In a rain shortened, one day ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards test session at Daytona International Speedway, 16 year old Kaz Grala made a good impression on the Lira Motorsports team he was driving for.
A last minute addition to the test session for the Port, Orange, FL based team, Grala flew in from Boston for the day to take advantage of the opportunity to drive on the 2.5 mile high-banked superspeedway.
The Lira family, friends with the Grala family, invited Kaz to the session less then a week before when they saw each other at the IMSA Roar Before the Rolex 24.
“Kaz had a great rookie season last year in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series, so when we ran into him at the Roar, we thought this would be a great opportunity for both our team and Kaz himself to see what he could do at Daytona.” said Amanda Lira, Lira Motorsports team manager.
“This is an amazing opportunity for me,” Kaz said before the test. “They said all I had to do was ‘hop in the car.’ I’m really grateful for this. To be 16 and be able to run laps at Daytona is an
unbelievable learning experience.”
Kaz has been tagged by the media as a driver to watch this year. After finishing seventh in the K&N driver points standings last year as the series youngest full time competitor, he is set to return to the series this year with Ben Kennedy Racing.
In the ARCA test, Kaz worked very well with the Lira Motorsports ARCA crew, providing valuable feedback after every few laps on the track. Towards the end of the session, he was able to gain some valuable drafting experience running in a two-car tandem as well as a multi-car
pack.
When the day was done, Kaz had logged a total of 86 laps on the track, which tied with one other driver for the most laps run.
“Kaz impressed us with his consistency and precision behind the wheel,” commented Lira Motorsports team owner Carlos Lira. “We would love to have him in one of our cars for some ARCA Series races later this year.”
For now, Grala’s focus is on the K&N Series opener, set for Feb. 15 at New Smyrna Speedway. Kaz has raced New Smyrna Speedway twice, a Super Late Model race and the K&N race there last year.
“I’m so excited about kicking my season off with Ben Kennedy Racing at New Smyrna. They have years of experience, and being based in Daytona Beach, this is a local track for them. I’m confident we’ll have a fast car, and I can’t wait to get started!”
