ARCA: Austin Theriault Wins Shortened Opener at Daytona

The most intense race of the ARCA Racing Series season is always the opener at Daytona. And the 2017 edition was certainly no exception.

Speedweeks at Daytona are the official start to the stock car racing season each year from Daytona International Speedway. But the first checkered flag each year falls on the ARCA Racing Series, as they run their annual 200-miler at the 2.5-mile superspeedway. Each year, the series puts on one of the most exciting shows of the week, with big crashes, tight racing, and surprise winners. 2017 brought all that once again.

Qualifying brought a wide shuffle among contenders and pretenders in the field on Saturday afternoon. Series veteran Tom Hessert would take the pole for Venturini Motorsports and would lead the field to green.

As the green flag dropped on the ARCA season, the big story was the veterans taking on the young guns. Seasoned drivers like Hessert, Terry Jones, and Austin Theriault would take time at the front of the pack, while youngsters struggled to compete. While first time started Quin Houff would lead briefly for Mason Mitchell Motorsports, he would be collected in one of three big wrecks over the race and not be in contention.

As the race closed in on its 80-lap distance, time was running out as Mother Nature loomed near with rain threatening the track. A final large wreck could prove to be the final straw that would end the ARCA race early. Terry Jones and Austin Theriault battled hard inside the final ten laps for the top spot, until Theriault passed Jones on the high side of turn 4 to take the top spot.

In the end, a hard three-car crash at the start-finish line with five laps to go would end the race early. Combining the damage to the SAFER barrier, rain, and tight schedule with the upcoming Clash at Daytona, ARCA officials called the race official and Austin Theriault of Ken Schrader Racing was declared the winner.

This was Theriault’s second win in just three series starts. Superspeedway veteran Terry Jones would finish second, and Cunningham Motorsport’s Shane Lee finished third. Theriault will run the full season in the #52 car for Ken Schrader.

Here are the full results of the Lucas Oil 200 at Daytona:

1. Austin Theriault, Chevrolet, Ken Schrader Racing
2. Terry Jones, Toyota, Rette Jones Racing
3. Shane Lee, Ford, Cunningham Motorsports
4. Dalton Sargeant, Ford, Cunningham Motorsports
5. Tom Hessert, Toyota, Venturini Motorsports
6. Bret Holmes, Chevrolet, Holmes Family Racing
7. Ricky Sanders, Ford, Kimmel Racing
8. Kyle Weatherman, Chevrolet, Mason Mitchell Motorsports
9. Clint King, Ford, Lira Motorsports
10. Kaz Grala, Chevrolet, Mason Mitchell Motorsports
11. Sean Corr, Ford, Empire Racing
12. Matt Tifft, Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing
13. Justin Fontaine, Toyota, Win-Tron Racing
14. Codie Rohrbaugh, Dodge, Rohrbaugh Racing
15. Bobby Gerhart, Chevrolet, Gerhart Racing
16. Derrick Lancaster, Dodge, Derrick Lancaster Racing
17. Brad Smith, Ford, Hylton Racing
18. John Ferrier, Chevrolet, Ferrier Racing
19. Lelani Munter, Toyota, Venturini Motorsports
20. Andy Seuss, Chevrolet, Our Motorsports
21. Ray Ciccarelli, Ford, Lira Motorsports
22. Travis Braden, Chevrolet, Braden Motorsports
23. Mike Senica, Chevrolet, Hixson Motorsports
24. Scott Edwards, Chevrolet, Wayne Peterson Racing
25. Bo LeMastus, Dodge, Crosley Racing
26. Noah Gragson, Toyota, Venturini Motorsports
27. Michael Self, Toyota, MDM-Rainier Racing
28. Quin Houff, Chevrolet, Mason Mitchell Motorsports
29. Thomas Praytor, Ford, Max Force Racing
30. Ed Pompa, Chevrolet, Fast Track Racing
31. Mark Thompson, Ford, Venturini Motorsports
32. Gus Dean, Toyota, Win-Tron Racing
33. Caesar Bacarella, Chevrolet, Finney Racing Enterprises
34. A.J. Fike, Chevrolet, RFMS Racing
35. David LeBeau, Ford, Norm Hutton Racing
36. Eric Caudell, Chevrolet, Hixson Motorsports
37. Michael Lira, Ford, Williams Family Racing
38. Bryan Dauzat, Chevrolet, Fast Track Racing
39. Con Nicolopoulos, Chevrolet, Wayne Peterson Racing
40. Willie Mullins, Ford, Darrell Basham Racing

Next: NASCAR to Employ Full-Time Safety Team

The next race for the ARCA Racing Series comes in six weeks from Music City USA. Catch the Music City 200 presented by Jive from Fairgrounds Speedway in Nashville on April 8. Television coverage can be seen on MAVTV.