Max Reaves survives late restart at Flat Rock, earns second East Series victory of 2026

www.arcaracing.com August 1, 2026

FLAT ROCK, Mich. – With Saturday’s Sunbelt Rentals 150 at Flat Rock Speedway serving as the final standalone ARCA Menards Series East race of 2026, it was imperative for points leader Max Reaves to capitalize on the occasion.

One late restart nearly derailed his dominant afternoon.

Tristan McKee and reigning East Series champion Isaac Kitzmiller each took shots at Reaves during the final sprint to the finish. The speed of Reaves’ No. 18 Cook Out Toyota, along with his resolve, paid dividends as he withstood both to secure his second East Series triumph of the the season.

RELATED: Complete results from the Sunbelt Rentals 150

Although Saturday’s triumph at Flat Rock was slightly more arduous compared to his win at Flat Rock one year ago, there was never a moment in the closing laps where he doubted himself or the Joe Gibbs Racing equipment at his disposal.

“My guys brought me such a good car, so we had to win this one,” Reaves said. “I wanted to back it up from last year, but there was a lot of good competition here this year. They ran a good race. I like this track, I’m learning to like it a lot. I like these little tracks like this.”

Just like in 2025, Reaves spent most of the day one step ahead of his competition; successfully climbing from third to wrestle the lead away from polesitter Carson Brown after only a few laps.

For most of the day, the only obstacle standing in Reaves’ way was the onslaught of slower traffic. Despite a couple of close calls, Reaves navigated through the slower cars with ease and even managed to extend his advantage on long runs.

When Jeff MacZink and Blaine Donahue brought out the final caution flag of the evening inside of 20 laps to go, Reaves knew he needed to stay dialed in. McKee would be to his outside for the restart and defending East Series champion Kitzmiller started right behind him.

No punches were pulled between Reaves and McKee as soon as the green flag waved with 10 laps remaining. McKee immediately dove in behind Reaves and used his bumper to move him out of the way in Turn 3 to take the lead, only for Reaves to return the favor one lap later.

That contact enabled Kitzmiller to briefly take control of the race, but his place at the front was brief. Reaves moved Kitzmiller up coming out of Turn 4 to reassume the lead. Kitzmiller did everything possible to stay alongside Reaves, but lost his momentum after McKee rejoined the battle.

That gave Reaves enough breathing room to close out the victory. Although McKee nearly made his way back to Reaves after passing Kitzmiller, he ultimately ran out of time.

Nothing about the final 10 laps was easy for Reaves, but he knew exactly what to do with the circumstances he faced.

“That’s racing,” Reaves said. “I was making sure to stay on the outside of [Kitzmiller] because I knew we were better than him. Me staying to his outside and not tucking in behind him is what won us the race.”

Max Reaves
With his second ARCA Menards Series East victory of 2026, Max Reaves has gradually started taking control of the championship lead. (Photo: Zack Silver/ARCA Racing)

Although Kitzmiller faded to third, he departed Flat Rock firmly in the East Series championship hunt with his fifth top five in six races.

“I was going to do whatever I could do to get to Victory Lane, just fell short,” Kitzmiller said. “I messed up there on exit, got Max. Got moved into [Turn] 1, but that’s almost the only way to pass here. If you get someone loose a little bit, you can pass them, but it’s pretty hard to pass here.

“I know there’s a few things I could have done differently.”

McKee understood how important it was to find his way around Reaves and wrestle momentum back into his favor. The late-race caution gave McKee the opportunity he needed, but anticipated it would be a slugfest between himself and Reaves.

“I think everything was fair, we were all just racing except for the restarts,” McKee said. “That’s a little unacceptable I think [with Reaves] just running me up like that, slinging stuff everywhere and about hitting the wall. Everything on the track was fine, we were just beating and banging. That’s what happens when you’re on a track this small.”

Despite his win on Saturday, Reaves is by no means comfortable with his advantage in the East Series standings, especially after witnessing how strong McKee was earlier in the year. Yet the efficiency he and the JGR team showed under stress at Flat Rock on Saturday provides Reaves plenty of optimism as he seeks to give the team its their fifth East Series title in six years.

“It’s never over until it’s over,” Reaves said. “I don’t want to say anything yet, but I’m very confident in me and my guys, so we’ll see.”

Matt Kemp backed up his fourth-place run at Flat Rock from 2025 by matching that showing in Saturday’s Sunbelt Rentals 150. Rounding out the top five was Quinn Davis, who earned the best finish of her young career.

Next up for the ARCA Menards Series and the East Series is the JR&CO 150 at Iowa Speedway Friday evening, Aug. 7. The event will air live on FS1 starting at 6 p.m. CT/7 p.m. ET.