Zane Smith Tag

By Don Radebaugh, ARCA Communications Manager SALEM, Ind. – It was one for the ages, especially for Middletown, N.Y.’s Christian Eckes who held off a hungry pack over the final 50 laps to earn his career-first ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards victory Sunday afternoon at Salem Speedway. Eckes, in the No. 15 JBL Audio Toyota for Venturini Motorsports, first fought off Zane Smith, then held back the non-stop hard charge from Chandler Smith to win the 103rd running of the Kentuckiana Ford Dealers 200. “I can’t believe this…I really can’t,” saidRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Saturday’s Lucas Oil 200 at Daytona International Speedway has as diverse a field as the ARCA Racing Series has seen in a long time. The race marks the first time ARCA will use composite bodies at a restrictor plate track, giving a fair playing field for all 39 drivers who’ll accept the 80-lap grind. The historic field consists of long-time veterans, a Navy Academy grad, female teammates and young guns in top budget teams. Let’s begin with Venturini Motorsports teammates Natalie Decker and Leilani Münter.Read More

By Brian Eberly, Contributing Writer Natalie Decker turned a 49.489 second lap (181.859 mph) around Daytona International Speedway on Friday afternoon to win the pole for Saturday’s ARCA Racing Series Lucas Oil 200. The Wisconsinite edged out Zane Smith by .001 seconds, earning her first General Tire Pole Award in eight series starts. Decker is the first female to claim the top spot at the 2.5-mile superspeedway since Erin Crocker in 2007. Decker is set to run the full 20-race ARCA schedule this season, piloting the No. 25 Toyota withRead More

By Brian Eberly, Contributing Writer Christopher Bell, Tanner Thorson, and Raphaël Lessard will each compete in select races for Venturini Motorsports in the 2017 ARCA Racing Series season, the team announced on Monday. The trio of Toyota-backed drivers is the latest addition to a lineup already stacked with young talent. “Toyota Racing Development is proud of our relationship with Venturini Motorsports,” said Jack Irving, Director, Team & Support Services Toyota Racing Development. “Entering their 35th year of ARCA competition, Venturini has set a formidable driver roster across the board andRead More

By Brian Eberly, Contributing Writer KMC Wheels has signed a sponsorship agreement to support Zane Smith for the 2017 ARCA Racing Series season, Venturini Motorsports announced on Tuesday afternoon. KMC Wheels, a leading automobile wheel manufacturer and distributor located in Southern California, will partner with Smith to promote the company’s popular KMC Truck and SUV Wheel brand. “We’re proud to support Zane’s efforts with our KMC Wheel Brand for the upcoming ARCA season. Zane’s youth and talent compliments our overall KMC target demographic and appeals to a large segment ofRead More

By Brian Eberly, Contributing Writer Zane Smith began competing in BMX at the age of three, moving up to Karts and Legend cars before gaining national recognition in 2015 when he won the overall Super Late Model championship at the World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing at New Smyrna Speedway. Smith capped a fantastic 2015 season with a second-place finish in the Snowball Derby behind current NASCAR Sprint Cup Series rookie Chase Elliott. Smith will make the next step in his career in 2017, competing in 18 races inRead More