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The Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) was founded in 1953 by John Marcum and purchased by NASCAR in April 2018.
ARCA serves as an entry-level division for drivers who want to compete in NASCAR's top series (NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series, or Craftsman Truck Series). Alumni include Benny Parsons, Ken Schrader, Kyle Petty, Kyle Busch, Justin Allgaier, Casey Mears, and Sam Hornish, Jr. Series races are held on short tracks, super speedways, dirt tracks and road courses. On some weekends, the ARCA series is a support event for NASCAR. The 2024 ARCA Menard Series begins in February at Daytona International Speedway and ends at Toledo Speedway in October.
Cars in the series are powered by pushrod V8 engines. In 2014, ARCA officials announced a new engine The motor is called the ARCA Ilmor 396. The engines cost $35,000, and a rebuild costs $15,000, which can only be performed by Ilmor. The fuel-injected engine produces approximately 700 horsepower. Competitors may choose the non-Ilmor option. These motors are carbureted and subject to intake and RPM restrictions. A wheelbase of 105 inches may be used except on restrictor plate tracks. A 110-inch wheelbase is acceptable for all race tracks. The cars use composite bodies and are available as a 2014 Chevrolet SS, 2014 Ford Fusion, 2014 Toyota Camry or 2022 Ford Mustang. Round eight of the 2024 ARCA Menard Series was held at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Drivers competed in the Zinsser Smartcoat 150, a forty-two-lap contest around the thirteen-turn 2.258-mile road course.
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Twenty-six ARCA Menard competitors enter the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course's 'Carousel' for round eight of the championship. Pacing the field is the No. 28 Chevrolet Performance-sponsored Chevrolet SS of the pole-sitter, Connor Mosack. Next to Mosack is William Sawalich driving the No. 18 Starkey Sound Gear Toyota Camry. Filling out row two are Brent Crews in a Toyota and Dale Quarterley driving a Chevrolet SS. |
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William Sawalich missed capturing the pole at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course by 0.495 seconds. The driver of the No. 18 Starkey Sound Gear Toyota Camry scored poles at Phoenix and Dover. In the Zinsser Smartcoat 150, Sawalich chased the pole-sitter, Connor Mosack, until the lap-11 restart, when he moved into first place. Sawalich was in second place when Mosack received a penalty for jumping the final restart – this moved him to first place for the victory. |
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The driver of the No. 55 Mobil 1 Toyota Camry, Brent Crews, has extensive stock car experience. However, Crews joined the Trans Am series in 2022 and was an immediate success. At 14, he became the youngest driver to win a Trans Am event. He only made one start before Mid-Ohio and retired at Dover with an electrical issue. Round eight would be an opportunity for some redemption. Crews started third and led twenty-five laps before finishing second. |
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Giovanni Ruggiero competes full-time in the ARCA Menards Series East and part-time in the ARCA Menards Series. In three starts, he had runner-up results at Phoenix and Dover and a third-place finish at Iowa after starting on the pole. At Mid-Ohio, Ruggiero put the No. 20 First Auto Group Toyota Camry seventh on the starting grid. Early in the race, he fell to tenth but began his charge forward and benefitted from Connor Mosack's penalty to finish third. |
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Qualifying fifth at Mid-Ohio was Thomas Annunziata in the No. 44 Franklin Road Apparel Ford Mustang. With three laps to go in the Zinsser Smartcoat 150, Annunziata grabbed first place with an aggressive pass on Connor Mosak at the 'Keyhole.' However, his lead was short-lived as Mosack bumped him going into the 'Esses.' The contact sent Annunziata back to fifth, but he collected a fourth-place finish when Mosack was penalized. |
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Open-wheel veteran Conor Daly made his ARCA debut at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Daly finished tenth in this year's Indianapolis 500. In round eight of the series, he drove the No. 30 Polkadot Ford Mustang for Rette Jones Racing. Daly lined up ninth for the forty-two-lap Zinsser Smartcoat 150. He spent much of the contest racing with former open-wheel driver Marco Andretti. Daly would be classified as having an eighth-place finish. |
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Connor Mosack is another driver with Trans Am experience, which prepared him for Mid-Ohio. Mosack qualified on the pole in the No. 28 Chevrolet Performance Chevrolet SS. On the race's final restart, it was determined that he beat the leader, Brent Crews, to the starting line. As a result, Mosack was given a 30-second drive-through penalty for jumping the restart. This took him out of contention, and he finished thirteenth. |
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Stock car veteran Dale Quarterley built a new car for the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course event. He tested the No. 4 Van Dyk Recycling Solutions Chevrolet SS earlier in the season during an SVRA event at Mid-Ohio. The visit must have paid off, as Quarteley was fourth fastest during the qualifying session. On lap 4 of the race, he passed Brent Crews for third place. Unfortunately, two circuits later, the Chevrolet stopped on course. |
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| FINISH | START | DRIVER | SPONSOR / CAR | LAPS | RETIREMENTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | William Sawalich | Starkey Sound Gear / Toyota Camry | 42 | - |
| 2 | 3 | Brent Crews | Mobil 1 / Toyota Camry | 42 | - |
| 3 | 7 | Giovanni Ruggiero | First Auto Group / Toyota Camry | 42 | - |
| 4 | 5 | Thomas Annunziata | Franklin Road Apparel / Ford Mustang | 42 | - |
| 5 | 6 | Marco Andretti | Group 1001 / Chevrolet SS | 42 | - |
| 6 | 8 | Andres Perez | Max Siegel Inc. / Chevrolet SS | 42 | - |
| 7 | 16 | Toni Breidinger | VMS / Toyota Camry | 42 | - |
| 8 | 9 | Conor Daly | Polkadot / Ford Mustang | 42 | - |
| 9 | 13 | Brad Perez | Sebetka Bail Bonds / Toyota Camry | 42 | - |
| 10 | 12 | Greg Van Alst | CB Fabricating/Top Choice Fence / Ford Fusion | 42 | - |
| 11 | 18 | Christian Rose | West Virgina Department of Tourism / Ford Mustang | 42 | - |
| 12 | 17 | Tim Richmond | Immigration Law Center / Toyota Camry | 42 | - |
| 13 | 1 | Connor Mosack | Chevrolet Performance / Chevrolet SS | 42 | - |
| 14 | 11 | Lavar Scott | Max Siegel Inc. / Chevrolet SS | 41 | - |
| 15 | 19 | Cody Dennison | Timcast.com / Toyota Camry | 41 | - |
| 16 | 15 | Amber Balcaen | Icon / Toyota Camry | 40 | - |
| 17 | 20 | Michael Maples | Don Ray Petroleum LLC / Chevrolet SS | 38 | - |
| 18 | 10 | Kris Wright | FNB Corporation / Toyota Camry | 36 | - |
| 19 | 22 | Alex Clubb | Race Parts Liquidators / Ford Mustang | 26 | - |
| 20 | 21 | Mike Basham | Fast Track Racing / Toyota Camry | 25 | Mechanical |
| 21 | 23 | Nate Moeller | Peterson Motorsports / Ford Fusion | 20 | Mechanical |
| 22 | 14 | Andrew Patterson | Winsupply/SCS Gearbox / Toyota Camry | 16 | Mechanical |
| 23 | 4 | Dale Quarterley | Van Dyk Recycling Solutions / Chevrolet SS | 6 | Mechanical |
| 24 | 25 | Brad Smith | Copraya.com / Ford Mustang | 1 | Mechanical |
| 25 | 26 | Chris Golden | Race Parts Liquidators / Ford Mustang | 0 | Mechanical |
| 26 | 24 | Rob Pellosie | Tooth Acres Dentistry / Chevrolet SS | 0 | Mechanical |
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