Jesse Love, driver of the #20 JBL Toyota, looks on before the Bristol 200 at Bristol Motor Speedway for the ARCA Menards Series in Bristol, Tennessee on September 14, 2023. (Jacob Kupferman/ARCA Racing)
(Photo: Jacob Kupferman/ARCA Racing)

NOTEBOOK: A championship awaits Jesse Love at Salem Speedway

www.arcaracing.com September 28, 2023

All Jesse Love needs to clinch the 2023 ARCA Menards Series championship is to start Saturday’s Atlas 200 at Salem Speedway.

The title fight coming down to a routine task underlines the efficiency Love has displayed throughout his first full-time campaign in the ARCA Menards Series. He enters Salem with a commanding, 131-point advantage over his closest competition in Andres Perez.

Despite the dominance, the path to the championship for Love initially required him to overcome some early-season adversity.

After finishing seventh in the season-opener at Daytona International Speedway, Love found himself in a hole at Phoenix Raceway. While battling for the lead, Love’s teammate Conner Jones collided with him heading into Turn 1, knocking Love out of the race and relegating him to 27th.

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Once Love took his first victory of 2023 at Talladega Superspeedway, he never lost control of the ARCA Menards Series championship.

Talladega was the first of nine victories Love has accumulated in 2023 to date. He turned the Talladega triumph into a three-race win streak before following it up with four consecutive victories during the summer, which only bolstered his advantage in the point standings.

Love will chase his 10th victory of 2023 at Salem this weekend, a facility in which he has enjoyed plenty of past success. The first race for Love at Salem in 2021 saw him take home a checkered flag, while his next appearance the next year ended in a second-place run to Sammy Smith.

With the ARCA Menards Series title essentially wrapped up for Love, he heads into the Atlas 200 at Salem on Saturday with minimal stress as he pursues another trophy, with the green flag waving at 7:30 p.m. ET.

William Sawalich, driver of the #18 Starkey-Sound Gear Toyota, celebrates after winning the Bristol 200 at Bristol Motor Speedway for the ARCA Menards Series in Bristol, Tennessee on September 14, 2023. (Jacob Kupferman/ARCA Racing)
William Sawalich heads to Salem Speedway fresh off an ARCA Menards Series East championship. (Photo: Jacob Kupferman/ARCA Racing)

East Series champion William Sawalich regroups for Salem

William Sawalich obtained one of the most notable accomplishments of his young career by securing the ARCA Menards Series East title at Bristol Motor Speedway.

The stellar campaign for Sawalich in the East Series saw him tally four victories and win the championship by 53 points over Luke Fenhaus. That efficiency carried over into the main ARCA division, with Sawalich earning his maiden victory at Berlin Raceway.

Now with three ARCA Menards Series wins on his resume, two of which came in combination events at the Milwaukee Mile and Bristol, Sawalich has plenty of confidence as he prepares for the Atlas 200 at Salem Speedway.

The No. 18 was untouchable the last time the ARCA Menards Series visited Salem in 2022. Sammy Smith started on pole and led all 200 laps that day, besting runner-up finisher Jesse Love by 2.726 seconds.

Smith’s triumph that day was the second in a three-race win streak to close out 2023, a feat Sawalich looks to duplicate following his victory at Bristol

Brent Crews, driver of the #25 Mobil 1 Toyota, after setting the fastest lap in practice for the Dutch Boy 100 for the ARCA Menards Series at the Illinois State Fairgrounds in Springfield, Illinois on August 20, 2023. (Jeff Le/ARCA Racing)
In three ARCA Menards Series starts, Brent Crews has yet to record a finish outside the Top 3. (Photo: Jeff Le/ARCA Racing)

Brent Crews back with Venturini Motorsports

Brent Crews’ talent was well-known long before he took part in his first ARCA Menards Series event.

The excellent race craft Crews displayed in dirt midgets easily carried over onto the ARCA platform. In his first three starts, Crews already has a dominant victory on his resume at the Springfield Mile while also recording podium finishes at Watkins Glen International and the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds.

Saturday’s Atlas 200 at Salem Speedway serves as the next step of Crews’ development with Venturni Motorsports. Although Crews has previous raced on paved ovals, it will be the first short track event for him in the heavier ARCA cars.

Crews’ primary objective with Venturini Motorsports was to lean on the program’s superb support system and gain as much experience as possible. Having already found his way to Victory Lane, Crews is in a great position to obtain another victory before 2023 concludes.

The high banks of Salem will provide Crews plenty of challenges, but he is expected to be among the frontrunners at the end of the Atlas 200.

NOTES:

  • The last time Will Kimmel ran in the ARCA Menards Series, he scored an impressive third-place finish at the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds. Having scored two consecutive fourth place runs at Salem Speedway, Kimmel looks to pull off the upset in the Atlas 200 and score his first ARCA Menards Series win.
  • Both of Brayton Laster’s Top 10 finishes in the ARCA Menards Series have come while driving for Rise Motorsports at the two dirt track events. Laster is back with Rise Motorsports for Salem Speedway on Saturday evening with the goal of improving upon his career-best performance.
  • Making his ARCA Menards Series debut at Salem Speedway is Conner Popplewell, who will drive the No. 95 for MAN Motorsports. A local Salem regular, Popplewell brings plenty of Street Stock experience to the ARCA platform and is looking to impress the home crowd on Saturday night.