Venturini Motorsports and the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards wrapped up six weekends of consecutive racing with Sunday’s visit to historic Winchester Speedway for the running of the Herr’s Potato Chip 200.
Venturini Motorsports’ customary three-team effort was led by 18-year old Dalton Sargeant who turned his best performance of the season, leading 59-laps and finishing second to race winner, Chase Briscoe.
Sargeant’s teammate Tom Hessert turned in gritty performance battling sickness and extreme temperatures, scoring a fifth place finish for his second consecutive top-5 in recent weeks.
NASCAR XFINITY (NXS) Series regular Dakoda Armstrong, subbing for Matt Tifft, rounded out VMS’s trio with a ninth place finish in his first series attempt since 2011.
The ARCA Series will enjoy the Fourth of July holiday away from the track before returning to action at Iowa Speedway in the ARCA 150 presented by Casey General Stores on July 9.
Dalton Sargeant Misses Out on First Career Series Victory Finishing Second at Winchester
Dalton Sargeant battled Chase Briscoe for top spot all afternoon in Sunday’s ARCA Herr’s Potato Chip 200 at Winchester Speedway before walking away with a hard fought and frustrating second-place finish.
Briscoe and Sargeant proved to be the class of the field as the two drivers combined to lead all 200-laps of Sunday’s race. Sargeant, who qualified second in his No.55 Toyota Racing Development – Windows 10 Camry, chased down Briscoe on lap-119, taking over the lead for 59-circuits, before relinquishing the lead on a dramatic late race restart inside the final 30-laps.
Prior to giving up the lead, Sargeant managed to out-duel Briscoe during two of the three final race restarts, but lost the battle on the third and final restart in the closing laps.
“We had a shot! Once I passed Briscoe there late in the race I was able to separate myself. It was one of those deals whoever was out front was going to win,” said Sargeant. “We pressured each other the entire race. I held him off on the first restart but that last one he got the best of me…I just got beat.”
Sunday’s runner up finish ties Sargeant’s career best (Toledo) and is his fifth top-5 in seven series attempts.
Tom Hessert Battles Fatigue Grabs Second Consecutive Top-5 Series Finish
Tom Hessert turned in a gritty performance behind the wheel of his No.25 People Against Distracted Driving backed Toyota in Sunday’s ARCA Herr’s Potato Chip 200 at Winchester Speedway.
Battling the extreme heat along with the field of competition, Hessert hung tough and raced his way to a solid fifth-place finish.
“Hard fought top-5 finish today,” said Hessert. “The 25-team did a great job giving me a strong Toyota this week. We had a really good car and made some great progress with our car and setup. We’re headed in the right direction.” This was Hessert’s second consecutive top-5 finish and fourth overall during the season campaign.
Hessert, who battled sickness prior to Sunday’s race, commented on the difficulty of racing under extreme temperature conditions inside the car.
“That was one of the more demanding days inside the car I can recall,” added Hessert. “My health wasn’t 100% this week and the hot weather really made it a challenge. I had to really stay focused and do my best to stay hydrated. Big thanks to the track’s safety crew who provided me with some much needed fluids before and after the race.”
After Winchester Hessert remains in the fourth position in the ARCA Racing driver point standings.
Dakoda Armstrong Settles for Top-10 Finish in Series Return
It wasn’t the homecoming Dakoda Armstrong envisioned, but nonetheless the Indiana native scored a ninth-place finish in his series return in Sunday’s ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards Herr’s Potato Chip 200 at Winchester Speedway.
Armstrong, a three-time ARCA Series winner, stepped in late last week to drive Venturini Motorsports’ No.15 Toyota for the injured Matt Tifft.
Qualifying in the eighth spot, Armstrong would stay inside the top-10 until cutting a right rear tire just before the midway point of the 200-lap race forcing him down pit road for an unscheduled stop. Making matters worse, the New Castle, Indiana native was accessed a speeding penalty exiting the pits. The tire issue and penalty resulted in the loss of five-laps.
“Well, not the day we wanted,” said Armstrong. “We had a right rear tire go down early which took us out of competition pretty much ending our day. I still had a lot of fun coming back and racing in the series. Thanks to everyone at Venturini for the ride.”
Despite the issues, Armstrong was able to drive his car to his 21st ARCA career top-10 finish. He’ll return to the NASCAR XFINITY Series this week at Daytona International Speedway.
VMS PR
- CHEVROLET INDYCAR AT LONG BEACH: Team Chevy Practice Report - April 19, 2024
- Burt Myers on Pole for Hayes Jewelers 200, Ward Starts Second at Bowman Gray - April 19, 2024
- O’Ward Takes Top Spot in Tight Opening Long Beach Practice - April 19, 2024