The final race of the ARCA Menards' Series as we know it will happen tonight. No, the series is not folding, but the combination/consolidation of the ARCA and K&N Series' will change the layout of the ARCA Series. The series will focus more on tracks such as Bristol, Phoenix and Mid-Ohio. But let's not worry about what will happen in 2020. 2019 has to finish first and things are lining up for it to be an epic finish.
The 2019 ARCA season has been interesting one to say the least. Only five drivers have competed in all 19 races leading into Kansas and those five drivers have combined for just four wins. Granted, Christian Eckes, who has three wins, would have also been in that group had he not missed the race at Salem with an illness. The 2019 ARCA campaign also featured a youth movement of sorts. Seven ARCA races have been won this season by drivers under the age of 18. 17-year rising star Chandler Smith claimed five of those and the other two came from a then 16-year old Ty Gibbs, grandson of Joe. Harrison Burton, Todd Gilliland and Ty Majeski also found spurts of success during their sporadic ARCA attempts. But, for the most the part, the 2019 season has belonged to two full-time drivers; Eckes and Michael Self.
THE CHAMPIONSHIP DUEL
(Photo Courtesy of arcaracing.com)
Eckes, the points leader made up for lost time after missing Salem and peeled off three wins and five second-place finishes. Perhaps the most impressive part of Eckes' season is recent his recent spurt of six consecutive top-two finishes. Eckes trailed Self in points the entire year, but overtook the points lead with a runner-up finish two weeks ago at Lucas Oil, taking a 15-point lead over Self heading into the championship race at Kansas. Eckes, 18, is a Toyota Racing Development (TRD) driver who has six starts in the Kyle Busch Motorsports' #51 truck with moderate success should be on a short list of drivers to move into the open KBM truck left by Harrison Burton's move to the Xfinity Series.
(Photo Courtesy of arcaracing.com)
While Eckes is the up-and-coming 18 year old hot-shoe, His teammate, Self, has had a substantial amount of success during his career but has not received quite the push or hype that Eckes, Smith or many other drivers have. During his career, Self has made seven Xfinity starts, 71 K&N starts and 39 ARCA starts. In his 109 combined ARCA and K&N starts, Self has 15 wins, 53 top fives and 72 top tens. Self has four wins, 13 top fives and 14 top tens in 2019. While Eckes has showed his worth on the short tracks, Self has been super consistent on the circuit's larger tracks, with a win at Michigan, a fourth-place finish at Chicago and fifth-place finishes at Charlotte and Talladega. Oh, and one of Self's first career ARCA win came at Kansas in 2017.
CHAMPIONSHIP SCENARIOS
ARCA's point system is unique. A driver who wins a race receives 235 points, second place receives 220, third receives 215, fourth receives 210 and continues in five point increments. Five bonus points also awarded to the polesitter and any driver that leads a lap. The driver who leads the most laps also receives five more points. Do the math and that leaves the potential for 250 points at stake for either Eckes or Self. With a 15 point margin, Self could at worst, tie Eckes for the points lead and Self holds the tiebreaker via wins. If neither driver is to win or receive bonus points, Eckes must finish within two positions of Self to become the 2019 championship. I think it's safe to say that this points battle is going to be crazy.
POTENTIAL SPOILERS
There are a handful of non-championship contenders that I could see contending for the win. Ty Majeski has been near flawless in his five ARCA starts with three wins, a second and a fourth. All those victories have come on the bigger tracks and Kansas qualifies as one of ARCA's bigger tracks. Harrison Burton has also shown promise on the 1.5 mile circuits throughout his truck series campaign and is likely using this race to prepare himself for tomorrow's Xfinity Race. Gus Dean has been quietly competitive in his two most recent starts, including a third place finish at Charlotte. Defending ARCA champion, Sheldon Creed won this race a year ago, so expect him to be a factor. The wildcard tonight is Hailee Deegan. The 18-year prospect will be making her sixth career ARCA start and is likely using Kansas to comfort herself with larger tracks. Deegan has the potential to steal the show tonight. She also has the potential for her first race at Kansas to be a disaster. I guess we will find out.
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