ARCA Menards Series East
The Race: Music City 150
The Place: Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville, Nashville, Tenn.
The Date: Saturday, May 11, 2024
The Time: 9:15 pm ET / 8:15 pm CT
TV: Live, FloRacing
Distance: 150 Laps / 89.4 Miles
- The Music City 150 is the third race of the 2024 ARCA Menards Series East season and the sixth time the series has raced at Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville in its history. It will be the 597th race in series history dating back to the series’ inception in 1987.
- Previous ARCA Menards Series East winners at Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville include Rogelio Lopez (2007), Matt Kobyluck (2008), Sammy Smith (2021, 2022), and Luke Fenhaus (2023).
- Rogelio Lopez and Luke Fenhaus each earned their first career ARCA Menards Series East victory at Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville.
- Luke Fenhaus led only the final two laps en route to victory in 2023. He took the lead on an overtime restart to beat eventual ARCA Menards Series East champion William Sawalich to the finish line by 0.327 seconds. Fenhaus’ 2 laps led are the fewest by any East winner at Nashville; Matt Kobyluck led just 11 laps en route to the victory in 2008.
- Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville hosted 42 NASCAR Cup Series races from 1958 through 1984, nine NASCAR Xfinity Series races from 1984 to 2000, and five NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series races from 1995 through 2000. The ARCA Menards Series raced at Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville 29 times from 1959 to 2019.
- The East races in 2007 and 2008 were 150 laps; the races in 2021 through 2023 were 200 laps. The 2024 race returns to the event’s original 150-lap race distance.
- Gio Ruggiero, who won the season opener at Five Flags Speedway, enters the Music City 150 with a three-point lead in the ARCA Menards Series East championship standings over Dover Motor Speedway winner Connor Zilisch. Reigning series champion William Sawalich is third, 15 points out of the lead.
- Connor Zilisch enters the Music City 150 off his first career ARCA Menards Series East victory at Dover Motor Speedway. That race was a combination race with the ARCA Menards Series; his team, Pinnacle Racing Group, won its second consecutive ARCA Menards Series race last Saturday with Connor Mosack driving at Kansas Speedway. Pinnacle Racing Group is also the team Luke Fenhaus was driving for when he won at Nashville in 2023.
- Isabella Robusto will make her ARCA Menards Series East debut driving for Venturini Motorsports; she finished sixth in her ARCA Menards Series West debut at Phoenix Raceway in March.
- Two-time ARCA Menards Series West winner Tanner Reif will make his ARCA Menards Series East debut driving for Cook Racing Technologies. Reif won at Irwindale Speedway and the 1000th West race in series history at Evergreen Speedway in 2022.
- Local Pro Late Model star Hunter Wright will make his second ARCA Menards Series East start driving for team owner Mark Noble. He finished fifth in his series debut at Five Flags Speedway. Noble will field a second car for Andrew Patterson, who will be making his East debut.
- The 18-car entry list represents the most cars entered for an ARCA Menards Series East race at Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville since 28 were entered in 2008.
- William Sawalich holds the ARCA Menards Series East track qualifying record at Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville, set in 2023, at 19.414 seconds/110.512 miles per hour.
- Sammy Smith set the ARCA Menards Series East track race record in 2021, winning a 200-lap race with an average speed of 91.438 miles per hour.
- There will be a 5-minute break at or near lap 75. Teams will have the opportunity to change tires, add fuel, and make adjustments and/or repairs.
- The record for most lead changes in an ARCA Menards Series East race at Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville is 12 set in 2008. The fewest number of lead changes is one set in 2022.
- The record for the most cautions in an ARCA Menards Series East race at Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville is 8; the record for most laps under caution is 44 in 2007. The fewest cautions is 3 set in 2021 and matched in 2022; the fewest laps run under caution, also set in 2021, is 12.
- Only one ARCA Menards Series East race at Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville has gone into overtime, 2023, won by Luke Fenhaus.
- Should the race need to be extended into overtime, there will be unlimited attempts at a two-lap “green-white-checkered” finish. Should the caution be displayed after the white flag, there will be unlimited attempts at a one-lap “green and white together” finish.
