Members of Ken Weaver’s crew work on his car after rain washed out the ARCA/REMAX open practice at the Rockingham Speedway on Saturday. The practice was rescheduled for today at 9 a.m.
Last year’s ARCA race at “The Rock” was dominated by Venturini Motorsports and the No. 25 car of Joey Logano. Billy Venturini feels his cars will again have success at the track.
“I feel in my heart, I have the two best cars in the field when we come here,” Venturini said. “We were fortunate to have led everything last year. We are bringing the same car that Joey won in and its twin.”
While Logano has moved on to race full-time on the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Venturini will have two relative newcomers behind the wheel, Alex Yontz and Sean Caisse. The pair have combined to make just eight ARCA starts in their racing careers.
Even though they have little experience at Rockingham Speedway, they both expect to be very competitive in the Carolina 200.
“They have great equipment here at Venturini Motorsports,” Yontz said. “I at least expect to have a top five (finish).”
Caisse echoed those sentiments.
“I am really excited to be a part of the team,” he said. “I will be driving the car Joey dominated in last year, so we should finish in the top five.”
Both drivers credit Venturini’s ability to set up a car capable of winning as well as his ability to make the needed adjustments on the fly.
“With Billy being a driver himself, he understands driver talk and knows what needs to be done,” Yontz said.
“Billy was a driver and it helps make things come together quicker,” Caisse said.
Yontz will be pulling double duty during the Carolina 200 weekend. He will not only be driving in the Carolina 200, but also in the UARA Late Model Series race on April 18.
He hopes running in the UARA race will give him an advantage the following day.
“I’ve never tried to do it before, but I hope I will pick something up that will help me in this race (Carolina 200),” Yontz said. “I hope the knowledge from the UARA car will transfer.”
While Caisse and Yontz know they will have cars with the ability to pull into Victory Lane, another is looking to jump back into his vehicle after a crash at Daytona.
Patrick Sheltra was battling for the top spot at the season-opening race, when he was hit from behind and slid into the wall backwards, before bouncing off and being broadsided by another car.
Sheltra said he doesn’t remember the crash, but knows he will feel the effects of his injured back and knee for a while.
“I know my back and knee are going to hurt, but you have to put it behind you,” he said. “I watch the video and I can’t believe I walked away from it. I just put someone else in the car when I watch it.”
Sheltra admits the Venturini Motorsports teams will be among the favorites to win the Carolina 200, he believes his experience at “The Rock” will help him.
“I think it’s an advantage to have raced here last year,” Sheltra said. “There are places where you are going to be able to get a good run on someone and make a pass. I don’t expect anything less than a top five or top 10 (finish).”
While drivers and their crews spent most of their day in the garage, tinkering and retinkering with their cars, one man hopes an owner doesn’t try to “mess with success.”
Joe Wells, the vice president of competition with ARCA, sees a near perfect facility when he looks at Rockingham Speedway.
“I hope Andy (Hillenburg) doesn’t change a thing,” Wells said. “We don’t have to have the latest or the newest things.”
ARCA was so impressed with the track it added a second race in October, where the series champion will be crowned.
“Number one, everyone loves and thinks it’s a fantastic track,” Wells said. “The drivers like racing here. It’s racing the way it used to be.
“And there’s so much history here. Look who raced stock cars here, the Pettys, Bonnetts and the Gantts.”
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