By Vincent Delforge, Special to Kickin’ the Tires
This Saturday, April 20, the second race of twelve in the 2024 ARCA Menards West Series season will take place at Kevin Harvick’s Kern Raceway in Bakersfield, CA. The quick half-mile hosts the MMI Oil Workers 150 presented by the West Coast Stock Car Motorsports Hall of Fame, a 150 laps / 75 mile race. This will be the first of two races of the season held on this short track. We will return for the eleventh and penultimate race of 2024 on October 26.
Remember that the half-mile has not changed configuration. It has changed name and owners. Tim and Lisa Huddleston, promoters of Irwindale Speedway and owner of the High Point Racing team, purchased it on November 29, 2023 and with the help of 1998 West Series champion Kevin Harvick renamed Kern County Raceway Park to Kevin Harvick’s Kern Raceway in his honor.
Last year Sean Hingorani won the race with Venturini Motorsports. He returns this year to defend his title with his new team Hattori Racing Enterprises. As for Venturini Motorsports, it will not be present in California. But we will note the presence of Mason Mitchell, the 2014 ARCA Menards Series champion who will make his West Series debut with Sigma Performance Services. P.J. Pedroncelli, Jr., John Moore, Ryan Philpott and Eric Nascimento, Jr. will make their first start of the season as will Kole Raz. In addition to Mason Mitchell, three other drivers are set to make their first career start with Henry Barton, Tony Huffman and Garrett Zacharias.
This will be the 14th race at Bakersfield since 2013. A first race won at the time by Greg Pursley. Note that the most successful driver in the history of the KCRP is Derek Kraus with four consecutive victories!
The race will be 150 laps (75 miles) and apart from an optional practice which will take place Friday April 19, all activities will be concentrated on the single day of Saturday with the single practice from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. PT. The General Tire Pole Qualifying at 5 p.m. PT and finally the race at 8:15 p.m. PT. which will be broadcast live on FloRacing.
The Race Procedure
CREW CHIEF HANDOUT: The starting field for the MMI Oil Workers 150 presented by the West Coast Stock Car Motorsports Hall of Fame is limited to 22 starters by 2023 owner points plus up to four (4) additional by speed. This event will run under the 2024 ARCA Menards Series rules, procedures, regulations and specifications.
QUALIFYING: Starting position will be set by each car’s fastest recorded lap per the Timed Session qualifying procedure.
RACE PIT STOP: Break pitting procedure. Break at / or near the conclusion of Lap 75. No adding or moving tires to or from pit box once race has started. All cars will be required to make at least one pit stop prior to last 10 laps of race.
TIRE ALLOTMENT: Per ARCA Rulebook, maximum tire usage for this event (purchased plus from-home tires) is 10. Maximum number of tires allowed in pit box for use in race = 4, 2 for use at the break and 2 for emergency use only.
ARCA West at Bakersfield
-71st season in history.
-Race No. 1018 since the inception of the West Series in 1954.
-2024 race No. 2 of 12.
This will be the 14th race since 2013. As far as statistics are concerned, of the 13 races already contested in Kevin Harvick’s Kern Raceway (KHKR) we can highlight:
– Among the manufacturers Toyota leads the dance with 7 wins ahead of Ford (5) and Chevrolet (1).
–. The most successful team at KHKR is Bill McAnally Racing with 6 wins.The all-time most successful owners in history are Bill McAnally (99), Fred Elder (45), Bob Bruncati (42) and Ernie Conn (41).
-Derek Kraus is the most successful pilot at KHKR with four wins. In all, 8 different drivers have won at least one race.
-Among the manufacturers, Toyota leads with 8 poles ahead of Ford (4) and Chevrolet (1).
-Bill McAnally Racing is the most successful teams with six poles at KHKR.
-The pole sitter has won the race five times. Whoever started second has won four times.
– The driver who won the race from the worst starting position was Dylan Lupton. ninth in 2014.
-The track record is owned by Gray Gaulding at 100.514 mph achieved in 2013.
-As far as yellow flags are concerned, the record is 8(thrice). The 2015 race holds the record for the number of yellow flag laps with 43.
– The record for the fewest caution is 3 (the last two races). With just 12 laps behind the pace car, the 2022 race holds the record for fewest laps under yellow flags.
-The most leader changes occurred in 2016 with 9. The fewest leader change is zero in 2019.
-The largest starting field was in 2013 with 28 cars.
-The smallest starting field was in 2019 with 13 cars.
-Four times the race has been extended by an overtime (2014, 2015, 2017 and 2019).
The entry list is made up of 24 drivers. Including 10 drivers who will make their first West Series race at Bakersfield. Note that there are also four newcomers to the West Series with Tony Huffman, Garrett Zacharias, Mason Mitchell and Henry Barton.
The Drivers
No. 0 Tony Huffman (Fierce Creature Racing)
Debuting in the West Series as a driver, Tony Huffman is the crew chief of FCR and its driver/owner Bobby Hillis, Jr. However, the team decided to enter a second car with the sole objective of doing start and park with Huffman at flying or racing if a driver brings the budget. The objective of FCR is to accumulate owner points. Once the S&P is completed after a few laps on old tires, Huffman will resume his role as crew chief of the No. 27 for the remainder of the race.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| – | – | – | – | – | – | n/a |
No. 05 David Smith (Shockwave Racing)
Whatever happens, it will be difficult for the Canadian Smith to have a more complicated weekend in Bakersfield than the one experienced in Phoenix. As a reminder, there had been two accidents. One in practice and the other in the race, damaging both cars. But everything was repaired in Canada. He had a complicated race last year with two accidents in his only career start at KHKR. His crew chief will be Brandon Carlson.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 17 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 10th | 1 starts, best result 13th |
No. 1 Robbie Kennealy (Kennealy Keller Motorsports)
Kennealy will make his first West Series race at KHKR. But on another fast Californian half-mile, at Irwindale Speedway, he already obtained a good fifth position. With the experience acquired since then, he will be one to follow closely. KKM is now much stronger and more structured than last year for the team’s debut. Charlie Wilson, experienced crew chief, also had a lot to do with the development of the team.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 6 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 5th | 1 start, best result 5th |
No. 3 Todd Souza (Central Coast Racing)
Plenty of experience for veteran Souza at KHKR with six top10s in eight races. His best result dates from 2019 with fifth position. His crew chief will be Jason Dickenson. The latter obtained pole in 2020 with Jesse Love.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 121 | 1 | 22 | 69 | 0 | 1st (1x) | 8 starts, best result : 5th |
No. 4 Eric Nascimento, Jr. (Nascimento-Joiner Motorsports)
After finally giving up on participating in the Phoenix race, Bubba begins his season with the obligation to be directly at the top of the standings. Indeed the points lost in Arizona will be difficult to make up for. But it performs well on the half mile like the KHKR. Ty Joiner will be his crew chief. The latter took victory there in 2017 with Derek Kraus and pole position in 2022 with P.J. Pedroncelli, Jr.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 20 | 0 | 5 | 9 | 1 | 2nd (1x) | 3 starts, best result: 9th |
No. 5 Kole Raz (Jerry Pitts Racing)
Kole Raz, 21, will take part in his third career West Series race. Last year with Jerry Pitts Racing he was impressive, finishing twice consecutively in third position at Shasta and Evergreen. So here on a track that he knows very well having driven there for example in Late Model in the SRL Spears Southwest Tour, we will have to keep an eye on him because he will be a serious candidate for victory. Jerry Pitts will be his crew chief. Pitts who already has two poles and two victories at KHKR, all obtained with Greg Pursley.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3rd (2x) | n/a |
No. 7 Takuma Koga (Jerry Pitts Racing)
The experienced Japanese driver will take part in his 10th race at KHKR, the first dating back to 2016. The race was very complicated last year for Koga who was terribly angry at having destroyed his chances of a good result due to an error on his part during the pace laps. He will be keen to find his way back to the top 10, something he has already achieved here. His crew chief will be Denny Moyer.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 114 | 0 | 4 | 24 | 0 | 5th (4x) | 9 starts, best result : 9th |
No. 11 Danica Dart (Kennealy Keller Motorsports)
Number 07 is put away and makes way for number 11 for the rest of the season. Involuntarily involved in an accident for her debut in Phoenix, the young rookie will be keen to finish the race to gain maximum experience. But unlike the one-mile oval in Phoenix, the half-mile of the KHKR type, she already knows. Her crew chief will be John Keller.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 40th | n/a |
No. 12 Kyle Keller (Kennealy Keller Motorsports)
Just like his teammate Danica Dart, change of number for Keller which leaves the No. 70 used in Phoenix to return to his usual No. 12. Except in 2020 where he finished sixth for his second career race, he experienced mechanical problems in his last two races at KHKR. Brian Kizer will be his crew chief.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 23 | 0 | 6 | 13 | 0 | 4th (3x) | 3 starts, best result : 6th |
No. 13 Tyler Reif (Central Coast Racing)
This is the kind of oval that should allow Tyler Reif to confirm his claims in 2024, namely to compete for the championship. He finished 6th there last year with his former team LJM. But this will be his first time with his crew chief Michael Munoz and CCR. But the team has a lot of experience on the Californian oval and any other result other than a minimum top 5 will be considered a failure.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 15 | 1 | 5 | 7 | 2 | 1st | 1 start, best result 6th |
No. 16 Jack Wood (Bill McAnally Racing)
On an oval where BMR has 6 victories in 13 races, or almost 50%, Jack Wood has all the cards in hand to achieve his first career victory. Victim of an electrical problem in 2019 (13th), he was able to obtain 10th position in 2020 with his family team at KHKR. Kevin Bellicourt will be his crew chief.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 20 | 0 | 4 | 12 | 0 | 4th (3x) | 2 starts, best result 10th |
No. 19 Eric Johnson, Jr. (Bill McAnally Racing)
Rookie Johnson, Jr. will make his first race at KHKR behind the wheel of a West Series car. But he will be able to benefit from the wise advice of his experienced crew chief John Camilleri who has already obtained three victories and a pole position with Derek Kraus at KHKR.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 9th | n/a |
No. 21 Henry Barton (Nascimento-Joiner Motorsports)
The young Henry Barton will debut in the West Series with Henry Nascimento as crew chief. He will spend a partial season at the wheel of the No. 21. With this car Ethan Nascimento obtained eighth position last year.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| – | – | – | – | – | – | n/a |
No. 23 Mason Mitchell (Sigma Performance Services)
After Grant Enfinger in Phoenix, SPS will have a new driver who will make his debut in the West Series. And as with Enfinger, he is an experienced pilot. This time it’s Mason Mitchell, 29, 2014 ARCA Menards National Series champion, who will drive the No. 23. A car he will also drive later in the season at Iowa Speedway. It was also on the Iowa oval that Mitchell made his last race in such a competitive series, it was in 2018 in the ARCA Menards Series. A race that he finished in seventh position. Chris Bray will be his crew chief.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| – | – | – | – | – | – | n/a |
No. 24 Joe Farré (Sigma Performance Services) DRIVER CHANGE
UPDATE: Joe Farré, the owner/driver of SPS leaves his place behind the wheel of the No. 24 to Sean Hingorani for the Kern race.
Joe Farré is an owner/driver who has a dual objective. First seeing his main car, the No. 23, win races with experienced driver. Secondly having fun behind the wheel of his second car, the No. 24. After a first career race at Phoenix cut short following an electrical problem, the objective will be to pass under the Checkered flag. Chris Bray will be his crew chief. Bray who will therefore take care of the team’s two cars.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28th | n/a |
No. 24 Sean Hingorani (Sigma Performance Services)
UPDATE: Sean Hingorani and HRE parted ways with immediate effects.
Winner last year with Venturini Motorsports, Hingorani intends to obtain a second consecutive trophy on the Californian half-mile. To do this he will have a Chevrolet prepared by SPS with Chris Bray as crew chief. Last year he was without context the fastest driver and was able to bounce back after a pass through penalty which had cost him a lap for having overtaken the pole-sitter before crossing the starting line. With the experience gained, this is the kind of mistake that the 2023 champion no longer makes.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 18 | 4 | 8 | 9 | 2 | 1st (4x) | 1 start, best result 1st |
No. 27 Bobby Hillis, Jr. (Fierce Creature Racing)
Hillis, Jr. knows KHKR well having already raced there three times. The first dating from 2015. He finished just outside the top10 in 2020 and 2023
His crew chief Tony Huffman will also be his teammate on the team’s second car (the No. 0). This will also be the first time in its history that FCR has entered two cars. The team received help from Jason Dickenson of CCR to prepare the cars.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfeild |
| 97 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 8th (1x) | 3 starts, best result : 11th |
No. 33 P.J. Pedroncelli, Jr. (Rodd Racing)
P.J. Pedroncelli, Jr. and Rodd Kneeland have joined forces for 2024. If Kneeland will pilot the road races just like P.J., he will on the other hand be the crew chief of the latter on the selection of short tracks that they will do. Note that Ty Joiner helped with the basic setups that the team will use. Joiner who had obtained the win in 2017 with Derek Kraus and a pole in 2022 with P.J. A race finished in fifth position.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 29 | 1 | 6 | 9 | 2 | 1st | 1 start, best result: 5th |
No. 41 Johnny Borneman III (Lowden Jackson Motorsports)
Borneman III is the driver with the most active career West Series starts, yet he has only raced four times in the KHKR. The first time was during the very first race of the West Series on this oval in 2013. He will also be the only driver at the start this Saturday having participated in this first race in 2013. The last time Borneman III rode at KHKR dating back to 2017. He had a top10 there in 2016 with ninth position. With this car Tyler Reif finished sixth last year. Tony Jackson will obviously be his crew chief.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 126 | 3 | 27 | 61 | 1 | 1st (3x) | 4 starts, best result: 9th |
No. 50 Trevor Huddleston (High Point Racing)
Trevor knows KHKR very well. And he has been able to do tests there since his parents became the owners. Only 17th in Phoenix with his new Ford Mustang, he should return to the top of the charts on an oval where he has never finished worse than eighth and where he twice obtained third position. Jeff Schrader, winner here in 2014 with Dylan Lupton, will of course be his crew chief.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 66 | 3 | 24 | 53 | 2 | 1st (3x) | 6 starts, best result : 3rd (2x) |
No. 52 Ryan Philpott (Philpott Racing)
Despite his extensive experience with 41 career races, this will be Ryan Philpott’s first time at KHKR in West Series. He who in recent years focused mainly on road tracks. And at the time he was racing full time (until 2012), the KHKR oval did not yet exist. His long-time friend, Chuck Dozhier, will be his crew chief.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 41 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 6th (2x) | n/a |
No. 61 Sean Hingorani (Hattori Racing Enterprises) WITHDRAW
UPDATE: Sean Hingorani and HRE parted ways with immediate effects.
Winner last year with Venturini Motorsports, Hingorani intends to obtain a second consecutive trophy on the Californian half-mile. To do this he will have a Toyota prepared by HRE with Mark McFarland as crew chief. Last year he was without context the fastest driver and was able to bounce back after a pass through penalty which had cost him a lap for having overtaken the pole-sitter before crossing the starting line. With the experience gained, this is the kind of mistake that the 2023 champion no longer makes.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 18 | 4 | 8 | 9 | 2 | 1st (4x) | 1 start, best result 1st |
No. 71 Nick Joanides (Jan’s Racing)
By recruiting competent people, Jan Qualkenbush is giving himself the means to quickly develop his team at the top of the West Series rankings. Nick Joanides obtained his first top10 at KHKR last year in three starts. He was racing with PP1M with a new car which is now part of the Jan’s Racing fleet. The team has carried out tests recently and will use Friday’s optional practice to choose which car will be used for the race. Rip Michels will be the crew chief.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 29 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 4th | 3 starts, best result 10th |
No. 77 Garrett Zacharias (Performance P1 Motorsports) DRIVER CHANGE
UPDATE: Zacharias cannot be present for personal reasons in Kern and is replaced by Cody Kiemele.
Zacharias failed to qualify at Phoenix with Rise Motorsports. He is trying his luck again with one of the oldest and most experienced teams in the West Series, PP1M. Born April 4, 2004, the pilot from Candor, NY will discover the KHKR. But with Joe Nava’s team, he was able to do a private test session last month to acclimatize to his new working environment. Ryan Sebek will be the crew chief of the team as in Phoenix.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 0 (1DNQ) | – | – | – | – | – | n/a |
No. 77 Cody Kiemele (Performance P1 Motorsports)
Update: finally Cody Kiemele will drive the No. 77 of PP1M as in Phoenix in March. He knows the KHKR oval having already driven there in SRL Spears Pro Late Model for example. As in Phoenix, Ryan Sebek will be his crew chief.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 39th | n/a |
No. 88 John Moore (Naake-Klauer Motorsports)
Jake Bollman out of NKM, we see the unexpected but welcome return of a veteran in John Moore. After a one shot in 2022 with BMR in Roseville, Cole Moore’s father returns to competition with Mike Naake’s team with whom he will also do Super Late Model races on the West Coast in the CARS Tour Series. He will discover the KHKR with a West Series car. Mike Naake will be his crew chief. Note that NKM will be present at KHKR in the West Series but also this weekend in Sonoma in the TransAm TA2 Series! When you love you don’t count!
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Bakersfield |
| 8 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 5th | n/a |
Final notes
-2023 owners champion MMI Racing, the team of Bruce Cook and Steve McGowan is not present in Bakersfield. Whether with his No. 17 or his No. 42.
-High Point Racing does not enter its second car (No. 55) contrary to what was planned. The team does not have a driver providing a sufficient budget.