Series | Karnac Racing News

Fox Sports Media Group, ARCA Agree on Multi-Year Television Rights Extension

(KANSAS CITY, Kan.) – Officials from FOX Sports Media Group (FSMG) and the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) have announced a multi-year extension of the current television rights agreement between the two groups, with a minimum of 10 ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards events televised either live and/or same-day delay each season.

In 2013, ARCA television coverage begins with the drop of the green flag on the series’ 50th appearance at the world-renowned Daytona International Speedway in February.

“ARCA has a very supportive group of race fans, and for over 15 years they have turned to us for their television coverage,” said Scott Ackerson, FOX Sports Media Group EVP, executive producer, and SPEED president. “We now look forward to continuing in that role over the coming years.”

ARCA’s relationship with SPEED reaches back to April 20, 1997, when the network (then Speedvision) covered the ARCA Racing Series race at Salem Speedway. Since then, SPEED has aired 197 ARCA Racing Series events, with tonight’s season-ending Kansas Lottery 98.9 scheduled as the 198th.

Year-over-year broadcast ratings have spiked by 24 percent in 2012, highlighted by substantial improvements in key demographics. (more…)

By Scott|2012-10-21T05:24:28-04:00October 21st, 2012|ARCA, Featured, Front Page News, Racing News|Comments Off

Southern All Stars return to Toccoa for James Garrison Memorial/GA State Championship Oct 27th

First SAS visit since April of 2010 to the oldest dirt track in Georgia

HUNTSVILLE, AL (October 17, 2012)—After a two year absence, the Southern All Stars Dirt Racing Series will return to Toccoa (GA) Speedway for the James Garrison/Georgia State Championship race.

Jonathan Davenport of Blairsville, GA enjoyed Southern All Stars Victory Lane in the most recent series visit to Toccoa Speedway in April of 2010. This time the SAS travelers will be the headliner of a busy night of racing for Toccoa Speedway running for the $3,500 top prize in the 40-lapper. ‘We are very excited in having the Southern All Stars back to Toccoa Speedway’ stated Race Director Brad York.

A full show of Practice, VP Racing Fuels Qualifying, Hoosier Racing Tire Last Chance Showdowns and the 40-lap Feature event await the SAS on Saturday Night October 27.

The Speedway has announced earlier start times for the Georgia State Championships as the gates for grandstands and pits will both swing open at 1:00 pm and the Drivers Meeting will be at 4:00 pm with Hot Lap sessions beginning shortly after. On October 27^th the Grandstands admission will be $20.00 with $30.00 in the Pits and Trackside. The night before, Friday October 26^th the Speedway will host an open practice for all divisions from 5-9 pm with the cost of just $10 for Pits and Trackside. (more…)

By Scott|2012-10-21T05:05:25-04:00October 21st, 2012|Featured, Front Page News, Southern All Stars|Comments Off

Hearn Hopes to Continue Super DIRTcar Series Success at Eastern States

Super DIRTcar Series Big-Block Modifieds take on Orange County’s Hard Clay for 51st Annual Eastern States 200 Oct. 21

MIDDLETOWN, N. Y. – Oct. 16, 2012 – Just coming off NAPA Auto Parts Super DIRT Week XLI, the Big-Block Modifieds of the Super DIRTcar Series head south for another historic event, the 51^st Annual Eastern States Weekend presented by Arkel Motors at Orange County Fair Speedway.

Eastern States Weekend, an action-packed three days of racing set for Friday, Oct. 19, through Sunday, Oct. 21, hosts the Super DIRTcar Series for the weekend’s finale, the 51^st Annual Eastern States 200 Modified Championship race on Sunday, Oct. 21. For this year’s winner of VP Small Engine Fuels 200 at the New York State Fairgrounds in Syracuse, Brett Hearn, the long-running Eastern States 200 brings back childhood memories.

“As a kid, I grew up sitting in the stands at 11 and 12 years old and watching the Eastern States 200,” said Hearn, of Vernon, N. J., whose shop is located just 30 minutes from the speedway in Middletown. “It’s got a lot of history, a lot of prestige. I remember going there before I ever drove a stock car, sitting in the stands during the Eastern States races.”

Hearn, who recently claimed his sixth VP Small Engine Fuels 200 triumph after a 17-year hiatus from victory lane at the “Moody Mile,” hopes his momentum can carry his team to another strong finish at Orange County’s 5/8-mile “Hard Clay,” a track he considers his “home track.” (more…)

By Scott|2012-10-17T05:27:50-04:00October 17th, 2012|Featured, Front Page News, Super DirtCar Series|Comments Off

Kenseth Wins Winchester 400

Winchester, IN (October 14, 2012) – The story of the Winchester 400 Weekend at Winchester Speedway was battling through the weather to get every race finished. Some not ending until the middle of the night, moving qualifying for the Winchester 400 and then waiting out a rain delay to see one of the most exciting finishes in Winchester 400 history.

Ross Kenseth and crew worked for 399 laps to put themselves in the right place to win the Winchester 400, one of short track racing’s toughest and most coveted victories. But coming out of the fourth turn racing toward the checkered flag, 14 year old Kyle Benjamin moved under Kenseth to beat him to the line by less than 10 feet. Despite winning on the track, Benjamin was later disqualified in post-race tech due to an RPM Limiter Infraction making Kenseth the winner. (more…)

By Scott|2012-10-16T13:54:23-04:00October 16th, 2012|ARCA, CRA Racing Series, Featured, Front Page News|Comments Off

Championship Picture Clear Going to Kansas

Final Week Notes from the ARCA Racing Series

(TOLEDO, Ohio) – One race remains in ARCA’s 60th Anniversary Season, and Chris Buescher’s vision of becoming the series’ 30th different champion is as clear as it’s ever been.

Buescher’s 85-point lead atop the standings after last month’s race at Salem Speedway is greater than any other lead by a first-place driver in the 17 races prior to that event. Friday, he will race in the Kansas Lottery 98.9 at Kansas Speedway with a chance to win the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards title just 10 days before turning 20 years old.

Buescher (No. 17 Roulo Brothers Racing Ford) will clinch the championship by finishing 12th or higher, regardless of any other driver’s result in the 99-lap, 148.5-mile race. In 52 career ARCA starts, Buescher has finished in the top 12 on 44 occasions, a success rate of 84.6 percent. He has finished in the top 12 in each of his last seven starts and in 15 of 18 races this season, a similar success rate of 83.3 percent.

The top four drivers in the standings remain eligible for the championship; however, fourth-place driver Alex Bowman will drop from contention if fewer than 40 cars enter and start Friday’s race. (more…)

By Scott|2012-10-15T20:09:41-04:00October 15th, 2012|ARCA, Featured, Front Page News|Comments Off

16-Year-Old Chase Elliott Wins The Winchester 100 Presented by JEGS.com

Daniel Hemric; 2012 JEGS/CRA Champion – 15-Year-old Anderson Bowen; 2012 Rookie of the Year

Winchester, Indiana (Friday, October 12^th, 2012): When 16-year-old Chase Elliott comes to race in the JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour Presented by Chevrolet Performance, he comes in with one goal in mind; that is simply winning the race. In three of his four career JEGS/CRA appearances, the Dawsonville, Georgia stand out has done exactly that with the third JEGS/CRA triumph in four starts as the latest win came during the 41^st running of the Winchester 400 Weekend.

The legendary ½ (0.500) mile high-banked paved oval of Winchester Speedway in Winchester, Indiana served as hosts for the final points race of the 2012 racing season for the second year series. Prior to the event, Daniel Hemric had already wrapped up the 2012 JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour Presented by Chevrolet Performance Championship in the tours’ last race while 15-year-old Anderson Bowen clinched the 2012 Howie Lettow Memorial Rookie of the Year Presented by Howe Racing Enterprises title two races ago.

So all that was left to do was conduct the final points paying event of the season and Elliott, who was in town for the 41^st running of the Winchester 400 for the ARCA/CRA Super Series, which he won as a 14-year-old back in 2010, brought his JEGS/CRA legal ride to Eastern Indiana in an effort to get more valuable seat time around the historic high banks. (more…)

By Scott|2012-10-15T19:05:15-04:00October 15th, 2012|ARCA, CRA Racing Series, Featured, Front Page News|Comments Off

LOLMDS Wraps Up this Weekend at 32nd Annual RED BUCK DTWC Featuring Borrowed Blue

WAYCROSS, GA (October 15, 2012) – The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series wraps up the 2012 season this weekend at Portsmouth Raceway Park with the running of the 32nd Annual RED BUCK Dirt Track World Championship – Featuring “Borrowed Blue”. The Newport Nightmare, Jimmy Owens of Newport, TN and his supporting cast will be celebrating their second consecutive LOLMDS National Championship. Owens heads into the weekend without any points pressure, although he’s working hard to take the 50K back to Newport and add to his list of accomplishments in dirt late model racing. Jonathan Davenport of Blairsville, GA will enter this weekend’s event with the Quarter Master Rookie of the Year title in hand. The Clint Boyer Racing team, sponsored by Georgia Boot, will be celebrating a great season and marching through the competition, trying to get their hands on the 50K first place prize.

In the previous 31 events there have been 22 different drivers to capture the event. Dating back to the inaugural running in 1981, there have been five drivers to win the prestigious event more than once. Hall of Famer – Freddy Smith of Seymour, TN leads the way with five wins, followed by the late Jack Boggs of Grayson, KY, who won the race three times. The other three drivers with more than one win in the event are each two-time DTWC winners, including: Billy Moyer of Batesville, AR: Ronnie Johnson of Chattanooga, TN; and Shannon Babb of Moweaqua, IL. Babb is the latest repeat winner, dating all the way back to 1998. (more…)

By Scott|2012-10-15T18:17:44-04:00October 15th, 2012|Featured, Front Page News, Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series|Comments Off

Travis Swaim Wins the Alpha Energy Solutions 150 at Tri-County

Hudson, NC (10/13/12) –After the misfortune of experiencing engine trouble at Anderson, current point leader Travis Swaim bounced back and won his second race of the 2012 season during the AlphaEnergy Solutions 150 at Tri-County Motor Speedway Saturday night.

After qualifying on the outside pole, Swaim held a fifth place position or higher throughout the race. He seemed to fall back after leading the majority of the first 50 laps, but came back to make a run for the win.

While Swaim played strategy, Jeremy Burns had a similar night. Burns won his first UARA Sunoco Pole with a 16.313 lap during his qualifying run. After the start of the race, he too began to fall back. The two top drivers weren’t having problems, but started conserving their equipment. Local driver Grant Wimbish and Australian Brodie Kostecki took full advantage and created an entertaining race for the lead. The two drivers kept swopping places throughout the middle of the race. Grant Wimbish came home with a top-five finish, but unfortunately Kostecki ran into some bad luck. After being at the front for the majority of the race, Kostecki started to fall back and got caught up in a last lap caution. (more…)

By Scott|2012-10-15T18:07:26-04:00October 15th, 2012|Featured, Front Page News, UARA-STARS|Comments Off

ARCA and CRA Announce Sanction Extension for 2013 Season

(WINCHESTER, Ind.) – Officials from the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) and Champion Racing Association (CRA) announced today an extension of the formal working relationship between the two motorsports sanctioning bodies.

ARCA, currently concluding its 60th Anniversary Season, will sanction the racing activities for the ARCA CRA Super Series once again in 2013. The super late model stock car racing series, founded in 1997, is based in Salem, Ind. Today, Johnny VanDoorn will complete his first championship season under the ARCA and CRA partnership and his third in overall Super Series competition.

ARCA president and CEO Ron Drager noted the opportunity for continued growth and development as part of the extended partnership with CRA.

“This affiliation has been, right from the beginning, about two strong, stable racing companies joining forces to become even stronger and more stable,” Drager said. “As a sport, we need to continue to provide opportunities for drivers, owners, and crew members within auto racing, and support the developmental channels from grassroots to the top tier of the sport.” (more…)

By Scott|2012-10-14T17:30:06-04:00October 14th, 2012|ARCA, CRA Racing Series, Featured, Front Page News|Comments Off

Danny Johnson Charges to Third 358-Modified Series Win of Season

Planck finishes fifth at Brockville Ontario Speedway to garner series championship title

BROCKVILLE, ONTARIO – Oct. 14, 2012 – “The Doctor” Danny Johnson cruised to the front during Saturday’s DIRTcar 358-Modified Series finale at Brockville Ontario Speedway, avoiding several pile-ups and outlasting competition through a challenging 100 laps on his way to his third series win of the season.

“I’m very fortunate to have a great hotrod here at the end of the season,” said Johnson, of Rochester, N. Y. “It’s a phenomenal hotrod, that’s all I can tell you. It’s the same car that we ran here last year and won with, so it’s a proven piece for us.”

Johnson beat off Brett Hearn to take third at the green flag at Saturday’s afternoon 1000 Islands RV Fall Nationals race, but Hearn fought back after a pile-up in lap 3 involving Dexter Stacey, Michel Chicoine and Danny O’Brien brought the yellow. On the restart, Hearn powered ahead to second with Johnson still in third. Stephane LeFrance in the 115 car continued the lead he gained at the start. (more…)

By Scott|2012-10-14T17:26:58-04:00October 14th, 2012|Featured, Front Page News, Super DirtCar Series|Comments Off