After dodging some raindrops earlier in the day, it was the hot shoe of Connor Zilisch who managed to come home with the sunshine and the trophy in the Henry Ford Health 200 at Michigan International Speedway. In his five ARCA Menards Series starts, his worth finish is second. This win also marks four wins in a row for the 2024 ARCA Menards Series season.
“I’m just so grateful for having so many people surrounding me. Silver Hare Racing on the car they’ve done so much for me in my career. We’ve been firing on all cylinders lately and it just means so much to win here,” he said post-race.
Still batting 1.000 ???? @ConnorZilisch 4/4 in his ARCA Menards Series starts in 2024! ? pic.twitter.com/IONM33CRhw
— ARCA Menards Series (@ARCA_Racing) August 16, 2024
The Mooresville NC native led 39 laps en route to his win. His first on a ‘big track’ over a mile It didn’t come easy as the No. 2 machine of Andres Perez gave him a run towards the end.
“I was just relying on Derek Kneeland on top. He’s the man. We’re undefeated this year. It means a lot to have him up there…It’s been one hell of a year for sure,” Zilisch added.
Perez, still searching for that first win in the ARCA platform, came home second in another tough runner-up.
“Obviously it’s frustrating, finishing second. We’ve been so close this year. It’s just how the race went,” the Mexico City native said.
“The aero blocking is big. We just tried to make our way to the front. We were really fast there. We could have got him, but there was just never a point where he made a mistake,” he added. Perez still leads the driver’s championship standings. He now leads by 59 points.
#ARCA: @AndresPLG2 continues to hold a commanding lead in ARCA Menards Series points, holding a 59-point advantage over second-place Lavar Scott.
Greg Van Alst (-71), Kris Wright (-76), and Christian Rose (-99) round out the top five. pic.twitter.com/cVpAt40icw
— Joseph Srigley (@joe_srigley) August 16, 2024
Tanner Gray led the most laps, but contact late with the wall off turn two relegated him to third. Venturini Motorsports drivers Jake Finch and Kris Wright rounded out the top five.
Solid runs came for Jason Kitzmiller coming home seventh and Toni Breidinger managed eighth after starting at the field’s tail due to an engine change.
Disappointment came for second place in points and fellow Rev Racing driver Lavar Scott. A cut tire early in the race cost him big time and left him with a 15th-place finish.
Up next, the ARCA Menards Series hits the road for the fair, as they are set to run Sunday at the Illinois State Fairgrounds at 2 PM ET.
Official Results for the Henry Ford Health 200
| Fin | St | # | Driver | Team | Laps | Diff | Status | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | 28 | Connor Zilisch | Pinnacle Racing Group Silver Hare Development Chevrolet | 100 | Running | 48 | |
| 2 | 1 | 2 | Andres Perez | REV Racing Max Siegel, Inc. Chevrolet | 100 | 0.701 | Running | 44 |
| 3 | 4 | 18 | Tanner Gray | Joe Gibbs Racing Place of Hope Toyota | 100 | 1.327 | Running | 43 |
| 4 | 8 | 20 | Jake Finch | Venturini Motorsports Phoenix Construction Toyota | 100 | 11.110 | Running | 40 |
| 5 | 6 | 15 | Kris Wright | Venturini Motorsports FNB Corporation Toyota | 100 | 12.420 | Running | 39 |
| 6 | 7 | 35 | Greg Van Alst | Van Alst Motorsports CB Fabricating Ford | 100 | 18.334 | Running | 38 |
| 7 | 13 | 97 | Jason Kitzmiller | CR7 Motorsports ALL Construction Chevrolet | 100 | 23.128 | Running | 37 |
| 8 | 23 | 25 | Toni Breidinger | Venturini Motorsports Sunoco Toyota | 100 | 31.100 | Running | 36 |
| 9 | 11 | 32 | Christian Rose | AM Racing West Virginia Department of Tourism Ford | 98 | 2 laps | Running | 35 |
| 10 | 10 | 22 | Amber Balcaen | Venturini Motorsports ICON Direct Toyota | 98 | 2 laps | Running | 34 |
| 11 | 16 | 11 | Cody Dennison | Fast Track Racing Timcast.com Toyota | 97 | 3 laps | Running | 33 |
| 12 | 12 | 33 | Frankie Muniz | Reaume Brothers Racing VYPER Ford | 96 | 4 laps | Running | 32 |
| 13 | 19 | 10 | Jayson Alexander | Fast Track Racing Permier Performance Group Toyota | 94 | 6 laps | Running | 31 |
| 14 | 2 | 55 | Gus Dean | Venturini Motorsports Palmetto Grain Brokerage Toyota | 93 | 7 laps | Running | 30 |
| 15 | 9 | 6 | Lavar Scott | REV Racing Max Siegel, Inc. Chevrolet | 89 | 11 laps | Running | 29 |
| 16 | 17 | 12 | Ryan Roulette | Fast Track Racing Bellator Recruiting Academy / VFW Ford | 89 | 11 laps | Running | 28 |
| 17 | 15 | 65 | Jeffrey MacZink | MacZink Racing Syncon / Parkway Services / Innovative Fluids Toyota | 88 | 12 laps | Running | 27 |
| 18 | 24 | 03 | Alex Clubb | Clubb Racing, Inc. Race Parts Liquidators Ford | 85 | 15 laps | Running | 26 |
| 19 | 5 | 73 | Andy Jankowiak | KLAS Motorsports Acacia Energy Toyota | 83 | 17 laps | OUT | 25 |
| 20 | 18 | 99 | Michael Maples | Fast Track Racing Don Ray Petroleum LLC Chevrolet | 71 | 29 laps | OUT | 24 |
| 21 | 20 | 48 | Brad Smith | Smith Brothers Motorsports Copraya.com Ford | 44 | 56 laps | OUT | 23 |
| 22 | 14 | 27 | Tim Richmond | Richmond Motorsports Latino Immigration & Legal Center Toyota | 30 | 70 laps | OUT | 22 |
| 23 | 21 | 31 | Casey Carden | Rise Motorsports Epic Insurance Chevrolet | 6 | 94 laps | OUT | 21 |
| 24 | 22 | 06 | Nate Moeller | Peterson Motorsports Ford | 5 | 95 laps | OUT | 20 |
