ARCA Menards Series: 1,500 Races By The Numbers

TOLEDO, Ohio — When the checkered flag waves to end the Dawn 150 at Mid Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio, on Friday, the ARCA Menards Series will have completed the 1,500th race in its history.

That’s 1,500 races over the span of 68 years.

Below are some numbers that highlight the rich history of the series.

ARCA Menards Series: 1,500 races by the numbers

General Tire 200 at Talladega — Zane Smith (No. 41) and Joe Graf Jr. (No. 77) race to the finish of the General Tire 200 for the ARCA Menards Series at Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, Alabama, on April 27, 2018. (Jay Alley/ARCA Racing)

0.000 – The closest margin of victory in series history, when Zane Smith edged Joe Graf Jr. at Talladega Superspeedway in 2018. The final margin was so close the scoring computer read it as a tie. The win was determined by a video replay and is estimated to have been about two inches.

1 – The race with two winners. The Aug. 28, 1971 race at the Clark County Fairgrounds was deemed to be a dead heat with both Tom Bowsher and Iggy Katona awarded the victory.

2 – The number of ARCA Menards Series championships won by NASCAR Hall of Fame member Benny Parsons — in 1968 and 1969. Parsons would go on to become the 1973 NASCAR Cup Series champion and the 1975 winner of the Daytona 500.

3 – The number of consecutive championships for both Ron Hutcherson and Dave Dayton, including a shared title in 1974, when they scored an identical points total. Hutcherson won titles from 1972-1974, and Dayton won from 1974-1976.

4 – The number of pairs of brothers who have won at least one ARCA Menards Series race: Jack and Tom Bowsher, Troy and Joe Ruttman, Darrell and Michael Waltrip, and Benny and Phil Parsons.

7 – The number of NASCAR Hall of Fame inductees who have at least one ARCA Menards Series win: Fred Lorenzen, Red Farmer, Tony Stewart, Davey Allison, Ron Hornaday Jr., Benny Parsons and Mark Martin.

8 – The number of consecutive series championships for Frank Kimmel from 2000-2007. Also the number of drivers who have been named Bounty Rookie Challenge rookie of the year and gone on to win a series championship: Benny Parsons, Dave Dayton, Scott Stovall, Lee Raymond, Bill Venturini, Frank Kimmel, Bill Baird and Chris Buescher, Also the number of drivers with nine series wins: Darel Dieringer, Tom Bowsher, Grant Adcox, Tracy Leslie, Bobby Gerhart, Ty Dillon, Michael Self and Chandler Smith.

Michael Self celebrates winning the Lucas Oil 200 Driven By General Tire in Gatorade Victory Lane for the ARCA Menards Series at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday, Feb. 8, 2020.

9 – The number of father-son combinations who have each won at least one ARCA Menards Series race: Jack and Bobby Bowsher, Bob and Brian Keselowski, Scott and Scott Lagasse Jr., Bill and Billy Venturini, Bill and Frank Kimmel, Kyle and Adam Petty, Bobby and Davey Allison, Jerry and Randy Churchill, and Tracy and Billy Leslie. Also the number of drivers with eight series wins: Jack Shanklin, Charlie Glotzbach, Dave Dayton, Davey Allison, Jimmy Horton, Jeff Purvis, Chad Blount, Justin Allgaier and Austin Theriault.

10 – The number of drivers who won both an ARCA Menards Series race and a Daytona 500: Benny Parsons, Davey Allison, Ryan Newman, Michael McDowell, Darrell Waltrip, Joey Logano, Bobby Allison, Michael Waltrip, Ernie Irvan and Trevor Bayne.

11 – The number of road courses on which the ARCA Menards Series has competed: Meadowdale International Raceway, Virginia International Raceway, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, St. Louis International Raceway, Heartland Park Topeka, the Streets of Des Moines, Watkins Glen International, New Jersey Motorsports Park, Palm Beach International Raceway, Road America and the road course at Daytona International Speedway.

Frank Kimmel celebrates winning the International Motorsports Hall of Fame 250 for the ARCA Menards Series at Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, Alabama, on May 3, 2013. (ARCA Racing)

14 – The number of drivers with multiple ARCA Menards Series championships: Iggy Katona (6), Nelson Stacy (3), Jack Bowsher (3), Benny Parsons (2), Ramo Stott (2), Ron Hutcherson (3), Dave Dayton (3), Marvin Smith (3), Bob Dotter (3), Lee Raymond (2), Bill Venturini (2), Bobby Bowsher (2), Tim Steele (3) and Frank Kimmel (10).

18 – The number of ARCA Menards Series wins by Ken Schrader, from 1990 at Maryland’s Hagerstown Speedway through 2015 at Indiana’s Salem Speedway.

24 – The number of ARCA Menards Series races run on road courses, including Friday’s Dawn 150 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. The first was at Meadowdale International Raceway, won by Fred Lorenzen, on Oct. 19, 1958.

15.9 – The winning percentage in 503 series starts for Frank Kimmel.

16 – The number of ARCA Menards Series races run on concrete: 15 at Nashville Superspeedway and one at Bristol Motor Speedway.

19 – The number of ARCA Menards Series wins for Jack Bowsher in 1965, the most by any driver in a single season.

21 – The number of ARCA Menards Series wins by both Jack Farris and Marvin Smith, tied for 10th on the all-time series win list.

23 – The number of ARCA Menards Series wins by Harold Smith, ninth on the series’ all-time win list.

23.3 – The winning percentage for Iggy Katona in 335 ARCA Menards Series starts.

24 – The number of ARCA Menards Series wins by Bob Keselowski, good for eighth on the all-time wins list.

27 – The number of ARCA Menards Series wins for Ramo Stott. The Keokuk, Iowa, native is the seventh winningest driver in series history.

34 – The number of ARCA Menards Series wins for Les Snow, the sixth winningest driver in series history.

37 – The number of different drivers who have won at least one ARCA Menards Series championship. Jim Romine was the first champion, and Bret Holmes was the most recent.

40 – The number of ARCA Menards Series races at the DuQuoin State Fair, the most for any dirt track.

41 – The number of ARCA Menards Series wins for Tim Steele, the fifth winningest driver in series history

43 – The number of ARCA Menards Series wins for Nelson Stacy, the fourth winningest driver in series history

49 – The number of ARCA Menards Series wins for Jack Bowsher through May of 1966 when he lost the all-time wins lead to Iggy Katona. Bowsher’s 49th and final win came at Daytona in 1966. Katona tied his mark with a May 1 victory at Toledo Speedway.

Hailie Deegan, driver of the No. 4 Monster Energy Ford, poses after winning Bounty Rookie of the Race honors for the Illinois Truck & Equipment Allen Crowe 100 for the ARCA Menards Series at the Springfield Mile at the Illinois State Fairgrounds in Springfield, Illinois, on Oct. 4, 2020. (Jeff Curry/ARCA Racing)

63 – The number of drivers who have been named Bounty Rookie Challenge rookie of the year, from Bill Granger in 1957 to Hailie Deegan in 2020. Harris DeVane and Dill Wittymore were named co-rookies of the year in 1995.

69 – The number of seasons for the ARCA Menards Series since 1953.

78 – The number of dirt tracks that have hosted at least one ARCA Menards Series race. The first dirt race was the series’ second ever race, at Ohio’s Canfield Speedway, on May 20, 1953, and won by that year’s champion Jim Romine.

79 – The number of ARCA Menards Series wins by Iggy Katona, the driver who held the record for most series wins from 1974-2013.

80 – The number of ARCA Menards Series wins by Frank Kimmel, the all-time leader.

106 – The number of ARCA Menards Series races run at Salem Speedway, the most of any track in series history.

179 – The number of tracks that have hosted at least one ARCA Menards Series race. The first was Dayton Speedway in Dayton, Ohio, on May 13, 1953, won by Bucky Sager. The 179th track to be added was Lebanon I-44 Speedway in Lebanon, Missouri, on Sept. 5, 2020. Sam Mayer won the race.

273 – The number of top-five finishes for Frank Kimmel, the all-time series leader.

344 – The number of drivers who have at least one ARCA Menards Series win. Bucky Sager was the first to win at Dayton in 1953. The most recent first-time winner was Corey Heim in the 2020 season finale at Kansas Speedway.

362 – The number of ARCA Menards Series starts by independent driver Brad Smith before he earned his first top-10 finish last September at Winchester Speedway. Smith’s career started in 1988.

374 – The number of top-10 finishes for Frank Kimmel in the ARCA Menards Series.

500 – The 500th race in ARCA Menards Series history was held at Eldora Speedway on Aug. 11, 1968, won by Benny Parsons.

503 – The number of ARCA Menards Series starts for Frank Kimmel, the leader in all-time series starts.

750 – The 750th race in ARCA Menards Series history was held at Flat Rock Speedway on June 16, 1984, part of a weekend doubleheader that also featured a race the previous night at Spartan Speedway in Lansing, Michigan. Lee Raymond won at Spartan with Bill Venturini notching the win the next night at Flat Rock.

1,000 – The 1,000th race in series history was at Pocono Raceway on July 19, 1997, and was won by Tim Steele.

1,110 – The number of ARCA Menards Series races contested on asphalt oval tracks.

1,250 – The 1,250th race in series history was held at Chicagoland Speedway on Sept. 6, 2008, and was won by Scott Lagasse Jr.

1,476 – The number of ARCA Menards Series races run on oval tracks.

24,860 – The number of days between the first ARCA Menards Series race at Dayton Speedway on May 13, 1953, and the 1,500th race, the Dawn 150 on June 4, 2021 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.