It was a masterclass once again in the dirt, this time though it was Brent Crews’ turn to show up and show off as he led every lap en route to winning the Southern Illinois 100 at the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds marking his second career win in the ARCA Menards Series, his first of the 2024 season after having to surviving a late-race restart after an accident.
“I knew we were gonna be alright…I’ve been sick all week and had to race on Friday night too. It’s been a struggle but just want to thank the good Lord above for keeping me safe throughout this week…Y’all got to see how fast (the 20 car) was,” Crews said post-race.
The Oklahoma City, OK native also gets the first win for Venturini Motorsports since Jake Finch won in the No. 20 back at the third race of the year at Talladega Superspeedway. He also is the third driver this season to lead every single lap in a race in the 2024 season along with VMS teammate Jake Finch and the second-place finisher William Sawalich.
“A good spotter I think is crucial. Just being able to tell me where everybody is at and coach me through lap time and stuff. Growing up on the dirt path was a big part of it as well,” he added.
Sawalich was looking to get the famed dirt double after winning at Springfield but came up just short this evening.
Dirt Dominance, Sawalich Leads Wire To Wire For The Win At Springfield
Driver points leader Andres Perez came home in third, with Kris Wright and Kelly Kovoski rounding out the rest of the top five.
After being part of history in the last dirt race at Springfield, Taylor Reimer managed a quiet seventh place on the night, along with Toni Breidinger coming home ninth.
Several drivers had tough breaks throughout the night. In their limited starts, Will Kimmel and the team got hit with overheating issues knocking them out of the race.
Up next, the ARCA Menards Series travels to New York and the twists and turns of Watkins Glen on September 13th.
Results from the Southern Illinois 100
| Pos | No. | Name | Sponsor | Laps | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 20 | Brent Crews * | JBL Toyota | 102 | |
| 2 | 18 | William Sawalich * | Starkey/Sound Gear Toyota | 102 | 0.177 |
| 3 | 2 | Andres Perez | Max Siegel Inc Chevrolet | 102 | 0.755 |
| 4 | 15 | Kris Wright | FNB Corportation Toyota | 102 | 1.968 |
| 5 | 16 | Kelly Kovski | Brandt/Schluckebier Farms Chevrolet | 102 | 2.219 |
| 6 | 6 | Lavar Scott * | Max Siegel Inc Chevrolet | 102 | 2.885 |
| 7 | 55 | Taylor Reimer * | Buzzballz Toyota | 102 | 8.384 |
| 8 | 32 | Christian Rose | West Virginia Department of Tourism Ford | 101 | 1 Lap |
| 9 | 25 | Toni Breidinger | SunocoToyota | 100 | 2 Laps |
| 10 | 12 | Tim Monroe | Riverside Chevy/Illinios Trucking Assoc. Chevrolet | 100 | 2 Laps |
| 11 | 22 | Amber Balcaen | Icon Toyota | 100 | 2 Laps |
| 12 | 11 | Cody Dennison * | Timcast.com Toyota | 96 | 6 Laps |
| 13 | 31 | Brayton Laster * | AC/Cages.com/Goat Locker Racing Chevrolet | 95 | 7 Laps |
| 14 | 99 | Michael Maples * | Don Ray Petroleum LLC/Maples Motorsports Chevrolet | 80 | 22 Laps |
| 15 | 03 | Alex Clubb | Race Parts Liquidators Ford | 77 | 25 Laps |
| 16 | 06 | Austin Vaughan * | Peterson Motorsports Toyota | 46 | 56 Laps |
| 17 | 8 | Sean Corr | Necso Bus Sales Chevrolet | 38 | 64 Laps |
| 18 | 69 | Will Kimmel | Kimmel Racing Ford | 31 | 71 Laps |
| 19 | 4 | Dale Quarterley | Van Dyk Recycling/Motul Chevrolet | 25 | 77 Laps |
| 20 | 0 | Nate Moeller * | Peterson Motorsports Ford | 10 | 92 Laps |
| 21 | 10 | Daylan Hairston * | Memory of Ron Hutcherson Ford | 5 | 97 Laps |
| 22 | 48 | Brad Smith | Copraya.com Ford | 4 | 98 Laps |
| 23 | 86 | Brian Clubb * | Race Parts Liquidators Ford | 3 | 99 Laps |
