DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.: A productive week and a half of racing for 20-year-old Parker Chase will conclude Saturday afternoon in the ARCA Menards Series season-opener at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway.
Chase’s inaugural oval debut at the “World Center of Racing” will conclude a busy stretch of action for the veteran American Sports Car driver which saw the rising phenom bounce back and forth between New Smyrna (Fla.) Speedway competing in the World Series of Asphalt Championship and his first of a minimum 10 races with Venturini Motorsports aboard the No. 15 Toyota Camry in the developmental series owned by NASCAR.
Chase, the 2018 Pirelli World Challenge champion, will continue his stock car development program with Venturini Motorsports and TRD after a successful ARCA program last year and an impressive preseason test at the 2.5-mile superspeedway in January.
In practice on Thursday afternoon, Chase wheeled his No. 15 Vertical Bridge Toyota Camry around the Central Florida race track in 49.205 seconds at 182.908 miles per hour. His eclipsed time was the second-fastest of ARCA Menards Series entries entered for the 80-lap event on February 19, 2022.
On Friday, Chase maneuvered the third quickest lap in ARCA Menards Series qualifying right behind his Venturini Motorsports teammates. The Concord, N.C.-based team took three of the first five starting positions.
“We had a really good practice with all of the VMS cars working together in a draft,” explained Chase.
“The car seems good and we are just building on the work we did at the test. Our qualifying effort was very solid and I feel very comfortable that we can have a good race on Saturday and contend for the win.”
Before Chase steered his full attention to the ARCA Menards Series, the New Braunfels, Texas native has embraced a solid Pro Late Model Series tenure at the iconic New Smyrna short track which was highlighted by a sixth-place finish in night three at the half-mile oval driving for Wilson Motorsports.
“The World Series of Asphalt is one of the events that I’ve been looking forward to since we worked with Venturini Motorsports and TRD to get some more track time for my increased schedule in 2022,” said Chase.
“The Wilson Motorsports guys have put together a really good car and we improved every night that we have been on track. Our goal was to run in the top-10 and run all the laps and we have been meeting the mark on that. Undoubtedly, more experience throughout the year will help me even more.”
Following a stout performance in practice on Thursday afternoon, Chase was quietly already beginning to focus on his sixth ARCA Menards Series start and the opportunity to deliver Venturini Motorsports another historic win at the famed Daytona Beach, Fla. speedway.
Chase isn’t exactly new to the surroundings of Daytona International Speedway. He boasts prior experience in the coveted Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona and the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge.
With his prior experience in Sports Cars and his continued advancement of stock cars, Chase is confident he can continue a stretch of top-10 finishes in ARCA Menards Series which circles back to Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway last May, his debut with the potent Venturini Motorsports.
“We had a good test at Daytona in January in our No. 15 Toyota Camry and I’m looking to build on the experience gained in the five races I did in 2021,” added Chase. “This will be my first-time racing on the superspeedway oval after IMSA and Roval starts over the past seasons.
“Kevin Reed and the crew have been working hard in the winter to make sure we have everything we need to battle for wins.”
Vertical Bridge will continue its support Chase in his upcoming races at Daytona and Phoenix (Ariz.) Raceway next month and additional races to be announced.
Added Chase, “I am also very happy to have Vertical Bridge on the car for this race and for a majority of our races in ARCA in 2022 and hope we can put them in victory lane.”
In addition to Daytona and Phoenix, Chase will pilot a Venturini Motorsports Toyota Camry at a variety of race tracks in 2022, including Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Pocono (Pa.) Raceway, Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International, Kansas Speedway and Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway.
“I want to continue to develop my craft in a stock car this year,” added Chase, who also competed in two NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races for Kyle Busch Motorsports in 2021. “I am thrilled to be back with Venturini Motorsports and be a part of the TRD Driver Development program.
“I really want to build on my five races in the ARCA Menards Series and fight for wins for my team and partners this season.”
For more on Parker Chase, please visit ParkerChase.com, like him on Facebook (Parker Chase), Instagram (@parkerchase) and follow him on Twitter (@parker_chase19).
The Lucas Oil 200 driven by General Tire (80 laps | 200 miles) is the first of 20 races on the 2022 ARCA Menards Series schedule. The season-opener for the 70th consecutive ARCA season is set the following afternoon on Feb. 19 to take the green flag shortly after 1:30 p.m. The event will be televised live on FOX Sports 1 (FS1) with the Motor Racing Network (MRN) managing the radio waves. ARCARacing.com will also stream live timing and scoring throughout the entire weekend festivities.
