Daytona, FL – Frank Kimmel, driver of the No. 44 Ansell-Menards Ford in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards, finished 10th this afternoon in the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 from Daytona International Speedway. It was a tale of two gambles with opposite results this afternoon, both taken by Frank in pursuit of his first victory at Daytona International Speedway in an impressive 20th start.
The action started early for Frank, as a few teams, including the Ansell-Menards Ford, elected to bring their cars down pit road before the green flag dropped, which resulted in them having to start in the back. The plan was to be patient in the early portion of the race and let the action play itself out in the front of the field.
“We decided to move to the rear early. I’ve been around long enough to see that it can get chaotic at Daytona instantly, especially with so many rookies in the race,” said nine time ARCA Racing Series Champ, Frank Kimmel.
The initial gamble paid off, as Frank was able to stay out under an early caution, when a majority of the other teams had to pit for fuel. The result was a restarting position of 3rd by lap 23. Unfortunately, Frank’s second risk was not as successful. Frank quickly moved the Ansell-Menards Ford out of line on the restart in hopes of taking second place. However, the top lane wasn’t the preferred groove throughout the race and the other drivers elected to stay on the bottom, which left Frank without a drafting partner. The outcome temporarily dropped the No. 44 Ansell-Menards Ford back to 16th.
“I wanted to get behind Bobby (Gerhart). I thought with it being early that someone would go with me but I was wrong. I only lacked a few feet to make the pass but I needed that help,” said Frank.
From that point on the Ansell-Menards team fought a battle to get back to the front – one position at a time. In the end, the No. 44 Ansell-Menards Ford took the checkered flag in the 10th position. “It was difficult.the only way you could pick up a spot was when a driver decided to try and pass up top. We were able to race our No. 44 Ansell-Menards Ford back to 10th there at the end. Overall, it’s a top ten finish and that’s encouraging heading into Talladega,” concluded Frank Kimmel.
Watch for Frank Kimmel in the No. 44 Ansell-Menards Ford at Talladega Superspeedway for the Talladega ARCA 250 in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards. The race can be seen live on SPEED Channel on April 25, 2011 at 5:00 pm EST. More information can be found at www.frankkimmel.com and www.arcaracing.com.
