tire for holding up on these tires, they’re really good. I’m just glad to be finally back in victory lane.”

    Two halfway breaks on Lap 70 and Lap 140 made up the Calypso Lemonade 200.

    Ty Gibbs led early on through the first 39 laps, but Smith sat back in the top three and idled to make the right move, at the right time. Smith leaned on the Gibbs car and took the top spot on Lap 39. From there, he kept the pace and managed the lead. He led the field to the first race break on Lap 70. Taylor Gray, who was making his ARCA debut, impressed early by running in the top five.

    As the five-minute clock began for teams to work on the cars, Smith’s car could not refire on the first go. The Venturini Motorsports team had to then push start the No. 20 Toyota to get it going again. Though, there was an actual fire behind the dash. Despite the problem, the issue did not appear to affect Smith once the event restarted on lap 74.

    Another team faced an issue and that was the No. 22 Chad Bryant Racing crew. Derek Griffith was penalized for having too many men over the wall.

    Once the green flag flew again, Taylor Gray was once again being aggressive and trying to make his name known. Sam Mayer in the No. 21 GMS Racing entry accidentally made contact with Gray off Turn 4, which sent Gray sideways on the frontstretch. Impressively, the North Carolina native saved his car from any major damage and kept on going in the top five.

    While Gray was able to save his car, Gibbs had to come down pit road on Lap 88 for a potential electrical issue, which took him out of a second-place running position. The electrical issue was later diagnosed as an alternator problem. This relegated Gibbs to a 15th place finishing position and he was unable to finish the race.

    A few moments later on Lap 127, Gray pushed the DGR-Crosley car to its limits and spun in Turn 2 after battling Michael Self. With the yellow, this set up a five-lap dash to the final race break on Lap 140. Smith also led at that break as well. Mayer, Deegan, Self, Griffith, Thad Moffitt, Gray, Bret Holmes, Drew Dollar, and Mike McLaughlin were the top 10 at lap 140.

    The restart came on Lap 144, but there was really no one who could challenge him throughout the long green-flag run until 15 to go. Mayer started to reel in the No. 20 for the race lead. In fact, he caught Smith and was side by side with him for a few laps. However, the Wisconsin native could have pushed too early, as Mayer started to slip back and Smith improved his lead once again.

    Ultimately, Smith brought home his second ARCA victory of 2020, and the ninth of his career.

    “Just running laps,” Smith told MAV TV. “Honestly, it was just like practice laps, logging laps.”

    Smith led 162 of the scheduled 200 laps.

    There were three cautions for 15 laps and two lead changes among two leaders.

    Official Results

    1. Chandler Smith
    2. Sam Mayer
    3. Hailie Deegan
    4. Taylor Gray
    5. Thad Moffitt
    6. Max McLaughlin
    7. Bret Holmes, 1 lap down
    8. Michael Self, 2 laps down
    9. Howie DiSavino III, 3 laps down
    10. Kyle Sieg, 4 laps down
    11. Brian Finney, 10 laps down
    12. Derek Griffith, 12 laps down
    13. Justin S. Carroll, 14 laps down
    14. Drew Dollar, 15 laps down
    15. Ty Gibbs, OUT, Engine
    16. Ryan Huff, OUT, Drive Shaft
    17. Brad Smith, OUT, Brakes
    18. Dick Doheny, OUT, Brakes
    19. Mike Basham, OUT, Overheating
    20. Tim Richmond, Did Not Start, Electrical

    Up Next: The ARCA Menards Series heads to Kentucky Speedway on Saturday, July 11.

  • Chandler Smith makes late race pass to win rain-shortened race at Lucas Oil Raceway

    Chandler Smith makes late race pass to win rain-shortened race at Lucas Oil Raceway

    With a late-race pass for the lead, rookie sensation Chandler Smith took home the ARCA Menards Series win at Lucas Oil Raceway after the rain started falling on Lap 162. The field made a few more pace laps before coming down pit road on Lap 168. After waiting a few more moments, ARCA Menards Series officials had no other choice than to call the race early, giving Smith the win.

    “It was meant to be,” Smith said as he celebrated in victory lane. “We couldn’t have timed that pass out any better than we did.”

    It wasn’t all about Chandler Smith though. Another rookie, Ty Gibbs, was back for his 11th and final race of the season. It was also a day past Gibbs 17th birthday and he sat the No. 18 Monster Energy Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota on the pole for the second time in his ARCA career.

    With showers in the area, the race was moved up prior to its original starting time in hopes of beating the rain to complete the 200 lap race.

    As soon as the race began, Gibbs took off and was the dominant car early on. In fact, he led every lap and held the lead despite a few cautions that slowed the pace until Gibbs became the caution. On Lap 142, the No. 77 of Joe Graf Jr. made contact with Ty Gibbs, sending him up the wall and ending his night early.

    “I don’t even know who that guy is or what happened out there,” Gibbs said. “We had a really great car. I am pretty bummed. Most of all I am sorry for my guys, the deserved a win here tonight.”

    When the race went back green on Lap 151, Christian Eckes, who is chasing the championship, made a dive bomb move to take the lead. Eckes led until Lap 159, where his other teammate Smith got side-by-side with him and took the lead. Just as Smith took the lead, the sky started to open up with rain sprinkles falling from the sky.

    The yellow eventually came out due to rain on Lap 162. Just a few laps later, the cars came down pit road to sit under a red flag before officials called the race early due to heavy rains, leaving Chandler Smith to earn his fifth win of the 2019 season.

    The race was slowed four times to yellow. The first caution flew on Lap 53 for the No. 5 of Bobby Gerhart, who went spinning around on the backstretch. The second caution came out on Lap 98 for the No. 11 of Dick Doheny who crashed in Turn 2. A third caution came on Lap 145 for the Ty Gibbs and Joe Graf Jr. accident. The final caution was seen on Lap 162 for rain before the race was called.

    By finishing second, Eckes wound up winning the Short Track Championship and is heading to the season finale at Kansas with a 20 plus point lead advantage over his teammate Michael Self.

    “We’re obviously disappointed with second,” Eckes said, “but it’s our sixth top-two finish in a row. We really have things turned around after a tough stretch in the summer. We’d have liked to have had that caution for rain a few laps earlier though.”

    There were four cautions for 25 laps and three lead changes among four drivers.

    Official Results

    1. Chandler Smith
    2. Christian Eckes
    3. Sam Mayer
    4. Corey Heim
    5. Hailie Deegan
    6. Michael Self
    7. Travis Braden
    8. Bret Holmes
    9. Carson Hocevar
    10. Joe Graf Jr.
    11. Bobby Gerhart, two laps down
    12. Tommy Vigh Jr., nine laps down
    13. Mike Basham, 10 laps down
    14. Scott Melton, 10 laps down
    15. Ty Gibbs, OUT, Accident
    16. Howie DiSavino III, OUT, Electrical
    17. Tim Richmond, OUT, Brakes
    18. Dick Doheny, OUT, Accident
    19. Brad Smith, OUT, Clutch
    20. Eric Caudell, OUT, Radiator
    21. Darrell Basham, OUT
    22. Benjamin Peterson, DNS

    Up Next: The ARCA Menards Series now heads to Kansas Speedway in two weeks time for their championship season finale race on Friday night Oct 18 live on Fox Sports 2.

  • ARCA Menards Series Preview- Lucas Oil Raceway

    ARCA Menards Series Preview- Lucas Oil Raceway

    With just two races remaining, the ARCA Menards Series drivers are back on track this weekend for race No. 19 of the 2019 season at Lucas Oil Raceway. After this weekend, there is just be one race left to decide the 2019 ARCA Menards Series champion.

    At this point, it will be decided between the two Venturini Motorsports drivers, Christian Eckes and Michael Self. This weekend, the two drivers and the other series drivers look to tackle the famous short track in Indianapolis.

    Speaking of Venturini Motorsports, they have been the team to beat all season long winning most of the races, leaving everyone in the dust, and they plan to do the same again on Saturday night. The Venturini’s will bring four cars to the track driven by Self, Eckes, Hailie Deegan and Chandler Smith.

    Beginning with the series championship points leader Michael Self, the Utah native has two starts at LOR with a best finish of second in his first outing two years ago. However in last year’s race, Self finished two laps down in 11th. With two races left until the championship, Self notes that Lucas Oil isn’t one of his greatest tracks.

    “Lucas Oil has been a bit difficult for me. I’ve raced there twice and it’s been a little hit or miss. In ‘17 I about had the race won but got beat late in the race by someone who came in and took tires. Last year we had a ton of issues that unfortunately ended our night early so I guess there’s a little bit of limited base knowledge when It comes to this track. On the other hand, Kansas has always been one of my favorite tracks. I’ve won at Kansas. I love going to any intermediate track in general. My confidence is high because I’ve had success there in the past,” added Self.

    His teammate Eckes, sits second and still has a shot, but he will have some work to do if he wants to win the championship in a couple of weeks.

    “I’ve got a huge amount of respect for Michael and all the guys on that team,” said Eckes. It’s going to be a lot of fun racing against each other the final two races. I feel like I’ve been in ARCA so long and this is the first time I’ve been able to compete for a championship. It would be very cool to win a championship in my first full-time season for everyone at Toyota Racing, JBL Audio and Venturini Motorsports. Venturini Motorsports has had such a storied history. I would love to add my name alongside past series champions racing for this team.”

    “I’m proud of what we’ve been able to accomplish so far but we still have a lot of work to do. Lucas Oil falls into one of our strengths for sure. We dominated the race last year and led a bunch a laps to get the win, looking forward to going back. Kansas might be a little bit of a weakness but at the same time our mile and half program really stepped up at Pocono and we were able to win. We’ll have to see. I’m feeling good about our chances.”

    While two of the Venturini Motorsports drivers are fighting for the championship, one driver will try to win the race for herself and that’s Hailie Deegan. Deegan will be making her first Lucas Oil Raceway start this Saturday night.

    “There’s a lot of good cars at the top of the field in the series including three of my Venturini Motorsports teammates. I’ve got a lot of confidence right now. Last week we had a really good test. Lucas Oil (Raceway) reminds me of tracks like Evergreen and Irwindale out west, kinda gives me a good baseline going into this weekend’s race. There’s no reason we can’t expect to run top-five.”

    Hoping to put his name back in the spotlight after making some positive news earlier this season is rookie sensation Chandler Smith. The young upstart will be making his second LOR start and final start this season.

    “Bitter sweet feeling knowing this is my final ARCA race of the season,” said the 17-year-old Smith. “It’s been a good year. But we’re not done yet. We’ve still got unfinished business and I plan on finishing strong. I realize and respect that the focus is on my teammates (Self and Eckes) going into Indianapolis but this 20 team still has a lot on the line. ”  

    With Venturini Motorsports most certainly the powerhouse team, there’s always one team that is looking to spoil the party and that’s Chad Bryant Racing drivers Joe Graf Jr. and Corey Heim.

    Graf comes into the race weekend with 11 top-10s this season and hopes to add another on Saturday. The Chad Bryant driver has one start that came in last year’s race where he finished 13th, a few laps down. Graf hopes to overcome that this weekend.

    “Lucas Oil isn’t your typical short track. You really need to hustle the car,” added Graf. “It’s a relatively flat surface but tire wear is so important which makes track position crucial. I think we have a good game plan for Saturday, just need to see what happens between the green flag and the checkered flag.”

    Hoping to make a last good impression on Saturday night is Graf’s teammate Corey Heim. The Marietta, Georgia native will be making his last ARCA start of the season and it has been a solid year for the No. 22 driver. Heim has earned seven top fives and 11 top-10 finishes, with a best finish of third (twice) at DuQuoin and Salem. Heim makes his first LOR start Saturday night.

    We’ve had a few good finishes in a row now and I’m excited to carry the momentum into my final ARCA start of the year,” said Heim who is ninth in the championship standings despite running a limited schedule this season. “I feel like we’ve had an up and down year, some bad luck here and there, but I feel like I’ve improved in several ways and hope to showcase that in a huge way on Saturday night. The goal this year was to get better and learn and I feel that I’ve done that this year.”

    “Hopefully, we can end the year in style with another win for the No. 22 Chad Bryant Racing team.” 

    Despite not having any previous start at Lucas Oil Raceway, Heim tested the No. 22 Ford a couple of weeks ago to gain some experience.

    While it is just another track for Venturini Motorsports and Chad Bryant Racing, it’s a home game for the family owned Travis Braden No. 27 machine. It also marks a great moment a few years back when Braden took home the victory.

    “Having a home track race is really a foreign concept to me and I have had a lot of fun being able to call Lucas Oil Raceway my home track for the past few years,” Braden said. “RFMS Racing’s shop is just a few minutes from the track. Growing up in West Virginia, I was used to at least a two-hour drive to even the nearest track typically much further. While the short drive is extremely convenient, probably my favorite part about this home track race is that I get to race in front of a lot of my peers from my daily life here in Indiana. That’s something I’ve never experienced before, and it’s adrenaline-filling. I now know why they call it the home-field advantage.”

    Another family owned team looking to make headlines is Bret Holmes and the No. 23 machine. Holmes brings in two starts with finishes of sixth and seventh but will be making his first start in over two years.

    “Lucas Oil Raceway is a tough track. You’re running a lot harder and faster there than you are at a track like Salem Speedway. The corners are so flat, you almost have to talk yourself out of lifting going into the corner. It’s your first instinct when it’s that flat to lift. I think this weekend will be a solid race for us. This team has really improved our short-track program over the course of the season. It’s going to be hard racing with it being the second-to-last-race of the season and a short track. The fans will enjoy it for sure.”

    With it being a home game for Braden and his No 27 team, it will be a busy weekend for Sam Mayer and the GMS Racing team. Mayer will first head to Dover on Friday afternoon to compete in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East season finale with hopes to win the championship. Then he will get on a plane that night and fly to Indy for Saturday’s race at Lucas Oil.

    “We have had so much success this year but always came short from a win in the ARCA Menards Series,” Mayer said. “I hope that the momentum we have now, and hopefully after Dover that can rocket us into victory lane Saturday. Mardy (Lindley, crew chief) and I have been working really hard to get better and better and we both are confident in what we will bring to the racetrack to close out our ARCA season.”

    Mayer has just one start but did a test run a few weeks back at the track.

    “Coming back to a place I’ve been to always helps me as a driver,” Mayer said. “I don’t have to go through an entire learning curve at the track again. The team and I tested at Lucas Oil Raceway a few weeks ago and had a really solid Chevy Accessories Chevrolet. I feel like we have an amazing shot to go get a win.”

    Despite having no starts at Lucas Oil, Ty Gibbs hopes to end on a high note in the 2019 ARCA season after being solidly strong earlier this season scoring wins at Gateway and Salem.

    “It was really cool to get the win at Gateway. You work so hard to get a win and I’ve finished second so many times this year, to finally break through and get the win felt really good,” Gibbs said. “That last-lap pass for the win was awesome and our Camry was so good from the start of the weekend. I feel like we had the fastest car from when we unloaded. We actually blew up in practice and had to start from the back in the race and came through the field for the win. To be able to do that just shows how strong our team is.”

    Being back in the ARCA field this weekend is Chesterfield, Virginia native Howie DiSavino. DiSavino is making his first start in the No. 32 Chevy since his first career ARCA race at Elko back in July, where he finished 10th.

    I’m really looking forward to seeing how the ARCA car goes around the track at LOR because it’s so much heavier and has more horsepower than the pro late model does,” DiSavino said in regards to the upcoming race. “We ran good and were up front all race, and I feel like we should have a good race there in the ARCA car. The biggest challenge will be to save tires and to avoid the wall because the groove is up high next to the wall. I’ve never raced anywhere like this but I’m really looking forward to getting another opportunity to race there with Win-Tron.” 

    Other names looking to be strong at Lucas Oil this weekend are Benjamin Peterson, Darrell Basham, Bobby Gerhart, Eric Caudell, Tommy Vigh Jr., Dick Doheny, Carson Hocevar, Mike Basham, Brad Smith, Scott Melton and Tim Richmond.

    Lucas Oil Raceway has seen various winners in its track history. Names like Ramo Stott, Ralph Latham, Bruce Gould, Marvin Smith, Bob Schacht, Davey Allison, Ty Dillon, Frank Kimmel, Brandon Jones, Travis Braden, Chase Briscoe, Dalton Sargeant and Christian Eckes have all visited victory lane at the famous short track in Indianapolis.

    It will be a busy Saturday for the ARCA Menards Series drivers with it being a one day show. The only practice session takes place at 2 p.m. ET and ends at 3:30 p.m.

    General Tire pole qualifying is slated for 5 p.m. ET with no live TV coverage but can be followed on arcaracing.com.

    The Herr’s Potato Chips 200 will get underway shortly after 8 p.m. ET live on MAVTV.


  • Brad Keselowski Captures Unexpected Win at Lucas Oil Raceway

    Brad Keselowski Captures Unexpected Win at Lucas Oil Raceway

    [media-credit name=”Adam Lovelace” align=”alignright” width=”245″][/media-credit]After starting on the pole and leading 189 laps of the Kroger 200 Nationwide Series race at Lucas Oil Raceway Saturday night, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. could almost taste the win. But with Brad Keselowski in the picture nothing is certain.

    After a green-white-checkered restart, Keselowski wasted no time in overtaking leader Stenhouse Jr. and blasted across the finish line for his second win this season in the Nationwide Series.

    “It’s a very special win being from Michigan,” Keselowski said. “I’ve been coming to this race track for years. I’ve been to victory lane as a team guy and a mechanic but never a driver. It’s so special to win here and win here in a Dodge.”

    The majority of the race was tame with Roush Fenway Racing teammates, Stehnouse Jr. Carl Edwards and Trevor Bayne leading the pack.  Elliot Sadler who started the race in last position and rookie Austin Dillon were also looking strong as the race began winding down.

    The action became more heated towards the end of the race. Things began to go badly for Carl Edwards after a caution on lap 175 for a wreck involving Steve Wallace, Michael Annett and Tim Andrews. Edwards was penalized for exiting too fast off of pit road. He slowly worked his way back towards the front but the penalty cost him a shot at the win.

    Dillon did not pit and restarted the race in first position, followed by Stenhouse Jr., Bayne, Sadler and McDowell. But Dillon didn’t keep the lead long and was quickly passed by Stehnouse Jr. and Bayne advanced to second place.

    But with only twelve laps to go, Bayne suffered a blown engine, bringing out another caution.

    More chaos ensued when Justin Allgaier, who had made his way into the second position, had a brake fire which forced him off the track.

    Because the drivers had already lined up for the restart, the NASCAR rule which states that drivers must stay in their lanes, went into effect.

    This moved Brad Keselowski, who had been behind Allagaier in fourth, up to the second position.

    Keselowski, who had been mid-pack for much of the race, was now in a position to make something happen.

    On the restart, Keselowski quickly made his move, forcing Stenhouse Jr. high and taking the lead.

    The race was under green for only two laps when Elliot Sadler spun out, collecting his teammate Austin Dillon, and ending their hopes for a top five finish.

    Finally, on lap 202, the race was underway again but Keselowski held onto the lead to capture the victory.

    After the race, Stenhouse Jr. was obviously disappointed saying, “It’s frustrating. I’ve been working on my restarts all year, but it got us tonight. Our car was pretty fast, but you couldn’t say it was dominant since we didn’t win the race.”

    However, Keselowski gave Stenhouse Jr. credit for having the car to beat.

    “I had a great short-run car that could give Ricky a run for his money.  If the race was two or three laps longer, I’m sure Ricky would have drove around us.”

    James Buescher finished in second place with Stenhouse Jr., Aric Almirola and Carl Edwards rounding out the top five.

    Stenhouse Jr. leads the points standings in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, followed by Reed Sorenson, Elliot Sadler, Justin Allgaier and Aric Almirola.

  • Travis Pastrana, Danica Patrick and Kimi Raikkonen Face Common NASCAR Choice

    Travis Pastrana, Danica Patrick and Kimi Raikkonen have one thing in common, that of dabbling in a variety of NASCAR Series racing while still maintaining careers in other racing and sports endeavors.

    [media-credit id=62 align=”alignright” width=”221″][/media-credit]Yet at some point, all three of these talents, one from Rally and X Games fame, one from IndyCar Racing, and the other a Formula One champ, must make an important choice. They must decide if they will give their all to focus on making it in the realm of stock car racing.

    Unfortunately, Travis Pastrana had his choice made for him this weekend. Instead of participating in “Pastranathon”, competing in the X Games as well as making his NASCAR Nationwide debut at Lucas Oil Raceway in Indianapolis, Pastrana broke his right foot and ankle while attempting a double ‘TP Roll’ on his motorcycle in X Game competition.

    “I’m disappointed in myself for letting everyone down,” Pastrana said. “I can’t tell you how sorry and how disappointed I am that I messed that trip to Indy up.”

    Because of Pastrana’s injuries, including not only his leg and foot injury as well as an injury to his hand that he sustained in practice, the 27 year old driver’s choice as far as NASCAR competition has been made at least until next year.

    “I have surgery scheduled for Tuesday,” Pastrana said. “I have to get my hand pinned and plated, my right leg pinned and plated, and my right foot pinned and plated. So unfortunately I won’t be up for about two months.”

    “I’m definitely hoping to get back as fast as possible and get as much time in that car as possible and go have some fun,” Pastrana continued. “I look forward to being in NASCAR next year.”

    Pastrana’s team owner, Michael Waltrip, was also disappointed that his driver’s choice was made for him as far as his Nationwide racing debut.

    “Like fans everywhere we were so excited about Travis’ debut,” Waltrip said. “We have a long-term vision with Travis which includes lots of NASCAR.”

    “We can’t wait to get him healed and in our race cars,” Waltrip continued. “We’ve waited a long time for someone like Travis Pastrana. I guess we’ll just have to wait a little bit longer.”

    While Pastrana had his choice made for him regarding NASCAR, IndyCar Racing driver Danica Patrick still has a major choice before her. She must decide soon what her future will be in both or either of these racing series.

    This year, Patrick, while maintaining her IndyCar Racing obligations, has also been racing select Nationwide races under the JR Motorsports banner.

    Rumors have, of course, been rampant about her racing future in 2012. Many have speculated that she will run a full-time Nationwide schedule, as well as a handful of Cup starts.

    Yet even her team owner Dale Earnhardt, Jr. is uncertain as to the choice she will make about competing in stock car racing full-time.

    “I haven’t heard anything,” Dale Junior said. “I think things are looking positive for us to put something together.”

    “I would like for her to run full-time,” Junior continued. “I’m sure she is considering that and I think she would enjoy it.”

    “She seems to really enjoy driving stock cars and racing in the Nationwide Series,” Earnhardt, Jr. said of Patrick. “We just have to see but I haven’t heard anything about it.”

    While Dale Earnhardt, Jr. may be excited about Danica Patrick’s future in NASCAR, one other driver, a Formula 1 champion, has virtually disappeared from the NASCAR scene. After trying his hand at both the Truck and Nationwide Series, Kimi Raikkonen has seemingly not chosen the stock car scene.

    Raikkonen started out both NASCAR runs, including the Truck Series and the Nationwide Series, with high hopes and good feelings.

    “Everybody’s been very nice and very welcome,” the ‘Iceman’ said of his NASCAR foray. “It’s a nice atmosphere, very relaxed.”

    Unfortunately, Raikkonen struggled and finished the Top Gear 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 27th place, several laps down.

    “It was nice in the beginning but it turned out to be really bad,” Raikkonen said. “Once it got difficult, you cannot race and you really try to survive. Up until that point, it was fun.”

    But when asked if the race was fun enough to return to the NASCAR scene, the Finland native said simply, “I don’t know yet.”

    And that seems to sum it up for all three of these drivers. Their NASCAR futures are simply uncertain.

    One final commonality, however, remains for all three of these racing stars in their own rights. Each one, Pastrana, Patrick and Raikkonen, must eventually not only choose to race in the world of stock cars, but in order to be successful, they will also have to choose to make it their first, and potentially, their only priority.

  • ARCA: Max Gresham Tests at Lucas Oil Raceway For Venturini Motorsports

    ARCA: Max Gresham Tests at Lucas Oil Raceway For Venturini Motorsports

    In anticipation for the Ansell Protect Gloves 200 at Lucas Oil Raceway on Thursday July 28th, Max Gresham took some time to test and get a feel for the track.

    [media-credit name=”arcaracing.com” align=”alignright” width=”300″][/media-credit]”We really sucked the first four hours of the test,” Gresham said. “We were horrible. The car wasn’t anywhere I needed it to be. Everyone was working really hard to get it close and we just weren’t getting it.

    “Then (team manager) Billy Venturini and (crew chief) Kevin Caldwell put their heads together and figured out what we needed. Once they got things worked out, the car really came alive. We picked up a full second on old tires. It was great to make some fast times, especially on old tires. I know Billy and the crew will work this piece and get it even better for when we come back for the race. They always do.”

    Gresham, who finished second in the last ARCA start at Michigan International Speedway last month, will be one of the drivers who will participate in the first ARCA race at the 0.686-mile raceway since 1985. It marks the eighth race there in ARCA history and will be televised live on SPEED.

    “It’s going to be a first for everyone,” Gresham said. “I believe it’s going to be an eye-opener for everyone. I think everyone is going to be surprised how different this track is and what it takes to get around it.

    “This is by far one of the most unique short tracks that I have been to. I’ve never been to a short track as flat as this one is and run right up against the wall. That makes it different, an animal all its own. You’ll never find another track like this one anywhere. I’m definitely looking forward to racing here.”

    The next race for the ARCA Series is Saturday July 9th at Berlin Raceway for the Hantz Group 200, where Gresham will be behind the wheel of the No. 25 for Venturini Motorsports. Live timing and scoring coverage for the 10th race of the season will be available through ARCARacing.com beginning at 8:30pm.

    ARCA Racing Series practice begins at 2:30 p.m., and will last for 90 minutes. Menards Pole Qualifying presented by Ansell follows at 5, and the ARCA Racing Series drivers will participate in an autograph session at 6:15, just before the race. ARCARacing.com will feature live timing and scoring coverage of all events.