PIT BOX: The high banks of Salem Speedway are the next challenge for ARCA Menards Series contenders

One of the longest tenured tracks on the ARCA Menards Series schedule, Salem Speedway, awaits competitors this Saturday night for the running of the Kentuckiana Ford Dealers ARCA 200 (8 p.m. ET on FS1).

Saturday’s race will mark the 111th event in series history for the legendary high banked oval located in Salem, Indiana. During the 1960s, Salem became a staple on the ARCA Menards Series calendar by hosting two or three events every season. After briefly leaving Salem at the end of the 1970s, the ARCA Menards Series returned to the historic facility in 1987 and has continued to contest at least one event there nearly every year since.

Boasting high speeds and 33 degrees of banking in the corners, many drivers have attempted to conquer Salem’s arduous layout across several different disciplines, with only a select few succeeding. The list of ARCA Menards Series winners there includes names like Jack Bowsher, Iggy Katona, Bobby Allison, Tim Steele, Frank Kimmel, Justin Allgaier and Christopher Bell.

With only three races remaining on the 2025 ARCA Menards Series schedule, competitors look to take advantage of one of the remaining opportunities to secure a checkered flag. Patience around Salem’s lofty turns will be imperative if drivers wish to join the prestigious list of names that have emerged victorious at the 0.555-mile oval.

Ticket information about the Kentuckiana Ford Dealers ARCA 200 at Salem Speedway can be found here. Below is everything to know ahead of the 18^th national race of the year.

Kentuckiana Ford Dealers ARCA 200 at Salem Speedway

The most recent ARCA Menards Series visit to Salem Speedway last year saw William Sawalich lead every lap from the pole in Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 18 Toyota.

Max Reaves will look to pick up from where Sawalich left off in his first visit to Salem this weekend. In limited appearances with Gibbs this year, Reaves has amassed five victories between the national series and ARCA Menards Series East, so Reaves brings plenty of momentum and confidence to Salem’s high banks.

The organization Gibbs has had to battle at Salem over the past several years is Venturini Motorsports, which possesses nearly a dozen victories at the track. Salem was the site of Billy Venturini’s lone ARCA Menards Series victory in 2006, so the organization looks to take home one last Salem checkered flag in their final visit there.

Venturini’s driver lineup for Salem comprises of Leland Honeyman, Isabella Robusto and 2014 ARCA Menards Series champion Mason Mitchell.

Brenden Queen, who holds a sizable 50-point advantage in the ARCA Menards Series standings, looks to disrupt the dominance Gibbs and Venturini have enjoyed at Salem with Pinnacle Racing Group. A victory on Saturday would be Queen’s seventh of 2025 and his fourth on a track one-mile in length or shorter.

Other names set to compete at Salem this weekend include Andrew Patterson, Conner Popplewell, Jason Kitzmiller, Ed Pompa and Brayton Laster.

The complete entry list for the Kentuckiana Ford Dealers ARCA 200 at Salem Speedway will be released later this week.

RACING REFERENCE:

• Previous ARCA Menards Series races at Salem
• ARCA Menards Series drivers at Salem

RACE FACTS:

CREW CHIEF HANDOUT: Field limited to 28 starters plus provisionals. This event will be run under the 2025 ARCA Menards Series rules, procedures, regulations and specifications.

QUALIFYING: Two consecutive laps qualifying. No adjustments or repairs may be made on car after taking the green flag at Start/Finish line. All cars must make a qualifying attempt, and all drivers must practice before they can qualify (EIRI).

RACE PIT STOP: Break pit stop procedure. Breaks at or near the conclusion of laps 75 and 125. No adding ore moving tires to or from pit box once race has started.

TIRE ALLOTMENT: The maximum tire use at track (total ‘from home’ plus purchased at track) for the event is 14.