A bevy of championship contenders and high-profile part-time drivers highlight a growing preliminary entry list for the ARCA Menards Series season opener at Daytona International Speedway.
Andres Perez, who finished second in the run for the 2023 season championship behind Jesse Love, has filed an entry along with his Rev Racing teammate Lavar Scott. They are joined by a trio of championship contenders out of the Venturini Motorsports stable, Kris Wright, Amber Balcaen, and Toni Breidinger. Christian Rose, driver of the AM Racing entry, has filed an entry, as has Bounty Rookie Challenge contender Caleb Costner. Michael Maples, another Bounty Rookie contender for 2024, has filed his entry to drive for 1995 ARCA Menards Series champion Andy Hillenburg’s Fast Track High Performance Racing team.
Independent drivers Brad Smith and Alex Clubb, who are also expected to compete in each of the series’ 20 races, have also filed their entries.
The preliminary entry list for the Daytona ARCA 200 also includes several other big names, including Andy Jankowiak, who won last weekend’s Gambler Classic TQ Midget indoor race in Atlantic City, NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series regular Tanner Gray, who will be driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, and Venturini Motorsports teammates Jake Finch and Gus Dean.
Defending Daytona ARCA 200 winner Greg Van Alst has filed two entries, one for himself and the other for fellow Indiana resident Isaac Johnson. NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour regular and NASCAR Xfinity Series team co-owner Patrick Emerling is entered with a self-owned team, and last year’s fifth-place finisher Mandy Chick has also filed her entry.
Shane Van Gisbergen, the Australian V-8 Supercar champion and winner of the inaugural NASCAR street race in Chicago, has also filed an entry. Van Gisbergen will do double duty on raceday as he’s also expected to compete in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race after the conclusion of the ARCA race.
A total of 47 entries have already been received with the possibility of several more being filed before the deadline. The complete official entry list is expected to be released as early as next week.
The first official on-track activity of the 2024 season is scheduled for Thursday, February 15 when the teams take to the track for a 50-minute practice session. The 40-car starting lineup will be set in General Tire Pole Qualifying on Friday, February 16, with the 80-lap/200-mile season-opener to follow on Saturday, February 17. The race will be televised live on FS1 starting at 1:30 pm ET; it will also be broadcast on select affiliates of the MRN Radio nationwide.
Live timing & scoring data will be available for all on-track activities at ARCARacing.com; follow @ARCA_Racing on X (formerly Twitter) for up-to-the-minute updates.
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