CHARLOTTE, N.C. (Aug. 1, 2023) – Since scoring his second runner-up result in just his fourth ARCA Menards Series start of the season two weeks ago at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway, Connor Mosack has been eyeing his next opportunity to improve that finishing position by one.
The Henry Ford Health 200 Friday at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn is that opportunity, with Mosack piloting the No. 18 Mobil 1 Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing. It will be his second ARCA start at Michigan, with his first effort coming two years ago.
“Michigan was really the first big oval I’d been to, but despite being there for the first time, I felt like we had natural speed right off the truck,” Mosack said. “I remember going down the backstretch at around 190 mph – that was the first time I had been anywhere near that speed. But once I got a few more laps and kind of settled in, the car felt good. Unfortunately, we had a problem with the fuel pressure in the race, so we really didn’t get to race.
“I feel like that’s going to hurt me a little bit with the lack of experience racing there, but I know we’re going to have speed in our Mobil 1 Toyota. So, qualifying up front in clean air should allow us to stay up front and have a good race, and it all starts with qualifying.”
Mosack has qualified fifth or better in his last six ARCA starts, a streak that dates back to last August at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International when he qualified third. The Henry Ford Health 200 will be Mosack’s 18th career ARCA start, but just his fifth of 2023.
The 24-year-old from Charlotte, North Carolina, is making the most of his limited ARCA schedule. Mosack opened the year with a strong second-place drive in the season-opener at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway and has gone on to score finishes of fourth, ninth and second.
“I feel like we’ve done everything in ARCA but win, and I’ve got another really good opportunity this weekend at Michigan with Joe Gibbs Racing,” Mosack said. “Just going to the shop and seeing all the resources they have – the technology, the engineering, the people – it makes a huge difference when you get to the racetrack. Matt Ross is a great crew chief and I really enjoy working with him, and then all of the sim time we get with Toyota is incredibly helpful.”
With the backing of Joe Gibbs Racing and the strength of a second-place finish in his last ARCA outing, Mosack brings momentum to a track that rewards momentum.
“Momentum is everything at Michigan, and it’s the kind of track where you have to slow down to go faster,” said Mosack about the sweeping, two-mile oval. “If you try to drive the car way off into the corner, eventually when the tires wear out, you’re going to have to get out of the gas and then the car’s going to slide way up the track because you’re going too fast for the grip you have. Then it takes you a long time to get back to the gas and you have no momentum going down the straightaway.
“You’re better off lifting early on corner entry to get the car settled down. Then you can be back to wide open before the center of the corner. That’ll allow you to get wound up so much faster and you’ll be able carry all that speed down the straightaway.”
With his limited experience at Michigan, Mosack is leaning on his time at the 1.5-mile Kansas Speedway in Kansas City. While a half-mile shorter than Michigan, it has a similar D-shaped layout, and it’s one of the few tracks in ARCA where Mosack has multiple starts.
“At Kansas, you kind of start at the bottom of the racetrack and work your way up to the fence,” Mosack said. “But at Michigan, you probably won’t get all the way up to the wall, but hopefully you’ll move up to at least the second or third lane.
“They’re both high-momentum tracks, so just being able to move around and work for clean air on the car, and being able to keep your speed up in the corner, makes them similar.”
The biggest difference between two tracks is speed. That extra half-mile that Michigan has over Kansas is worth 10 mph, with qualifying speeds at Michigan edging up to 185 mph compared to Kansas’ 175 mph.
“There wasn’t any fear or worry about going fast,” said Mosack about the speed he first encountered when he made his Michigan debut in 2021. “You’re definitely excited and your adrenaline’s going, so it’s just getting used to that.
“You know the car’s driving good, it’s in the track, you’re not going to spin out, you’re not out of control or anything like that. Once you get a few laps and settle in and know what it’s going to feel like, then everything gets a little more comfortable.”
Mosack’s Friday begins at 1:30 p.m. EDT with a 45-minute ARCA practice session followed by ARCA qualifying at 2:30 p.m. The Henry Ford Health 200 gets underway at 6 p.m. with live coverage on FS1 and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
