Automobile Racing Club of America

Automobile Racing Club of America
Sport Stock car racing
Jurisdiction United States
Abbreviation ARCA
Founded 1953
Affiliation NASCAR
Headquarters Toledo, Ohio
President Ron Drager
Official website
www.arcaracing.com
United States

The Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) is an auto racing sanctioning body in the United States, founded in 1953 by John Marcum. The current president of ARCA is Ron Drager, who took over the position 1996 following the death of Bob Loga.[1] The ARCA Series races stock cars similar to those seen in past years in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, and indeed most cars used in the ARCA Racing Series were previously used in NASCAR. ARCA's competitors contain a mix of both professional racers as well as hobby racers alike, in addition to younger competitors trying to make a name for themselves, sometimes driving as part of a driver development program for a NASCAR team. Most ARCA Racing Series races are broadcast on either Fox Sports 1 or CBS Sports Network, and they have been previously broadcast on ESPN, USA Network, MAVTV, NBCSN, TBS and TNT.

ARCA owns both the Toledo Speedway and Flat Rock Speedway. ARCA formerly sanctioned the ARCA Midget Series from 1988 until 2002 and a truck-racing series called the ARCA Lincoln Welders Truck Series from 1999 to 2016.

On April 27, 2018, NASCAR acquired ARCA.[2][3]

History

John Marcum founded the Midwest Association for Race Cars (MARC) in 1953 as a regional stock car racing series after working as an official for NASCAR founder Bill France, Sr. In 1964, the name was changed to the "Automobile Racing Club of America" when the series became national by racing on superspeedways.[4] This ARCA is not to be confused with the organization founded in 1933 with the same name (now known as the Sports Car Club of America [SCCA]). ARCA started racing at Daytona International Speedway in 1964, during the Daytona Speedweeks, at the request of Bill France, Sr., who had raced against Marcum in the 1940s.

The ARCA/NASCAR relationship continues today. The series frequently schedule events at the same track on the same weekend. The ARCA event is frequently the Saturday support race to the Sunday NASCAR Cup event.[4] For several decades, ARCA used older NASCAR Cup race cars at their events, and with the advent of the Car of Tomorrow, teams were able to sell off their older cars to ARCA teams; current Sprint Cup driver Joey Logano drove in ARCA in 2008, driving veteran Sprint Cup cars after the Cup move to the COT.[4]

Former NASCAR drivers, such as Benny Parsons, Kyle Petty (who won the 1979 Daytona ARCA 200, the first race he ever competed in), Ken Schrader and others, have competed in and advanced through the ARCA series on the way to successful NASCAR careers.[4] ARCA has been used throughout its history as a stepping stone for hopeful NASCAR drivers.[5][6]

Point system

ARCA uses a relatively simple point system to determine champions. There is only one scale for points awarded per finishing position. Every finishing position between 1st and 40th is separated by five points, with the winning driver receiving 200 points and the 40th place driver receiving five points. Any driver who finishes behind 40th will receive five points. Points are also awarded for qualifying, with: 15 points awarded to the pole position, 10 points for the second fastest qualifier, and five for the third fastest qualifier.

There are many ways to score bonus points. Any driver who leads an official lap will receive five bonus points. The driver who leads the most official laps will receive an additional five points. All drivers who pre-enter and compete in a race will receive an additional 25 points. Any driver who enters and competes in each pre-designated five race leg of the overall schedule will receive an additional 250 points.[7]

Series

References

  1. ↑ Kernan, Sean. "ARCA's Drager Willing to Delegate". Daytona Beach, FL: The Daytona Beach News-Journal, February 7, 1997. Page 02R.
  2. ↑ Dale, Holly (April 27, 2018). "NASCAR acquires ARCA, affirming commitment to next generation of racers". NASCAR. Retrieved April 28, 2018.
  3. ↑ "NASCAR Welcomes ARCA to the Family". Automobile Racing Club of America. April 27, 2018. Retrieved April 28, 2018.
  4. 1 2 3 4 ARCA at 50 Archived February 10, 2012, at the Wayback Machine.; Stock Car Racing magazine, accessed 2008-02-26.
  5. ↑ "TRUCKS: NCWTS Announcer Phil Parsons To Host ARCA Banquet". Speed TV. Archived from the original on 2 February 2013. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
  6. ↑ Ackerman, Lee (July 2012). Omaha World-Herald https://archive.is/20130130195807/http://www.omaha.com/article/20120712/SPORTS/707129865/1001. Archived from the original on 2013-01-30. Retrieved August 18, 2012. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  7. ↑ Arcaracing.com Archived December 29, 2008, at the Wayback Machine."ARCA RE/MAX Series Point System Explanation" Retrieved February 8, 2009
  8. 1 2 Kallman, Dave (November 13, 2012). "Midwest Tour joins ARCA stock-car family for 2013". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved November 14, 2012.
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