With most of the attention going to the ARCA points race between Justin Lofton and Parker Kligerman, this will allow other drivers to try and steal part of the spotlight by winning the American 200.

One of the drivers hoping to take the checkered flag Sunday at the Rockingham Speedway is Alli Owens. During April’s Carolina 200, Owens finished 12th one lap behind the winner Sean Caisse.

Owens is confident she will be able to make her way into Victory Lane Sunday after recently joining Venturini Motorsports. In the two ARCA races since the track was reopened, Venturini Motorsports is a perfect 2-for-2, with Joey Logano winning the initial race last year and Caisse winning in April.

“I know the equipment can win,” Owens said. “I haven’t been this hungry for a win since I’m been racing. I’m not running for points here, I want to win and I’m going to give 110 percent.”

Originally, Owens was not slated to begin racing with Venturini Motorsports until the 2010 ARCA season, but circumstances allowed Owens to jump behind the wheel of the No. 35 car this weekend.

According to Owens, the move from Eddie D’Hondt Motorsports team to Venturini was something she was looking to do for a while.

“I kind of always wanted to drive for Billy (Venturini),” Owens said. “He’s very selective about who he allows to drive his cars. I didn’t hesitate to make the change.”

Owens credits the team’s success of being able to help young drivers become better and more importantly, win, as a key reason for her to join Venturini Motorsports.

“They are solely focused on racing and winning,” Owens said about Venturini Motorsports. “It really shows, because if they don’t perform well at a race they aren’t happy about it.

“Billy is a straight-up guy, he will tell you what he thinks. I have seen male drivers cry after talking to him. I was listening to him talk on the radio to Steve Arpin and Billy put him in his place. After that, Steve’s times started improving. If being a better driver is in you, Billy will bring it out.”

Even though having Venturini in her ear Sunday and a team known of winning at “The Rock,” Owens knows it may take a bit of time for her and her crew to get to know each other.

“I’ve never run a race with the Venturinis, but I have all the confidence that we can hit the ground running,” Owens said. “I’m sure there will be a learning curve and it takes time to develop the driver-crew chief chemistry. But I feel like their experience already puts us a step ahead of the competition.”

While Owens’ team is used to preparing a car to win at “The Rock,” having a driver be able to withstand everything the track and the other drivers will throw at them is another thing. This will be Owens third ARCA race at the track and she believes she is beginning to understand what it takes to win there.

“I learned a lot about how to make the track your friend, rather than trying to fight it,” Owens said. “I think I have matured mentality and I have started to understand the lines at the track for how the car is handling. You have got to drive with discipline to make your tires last. My last two races there taught me the importance of being patient in beginning stages of a run.”