DGR Crosley ARCA Menards Series Advance: Toledo Speedway

Hailie Deegan, No. 4 Monster Energy Ford Fusion
 
Hailie Deegan returns to Toledo (Ohio) Speedway this weekend still looking for her first win of the season. It looked like it was going to happen last weekend at I-44 Speedway in Lebanon, Mo., after the 19-year-old rookie led 85 laps with a fast Monster Energy Ford. She lost the lead on a late-race restart and finished fifth.
 
So far this year in 14 ARCA Menards Series starts, Deegan has earned three top-five, 12 top-10 finishes and led 85 laps. With six races to go in the season, she is currently third in the driver point standings, 49 points out of first place and 48 points out of second. She has two previous races at Toledo just over a month ago in a doubleheader weekend there. She was eighth in the first race and sixth in the second rain-delayed race.
 
The ARCA Menards Series Royal Truck & Trailer 200 from Toledo Speedway will be run on Saturday, Sept. 12 at 5 p.m. ET. The race will be broadcast live on MAVTV and streamed live on NBC Gold TrackPass. The 200-lap race will have two race breaks on, or near laps 75 and 150.
 
Deegan on Toledo: “We have some experience at Toledo. I feel like we’ve made a lot of good improvements on the car since we were last there, so we should have a good run there, especially based off our run at I-44 last weekend. I’m focused on my development and trying to learn as much as I can and get as much seat time as I can. I’m still fairly new to stock car racing, it’s not what I grew up doing. Every single race I’m learning something new.”
 
Taylor Gray, No. 17 Ford Performance Fusion
Taylor Gray will be making his fourth start of the season at Toledo (Ohio) Speedway on Saturday. He competed in the ARCA Menards Series East race in June when he finished eighth after being spun fighting for fifth in the closing laps. He returned for the doubleheader ARCA weekend July 31 and August 1. He finished third in the first race for his best finish to date, but things did not go as well in the second race. He was spun early in the race which cost him a lap just before the race was postponed a day for rain. His bad luck continued the next day, resulting in an 11th-place finish in the rain-shortened race.
 
In 11 ARCA Menards Series starts this season (including East and West starts), he has achieved six top-five and nine top-10 finishes. In the two races where he was not in the top 10, he finished 11th. He tied his best finish of third last Saturday at I-44 Speedway in Lebanon, Mo., by being there at the end. He was fifth in the closing laps until two of the cars in front of him spun which allowed him to jump up to third.
 
This race is twice as important for Gray since it not only counts for ARCA Menards Series points, but ARCA East as well. Toledo is in place of the canceled East race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Gray is 10th in ARCA points, despite missing seven races early in the season due to age restrictions on the larger tracks. He is 11th in the East standings after missing the first race at New Smyrna (Fla.) Speedway in February since he was not 15 yet.
 
The ARCA Menards Series Royal Truck & Trailer 200 from Toledo Speedway will be run on Saturday, Sept. 12 at 5 p.m. ET. The race will be broadcast live on MAVTV and streamed live on NBC Gold TrackPass. The 200-lap race will have two race breaks on, or near laps 75 and 150.
 
Gray on Toledo: “This will be my fourth race at Toledo this year and we’ve had some up and down results there in the first three. Maybe the fourth time will be the charm. As the races are winding down, I’m in a good position since I’m not too concerned about points. This is the time of year people start having to race while not taking risks to maintain their points. Since I already missed one East race and can’t run all the ARCA races, I can focus on getting wins, top-three and top-five finishes. I’d really like to get in victory lane before the season is over and I’ve still got several opportunities to do that.”

DGR Crosley PR