[media-credit name=”ARCA Racing Network” align=”alignright” width=”180″]
[/media-credit]No. 44 Ansell/ Menards Toyota Camry
ARCA RACING SERIES – RACE 3 OF 19 – Salem Speedway
Salem, In. (April 29, 2012)- Although Alex Bowman led by as many as 11 seconds after the halfway point of the Kentuckiana Ford Dealers 200 at Salem Speedway, he still had to keep nine-time Salem winner Frank Kimmel at bay to score his third ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards win in five career starts.
Bowman won by only a final margin of 1.276 seconds, roughly three car lengths, over ThorSport Racing’s Kimmel, who was in contention for his first ARCA win since September 13, 2008. The veteran driver proved at his “home” track with his new team, that he had the car to beat all afternoon at Salem Speedway.
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Starting in the 10th spot on the grid at the Kentuckiana Ford Dealers 200 today, Kimmel shot to the front of the pack and remained within the top five spots until the first pit stop at lap 81 for two tires, fuel and a trackbar adjustment. After an incident ahead of him at lap 100, Kimmel was cautious and fell back to the eighth position. A quick pit stop at lap 134 by the ThorSport Racing crew gained the driver three positions to put him back in the top five.
With 47 laps to go, Kimmel found himself in the second position – where he would remain the rest of the race as he battled through lap traffic, despite gaining ground on Bowman as the young driver started to smoke with 10 laps to go. As the checkered flag fell, Kimmel was scored in the second position – his first podium finish of the season and best finish with his new team at ThorSport Racing.
“Of course I wanted the win, this is my home track, and just because you’ve won nine doesn’t mean you want another one!” said Kimmel of his finish. “I’m really proud of the crew here for setting up a great car – they had a lot of pressure on them, and they were never phased by it. They knew my history here, and they performed at the top of their game all day. Alex had a great car all day, and I thought we might be able to take him there at the end with the smoke – but it just wasn’t for us. I’ll take a great finish today, especially after some of the luck we had earlier this season. I’m glad we could put on a great show for the hometown fans.”
Crew chief Jeriod Prince, with his first year as a crew chief in the ARCA Racing Series and best finish under his belt, agreed. “I’m really glad Frank finally got a good finish this season – he had a lot of friends and family here today. We have had fast cars all season, we just haven’t had the finishes to show for it based on bad luck. The last pit stop was amazing by the guys, and the car was the best it had been all weekend at the end of the race. I am looking forward to racing every week – we’re set for the summer stretch of races.” |
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Race Info: April 29th, 2012 Salem Speedway .555-Mile Paved High-Banked Oval Kentuckiana Ford Dealers 200 200 Laps/111 Miles
Results:
Qualifying: 10th Finish: 2nd
Next on the Schedule: The ARCA Racing Series will be back in action in a big way in four days, as the series travels to Talladega Superspeedway Friday for the International Motorsports Hall of Fame 250, the 50th ARCA race at the 2.66-mile oval. The race will begin at 5 p.m. ET and air live on SPEED. ARCARacing.comwill feature live audio from WTDR Thunder 92.7 FM of Talladega, as well as live timing and scoring as presented by ARCA Nation. ABOUT MENARDS: With 263 stores in 13 Midwestern states, Menards has the tools, materials and supplies for all your home improvement needs whether just needing a light bulb or can of paint to building a deck or new home. Menards is known throughout the home improvement industry as the low price leader; it’s no wonder their famous slogan – “SAVE BIG MONEY” – is so widely known and easy to remember. Menards does things right – the company’s strength and success can be seen in the well-stocked and maintained stores, the lowest prices in town and the way guests are always treated like family in a hometown hardware store atmosphere.
ABOUT ANSELL:
Ansell is aglobal leader in protection solutions, with operations in North America, LAC, EMEA and Asia-Pacific. Ansell designs, develops, manufactures and markets a wide range of surgical, examination, industrial and household gloves, protective clothing and condoms. People in over 100 countries around the world put their trust in Ansell’s innovative, high-quality solutions to offer superior protection, combined with high levels of comfort and performance. Ansell holds its operational headquarters in Red Bank, NJ, USA and its parent, Ansell Limited, is registered in Melbourne, Australia. Worldwide, the group employs over 10,000 people in 33 countries. In its Fiscal Year 2011, Ansell achieved sales of USD 1.2 bn. For more information visit www.ansell.com, www.safetypro.com,www.activarmr.com and www.ansellconstruction.com.
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