Christian Rose Charges Forward to Music City

On the heels of a top-10 finish in last Friday afternoon’s General Tire 125, ARCA Menards Series East rookie Christian Rose treks on during his freshman campaign eyeing his third straight top-10 run in Saturday night’s Music City 200 at Nashville (Tenn.) Fairgrounds Speedway.

Rose aboard the No. 42 West Virginia Tourism Toyota Camry for Cook Racing Technologies experienced his toughest short track yet last weekend at the Monster Mile, but progress was made throughout the race including in the final sprint to the finish which gives Rose motivation as his learning curve continues.

“Dover was definitely a challenge but start to finish I feel like we went forward, especially at the end of the race,” said Rose who also captured a top-10 finish at Five Flags (Fla.) Speedway in March.

“Dover can certainly be intimidating because things can happen in a hurry but I feel like that as our No. 42 West Virginia Tourism Toyota Camry improved handling wise, especially late in the race – I wish I could have taken with what I had learned during those first 100 laps and I suspect our race result would look a lot different.”

Tackling Dover for the first time with a car intact and a top-10 finish would suffice as a victory for some, but Rose admitted that his Cook Racing Technologies team is hungry about winning.

“I know that I am learning behind the wheel and my team stands behind me 100 percent, but they have already visited Victory Lane as an organization this year and I know they want to do it again. I’d love to do for West Virginia Tourism and everyone who supports our team. This isn’t easy – especially in ARCA.

“The series is full of very good drivers who compete for some of the best race teams out there, but we are improving and we are heading in the right direction. Nashville is a place that I have prior experience at and I’m hoping that will pay dividends ahead of the race on Saturday night.”

In 2019, Rose competed in a CARS Pro Late Model Tour event at the historic half-mile short track.

“I feel like Nashville is pretty close to your typical short track,” Rose added. “Its confines are tight and the bottom groove is the preferred line, but it’s also a momentum track where if you can carry that speed through the corners and onto the straightaways, your chances of passing cars and making moves.

“It’s important to make sure we get our No. 42 West Virginia Tourism Toyota Camry dialed in and practice and then utilize the race to keep making gains to put us in contention. The track is going to change a lot throughout the night so it’s crucial that we keep up with those adjustments to keep our drive off strong that will hopefully put us in contention for a top-five finish on Saturday night”

No matter the outcome of his fourth career ARCA Menards Series East start this weekend, it’s already been an amazing week for the Martinsburg, West Virginia native.

On Tuesday, May 3rd – he was inducted into the University of Maryland Eastern Shore Wall of Fame for his Division 1 baseball achievements.

“Tuesday was very special,” sounded Rose. “I appreciate everyone at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore for giving me the honor and it brought back a lot of great memories. I’m ready to make new memories though on Saturday in one of the coolest cities in the United States.”