This Week in Motorsports: September 30 – October 6, 2019
· MENCS/NXS/NKNPSE: Dover International Speedway (Dover, Delaware) – October 4-6
· ARCA: Lucas Oil Raceway (Clermont, Indiana) – October 5
· POWRi: Jacksonville Speedway (Jacksonville, Illinois) – October 4-5
PLANO, Texas (October 2, 2019) – Three NASCAR series take on the ‘Monster Mile’ in Dover, Delaware, the ARCA Menards Series heads back to Indiana while POWRi begins its final month of the season in Illinois.
NASCAR National Series – MENCS | NXS
Top Three in the Playoffs… With one round down in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, Toyota drivers Kyle Busch, Martin Truex Jr. and Denny Hamlin have moved on to the Round of 12 as the top-three seeded drivers, respectively. Together, they have a combined 14 wins this season and five career-Cup Series victories at Dover International Speedway. Additionally, Hamlin will make his 500th career-Cup Series start this weekend, which is something Busch and Truex have also achieved in the 2019 Cup Series season.
Back in the Spring… Truex led 132 laps (of 400) for his second win of the season and second win for Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) in the first race at Dover earlier this year. Truex has gone on to earn four more victories as he leads the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS) with six wins this season. Truex also scored his first of 25 career-Cup Series wins at the ‘Monster Mile’ in 2007.
Looking for Three-in-a-Row… Christopher Bell is looking for his third straight Xfinity Series win at Dover. Bell, who has an average finish of second at the track, won this event last season after starting from the front row and leading over half the race. In the spring, Bell led 44 of the final 45 laps to claim the win.
First for Brandon Jones… Last season, Brandon Jones earned his first career pole for Toyota at the spring event at the ‘Monster Mile.’ He went on to lead the first 22 laps and scored a top-10 finish. Jones is hoping for another strong Dover run as he looks to gain 11 points and move inside the Xfinity Series Playoff cut line.
Burton in the Xfinity Field Again… Harrison Burton is making his third consecutive NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) start, and this time he is headed to one of his best tracks. Burton has earned top-five finishes in his last two Truck Series starts at Dover International Speedway, including a career-best-tying third place result earlier this year.
Regional Stock Car Racing – NKNPSE | ARCA
Last Race of the Season… The NASCAR K&N Pro Series East heads to its final race of the season at Dover International Speedway. Toyota has won seven of the 11 races run thus far with Derek Kraus and Chase Cabre leading with two wins each. Additionally, Tanner Gray, Ty Gibbs and Max McLaughlin have each scored their first career K&N Pro Series East wins this season.
Last Year at the Monster Mile… Last season at Dover, Toyota claimed 10 of the top 11 finishes as Ruben Garcia Jr. earned his second career win, while current Truck Series Playoff contender Tyler Ankrum clinched the championship.
Championship Race Tight… In the ARCA Menards Series, the championship race between Toyota drivers and Venturini Motorsports teammates Michael Self and Christian Eckes is down to just five points heading into the final two races of the season. One year ago, Eckes was dominate at Lucas Oil Raceway as he started from the pole and led 171 (of 200) laps before driving to victory.
Midget Car Racing – POWRi
POWRi Title Race Coming Down to the Wire… Heading into the final month of the POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget League season, the championship race has become a two-man shootout between Toyota drivers Jesse Colwell and Zach Daum. Colwell takes a 170-point lead into this weekend’s double-header at Jacksonville Speedway. The Red Bluff, California, native is a rookie in the series after earning his ride with Keith Kunz Motorsports by winning the KKM Giveback Classic last fall at Millbridge Speedway. Daum is anything but a rookie, having earned three previous POWRi titles (2013, 2014 and 2016) with Toyota.
Seavey One Win Away from Tying Record… Having recorded 10 POWRi wins this season, Logan Seavey can tie or possibly surpass Christopher Bell’s POWRi National Midget League single-season record of 11 victories at Jacksonville this weekend. Seavey won the 2017 POWRi title as well as the 2018 USAC crown. He has registered 25 national midget feature victories in his career, with 14 of those coming in 2019.
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