Chandler Smith (No.20 Craftsman / 828 Logistics / QuickTie Toyota) will grab the wheel for the final time in 2019 seeking his fifth victory of the ARCA Menards Series season behind the wheel of Venturini Motorsports’ (VMS) Series Owner Points leading No.20 Toyota team in this weekend’s Herr’s Potato Chips 200 at Lucas Oil Raceway.
A member of Toyota Racing Development’s (TRD) highly acclaimed TD2 program, Smith, a native of Talking Rock, GA, hopes to win and share the spotlight with teammates Michael Self and Christian Eckes who are going head-to-head for the 2019 Series‘ Driver Championship.
“Bitter sweet feeling knowing this is my final ARCA race of the season,” said the 17-year-old Smith. “It’s been a good year. But we’re not done yet. We’ve still got unfinished business and I plan on finishing strong. I realize and respect that the focus is on my teammates (Self and Eckes) going into Indianapolis but this twenty-team still has a lot on the line. “
A major factor in the overall season success of the No.20 team Smith has been a force to be reckoned with just about every time he’s suited up. His four wins and four General Tire Pole Awards in just 10 starts are tied for the series best with Michael Self. He’s also scored seven top-5’s and nine top-10’s. Furthermore, Smith’s 659 laps led (42% of all laps completed) are most among all full-time series competitors.
With championship considerations of his own Smith’s Indianapolis effort should all but clinch the ARCA owner’s points championship for crew chief and car owner Billy Venturini.
Although Michael Self (No.25 Sinclair Oil Toyota) currently tops the driver standings, the No.20 car, shared by multiple drivers through 18 series starts leads in the owner standings by 160-points over VMS’ No.15 driven by Christian Eckes.
Smith has shared the driving duties throughout the season on the No.20 Toyota team with VMS teammates Harrison Burton (3-starts / 1 win), Logan Seavey (2-starts / 1-pole award), Brandon Lynn (1-start / 1-pole award) and Myatt Snyder (1-start). Overall, the five drivers have posted five wins, six General Tire Pole Awards, 13 top-5’s and 17 top-10’s.
Smith will join Toyota teammates Michael Self, Christian Eckes and Hailie Deegan during Saturday night’s Herr’s Potato Chip 200 at Lucas Oil Raceway. MAVTV will broadcast the race live starting at 8pm ET.
VMS PR
