ARCA | The MotorSportsNews.Net(work)

Gus Dean to Drive Truck for Hill Motorsports at Daytona’s NextEra Energy Resources 250

by MikeFebruary 11, 2021

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.: Two-time ARCA Menards Series winner Gus Dean (@gusdean) returns with Hill Motorsports to open the 2021 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) season piloting the team’s No. 56 Chevrolet Silverado in Friday night’s NextEra Energy Resources 250 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway. (more…)

Dreams Come True for ARCA Menards Series Driver Greg Van Alst at Daytona

by MikeFebruary 11, 2021

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.: Chuck Norris once said, “Dreams do come true, if you want them bad enough.”

For ARCA Menards Series driver Greg Van Alst that quote hits home as the 2019 ARCA CRA champion will return to the series for the first time since 2002 to compete in Saturday afternoon’s Lucas Oil 200 driven by General Tire at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway. (more…)

ARCA Menards Rewind: What We Learned At New Smyrna

by MikeFebruary 11, 2021

Monday night’s ARCA Menards Series East season-opening Jeep Beach 175 at Florida’s New Smyrna Speedway was all about rookie winner Max Guiérrez. And with good reason given how he pulled off the victory.

More important than a viral highlight of a three-wide finish, though, is how the 18-year-old from Mexico City, Mexico, established himself as a contender in the East Series this season. (more…)

Young’s Motorsports Finalizes Organizational Changes for 2021 Truck Series Season

by MikeFebruary 9, 2021

MOORESVILLE, N.C.: With the start of the 2021 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) season days away, Young’s Motorsports has announced the completion of their organizational changes ahead of Friday’s season-opener at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway on Feb. 12, 2021.

Young’s Motorsports has tapped Eddie Troconis to serve as crew chief of the team’s flagship No. 02 Chevrolet Silverado to be driven this year by Rookie of the Year candidate Kris Wright. (more…)

Howie DiSavino III Brings Confidence Into ARCA Superspeedway Debut

by MikeFebruary 9, 2021

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla: When it comes to superspeedway racing, confidence is always a good thing.

For ARCA Menards Series driver Howie DiSavino III, confidence is on his side ahead of Saturday afternoon’s Lucas Oil 200 driven by General Tire at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway.

Undoubtedly, the 2021 ARCA season opener will be the biggest race of DiSavino’s career, but that does not seem to faze the AM Racing development driver one bit.

“It’s important for me to do well at Daytona this weekend,” said DiSavino. “I really want to give this AM Racing team some momentum.

“Kevin (Cywinski), Jamie (Jones) and everyone on this No. 32 Chevrolet are going to Daytona with the mindset of winning the race and I think we can do that – I just need to do my job and have a little luck along the way.

“I’m incredibly thankful for this opportunity to compete on this big stage,” added DiSavino. “It’s a very humbling moment for me and my family, but once I climb into the car on Saturday, I can’t treat it as the biggest race or biggest chance of my career – I just have to treat it as another race.”

That cool, calm demeanor could be the winning ticket for DiSavino aboard Kevin Cywinski’s No. 32 Bud’s Heating & Air Conditioning | Front Runner Boats Chevrolet. Of course, AM Racing (formerly WinTron Racing) is no stranger to Daytona’s victory circle.

Cywinski alongside crew chief Jamie Jones have been fielding the No. 32 Chevrolet for several years around the 2.5-mile superspeedway and while also having fast race cars, when the payday window opened, they always found themselves collected in someone else’s mishap.

DiSavino isn’t thinking about the dreaded “Big One” this weekend, because chances are there will be nothing he can do to prevent being collected. What he can do is act off instinct and the guidance of his spotter, Tyler Monn.

To help prepare DiSavino for his superspeedway debut, the Chesterfield, Va. native participated in the open ARCA Menards Series test at Daytona last month with Jones and Monn by his side.

“I learned a lot at the test,” added DiSavino. “It certainly can be intimidating, but I felt like we made the best of the test for sure. We made adjustments throughout the two days and my comfort level was really at its best on Saturday and I feel like I’ve done my part studying up on the prior races since the test that will all help with the cause and our goal.

As DiSavino prepares for his sixth career ARCA Menards Series race, he knows he doesn’t have to go far outside his circle for advice on how to conquer Daytona.

DiSavino’s manager is former ARCA Daytona winner and former series champion Austin Theriault who captured both crowns during the 2017 season. Theriault has not only been instrumental in mentoring his young driver in the car but out of the seat too.

Former ARCA winner Joey Coulter has also played an important part in coaching Howie, in preparation for the biggest race of his career.

“Having them (Austin and Joey) is going to help me with my learning curve as I continue to climb the ranks. I’m glad they are on my side,” sounded DiSavino.

“Hopefully, our race ends with a strong finish and something to be proud about looking ahead to the rest of 2021.”

Bud’s Heating & Air Conditioning, Front Runner Boats and KEES Vacation will support DiSavino in 2021.

Additional details on DiSavino’s 2021 program are forthcoming.

For more on Howie DiSavino III, please visit howiedisavino.com, like him on Facebook (Howie DiSavino III Racing), follow him on Twitter (@hdisavino) and Instagram (HowieDiSavino).

For more on AM Racing, please visit AMRacingteam.com, like their Facebook page (AM Racing) or follow them on Twitter @AMRacingNASCAR.

The Lucas Oil 200 driven by General Tire (80 laps | 200 miles) is the first of 20 races on the 2021 ARCA Menards Series schedule. Practice begins Fri., Feb. 12 with a one-hour session from 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. Group qualifying is set for race day, Sat., Feb. 13 at 8:30 a.m. The season-opener for the 69^th consecutive ARCA season is set to take the green flag shortly after 1:30 p.m. The event will be televised live on FOX Sports 1 (FS1), while ARCARacing.com will stream live timing and scoring throughout the entire weekend festivities.

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ARCA Menards East Series 2021 Jeep Beach 175 at New Smyrna – Results

by MikeFebruary 9, 2021

Courtesy of ARCA and Racing-Reference.Info, here are the results of the 2021 Jeep Beach 175 from New Smyrna… (more…)

Max Gutiérrez Wins 2021 ARCA Menards Series East Opener at New Smyrna

by MikeFebruary 9, 2021

NEW SMYRNA, Fla: Taking advantage of a second overtime restart at New Smyrna (Fla.) Speedway, 2020 NASCAR Mexico Challenge Series champion Max Gutiérrez stole the victory from Taylor Gray and Sammy Smith with a three-wide pass coming to the checkered flag in Monday night’s Jeep Beach 175. (more…)

Brittney Zamora to Drive for Rette Jones Racing in Daytona ARCA Opener

by MikeFebruary 6, 2021

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.: Officials from Rette Jones Racing (RJR) announced today that female standout Brittney Zamora has been tapped to drive the team’s No. 30 Ford Fusion in Saturday afternoon’s Lucas Oil 200 driven by General Tire ARCA Menards Series season opener from Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway. (more…)

Parker Retzlaff Set for New Smyrna Speedway Return

by MikeFebruary 5, 2021

NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla.: New season, new goals.

Teenage standout Parker Retzlaff heads to New Smyrna (Fla.) Speedway for Monday night’s Jeep Beach 175 not only looking to capitalize on his 2020 ARCA Menards Series East success but hopefully steal the limelight of his fellow competitors with a victory in his seventh career ARCA East start.

Planning to compete for the 2021 ARCA Menards Series East title, Retzlaff, 17, knows the challenges he faces competing against some of the bigger teams, but as his Cook Finley Racing team has proven time and time again, they are not to be taken lightly.

“I’m just ready to get back to the race track,” said Retzlaff who finished fourth in the championship standings last season. “I felt like we accomplished a lot in just six races. We finished inside the top-10 in five of them, but we know we need to be better and I think we’ve made some tweaks that will help us achieve our goals this year.”

During the off-season, Cook and his team were able to update their race equipment, while also being able to focus on some of the smaller team elements which can prove to be the difference in finishing first or sixth in ARCA Menards Series East competition.

Aside from the competition standpoint of the organization, Retzlaff has been working hard off the track – bring marketing partners front and center to help make the 2021 season a reality.

Ponsse, which manufactures and markets a range of forestry vehicles and machinery such as forwarders and harvesters will return as the primary partner of Retzlaff’s No. 42 Toyota this season, while Iron Horse Loggers, Eco-Tracks, Paul G. Senft & Sons Trenching LLC, Strike Force Energy, MMI, Sunwest Construction, Zamp, Absolute Realtors and HDFive | Horvath Design will all join as associate partners for the 150-lap race on Feb. 8.

“I feel very fortunate to be able to have a stack of companies that believe in me and our Cook Finley Racing team,” added Retzlaff. “While I’m super thankful to have the continued support of Ponsse, Iron Horse Loggers and Eco-Tracks, I’m pumped to welcome Paul G. Senft & Sons Trenching, Strike Force Energy and Zamp as new partners this year and look forward to building a relationship with them.”

As for New Smyrna, the Rhinelander, Wisc. native returns to the Central Florida-short track eyeing to better his eighth-place finish last February, his ARCA Menards Series East debut.

“I learned a lot last year, especially how to maneuver in traffic at New Smyrna,” recalled Retzlaff.

“It really is a rhythm type race track. And the corners are completely different. You attack Turns 1 and 2 differently than you would (Turns) 3 and 4, but that’s where the fun element comes into place.

“We need to use practice to our advantage and have a better starting spot than we did last year. I felt like we may have burned up our equipment a little racing through the field and getting into the top-10. It’s a quick race, so no time for errors or making that wrong move that could potentially set you back or unfortunately end your night.

“Hopefully, we can have a strong night and then focus on Five Flags Speedway later this month.”

Before turning complete attention to ARCA Menards East competition, Retzlaff has had a busy offseason.

Last month, he participated in the open ARCA Menards Series test at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway driving for ARCA champion Andy Hillenburg.

He was hand-selected for the Road to Daytona program by ARCA officials after his successful ARCA East campaign in 2020. He was one of 56 drivers to turn a lap at the historic 2.5-mile superspeedway in the No. 10 Fast Track Racing prepared entry.

Additionally, Retzlaff has stayed busy with iRacing, where he continues to rack up victories and currently ranked inside the top-10 as one of the winningest iRacing drivers in the world. To date, he tallies over 1,509 victories and more than 50,000 laps led since 2016.

The Jeep Beach 175 (175 laps | 84 miles) is the first of eight races on the 2021 ARCA Menards Series East schedule. Practice begins for the one-day show on Monday, February 8 from 3:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. Group qualifying is set for later in the day at 6:00 p.m. The event will take the green flag just after 7:30 p.m. with live television coverage on TrackPass on NBC Sports Gold.

For more on Parker Retzlaff, please visit parkerretzlaff.com, like him on Facebook (Parker Retzlaff Racing), Instagram (parkerRetzlaff) and follow him on Twitter (@Parker79p).

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NASCAR Mexico Champion Max Gutiérrez Joins Rette Jones Racing for 2021 ARCA East Season

by MikeFebruary 5, 2021

MOORESVILLE, N.C.: Officials from Rette Jones Racing (RJR) announced today that teenage standout Max Gutiérrez has joined the organization for the full 2021 ARCA Menards Series East season beginning with Monday night’s Jeep Beach 175 at New Smyrna (Fla.) Speedway.

Gutiérrez, 18, will pilot Rette Jones Racing’s flagship No. 30 Ford Fusion with support from TOUGHBUILT, Telcel, TekNekk and Avaya.

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