All three ARCA series crowned their own champion, each driving for a different manufacturer. In the main ARCA Menards Series, Nick Sanchez piloted his No. 2 Rev Racing Chevrolet to the championship at Toledo Speedway. In the ARCA Menards Series East, driving the No. 18 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota, Sammy Smith captured five wins en route to winning back-to-back championships. Jake Drew drove his No. 6 Sunrise Racing Ford to victory lane four times as he claimed his first career West title.
With the ARCA seasons complete, eyes turn to 2023. To highlight the 2022 season and look forward to 2023, Frontstretch ARCA editor Mark Kristl spoke to ARCA Communications Director Charlie Krall about some of the storylines, top-performing drivers, and what lies ahead for the series next year.
Mark Kristl, Frontstretch: What grade would you give the 2022 ARCA season, especially the main series?
Charlie Krall: I am obviously very biased, so I would give us a high grade based on several different factors. I think our car count was up dramatically over the course of 2022. The competition on the racetrack was good. We had a couple of good competitive races, we had young hotshot drivers who have made their names [known], which is exactly what this platform is supposed to do. We checked all the boxes we needed to check and while I do not want to get pinned down to an exact letter grade, I give us very high marks for 2022.
Going into our final race and having a legit chance that there could be a change in the points leader, then Sanchez had some problems in practice and he did not make it on the racetrack in his No. 2, then Daniel Dye had his issues in the race, those are the types of stories that we just hope for every year before the season even starts. It makes for a lot of work to keep track of who’s running where in those final few races of the season and make sure our TV partners are updated with correct as they run point standings. But it’s a lot of fun and we’re here to create memories and drama for race fans.
Kristl: Who was a breakout star?
Krall: We had a few breakout stars this season. Our champion Sanchez had a terrific year. He’s not one who wants the spotlight pointed at him. He’s a very quiet, introverted guy, but he did all his talking on the racetrack. He had a great year, was very consistent, took advantage of his time in this platform and learned what he needed to learn and came away with a championship.
You cannot overlook Smith….
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