Taylor Gray, the driver of the No. 17 Ford Performance Ford, wins the General Tire Pole Award ahead of the NAPA Auto Parts 125 presented by CashInTheCan.com for the ARCA Menards West Series in Roseville, California on October 23, 2020. (Michael Urakami/ARCA Racing)
Taylor Gray, the driver of the No. 17 Ford Performance Ford, wins the General Tire Pole Award ahead of the NAPA Auto Parts 125 presented by CashInTheCan.com for the ARCA Menards West Series in Roseville, California on October 23, 2020. (Michael Urakami/ARCA Racing)

QUALIFYING: Tiebreaker Gives Taylor Gray General Tire Pole At All American

www.arcaracing.com October 23, 2020

ROSEVILLE, Calif. — Taylor Gray entered Friday night’s NAPA Auto Parts 125 presented by CashInTheCan.com at All American Speedway with two prior ARCA Menards Series West starts in 2020.

And those two starts are the reason the 15-year-old from Artesia, New Mexico, won the General Tire Pole Award for the race in Roseville, California.

Gray in his No. 17 Ford Performance Ford posted a top lap time of 13.904 seconds (86.220 mph) during Friday’s hour-long practice/qualifying session on the 0.333-mile oval. Yet so did Mason Diaz in his No. 25 Solid Rock Carrier Toyota — literally the exact same time and speed.

Gray earned the pole for Friday night’s race (7 p.m. PT / 10 p.m. ET on TrackPass) by virtue of ARCA Menards Series West points; he accumulated 73 when he ran a West doubleheader at Utah Motorsports Campus in June. Diaz is making his first ARCA Menards Series West start of the season Friday and has no series points.

RELATED: Complete qualifying results at All American

Gray has no experience at All American Speedway, where the West Series will run Friday night before heading to Kern County Raceway Park in Bakersfield, California, for Sunday’s NAPA ENEOS 125 presented by the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame.

“My spotter, Brandon McReynolds, has raced at both of these tracks in the past, so he’s been a big help coaching me and telling me what to expect from each track,” said Gray this week. “It’s nice to have someone in the spotter’s stand who knows the tracks and can help me navigate my first races there.”

Gio Scelzi (13.904 seconds; 86.133 mph), Jack Wood (13.918 seconds; 86.028 mph) and Trevor Huddleston (13.937 seconds; 86.016 mph) rounded out the top five in qualifying.

Blaine Perkins enters Friday night’s race, the ninth of 11 on the ARCA Menards Series West schedule, 16 points behind leader Jesse Love in the championship standings. Perkins qualified sixth, just ahead of Love in seventh.

Gracie Trotter, Todd Souza and Holley Hollan rounded out the top 10 in qualifying.

Friday night’s NAPA Auto Parts 125 presented by CashInTheCan.com at All American Speedway is scheduled to take the green flag at 7:05 p.m. PT / 10 p.m. ET and can be viewed live on TrackPass.

After Friday night’s race, the series will head to Kern County Raceway Park for Sunday’s second leg of the weekend doubleheader. That race also will air live on TrackPass with a start time of 2 p.m. PT / 5 p.m. ET.