NOTEBOOK: Dean Thompson looks to join elite list of winners at Venturini Motorsports

Venturini Motorsports will have a new face behind the wheel of one of their four Toyotas during Saturday’s Dawn 150 at Kansas Speedway.

Dean Thompson, who currently competes full-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series for TRICON Garage, will pilot the No. 25 Thompson Pipe Group Toyota in his first ARCA Menards Series start since finishing eighth with Niece Motorsports at the same track in 2021.

With Venturini having already found Victory Lane four times this year across the ARCA platform with Jesse Love, Jake Finch and Sean Hingorani, Thompson has every reason to believe he will be amongst the contenders by the end of the Dawn 150.

“I’ve got a pretty good idea on how the ARCA car is going to drive [at Kansas],” Thompson said. “This will be my fourth time racing there and I think we’re going to be pretty good. Venturini has already won a ton of races this year, so I’m pretty excited.”

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Thompson enters the Dawn 150 with momentum on his side, as he is fresh off winning a Late Model Stock Car race at Tri-County Speedway last Saturday with Lee Faulk Racing.

Dean Thompson first broke into ARCA by making seven West Series starts in 2021. His best finish was a second at Irwindale Speedway. (Photo: Meg Oliphant/ARCA Racing)

The brief detour through the Appalachian Mountains allowed Thompson to get reconnected with his roots of racing Pro and Super Late Models around the West Coast before earning an opportunity to compete in the ARCA Menards Series West in 2021.

More than two years have passed since his first ARCA Menards Series West race and Thompson now finds himself a part of the broad Toyota developmental pipeline. Being able to lean on so many prominent figures from Toyota has already started to benefit Thompson with several strong runs in his first season with TRICON.

With ARCA cars being similar to the Trucks in terms of aerodynamics and horsepower, Thompson believes the Dawn 150 will provide him all the necessary experience to finally earn his first Truck Series top-10. He also hopes to precede that milestone by winning for Venturini.

Thompson considers it a privilege to drive for an organization that has mentored drivers like Joey Logano, Erik Jones, Alex Bowman, Christopher Bell, Todd Gilliland, and many others. He wants nothing more than to add his name to Venturini’s storied legacy of efficiency.

“It’d be pretty crazy to win [for Venturini],” Thompson said. “I won in my first start with Lee Faulk, so it’d be pretty cool to do the same with a different team. A win would mean a lot for my family because we’ve worked so hard to get to this point.

This is a big opportunity with the best team in ARCA, so it would mean a ton to win with them.”

Thompson looks to lead the Venturini brigade to the checkered flag in Saturday’s Dawn 150. The race will get going at 2 p.m. ET with FS1 providing coverage.

Cody Coughlin looks to build momentum with his family-owned team after making two ARCA Menards Series starts in 2022. (Nic Antaya/ARCA Racing)

Cody Coughlin making first ARCA start of 2023

Saturday’s Dawn 150 at Kansas Speedway will see Cody Coughlin return to the ARCA Menards Series with his family-owned operation.

Coughlin made two appearances on the ARCA platform during the 2022 season. He earned an eighth-place finish during his first race at Michigan International Speedway, but a fuel pump issue at Kansas ended another solid outing prematurely and forced him to settle for 15^th.

Those starts were Coughlin’s first in ARCA since 2015. He had previously competed in 17 events for Venturini Motorsports, tallying five top-five finishes before spending three years in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series with Kyle Busch Motorsports, ThorSport Racing and GMS Racing.

During the past few years, Coughlin has found success in short track racing, having won in the ASA/CRA Super Series and JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour. Now the veteran racer is tackling big tracks again with the goal of carrying over the short track success into the main ARCA division.

Coughlin will have his first opportunity to build momentum with his own team this weekend as he looks to improve upon a personal best finish of fourth at Kansas, which he obtained with Venturini in 2014.

After finishing seventh at Talladega Superspeedway with Joe Gibbs Racing, Taylor Gray is back with TRICON Garage for Saturday’s Dawn 150 at Kansas Speedway. (Photo: Jacob Kupferman/ARCA Racing)

Taylor Gray back with TRICON Garage for Dawn 150.

Taylor Gray made his first ARCA Menards Series start away from the TRICON Garage stable at Talladega Superspeedway when he climbed into the iconic No. 18 for Joe Gibbs Racing.

He started from the pole based on the rule book, but a pre-race penalty for unapproved adjustments meant Gray never obtained the track position he needed. He found himself in the lead pack during the closing stages of the race, but could only make his way up to seventh when the checkered flag waved.

Gray is now back in his familiar No. 17 with TRICON Garage for Saturday’s Dawn 150 at Kansas Speedway. The 18-year-old prospect is coming off a career year with the organization after winning five races across the ARCA platform during the 2022 season.

Not only is Gray looking to earn his second victory with TRICON Garage at an oval track larger than a mile in length, but he also hopes to gain valuable experience ahead of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race later in the afternoon so he can build momentum for a potential playoff push.

Gray will be among the favorites for the Dawn 150 on Saturday, but will have to fend off a strong field of cars that includes the No. 18 he drove in the most recent ARCA race at Talladega, which will be driven by Connor Mosack.

OTHER NOTES:

Sean Corr is set to make an infrequent appearance away from the superspeedways at Kansas Speedway this weekend, which will be his first start at the track since 2011. The 2023 season has been an efficient one for Corr so far, with top-five finishes at Daytona International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway.
Jason Kitzmiller’s day at Talladega ended abruptly when a transmission issue on a restart triggered a multi-car pileup. Kitzmiller will look to rebound Saturday in the Dawn 150 at Kansas, which will be his second appearance at the track since finishing 11^th there in 2020.
Andy Jankowiak has seen two potential strong finishes at Daytona and Talladega get derailed due to circumstances beyond of his control. The veteran Modified racer is shifting focus to his team’s intermediate program with the goal of finishing strong in the Dawn 150 at Kansas.
Scott Melton did not get a chance to run the first ARCA Menards Series race at Kansas last year after sustaining a compound fracture in his left leg after a crash at Talladega. Fresh off a career-best eighth-place run at Talladega two weeks ago, Melton has momentum on his side as he searches for his second-straight top-10.