Ty Fredrickson, driver of the #25 Nitro Motorsports Toyota, looks on during the Shore Lunch 250 presented by Dutch Boy for the ARCA Menards Series at Elko Speedway in Elko New Market, Minnesota on June 27, 2026. (Stephen Maturen/ARCA Racing)
Ty Fredrickson, driver of the #25 Nitro Motorsports Toyota, looks on during the Shore Lunch 250 presented by Dutch Boy for the ARCA Menards Series at Elko Speedway in Elko New Market, Minnesota on June 27, 2026. (Stephen Maturen/ARCA Racing)

NOTEBOOK: Ty Fredrickson confident heading into Madison with family-owned team

www.arcaracing.com August 26, 2026

The fifth ARCA Menards Series national start for Ty Fredrickson Friday at Madison International Speedway brings some extra significance.

Fredrickson’s family-owned team is debuting the No. 36 that he and his father Dan have utilized throughout their respective short track careers. With a Nitro Motorsports alliance at their disposal, Fredrickson is optimistic the success he and his father have found in the No. 36 will carry over into the Atlas 200 (8 p.m. CT/9 p.m. ET on FS1)

“My whole life growing up, I’ve always seen my dad in the orange [No.] 36 in Super Late Models,” Fredrickson said. “When I got to Super Late Model racing, we had the same number, but we put a little tie on the six so you could tell us apart when we raced against each other. It’s super cool to bring it to a national series like ARCA.

“The car looks great with the [No.] 36 on it and it’s even more special that it’s coming out of our own shop this weekend.”

Friday serves as the second ARCA Menards Series race for Fredrickson’s operation after they used Nitro’s No. 90 owner points at Iowa Speedway last month. Fredrickson ran inside the top 10 all day until he served a two-lap penalty due to an infraction on pit road, which relegated him to 12th in the running order.

Despite the misfortune, Fredrickson still considered Iowa a positive chapter in his ARCA Menards Series development. He credited Nitro for expediting his learning curve on the platform by providing valuable insight when it comes to setups and having all the right resources on race day.

Ty Fredrickson
In three ARCA Menards Series starts this year, Ty Fredrickson’s (25) best run was also his career-best showing; a third at Elko Speedway. (Photo: Stephen Maturen/ARCA Racing)

Nitro’s influence is why Fredrickson believes he was able to score top five finishes in his first two ARCA Menards Series starts at Elko Speedway. In Fredrickson’s first road course start at Lime Rock Park, where he drove for Maples Motorsports, he kept the car out of trouble and earned a 15th-place finish.

Although Fredrickson is still trying to figure out the ARCA Menards Series chassis, he feels he is in a good spot as his family-owned team gets up and running. From Fredrickson’s perspective, Madison is a perfect track for him and his team to showcase their potential.

Not only has Dan won at Madison in a Super Late Model, but his son earned an ASA Midwest Tour victory there earlier this year.

As long as his car is up tot he task, Fredrickson fully intends to go for a victory Friday evening. He has a home track advantage with the combined experience he and his father share at Madison. Nothing would thrill him more than to beat the ARCA Menards Series regulars in front of the locals with his own program.

“It would definitely be at the top of my list for wins probably for a long time,” Fredrickson said. “[We have] all our family and friends coming to help us on the crew. It’s kind of our whole Late Model program except with the ARCA car. It’d mean a lot and one I’d cherish forever.”

Max Reaves
Following a chaotic victory at the Springfield Mile, Max Reaves turns his attention towards defending his win from Madison International Speedway last year. (Photo: Tanner Pearson/ARCA Racing)

Max Reaves ready to defend last year’s Madison victory

There is plenty of momentum and notoriety surrounding Max Reaves ahead of Friday’s Atlas 200 at Madison International Speedway.

Reaves earned his third ARCA Menards Series national victory of 2026 last Sunday at the Illinois State Fairgrounds in chaotic fashion. A frantic late-race battle between Reaves and Gavan Boschele for the lead ended with the latter spinning in Turn 1, which gave Reaves the victory and left Boschele frustrated.

Madison presents an ideal opportunity for Reaves to build upon his Springfield triumph. Last year’s trip to Madison for Reaves was a dominant one, as he led 199 of 200 laps from the pole to score his second ARCA Menards Series victory in what was then his fourth appearance in the No. 18 Cook Out Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing.

Another stellar outing for Reaves at Madison could provide him a necessary jolt in the ARCA Menards Series East championship fight. The Atlas 200 is not an East Series event, but Reaves enters the season finale at Bristol on Sept. 17 trailing Tristan McKee by one point. McKee is also entered Friday at Madison.

Reaves will need to get through Madison and the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds before getting to Bristol, but the consistency and confidence he has shown all year makes him a favorite to win all three events and more before 2026 concludes.

Taylor Mayhew
Taylor Mayhew has completed every lap so far this year on the ARCA Menards Series platform and looks to carry that consistency over to Madison International Speedway on Friday. (Photo: Lachlan Cunningham/ARCA Racing)

Taylor Mayhew set for first trip to Madison

After making his ARCA Menards Series debut at Phoenix Raceway earlier this year as part of a combination event with the ARCA Menards Series West, Taylor Mayhew will participate in his first standalone event on the national side this Friday night.

The son of seven-time West Series winner David Mayhew, the younger Mayhew heads to Madison International Speedway this weekend for the first time in his brief career. Mayhew is set to drive the No. 42 for Cook Racing Technologies, a team that has previously won twice in the ARCA Menards Series this year with Kaden Honeycutt.

Mayhew has only run three events on the ARCA platform this year, but he has shown consistency and composure through them all. Mayhew earned a third-place finish in his West Series debut at Kevin Harvick’s Kern Raceway to open the year before backing that performance up with lead lap showings at Phoenix and Sonoma Raceway.

Although Mayhew’s father ventured west of the Mississippi River numerous times during his own career, Madison was not one of the tracks he competed at. Mayhew does not have many notes to work from, but does have the experience of car owner Bruce Cook and crew chief Sean ‘Biggie’ Samuels at his disposal.

Despite the lack of familiarity with Madison, Mayhew’s composure has enabled him to enjoy a solid start to his ARCA Menards Series career. He’ll look to rely on that once again Friday evening in his pursuit of another strong finish.

NOTES:

  • With five races remaining in the ARCA Menards Series season, Jake Bollman holds a four-point advantage over Nitro Motorsports teammate Thomas Annunziata. Both are seeing Madison for the first time this weekend, so it will be imperative for them to learn the track quickly to stay within range of each other.
  • Isaac Kitzmiller put together an impressive dirt debut last weekend at the Springfield Mile by placing second to Max Reaves. Kitzmiller also obtained vital experience about Madison going into Friday by running the ASA STARS National Tour race there earlier this year, where he finished ninth.
  • Will Robinson is back in Nitro Motorsports’ No. 25 Toyota for his third ARCA Menards Series appearance on the 2026 season. Robinson earned a top 10 in his debut earlier this year at Berlin Raceway, a finish he’ll try to improve upon Friday at Madison.
  • Daniel Sasnett only has one prior ARCA Menards Series start to his name, which ended in a 34th place finish at Daytona International Speedway in 2018 after he was collected in a wreck. Sasnett is returning to the ARCA Menards Series for Friday’s Atlas 200, where he will pilot the No. 06 Ford for Wayne Peterson Motorsports.