ARCA Menards rewind: Takeaways from Talladega Superspeedway

www.arcaracing.com April 25, 2022

The ARCA Menards Series returned to action Saturday afternoon at Talladega Superspeedway for the running of the General Tire 200, the 60th visit by the series to the legendary, 2.66-mile superspeedway.

In typical Talladega fashion, the ending to the race was unpredictable. Just when it appeared Venturini Motorsports driver Corey Heim was going to win another superspeedway race, Rev Racing’s Nick Sanchez swooped in and stole the checkered flag at the last possible moment.

COMPLETE RESULTS: General Tire 200 at Talladega

A daring, three-wide move moments before the final caution flag of the race proved to be the key moment for Sanchez, who split Heim and Bret Holmes to take the lead mere seconds before the caution flag waved and the race was declared over.

Below are the key takeaways from Saturday’s General Tire 200, beginning with Sanchez’s second ARCA Menards Series victory.

A big win for Nick Sanchez

Sanchez found himself at the right place at the right time at the end of the General Tire 200.

With the scheduled start of the NASCAR Xfinity Series race looming, event officials declared prior to a restart with 13 laps left that the next flag – either caution or checkered – would end the race.

A few laps after the restart, Sanchez was third in the outside line when Daniel Dye attempted to dive low in front of race leader Heim on the bottom, resulting in Dye spinning off the nose of Heim’s No. 20 Toyota.

Sanchez ultimately split Bret Holmes and Heim to take the lead just as the caution flag waved to end the race.

Timing, as they say, is everything.

The victory is Sanchez’s second in ARCA Menards Series competition following his maiden win in the 2021 season finale at Kansas Speedway. In his two ARCA victories to date, Sanchez has led a total of three laps. He led two in his victory at Kansas last year and one on Saturday at Talladega.

The triumph moved Sanchez to third in the ARCA Menards Series standings, four points behind Rev Racing teammate and current championship leader Rajah Caruth.

Rajah Caruth leads first laps, takes ARCA point lead

For the first time in his young career, Rajah Caruth found himself at the front of an ARCA Menards Series field Saturday at Talladega Superspeedway.

Caruth saw an opening with 19 laps left and moved from the top to the bottom and used a push from Daniel Dye to take the lead from Drew Dollar.

One lap later, down the backstretch, Caruth narrowly avoided disaster as he moved down to block a move by Dye, who was attempting to take the lead. Caruth briefly got sideways but kept his car under control and held on to the lead.

His save earned him the Reese’s Sweet Move of the Race at Talladega.

Caruth ended up leading six laps but ultimately finished sixth after losing the lead on what turned out to be the final restart.

“For the last restart, I had picked the top to do the teammate restart with Daniel (Dye) and get the bottom,” Caruth said. “I had picked it and then into (turn) three coming to green the tower says the next flag ends the race. Had they said that before we chose then I wouldn’t have picked the top. That just changed the outcome of the race.”

Despite missing out on his first ARCA victory, Caruth still left Talladega as the championship leader following Dye’s spin that brought out the final caution flag. He leads the standings by one point ahead of Dye as the series ventures to Kansas Speedway on May 14 for the Dutch Boy 150.

Drew Dollar (18) and Parker Chase (15) at the front of the ARCA Menards Series field during the General Tire 200 at Talladega Superspeedway on April 23, 2022. (Dustin Chambers/ARCA Racing)
Drew Dollar (18) and Parker Chase (15) at the front of the ARCA Menards Series field during the General Tire 200 at Talladega Superspeedway on April 23, 2022. (Dustin Chambers/ARCA Racing)

Drew Dollar dominates but comes up short

There was no one better than Kyle Busch Motorsports’ Drew Dollar during the General Tire 200.

Dollar started from the pole based on owner points from the 2021 season and led early and often, amassing a total of 50 laps led during his second ARCA start of the season.

However, as is often the case at Talladega, the driver with the best car didn’t win the race.

Dollar lost the lead to Caruth on Lap 58 and was unable to get it back before the race was ended prematurely 10 laps later. He was scored seventh at the finish, a result that doesn’t tell the full story of what was otherwise a strong day for the 21-year-old from Atlanta, Georgia.

Following Saturday’s ARCA event, Dollar also competed in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Talladega, starting ninth and finishing 13th for Joe Gibbs Racing.

NOTES:

  • Alabama driver Bret Holmes got closer than he’s ever been to victory at his home track on Saturday, scoring a runner-up result in his No. 23 Golden Eagle Syrup Chevrolet. His previous best finish at Talladega was third in 2020.
  • Nick Sanchez’s victory Saturday made him the 42nd different driver to win an ARCA race at Talladega.
  • Ryan Huff’s eighth-place finish matched a career best for the driver from Williamsburg, Virginia. He previously finished eighth at Kentucky Speedway in 2020.
  • Max Gutiérrez’s 10th-place finish was his first top-10 result in the ARCA Menards Series in seven starts dating back to 2020.
  • The General Tire 200 was slowed by six caution flags for 29 laps and featured four leaders and seven lead changes.
  • Scott Melton, who suffered a compound fracture in his left leg in a crash Saturday in the General Tire 200, has undergone one surgery and is slated to undergo a second to repair his injured leg, he announced on social media.