(DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - February 20, 2012) - Owensboro, Ky. native Brett Hudson crossed the start/finish line third in Saturday’s Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 at Daytona International Speedway. Unfortunately, a controversial call from the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards officials regulated the Brett Hudson Motorsports team to a 21st-place finish.

The finish put a sour taste in the team’s mouth after what had been a phenomenal performance by the 24-year old which saw him qualify 15^th and with the guidance of his crew chief and superspeedway pro John Hayden calling the shots, Hudson was able to take advantage of the draft and patiently and quietly move himself through the field to find himself sitting eighth in the No.09 Hudson Performance Drivelines Dodge Charger with five laps remaining.

A caution with two laps to go would set-up a green-white-checkered finish which would throw the field into what some described as “controlled chaos.” Hudson, considered a short-track ace by many began setting up his game plan to move into the top-five by the white flag but little did he know that all that would go out the window as he exited turn four.

Before he roared towards turn four though, a shot from a behind sent the No.09 Hudson Performance Drivelines Dodge Charger sideways but Hudson with his great throttle response and quick reflexes was able to regain control of his automobile and race on.

Running seventh, the field thundered out of turn four, both leaders nearly simultaneously ran out of gas forcing drivers to take abrasive maneuvers to avoid a collision but it allowed the Chevrolets of Bobby Gerhart and Drew Charlson to make a bold move to the outside to take the checkered flag first and second. With the other cars behind the leaders slowing, Hudson took his No.09 Hudson Performance Drivelines Dodge Charger to the yellow line passing both Steve Blackburn and Will Kimmel. Shortly after the conclusion of the race, ARCA Racing Series officials informed the team that they would be penalized for the move under the “out of bounds” procedure immediately frustrating the family-owned team.

The team tried to protest the call, but to no avail. Hudson would be place at the tail end of the cars on the lead lap. Two other cars including Nelson Canache, who initially finished right behind Hudson would also be penalized for the same infraction. Upon reviewing video footage of the move, Hudson remains stern that he did not violate the rule.

“I looked at every view, every angle and I will admit that my tires were on the yellow line, but we never were below the yellow line, which is what I thought the rule book stated,” Hudson explained. “This is devastating to our team because we are the little guys trying to make things happen against teams with bigger resources. We don’t have the big bucks as we’re here fighting to get that. It was a quick decision but I thought I was making the right choice to avoid contact and causing a huge wreck like what happened behind me! I didn’t want to plow into them because they were virtually stopping. I just don’t know what to say. It hurts. We had a great racecar. It drafted well and we were right where we wanted to be. It’s going to take a while for this pain to go away.  It’s Daytona for crying out loud.

Aside from what happen, I want to thank everyone who jumped on board and made this race possible. I also have to thank the team for the countless amount of hours they’ve poured into making my second trip to Daytona possible. One day, things will go our way.”

In addition to Hudson Performance Drivelines, D-N-J Auto Parts, Double H Hydraulics, Fischer’s Keystop Trucking & Towing, G&A Trucking, Gene Patient Fabrication (GPF), Miles Racing Fuel and Warricktubing.com served as associate marketing partners in Saturday’s season-opener. 

For more on “Hope for Harlie”, please click here to visit their official Facebook page.

Next up for the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards will be the first of two stops in the state of Alabama with the sanctions first ever visit to Mobile (Ala.) International Speedway for the running of the Mobile ARCA 200 on Saturday, March 10.

In 27 ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards starts, Hudson has produced three top-fives including a career best of fourth at Salem (Ind.) Speedway in 2007 and Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway (April 2011) and 13 top-10 finishes overall. Hudson has one career ARCA pole also coming at Salem (Ind.) Speedway in 2005 driving the No. 62 Hudson Machine Shop Chevrolet Monte Carlo.

(DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - February 20, 2012) - Two weeks ago, Fain Skinner wasn’t 100 percent sure he would be competing in this past Saturday’s Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway. However, the racing gods answered his prayers and the opportunity to transform from a spectator into a racecar driver at “The World Center of Racing” would come true.

The Live Oak, Florida native would pair with fellow Floridian and former ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards winner Mario Gosselin to field the No. 39 CarportEmpire.com / American Steel Carports Ford Fusion in the first of 20 races this season.

Acquiring a car from the Roush Fenway Racing stables, Gosselin’s DGM Racing team methodically prepared their blue oval all with the intentions of giving the NASCAR driver an opportunity to impress and make a statement in his restrictor plate debut.

Despite posting the 36^th fastest lap during the four-hour practice session on Thursday afternoon, the Late Model veteran refused to get rattled as he several of his competitors drafted during the affair compared to the team’s mission of single-car runs.

An intense qualifying session on Friday would keep many on pins and needles but Skinner’s lap of 50.395 seconds at 178.589 miles per hour safely secured him into the starting field by landing in the 25^th position. To the team’s advantage, three teams were penalized for post-qualifying infractions which shifted the starting lineup and now found the No. 39 CarportEmpire.com / American Steel Carports Ford Fusion 22^nd on the starting grid.

On race day, the team elected to partake in the final practice session of the weekend allowing Skinner to draft, giving him a small preview of what would be in store for later in the day.

43 cars took the green flag with the 26-year old fiercely wanting to find his way towards the front. By lap five, Skinner had moved into the top-20 with his sights on following fellow Ford driver Will Kimmel through the field. Just ahead of him, Milka Duno went for a ride through the frontstretch causing the yellow flag to waive.

Under the caution, Gosselin elected to bring his driver to pit road to top off the fuel tank. With the field restarted on lap 13, Skinner locked the 24^th position but wouldn’t stay there long.

Another quick yellow would ensue offering the opportunity for others to pit which would shoot Skinner up to 14^th on the leaderboard when the green flag waived on lap 17.

13 laps later, Skinner would inch closer towards the top-10 hovering in the 11^th position.

The leaders encountered lapped traffic on lap 47 with Skinner slicing and dicing his way through the pack and made a nice save after making contact with the No. 00 of Ed Kennedy. Skinner though would throttle his way through the crowded pack to find himself inside the top-10 by lap 60 where he remained until the yellow flag waived again for a multi-car incident.

Gosselin informed his driver that he had to bring the No. 39 CarportEmpire.com / American Steel Carports Ford Fusion to pit road to ensure that they would have enough Sunoco fuel to make it to the checkered flag.

Restarting 16^th on lap 75, Skinner would begin his move back towards the top-10 but would be stalled again on lap 78 when Chris Buescher went for a spin setting up a green-white-checkered finish.

Intense side-by-side racing would see Skinner float inside the top-20 coming to the white flag. As the field thundered out of turn four, both leaders nearly simultaneously ran out of gas forcing a majority of the lead pack to take abrasive maneuvers to avoid an initial collision but it allowed the Chevrolets of Bobby Gerhart and Drew Charlson to make a bold move to the outside to take the checkered flag first and second. Behind them, contact from the chaos unraveled with Skinner being collected in the wreck and initially crossing the line 18^th. Three drivers ahead of Skinner though were penalized for passing below the yellow line which raised him to 15^th in the final race rundown.

“We had a real good day in the No. 39 CarportEmpire.com / American Steel Carports Ford Fusion until the final lap,” said Skinner. “I was just biding my time and keeping our car clean. It took us a while, but we were able to work our way into the top-10. We had to pit for fuel there near the end and I was doing everything I could to get back there (to the top-10) but it got really crazy with everyone running out of field and it was just utter chaos.

I really don’t know happened with the wreck, I thought I made it through it and I was clobbered from someone in the right rear. I guess it could have been worse, I just really would have liked to finish unscathed.”

Despite the incident, Skinner still posted a solid finish in his inaugural ARCA debut which opens the door to potentially more races down the road. “I think we’re going to try and go to Talladega,” he noted. “I can use as much drafting experience as I possibly can get and Talladega would definitely add to what I learned here in Daytona.”

He concluded by saying, “I want to thank CarportEmpire.com, American Steel Carports, RimrockFlooring.com and CSBdirect.com for making my ARCA debut possible and the entire DGM Racing team for their efforts over the past few weeks and at the track this weekend. I had a lot of fun.”

Further details on Skinner’s 2012 racing program will be announced soon.

Additional input on Carport Empire is available by logging onto carportempire.com and through its Social Media networks of Twitter @carport_empire and Facebook.

Check out Fain Skinner online at Fainskinner.com.

PHOTO CAPTION: Fain Skinner, driver of the No. 39 CarportEmpire.com / American Steel Carports / Rimrock Flooring.com / CSBdirect.com Ford Fusion in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards for DGM Racing.

ABOUT CARPORTEMPIRE.COM:

CarportEmpire.com is one of the largest distributors of quality carports, carport garages, steel buildings and RV carports in the United States. They currently offer installation in all 48 continental states and have a trained staff of steel building specialists waiting to take your phone call. If you are looking to make a smart investment in a steel building or carport, then you are looking for Carport Empire!

CarportEmpire.com has several distribution centers to allow for prompt delivery and installation of your new steel building, carport, carport garage or RV carport. Their corporate offices are conveniently located in north Florida near the intersection of Interstate 75 and Interstate 10 in Live Oak, Florida. This is also home to our superior service department and our team of qualified service technicians who are waiting to assist with all your service needs.

ABOUT AMERICAN STEEL CARPORTS:

Located in Kewanee, Illinois; Pioneer, Ohio; Colusa, California; Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania; and Joshua, Texas, American Steel Carports, Inc. is your source for quality steel buildings. Choose from our full line of buildings ranging from Open Carports, Partial Carports, Mini Storage Units, Warehouses, Garages and even Portable Hunting Blinds. Their engineer certified, steel buildings are carefully constructed to provide you with the highest quality construction. Their steel buildings are reinforced in order to withstand large amounts of weight or wind. And they use steel with a commercially baked on finish providing years of low maintenance. Your choice of anchors can provide the additional security you need to put your mind at ease. If you can't find exactly what you need in our catalog, just ask and we'll work with you to create the building that matches your requirements. For more information, please visit Americansteelinc.com.

(MOORESVILLE, N.C. - February 20, 2012) - Arriving at Daytona for the season opener for the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards, Jared Marks was feeling a bit disappointed knowing he was not able to actually race due to the age restriction set in place by the series.

The 17 (soon to be 18) year old was allowed to run one lap in practice earning the young Rookie 25 points to carry on to race No. 2 at Mobile International Speedway in March.  Although he will not be directly behind the steering wheel of his No. 12 Dodge Charger that does not mean he is not running at full throttle during Daytona Speedweeks. 

Kicking off his busy schedule Jared and his Tony Marks Racing Dodge Charger did a special promo shoot for SPEED that will be shown throughout the year.  Marks comments, “I had a great time working with the film crew, it was a great experience and I am glad they gave me the opportunity.  I learned a lot about what goes on behind the scenes and what it takes to put something like that together”. 

Jared will also be making several appearances throughout the week at the UNOH (University of Northwestern Ohio) display that will be located at the hospitality suites.  UNOH has joined Jared and Tony Marks Racing as an associate sponsor for the 2012 ARCA Racing Series season.  Marks will also act as a junior ambassador throughout the year speaking to students and their families who may be interested in attending the university. 

 The University of Northwestern Ohio's (UNOH) College of Applied Technologies offers a unique curriculum to young people interested in professional motorsports competition as a career. The University is fully accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, and the College of Applied Technologies is accredited by the National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation. The University also has a College of Business, College of Occupational Professions, College of Health Professions and Graduate College offering Associate and Baccalaureate Degrees in Accounting, Business Administration, Marketing, Sport Marketing, Information Technology, Medical Assisting and a Master's Degree in Business Administration. The College of Applied Technologies offers associate degrees and diploma programs in High Performance Motorsports. 

To learn more about Jared Marks and Tony Marks Racing click over to tonymarksracing.com   

Information about UNOH (University of Northwest Ohio) can be found at unoh.edu

About UNOH

The University of Northwestern Ohio is an entrepreneurial, not-for-profit, university founded in 1920. There are five colleges within the university: The College of Applied Technologies, College of Business, College of Occupational Professions, College of Health Professions, and the Graduate College. UNOH has taught students from all 50 states and 16 foreign countries, and currently has more than 4500 students enrolled from 36 states and 6 foreign countries. UNOH offers more than 60 different programs of study including Master's, Baccalaureate, Associate, and Diploma programs.

The University is situated on a 200+ acre campus and is in the midst of a 10-year expansion plan that includes new apartment-style dormitories and a new academic building that will house Health and IT classrooms along with a new library, student learning center and food services. The University of Northwestern Ohio also offers a variety of athletics including Men's & Women's Basketball, Men's & Women's Tennis, Men's & Women's Golf, Women's Volleyball, Men's and Women's Bowling, Men's Baseball, Men's Soccer and six Co-Ed Motorsports teams.

The University of Northwestern Ohio has an impact of more than $250 million on the local economy. Limaland Motorsports Park, which is owned by UNOH, has an additional $15 million impact.

(MOORESVILLE, N.C. - February 20, 2012) - To say that Alex Bowman’s first experience at Daytona International Speedway was disappointing would be putting it mildly. Bowman came into the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 attempting to go three for three in his ARCA Racing Series starts. After winning his two outings in 2011, Bowman and his Cunningham Motorsports team were hoping to get Alex in the record books again with his third win.

Practice on Thursday was a struggle for the Paul Andrews-led crew, as the team concentrated on single car runs, since the #22 Dodge needed to qualify on time.  As the practice session ended Bowman showed 20^th on the speed charts, which was not truly indicative of how the car compared to other single car runs.  Most of the times faster than Bowman’s were drafting speeds. 

On Friday, Alex and the Cunningham Motorsports organization received a plaque from the Navy League of the United States for their support of the families and crews of two adopted ships based at Naval Station Mayport, Mayport, Florida.  This presentation was made by seven members of the Navy League, who were guests of Cunningham Motorsports, touring the garage, the hauler and rooting Alex on during the race from their suite.

Bowman and the #22 crew used the 45 minute practice on Saturday, before the race, solely as a drafting session.  Their focus was getting Alex comfortable drafting with the Dodge.  After 14 laps of practice, Andrews called Bowman in and they determined that they had accomplished their goals for the morning.  An optimistic Bowman said, “We will be fine.  This car will draft good in the race.  Thanks to Paul and the team for all of their efforts at the shop and during practice yesterday.”

The eBay Motors/St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Dodge started the race in 14^th.  The race remained under green flag conditions for only 7 laps, when a spin brought out the first caution. During this caution, many of the leaders came to pit road, moving Bowman to 7^th.  After just one lap under green, caution returned to the speedway.  Bowman brought the Dodge into the pits for a fuel only stop, relegating Alex to 17^th.  On the restart, as Bowman was going up through the gears, cars in front of him checked up causing him to drop back to 30^th to avoid the other cars.  In this position, Bowman lost the draft.  But, one lap at a time, with determination, Bowman made those positions back. With a 45 lap green flag run, this was tough for Bowman. By lap 40 he was in 20^th and 13^th on lap 60.  A multi-car spin on lap 68 brought the caution out.  With many of the leaders in fuel conservation mode, some came into the pits for a splash of fuel, while others conserved by running on the apron.  On the restart on lap 75, Bowman lined up in position 12, where he picked off one car at the flag stand.  As a car spun with no caution flag, Bowman picked up two more spots to 9th.  With another car spinning, ARCA officials threw the yellow.  As the race completed its scheduled 80 laps as the yellow flew, the restart would become a green, white, checkered finish.  Bowman’s plan was to hook up with 9-time ARCA champ, Frank Kimmel on the restart.  As the cars in front of Alex started through the gears, Bowman’s Dodge couldn’t pick up any fuel remaining in the fuel cell, relegating him to the 30^th finishing spot.

After the race, a disappointed Bowman said, “I am really disappointed.  We had a car that could draft well.   We had move up into contention.  We didn’t think that we had used that much fuel trying to get our positions back.  We will go on to Mobile and make up for this.”

Next up for the team is the Mobile ARCA 200 at Mobile International Speedway on Saturday, March 10. 

Follow Cunningham Motorsports at www.cunninghammotorsports.org and @cunningham_race on twitter.

Follow Alex Bowman on twitter @AlexBRacing.

(DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - February 20, 2012) - Matt Lofton and the No. 16 Strutmasters.com team headed to the Sunshine State this past weekend for the 2012 ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards season opener and the running of the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 at Daytona International Speedway. Lofton, competitive inside the top 15 most of the day, suffered fuel issues late in the race, resulting in a 34th-place finish.
 
The No. 16 Strutmasters.com team unloaded for a single practice on Thursday afternoon. Lofton utilized his time on the track to get a handle on his Chevy and ultimately drafted with teammate Joey Coulter. Just before the end of practice, the No. 16 machine broke a valve spring forcing the crew to change engines. Lofton returned to the track Friday afternoon and qualified his No. 16 machine 24th to start the 80-lap race.
 
When the green flag dropped under cloudy Daytona skies, the Roxboro, N.C. native used the initial laps to get accustomed to “pack racing.”  The day’s first caution waved on lap six, which gave crew chief Jon Wolfe the opportunity to bring his driver to pit road for a full tank of fuel and to play his hand at fuel strategy. Lofton returned to the track in the 25th spot. 

Green-flag racing resumed on lap 13 and Lofton quickly found a strong group to draft with.  A caution quickly flew once again for an incident on the backstretch. This gave teams the opportunity to pit, but Lofton remained on the speedway and began to save fuel. Racing went back to green on lap 17 with Lofton in the 15th spot. The Strutmasters.com driver held his own inside the top 30 with strong coaching by spotter Stevie Reeves and advice from teammate Joey Coulter.  As the packs began to move around Lofton lost the draft and dropped to 25th. 

The caution flag flew once again on lap 67 while Lofton was in the 23rd position. The team again called for their driver to stay out on the track, but the earlier gamble of fuel strategy did not pay off. Lofton ran out of fuel on the backstretch and was forced to coast back to pit road with assistance. As the crew filled his Chevy with fuel, Lofton made several attempts to re-fire the engine and finally succeeded.  He unfortunately fell two laps down in the process as he returned to the track in the 35th position. 

As the remaining laps ticked away, Lofton used his time on the track as a learning experience. By the end of the 200-mile event Lofton took the checkered flag in the 34th position in his first event at Daytona International Speedway.
 
“What a week,” Lofton said. “We had our ups and downs from changing engines after practice to running inside the top 15 today. It was definitely a learning experience and I’m proud of all the hard work the guys put into this car. We’ll head back to the shop and review everything from this week  so we can build on it and head to Mobile. Thanks to Coulter Motorsports and Strutmasters.com for all the support and I hope to get them in victory lane this year.”
 
Next Stop: ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards will head to Mobile International Speedway on March 10, 2012 for the running of the Mobile ARCA 200.

(DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - February 20, 2012) - It goes without saying that Chad Hackenbracht’s 14th-place finish in Saturday afternoon’s Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 at Daytona International Speedway was no way an indicator of the team’s performance during the season opener. Still, the team had plenty to be proud about in their third start at “The World Center of Racing.”

Since the checkered flag was thrown at the end of the 2011 season, the CGH Motorsports team led by Kevin Reed immediately turned their attention towards their superspeedway program all with the intentions of glittering in the limelight with their No. 58 Tastee Chocolate Apples Chevrolet.

Boasting a slick looking paint scheme designed by award-winning motorsports artist Sam Bass, the team took to the Daytona high banks for qualifying on Friday afternoon and landed a strong ninth, the team’s best outing ever at a restrictor plate track.  

43 cars took the green flag with Hackenbracht wasting little time to move towards the front. With coaching from spotter and former NASCAR driver Tim Fedewa, the New Philadelphia, Ohio native quickly began picking off one position at a time and found himself settled in the fifth position by lap five.

The first caution flag of the day waived on lap seven with Hackenbracht maintaining a presence inside the top-five. That would change though as Reed decided to bring his protégé to pit road for what had hoped to be the team’s lone pit stop of the event.

Restarting 20^th, Hackenbracht once again began moving forward only to be stalled by another quick caution. When racing resumed, the family-owned team found themselves sitting 11^th in the running order and on the move.

It didn’t take long for the 20-year old to find himself back in the top-10 when he feathered his way into the seventh spot by lap 34 where he would hover for the next thirty laps.

While running in a wad of racecars approaching lap 60, Hackenbracht would be ousted from the bottom line of the racetrack and immediately become freight-trained back through the field dropping to 12^th then back to 19^th in just a matter of two laps. Frustrated by what just had transpired, Fedewa informed his driver to keep his composure and stay focused on getting back towards the front. 

Running near the tail end of the lead draft when the caution flag flew on lap 69, Reed decided to bring the rising star to pit road where a splash of fuel would be added to the No. 58 Tastee Chocolate Apples machine.

With five laps remaining, Hackenbracht restarted the race 20^th and aggressively tried bolting his way to the front but would be stalled in race traffic. When the yellow flag waived with two laps remaining, the team would get another chance to gain some much needed track position as the field would be given the first green-white-checker finish of the year.

Simply put, the driver would run out of laps despite giving a gallant effort in the two-lap shootout and take the checkered flag in the 14^th position and narrowly avoiding several spinning cars which started when several cars in the top-10 began to run out of fuel.

“We just ran out of time,” said Hackenbracht. “I had no help when I got shuffled back there with about twenty laps to go. We had nothing to lose by coming to pit road near the end of the race for fuel, but we just couldn’t get a group together there at the end to make that push back in the top-10. I’m disappointed but then again, I’m not. This is my third trip to Daytona and the first I’ve actually finished the race. The team did a really good job with the preparation of the car and the pro motor engine underneath the hood was strong, we just needed a couple more laps. The most positive thing is that we have a car to take to Talladega and that’s something we haven’t been able to do the last two years leaving Daytona.”

Next up for the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards will be the first of two stops in the state of Alabama with the sanctions first ever visit to Mobile (Ala.) International Speedway for the running of the Mobile ARCA 200 on Saturday, March 10.

CGH Motorsports still has marketing partnerships available for the 2012 ARCA Racing Series season. Interested parties can contact Jordan Dahl at Jordan@cghmotorsports.com or 570.234.5449.

For more information on Chad Hackenbracht and CGH Motorsports, please visit ChadHackenbracht.com and CGHMotorsports.com.

To purchase the popular “What’s A Chad Hacken-Something” tee-shirt, please log on to store.cghmotorsports.com or CGHMotorsports.com.

Connect with Chad Hackenbracht and CGH Motorsports through Facebook by clicking here.

Tweet with Chad Hackenbracht through Twitter at @ChadH58 or CGH Motorsports @CGH5858.

About CGH Motorsports:

CGH Motorsports (CGHMotorsports.com), established in 2007 by Ohio entrepreneur Greg Hackenbracht is located in a 10,000 sq. foot facility located in Mooresville, North Carolina. CGH Motorsports is home of rising sensation Chad Hackenbracht, who competed in nine ARCA Racing Series races in 2010 after an aggressive ARCA testing schedule in 2009. Chad Hackenbracht is the 2008 National Asphalt Legends champion, winning 33 percent of his races and finishing in the top-10, 85 percent of the events he competed in. The team has stepped up their commitment from a partial schedule in 2010 and ran a full-effort in 2011, and will attempt another full season of competition in 2012.

(DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - February 20, 2012) - Mikey Kile and the Andy Belmont Racing team came to Daytona International Speedway to set the foundation for a championship run in 2012. If Saturday’s performance in the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 was any indication, Kile solidified himself as a title contender.

Even though a 16^th place finish was not the goal, the performance of running in the top-five and top-10 is what might propel Kile to championship contention.

While the vast majority of the 83 lap affair was a chess match played out on the yellow line, Kile strategically placed his No. 1 ModSpace Ford in contention and in the top five during the closing stages. The Andy Belmont Racing team actively pursued drafting partners and had a plan in place to get to the front, but was foiled by fuel mileage and took away a chance at Daytona victory.

“It definitely wasn’t the result that we came down here looking to get,” Kile said. “There’s always positives you can build on when you leave Daytona. We had an agenda in practice and stuck to it, and put ourselves in a position to make some noise late in the race.”

Kile and the ABR ModSpace team tackled the two practice sessions with a conservative approach. Focusing on qualifying runs for the majority of Thursday’s practice, Kile was able to dabble into the draft during happy hour on Saturday morning. Combined with an off-season of focused work on Daytona and starting the year off right, ABR’s hard work paid off.

While many of the top qualifiers dropped back in the early part of the event, Kile’s ModSpace Ford stayed with the lead group and well within the top-15 after rolling off from the 10^th position.

Under the first caution, the team topped off Kile’s Ford Fusion with fuel and restarted from the 19^th position. Following another quick caution, the field would settle into a long green flag run, which saw most of the lead group run single file. The snake line towards the front resulted in track position being a coveted commodity.

Kile ran in the top-six for most of the green flag run, which lasted until lap 69. Due to the long green flag runs, and placement of early caution flags, fuel mileage concerns plagued many of the front runners, including Kile. While running fourth, under caution, Kile’s ModSpace Ford ran on fumes and had to pit and ultimately took the ABR team out of contention. Lining up at the back of the pack, Kile managed to earn a 16^th place after the green-white-checkered finish.

“The car was fast, and everyone on the ModSpace team did a great job and this is something certainly to build on heading to Talladega in a few months,” said Kile. “It’s going to be fun working with Andy and the whole team, especially if we run around the top five like we did. We definitely have the capability and potential to be consistent frontrunners this year and I think we showed some of that this weekend.”

Next up for the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards in their 60^th Anniversary season will be the first of two stops in the state of Alabama with the sanctions first ever visit to Mobile (Ala.) International Speedway for the running of the Mobile ARCA 200 on Saturday, March 10. The 29-year old will look to improve on his best career ARCA short track finish, which came at Salem (Ind.) Speedway in 2010 when he finished fourth in the fall classic. 

About ModSpace:

Modular Space Corporation (ModSpace), based in Berwyn, Pa., is a leading provider of modular buildings, portable storage and services for temporary and permanent space needs. With more than 40 years of experience, ModSpace serves a diverse set of customers and markets through a network of 80 branches throughout the United States and Canada. Further information is available by visiting http://www.modspace.com.

About Andy Belmont Racing (ABR):

Andy Belmont Racing (AndyBelmont.com) is a competitive and respected motorsports operation who fields race cars in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards. ABR has been serving the motorsports community and winning for nearly 25 years. Currently, the team fields a full-time ARCA Racing Series program for series winner Mikey Kile in the No. 1 ModSpace Ford Fusion.

(CONCORD, N.C. - February 20, 2012) - Nelson Canache, the relatively unknown driver from Caracas, Venezuela, made his professional stock car debut with Venturini Motorsports Saturday in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards season opener at Daytona International Speedway.

The former two-time Venezuelan Super Touring GT Class champion took full advantage of his opportunity on the world’s largest stage in racing to introduce himself to American race fans and insiders with an impressive outing at the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 at Daytona.

“Wow, I thought Nelson did a great job tonight. Daytona is an unforgiving track and racing in the draft is totally different than anything he’s ever done before. I’m very happy with what he was able to accomplish and show me,” said Billy Venturini, competition director for Venturini Motorsports.

Canache, driving his No.35 Venezuelan Tourism Chevrolet took the checkered flag in the 4th position.

ARCA Racing Series rules permit drivers to drop below the yellow line to avoid contact with wrecked or disabled cars. The questionable ruling erased Canache’s top-5 finish as he was officially credited with a 22nd place finish.

“I’m running for the championship this year in ARCA and I lost valuable points with their decision to penalize me. I was forced down below the line by another car to avoid crashing. I’m disappointed with the ruling but I’m still so proud of what I accomplished here today. It’s a long season and I’ll be back ready to go again at Mobile next month.”

About Venturini Motorsports
Venturini Motorsports (VMS), fielding cars in the ARCA Racing Series, is one of the premier NASCAR driver development programs in the country. The 2012 season marks the teams 30th Anniversary of competition in the ARCA Series. Multiple team championships and consistent on-track success, VMS has evolved into one of the most recognizable names in motorsports.

Since 2007, VMS has assisted in the career development of notable NASCAR drivers such as Joey Logano, Justin Allgaier, Steve Arpin, Brian Scott, Max Gresham, Miguel Paludo, Josh Richards, Ryan Blaney, and Scott Lagasse, Jr.

(DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - February 20, 2012) - Tom Hessert III earned his first top-10 finish at Daytona International Speedway since 2008 Saturday in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards season opener. However, Hessert’s car returned to the garage area mangled after being collected in an accident coming to the checkered flag in the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200.

Hessert under the direction of veteran crew chief Donnie Richeson were excited about their chances heading into “The World Center of Racing” and it was clear why. In the first practice session of the weekend on Thursday afternoon, Hessert posted the fourth fastest time overall giving the Ken Schrader Racing (KSR) good vibes about their No. 52 Federated Auto Parts Toyota Camry.

The good morale of the team continued into Menards pole qualifying presented by Ansell when Hessert posted a time of 49.449 seconds at 182.006 miles per hour, which at the time was good enough for sixth, but when two cars failed post qualifying inspection, Hessert was lifted to fourth for the starting grid of the 49^th annual ARCA event at DIS.

43 cars took the green flag with Hessert maintaining his presence inside the top-five. Hessert would find himself locked with outside pole sitter Ryan Reed on the high side but drifting back in the running order to 10^th with the first caution flag waived on lap seven. It was then that Richeson elected to bring his protégé down pit road for a fuel only with Hessert returning to the track in the 19^th position.

The former CARS Pro Cup Series (formally known as the USARacing Pro Cup Series) run back to the front though would be stalled when the No. 12 spun on the backstretch ultimately bringing out the second yellow flag of the day thus giving Richeson the opportunity to bring his driver to pit road for another splash of fuel.

Returning to the racetrack in the 33^rd position, the veteran would have to show extreme patience in a field full of rookies to climb his No. 52 Federated Auto Parts Toyota Camry back towards the front.

By the half-way mark, Hessert found himself still clutched onto the lead draft but hovering in the 22^nd position and surrounded by a gaggle full of racecars. Still, Hessert continued to march forward. By lap 63, Hessert had climbed the ladder and found himself in the 16^th position.

A multi-car accident ensued on lap 79, bringing out the yellow flag and allowing the former NASCAR Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car driver to mentally prepare for the final laps of the race. Richeson though during the yellow informed his driver to bring his Japanese nameplate to pit road for a gas-‘n-go putting the Cherry Hill, New Jersey native 18^th in the line-up.

With five laps remaining, Hessert immediately began trying to blast his way to the front utilizing the bumper of Chad Hackenbracht and Frank Kimmel to get there, Hessert moving forward would be halted with two laps to go when the No. 17 was spun bringing out the event’s final caution.

A green-white-checkered would be placed in the lap of Hessert. On the restart, Hessert continued to craft his way to the front but found himself taking abrasive actions coming to the checkered flag as the two leaders at the front of the pack ran out of fuel; contact from the chaos unraveled with Hessert being collected in the wreck and initially crossing the line 13^th. Three drivers ahead of Hessert though were penalized for passing below the yellow line which raised Hessert into the top-10.

“It was an interesting race,” offered Hessert. “Our No. 52 Federated Auto Parts Toyota Camry was strong, and I have to give it all to these guys on the Ken Schrader Racing team. The outside line didn’t go at the start of the race, so we tried to use the cautions to our advantage. We were making headway to come back to the front and we stalled out there near the end of the race. We came down during the last stop just making sure we were good to go to the finish. Coming to the finish, the leaders ran out of gas and it sent everyone scattering to dodge them and it really just screwed everyone up and some cars got together and unfortunately we were collected. It doesn’t matter where you finish, you hate to bring home a wrecked racecar when you can see the checkered flag.”

Still with mixed feelings on the finish, Hessert was offering his thoughts on the upcoming superspeedway race at Talladega in May. “I’m looking forward to Talladega,” he added. “This (rule) package works a lot better at Talladega than it does at Daytona, so I think you’ll see a more exciting race there. Hopefully this car is salvageable and we can get it ready for Talladega, because I would love to take it back there.”

Next up for the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards will be the first of two stops in the state of Alabama with the sanctions first ever visit to Mobile (Ala.) International Speedway for the running of the Mobile ARCA 200 on Saturday, March 10.

Exiting Daytona, Hessert has 84 career ARCA Racing Series starts. In those outings, he has maneuvered two poles, one win, 19 top-fives and 44 top-10s.

For more on Tom Hessert III, please visit tomhessert.com. 

Hessert has joined the Twitter crave. Follow and connect with him @TomHessert.

(CHARLOTTE, N.C. - February 20, 2012) - Following ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards qualifying on Friday, February 17 at Daytona International Speedway, ARCA officials disallowed Joey Coulter and the No. 61 team’s qualifying effort for being low in technical inspection.

Upon further review by the team it was determined that the left rear tire pressure was low resulting in the inconsistent measurement.

Coulter Motorsports would like to apologize to our fans, sponsors and team members for not being on track for Saturday's (2/18/12) race. Coulter spent the race on the No. 16 pitbox showing full support for teammate Matt Lofton as he made his first start at Daytona International Speedway in the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200.