Los Angeles – Dylan Cappello hadn’t competed in an ARCA Menards Series West race since 2015 until Friday night.
You would never have known it from his performance during the Star Nursery 150 at The Bullring at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.Man, that’s crazy. Cappello, who has competed at The Bullring countless times in both a Late Model and a Modified, said that this was just sort of a one-time deal and that people should just come out to have fun with family and friends. “It resulted in a victory. It’s gotten out of hand. It’s absurd. Even now, I have no idea what’s going on.
ARCA Menards Series West championship leader Sean Hingorani, who started on the pole and seemed to be in a league of his own for most of the event, dominated the first 120 laps of the race.
Cappello, a seasoned racer who works for Front Row Motorsports as Zane Smith’s lead engineer in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, won his first West Series race in spectacular style while driving Mike Naake’s No. 88 Ford Mustang.
However, things took an unexpected turn on Lap 120 during a caution period when Hingorani’s No. 15 Mobil 1 Toyota caught fire from the right-front. He eventually had to stop so that safety personnel could put out the fire, which also caused him to lose the lead in the race.
Cappello claimed, “These guys are animals on restarts and I kind of struggled getting through gears all night.” Man, I just barely made it through the gears and got a good entry into (Turn) 1. Everything came together. On the final two laps, I felt like I made thirty mistakes, but everything came together.
Despite not being the winner on Friday night, Huddleston still considered his runner-up finish a personal triumph. Huddleston, who started the race in second place in the standings, significantly reduced Hingorani’s lead after Hingorani finished 16th.
At the end of the year, we all want that championship,” Huddleston said. Sean had a difficult evening tonight due to a mechanical issue. We required this evening. Congratulations to Dylan on finishing second; he has incredible talent. However, I consider this a victory for our team.
With his younger brother Tyler Reif and Eric Nascimento Jr. rounding out the top five finishers, Tanner Reif finished third for Bill McAnally Racing, matching his season-best position.
Sixth through tenth place, respectively, went to Kyle Keller, Todd Souza, Robbie Kennealy, Kaden Honeycutt, and R.J. Smotherman.On Saturday, October 28 at 11 a.m. ET on CNBC, a replay of the Star Nursery 150 from The Bullring at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway will be broadcast.
The 2023 ARCA Menards Series West season has just two races left. The 51FIFTY Jr. Homecoming ARCA 150 presented by the West Coast Stock Car/Motorsports Hall of Fame will be run at California’s Madera Speedway on Saturday, Oct. 21, marking the series’ first visit there since 2009.
Live coverage of the event will be available on FloRacing starting at 8 p.m. PT / 11 p.m. ET.
Cappello, who had started eighth and had gradually moved up through the field to second before Hingorani’s unfortunate circumstance, was now in first place.
After that, Cappello’s path to victory wasn’t easy; he had to endure not one, but two more restarts as the race’s front-runner. With two laps remaining in the 150-lap race’s planned duration, Hingorani slowed to a stop due to a flat right-front tire.
Cappello had no trouble with the overtime restart and quickly passed Trevor Huddleston in second place before cruising to his first West Series victory.
Also read: NASCAR Revival Roars to Life at Las Vegas Motor Speedway
