After several weeks of short track beating and banging, and some tempers to boot, the ARCA Menards Series opens it up to one of the longest tracks on the circuit, and journies to the center of Ohio for the Zinsser SmartCoat 150 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.
The 13-turn, 2.258-mile road course has only been on the schedule since 2021 but has produced some action-packed racing, including last season’s event, which was partially run in the rain.
Previous winners from the Lexington, Ohio-based course include Ty Gibbs (2021) and Taylor Gray (2022).
Rippin’ Up the Road Course
Looking ahead to Friday’s 42-lap contest, Jesse Love and the No. 20 Venturini Motorsports team are still sitting atop the ARCA Menards Series point standings. The 18-year-old driver has scored the victory in three of the last four events, including the series’s last event at the short track of Elko Speedway.
Last season, the Menlo Park, California native finished inside the top five at Mid-Ohio for Venturini Motorsports, driving the No. 20 Toyota Camry, just like he will in Friday’s race.
Joining Love from the Venturini Motorsports stable is the most recent winner in the ARCA Menards Series West, Sean Hingorani, NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series regular Dean Thompson, and Conner Jones.
Making his third straight main ARCA Menards Series start, and his fourth of the 2023 season, is Berlin winner William Sawalich. The ARCA East Series points leader has been caught up in a lot of the on-track beating and banging the past few weeks with the Venturini camp. So far, this 16-year-old has run two road course races in the West Series, with a fourth at Portland and a fifth at Sonoma.
Some of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series regulars are also hopping down to get some extra seat time this weekend. Tyler Ankrum and Hattori Racing will bring the No. 61 LIUNA Toyota Camry down to the track. This is Ankrum’s first ARCA start since 2021 at Watkins Glen. Joining him is his fellow Truck Series competitor Dean Thompson. The Anaheim, CA native has two starts in ARCA this season with two top-fives. He will pilot the No. 55 for Venturini Motorsports.
Returning to the track for his second time this season is Zach Herrin. He and FastTrack Racing are joining forces again. This time, Lambda Legal, a renowned organization advocating for LGBTQ+ rights, and Rebuy Engine are teaming up to be onboard the no. 11 Toyota Camry. This is the third career ARCA platform start for the Glendale, CA driver.
Other notable drivers include Andres Perez de Lara and Jack Wood for Rev Racing. ARCA West Series regular Todd Souza, Frankie Muniz who sits second in ARCA points, Ton Cosentino, Jon Garrett, and Tim Richmond among others.
Entry List – 2023 Zinsser SmartCoat 150 at Mid-Ohio
| Entry | Car # | Driver | Team | Crew Chief |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | AJ Moyer | Wayne Peterson Racing River's Edge Cottages Toyota | Wayne Peterson |
| 2 | 03 | Casey Carden | Clubb Racing, Inc. Bill's Speed Shop Ford | Alex Clubb |
| 3 | 06 | Tim Richmond | Wayne Peterson Racing Circle Track Wearhouse Toyota | Dan Lorz |
| 4 | 2 | Andres Perez de Lara | Rev Racing Max Siegel Inc. Chevrolet | Jamie Jones |
| 5 | 4 | Dale Quarterley | 1/4-Ley Racing Van Dyk Recycling Chevrolet | Alex Quarterley |
| 6 | 6 | Jack Wood | Rev Racing Velocity Racing Chevrolet | Steve Plattenberger |
| 7 | 10 | Tim Monroe | Fast Track Racing Universal Technical Institute Toyota | Tim Monroe |
| 8 | 11 | Zach Herrin | Fast Track Racing Lambda Legal Toyota | Todd Parrott |
| 9 | 12 | TBA | Fast Track Racing Ford | Dick Doheny |
| 10 | 13 | Todd Souza | Central Coast Racing Central Coast Cabinets Ford | Michael Munoz |
| 11 | 15 | Sean Hingorani | Venturini Motorsports GEARWRENCH Toyota | Monon Rahman |
| 12 | 18 | William Sawalich | Joe Gibbs Racing Starkey / SoundGear Toyota | Matt Ross |
| 13 | 20 | Jesse Love | Venturini Motorsports JBL Toyota | Shannon Rursch |
| 14 | 25 | Conner Jones | Venturini Motorsports Jones Utilities Toyota | Kevin Reed, Jr. |
| 15 | 30 | Frankie Muniz | Rette Jones Racing Ford | Mark Rette |
| 16 | 32 | Christian Rose | AM Racing West Virginia Department of Tourism Ford | Ryan London |
| 17 | 45 | Tony Cosentino | Tamayo-Cosentino Racing Ford | Tony Cosentino |
| 18 | 48 | Brad Smith | Brad Smith Racing Copraya Ford | Jeff Smith |
| 19 | 55 | Dean Thompson | Venturini Motorsports Thompson Pipe Group Toyota | Cayden Lapcevich |
| 20 | 61 | Tyler Ankrum | Hattori Racing Enterprises LiUNA! Toyota | Jon Leonard |
| 21 | 66 | Jon Garrett | Veer Motorsports Venture Foods Stores Chevrolet | Mike Sroufe |
| 22 | 75 | Bob Schacht | Bob Schacht Racing Engineered Components Chevrolet | Matt Wolper |
You can catch the race live on Fox Sports 1. Coverage begins on Friday, July 7th at 6 P.M. EST.
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