By Vincent Delforge, Special to Kickin’ the Tires
The West Coast Stock Car Motorsports Hall of Fame 150, the ninth race of the 2024 ARCA Menards West Series season, held at Madera Speedway in Madera, CA, saw the saw Trevor Huddleston’s great victory. There was endless emotion in Victory Lane. The joy of victory of course but also and above all the victory of love between Trevor and Nastasia Dodd, his girlfriend whom he proposed to and who said yes!
Sean Hingorani strings together the top3s like pearls on a necklace. This is his sixth consecutive podium and taking into account Tyler Reif’s setbacks, 14th here, he takes back the lead in the championship with a six-point lead over the latter.
But this race was also an opportunity to see rookies shine. The future is assured in the West Series!
For a complete recap of the race, I invite you to read the article « Race review » available here: www.kickinthetires.net/nascar/arca-menards-series-west-2024-madera-race-review/
Complete race results: www.racing-reference.info/race-results/2024-09/AW/
The top-five in the championship being the following: Sean Hingorani (423), Tyler Reif (417), Trevor Huddleston (385), Jack Wood (373) and Kyle Keller (369).
Driver & owner point standings: www.racing-reference.info/standings/2024/AW/
Next race on October 5th at All American Speedway in Roseville, CA for the “NAPA Auto Parts 150 presented by Berco Redwood”. A race that will be broadcast live on FloRacing.
As after each race we are going to detail the statistics for each driver, embellished with the reactions collected from many of them, drivers, owners and crew chiefs.
ARCA Menards West Series quick stats at Madera Speedway
-71st season in history.
-Race No. 1025 since the inception of the West Series in 1954.
-2024 race No. 9 of 12.
-Race No. 9 at Madera Speedway since 1973.
| Year | Pole | Win | ||||||||
| Driver | Owner | Crew chief | # | Make | Driver | Owner | Crew chief | # | Make | |
| 1973 | Jack McCoy | Ernie Conn | Gary Nelson | 7 | Dodge | Jack McCoy | Ernie Conn | Gary Nelson | 7 | Dodge |
| 1989 | Bill Sedgwick | Wayne Spears | Leon Ruther | 75 | Chevrolet | Bill Sedgwick | Wayne Spears | Leon Ruther | 75 | Chevrolet |
| 1995 | Doug George | Eldon George / Tamara Turner | Rodney Haygood | 37 | Ford | Doug George | Eldon George / Tamara Turner | Rodney Haygood | 37 | Ford |
| 1996 #1 | Mark Krogh | Robert Krogh | Corrie Stott | 24 | Chevrolet | Butch Gilliland | Bill Stroppe | David Gilliland | 38 | Ford |
| 1996 #2 | Scott Gaylord | Geoff Burney | Tom Puskarich | 00 | Chevrolet | Lance Hooper | Lance Hooper / Raymond Claridge | Mike Steurer | 07 | Pontiac |
| 2003 | Mike Duncan | Mike Duncan | Bill Sedgwick | 9 | Chevrolet | Mike Duncan | Mike Duncan | Bill Sedgwick | 9 | Chevrolet |
| 2009 | Jason Bowles | Bob Bruncati | Bill Sedgwick | 6 | Ford | Eric Holmes | Bill McAnally | Ty Joiner | 20 | Toyota |
| 2023 | Eric Nascimento, Jr. | Eric Nascimento, Sr. | Ty Joiner | 4 | Chevrolet | Kaden Honeycutt | Steve McGowan | Sean Samuels | 17 | Chevrolet |
| 2024 | Jaron Giannini | Joe Farrè | Chris Bray | 23 | Toyota | Trevor Huddleston | Tim Huddleston | Jeff Schrader | 50 | Ford |
-Ninth races and eight different winners.
-Ninth races and eight different pole-sitters.
–Win No. 3 for Ford at Madera. Among the manufacturers, Chevrolet and Ford leads the dance with three wins ahead of Dodge (1), Pontiac (1) and Toyota (1).
-291st win for Ford in West Series. The all-time most successful manufacturer is Ford with 291 wins.
-Second win for owner Tim Huddleston.
-Win No. 2 for High Point Racing team. The all-time most successful owners in history are Bill McAnally (99), Fred Elder (45), Bob Bruncati (42) and Ernie Conn (41). The all-time most successful teams in history are Bill McAnally Racing (99), McCoy Racing (54), The Racing Farmers (47), Bruncati Racing (42) and Gene Price Motorsports (26).
–Win No. 1 for High Point Racing at Madera. The ninth races were won by nine different teams.
-Fourth career win for Trevor Huddleston (74th career start) and the first at Irwindale. The first on a track less than half a mile long.
-First career pole position for Jaron Giannini (4th career race). Giannini is the ninth different poleman at Madera.
-Third time in nine races the driver who started in second position wins at Madera and second time in a row.
-Second pole for owner Joe Farrè and Sigma Performance Services and first at Madera.
-Second pole for Sigma Performance Services and owner Joe Farrè in West Series. The most successful team in history is Bill McAnally Racing with 79 poles. The most successful owner in history is Bill McAnally with 52 poles.
-First pole position for Toyota at Madera. Among the manufacturers, Chevrolet leads the dance with five poles ahead of Ford (2), Dodge (1) and Toyota (1).
-79th pole for Toyota in West Series. The all-time most successful manufacturer is Chevrolet with 260.
-The poleman has won the race four times.
-Track record in 82.369 mph by Eric Nascimento, Jr. achieved in 2023.
-Butch Gilliland won the race in 1996 #1 from 14th position on the starting grid, which is a record for the worst starting position.
-As far as yellow flags are concerned, the record is 8 in 1989, 2009 and 2024. The 1996 #1 race holds the record for the number of yellow flag laps with 48. Conversely, with only one yellow flag and only 3 yellow flag laps, the 1973 race holds these records.
-The most leader changes occurred in 1995 and 2009 with 7. The 1973 and 1996 #2 races saw the pole sitter lead every lap.
-The largest starting field was in 1996 #2 with 21 cars.
-The smallest starting field was in 1989 and 1996 #1 with 16 cars.
-The driver with the most races is Jack Sellers (6).
-The drivers with the most top5 is Butch Gilliland (3).
-The driver with the most top10 are Scott Gaylord, Butch Gilliland, Jack Sellers and Rich Woodland, Jr. with 3.
-The drivers with the most laps is Jack Sellers (1110).
-The driver with the most laps lead is Lance Hooper (254).
-First career attempt in West Series for (2 drivers): Rip Michels and Kyle Whisner
-First career start in West Series for (2 drivers): Rip Michels and Kyle Whisner
-First career attempt at Madera in West Series for (5drivers): Henry Barton, Jaron Giannini, Eric Johnson, Jr., Michael Killen, Jr. and Jack Wood.
-First career start at Madera in West Series for (5drivers): Henry Barton, Jaron Giannini, Eric Johnson, Jr., Michael Killen, Jr. and Jack Wood.
-Best career result in West Series for Ethan Nascimento (3rd), Eric Johnson, Jr. (4th), Henry Barton (8th), Rip Michels (9th), Michael Killen, Jr. (10th), Kyle Whisner (15th).
-First career Top-10 result in West Series for Henry Barton (8th), Rip Michels (9th), Michael Killen, Jr. (10th).
-First career Top-5 result in West Series for Ethan Nascimento (3rd), Eric Johnson, Jr. (4th).
-Tenth win for the No. 50 in history. The first at Madera. The second with Trevor Huddleston and High Point Racing.
-4th pole for the No. 23 in history. The first at Madera. The first with Jaron Giannini. The second with Sigma Performance Services and owner Joe Farrè.
-Second career pole for crew chief Chris Bray. The first at Madera.
-21st career win for crew chief Jeff Schrader. The first at Madera.
-Second time the race is extended by an overtime (green/white/checkered flag) at Madera. The first since 2003.
-688th paved oval race in history.
The Drivers
No. 05 David Smith (Shockwave Racing) Start: 16th – Fin: 13th
Not a bad race for the Canadian veteran who took advantage of the many yellow flags to stay on the leader’s lap for a long time. This was also thanks to a free pass obtained on the 50th lap. The “long run” of 30 laps under the green flag that followed and his spun following contact with Koga in lap 83 made him lose time. But he finished like last year in 13th position with a car that had not suffered too much in the end.
“Madera madness. It was a Saturday night fight with everyone having a peeve. Me too!” Smith said.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Madera |
| 25 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 10th (2x) | 2 starts, best result 13th (2x) |
No. 3 Todd Souza (Central Coast Racing) Start: 11th – Fin: 11th
The good finish at Tri-City or even the excellent second position acquired here last year are distant memories for Souza and CCR. Nothing went as planned for the team that was expected to be at the top of the standings. The car lacked performance and consistency. This eleventh position is the best that the driver of the No. 3 could hope for, benefiting from a free pass on the 99th lap and the problems of his teammate. A race to forget for the team that had dominated the last two races.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Madera |
| 129 | 1 | 23 | 74 | 0 | 1st (1x) | 2 starts, best result 2nd |
No. 4 Eric Nascimento, Jr. (Nascimento-Joiner Motorsports) Start: 6th – Fin: 16th Ignition
Polesitter here last year, Bubba did not have the same speed in qualifying session but his start to the race was promising since he quickly climbed to fourth position. Unfortunately and as too often in the West Series, the eldest of the Nascimento brothers was struck by bad luck. Ignition problem… Big disappointment for a driver who had the possibility of winning the race.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Madera |
| 23 | 0 | 5 | 10 | 1 | 2nd (1x) | 2 starts, best result: 6th |
No. 5 Sean Hingorani (Jerry Pitts Racing) Start: 4th – Fin: 2nd
If Hingorani was frustrated by the last restart where he could glimpse victory for a brief moment against Huddleston, castigating him for the way he blocked him, he must surely be very satisfied with his race at Madera with the adrenaline having gone down. Why? Because first of all without this overtime he would not have had the possibility of playing for the win. Indeed he was not as fast as Huddleston. Then, he took back the first position from Tyler Reif in the championship following the latter’s setbacks. It is therefore ultimately a very good operation that the driver of the black and gold No. 5 carried out with this third consecutive second position. From seven points behind, he is now six ahead.
“It’s frustrating. The last restart, I feel like we capitalized good, but ran us into the fence coming to the checkered. Just really unnecessary, but what goes around comes around. P2 and we were able to get the West points lead back at Madera. We’ll be looking for one better this weekend at Roseville” Hingorani says.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Madera |
| 26 | 6 | 15 | 16 | 3 | 1st (6x) | 2 starts, best result 2nd |
No. 6 Henry Barton (Jerry Pitts Racing) Start: 9th – Fin: 8th
A first career top 10 for rookie Barton with this eighth position. But he showed some very good things during the race. He joined the top 5 on lap 25. He would stay there for a long time while battling against West Series bigwigs Tyler Reif and Kyle Keller. Seventh on lap 80 then eighth on lap 100. He gained two positions thanks to Reif and Johnson, Jr.’s problems before re-entering the top 5 with 15 laps to go. Finally Giannini, Johnson, Jr. and Koga would all pass him during overtime. But if we take into account the entire race, Barton’s performance was promising.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Madera |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8th | 1 start, best result 8th |
No. 7 Takuma Koga (Jerry Pitts Racing) Start: 12th – Fin: 7th
Best result of the season for the Japanese driver with this seventh position. A race where he navigated for a long time between ninth and eleventh position before finishing in a rush during overtime! However, the race was not a long, quiet river for the driver of the No. 7 who seriously damaged his car by hitting the back of David Smith on the 83rd lap. But it was more cosmetic damage than anything else. And on a bullring, aerodynamic efficiency is not the most important thing to achieve a good result!
“Crazy dizzy racing weekend with a lead lap 7th position finished at Madera Speedway ! Special thanks all fans, all sponsors, ARCA officials and Jerry Pitts Racing crew! On to next weekend.” Koga said.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Madera |
| 123 | 0 | 4 | 28 | 0 | 5th (4x) | 2 starts, best result 7th |
No.9 Mikey Killen (Jan’s Racing) Start: 13th – Fin: 10th
The rookie drove a smart race and avoided the typical problems of bullring races. By preserving his car but without driving slowly. He benefited from the free pass during the fifth yellow flag but lost the lap won following a spun on lap 122. He took the advantage over Souza during the overtime and finished 10th in the race just behind his teammate Rip Michels. This is the first time that Jan’s Racing has placed two cars in the top 10 at the same time.
“We had an awesome and fun weekend at Madera Speedway. Making my first ever start at Madera and 3rd ever ARCA race was a blast! We learned a lot and I got to experience some really close racing on a smaller track. I would like to thank Jan Qualkenbush, Jan’s Towing, Jan’s Racing team and my parents for making this all possible. The whole team did an amazing job. I can’t wait for the next one!” Killen, Jr. said.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Madera |
| 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 10th | 1 start, best result 10th |
No. 11 Robbie Kennealy (Kennealy Keller Motorsports) Start: 14th – Fin: 17th Brakes (S&P)
The team finally opted for the No. 11 instead of No. 1so as not to remove the stickers from the Chevrolet. This car having been used by Danica Dart at Tri-City. Kennealy would do few laps in practice and quickly abandon the race due to brake problems and parks his car in the infield. But it was a start and park planned by the team. In the end it had little importance because two days later, on September 30, Robbie lost his father Gary following a heart attack. To Robbie and his family very involved in the West Series, stay strong, the Kickin’ The Tires team is thinking of you. Our most sincere condolences.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Madera |
| 12 (2 DNS) | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 5th | 2 starts, best result 16th |
No. 12 Kyle Keller (Kennealy Keller Motorsports) Start: 8th – Fin: 5th
If Hingorani gets second place for the third consecutive time, Keller also pulls off the hat trick for fifth consecutive place, despite a Ford whose front end was bent at the end of the race. Keller was fourth before the last yellow flag and had this position taken from him by Giannini during overtime. But with the problems of Wood and Reif, this new top 5 allows him to pick up valuable points in the drivers’ championship. He is now only four points behind the fourth place occupied by Jack Wood.
“Had another top 5 finish at Madera Speedway. Was running third at the white but got ruffed up. But if it wasn’t for my team we wouldn’t have even had this chance! Thank you to my entire crew and all my sponsors!” Keller said.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Madera |
| 31 | 0 | 9 | 20 | 0 | 4th (3x) | 2 starts, best result 5th |
No. 13 Tyler Reif (Central Coast Racing) Start: 3rd – Fin: 14th Ignition
Last year, Tyler finished third before being disqualified for pushing Huddleston into a spun on the last lap. This time, let’s be honest, he wasn’t aiming for the win. Oscillating at best between fifth and sixth position. He will experience various problems. First engine overheating, then a dead battery that will prevent him from restarting after the red flag and finally a bunrt cltuch. He loses 13 points to Hingorani and loses his first position in the championship. Second at six points, anything is still possible. Because last year he left Madera with a 33-point deficit with one race to go. This year, there are three races left, plenty of time to reverse the trend and find his way back to Victory Lane.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Madera |
| 23 | 3 | 12 | 14 | 5 | 1st (3x) | 2 starts, best result 11th |
No. 16 Jack Wood (Bill McAnally Racing) Start: 5th – Fin: 12th
What can I say? A race to forget, that’s obvious. Fast on Friday during the free practice, just like on Saturday, he only had the fifth fastest time in the qualifying session. He spun out for the first time all by himself on lap 10 in turn 4 while he was still fifth. He then came back from 16th position to ninth in just seven laps. He took eighth position from his teammate on lap 44 and remained stuck in that position until his second spun, again on turn 4, on lap 98, hit by… Eric Nascimento, Jr. who returned to the track 76 laps behind!
Unfortunately, Wood, stalled on track, was hit by Whisner and lost three laps to repair his Chevrolet, whose left front was badly damaged. He also lost oil. After the red flag, he was 12th and his third spun, still on turn 4, three laps from the end, wasn’t going to change anything… He must be thinking that Roseville on October 5th is coming soon!
“We had a good NAPA Auto Care Chevrolet and thought we could run in the top three tonight. Just a hard night and unfortunate to get caught up in several messes tonight. We’ll move on, and make up for it at Roseville next week.” Wood says.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Madera |
| 28 | 0 | 7 | 16 | 0 | 2nd | 1 start, best result 12th |
No. 19 Eric Johnson, Jr. (Bill McAnally Racing) Start: 17th – Fin: 4th
What a race from rookie Johnson, Jr. He had an incredible start to the race as he went from last position at the start to fifth in just 20 laps! Too bad he couldn’t do a lap in the qualifying session due to technical problems. He then lost a few positions to stagnate in ninth place from lap 44 to lap 70. Halfway through the race he was only 10th. Following his teammate Wood’s accident with Whisner, he found himself seventh during the red flag. But a leak on his oil line forced him to go through his pit box. His team repaired the car and he only lost one lap in the maneuver.
He was 12th when the race restarted on lap 110. Fortunately he benefited from the free pass on lap 122. From there it was a Johnson, Jr. festival as he snuck into the top 10 until he got a career-best fourth. That boded well ahead of the race at BMR’s home track in Roseville on October 5, another .333-mile bullring.
“You couldn’t replicate tonight again if you tried. After losing a motor in practice and starting in the back, we had to push forward from the jump. The guys worked hard to keep me level headed as I searched for any holes I could find along the way.
“Unfortunately we had an oil line come loose that trapped us a lap down but to be able to get that lap back, run back through the field, and finish 4th, that’s a statement these guys and I really needed. There was no quit in our No.19 POA team tonight. Most importantly non of it would be possible without all of our partners. This result means so much to us, and I can’t wait to build on this for next week! Going to try and improve by three more spots.” Johnson, Jr. said
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Madera |
| 13 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 4th | 1 start, best result 4th |
No. 21 Ethan Nascimento (Nascimento-Joiner Motorsports) Start: 7th – Fin: 3rd
Finally! Finally a race without problems for Ethan Nascimento. When you see the number of races he wins in the lower categories, it was incomprehensible that he had never achieved better than an eighth position in the West Series. For his first start in 2024, he demonstrated the full extent of his talent by driving an intelligent race with the right amount of aggression and the right amount of restraint in his driving.
Very quickly fifth at the start of the race just behind his brother. He took over from him on the 20th lap when Eric had to retire. He then delivered to the spectators a great duel with Giannini for the gain of the third step of the podium which he reached on the 59th lap. Position that he kept until the 85th lap. At that time he had to fight against Giannini and Keller. Fifth at the time of the red flag, he resumed his march forward after the restart following the seventh yellow flag. He returned to the podium on the 141st lap and did not let go until the finish.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Madera |
| 9 (+ 1 DNS) | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3rd | 2 starts, best result : 3rd |
No. 23 Jaron Giannini (Sigma Performance Services) Start: 1st – Fin: 6th
First career pole for rookie Giannini who kept the advantage of it during the first laps of the race. But he could not do anything, like all the others, against Huddleston. He will do almost the entire race between the second and fourth positions. Showing that he had no complexes against the 2023 champion Hingorani for example. He will then deliver a great battle with Ethan Nascimento, Tyler Reif, Kyle Keller. Finally he finds himself sixth with about ten laps to go and crosses the finish line in this position. Third top 10 in four races. He will be present in Roseville with the goal of victory.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Madera |
| 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 5th | 1 start, best result 6th |
No. 50 Trevor Huddleston (High Point Racing) Start: 2nd – Fin: 1st
What a great race for Huddleston, who didn’t give anyone a chance to win. He wanted the win to save his 2024 season, which had been complicated and even a little disappointing up until then. But when you know that he took advantage of Victory Lane for a proposal
to Nastasia Dodd, his girlfriend for 10 years and whom he met right here, you can better understand why Trevor was on another planet. And so he won both the race and Nastasia’s “yes”. This is a day he will remember for the rest of his life. As for the West Series, this is his fourth career win and by coming back to 38 points from the top spot in the championship with three races left in the season, he can logically believe again in his chances of winning the crown. “Holy crap. What a race. This car was absolutely epic. Getting these wins isn’t easy. We’ve been fighting hard this year to make it happen. To be in this victory lane is pretty special to me” Huddleston says.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Madera |
| 74 | 4 | 28 | 60 | 2 | 1st (4x) | 2 starts, best result 1st |
No. 71 Rip Michels (Jan’s Racing) Start: 10th – Fin: 9th
Rip Michels drove the race we expected of him. Of course, he hadn’t driven since 2016 in a car race, but as a former 2006 NASCAR Southwest Series champion, we knew he had a good hand behind the wheel. For his first race in the West Series, he, who is usually Nick Joanides’ crew chief, had to replace him because the latter was hospitalized following a hemothorax. And Rip did the job. Apart from a spun on lap 28 when he was 10th with the help of Koga, he was able to drive consistently and with a good pace to do the whole race on the leader’s lap and move up to ninth position, ahead of his teammate Killen Jr. We’ll see him again in Roseville where he’ll be one to watch closely. The “rust” is cleaned off, now he’s going to shine!
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Madera |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 9th | 1 start, best result 9th |
No. 77 Kyle Whisner (Performance P-1 Motorsports) Start: 15th – Fin: 15th crash
The rookie made a good start to the race, gaining a few positions to reach twelfth place after about twenty laps. He spun in turn 2 on the 49th lap. He fluctuated between 14th and 15th position until his accident with Jack Wood. The latter spun in turn 4 on the 98th lap and Whisner unfortunately could not avoid him. The head-on collision put an end to his race. A complicated year for Joe Nava’s team, which has only seen the checkered flag once in seven races this year, it was at Irwindale in July.
“We started 15th with a push, and as the track cooled, it just got worse. Too much wheel meant snappy loose, and as night fell, it was noticeable that we were dragging the nose, but at least we weren’t the slowest car on track. Then, on lap 102, a caution came out for a spin in the middle of turns 3 and 4. We backed it down when the yellow came out, but radio silence meant there was no warning of what sat on the outside of the car backing it down in front of me. And that’s how the night ended. To say I’m disappointed is an understatement.” Whisner says.
| Starts | Wins | Top5 | Top10 | Pole | Best result | At Madera |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15th | 1 start, best result 15th |
Next race on October 5th at All American Speedway in Roseville, CA for the “NAPA Auto Parts 150 presented by Berco Redwood”. A race that will be broadcast live on FloRacing.