Throughout his ARCA career, Jake Finch has been a daily contender in competing for wins. On Saturday, Finch was finally able to pull it off for the first time in his ARCA tenture.
In an overtime restart with two laps to go, Finch had a fierce battle with second-place driver, Landen Lewis. Finch and Lewis ended up side by side on the overtime restart, with Finch ultimately pulling away on the final lap, picking up his first career ARCA Menards Series East win in his seventh start. Not only did Jake win the race, he was also one of the dominant drivers, leading a race-high 89 laps.
Finch, who is the son of longtime NASCAR team owner, James Finch, has had an interesting career in racing, starting with late models in 2020. Prior to that, he was a former baseball player for his local middle school.
“I didn’t think [Landen] would be on my door at that point because we were so good,” stated Finch. “I did what I thought I should do and we ended up winning, which is an awesome feeling.”
Landen Lewis has now finished the 2nd position in his last four ARCA starts, including the West Series. Luke Fenhaus, who ran in contention for most of the race, would finish in 3rd. Pole-sitter William Sawalich would finish 4th, and Lavar Scott rounded out the top five. Zachary Tinkle, Toni Breidinger, Ed Pompa, Conner Jones, and Sean Hingorani would round out the rest of the top ten. Jones, who dominated the first portion of the race, would be involved in a wreck on lap 113, ending his contention for the win.
The next ARCA Menards Series East race is set to be held at the Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway on 13 May.
Pos. | Grid | No. | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status |
1 | 9 | 20 | Jake Finch | Venturini Motorsports | Toyota | 127 | 89 | Running |
2 | 12 | 17 | Landen Lewis | McGowan Motorsports | Toyota | 127 | 1 | Running |
3 | 14 | 28 | Luke Fenhaus | Pinnacle Racing Group | Chevrolet | 127 | 0 | Running |
4 | 1 | 18 | William Sawalich | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 127 | 2 | Running |
5 | 8 | 6 | Lavar Scott | Rev Racing | Chevrolet | 127 | 4 | Running |
6 | 2 | 11 | Zachary Tinkle | Fast Track Racing | Toyota | 127 | 0 | Running |
7 | 11 | 55 | Toni Breidinger | Venturini Motorsports | Toyota | 125 | 0 | Running |
8 | 6 | 10 | Ed Pompa | Fast Track Racing | Ford | 119 | 0 | Running |
9 | 10 | 25 | Conner Jones | Venturini Motorsports | Toyota | 113 | 30 | Accident |
10 | 7 | 15 | Sean Hingorani | Venturini Motorsports | Toyota | 85 | 0 | Running |
11 | 5 | 48 | Brad Smith | Brad Smith Motorsports | Ford | 70 | 0 | Clutch |
12 | 13 | 31 | Rita Goulet | Rise Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29 | 0 | Parked |
13 | 4 | 12 | C.J. McLaughlin | Fast Track Racing | Toyota | 5 | 0 | Mechanical |
14 | 15 | 98 | Dale Shearer | Shearer Speed Racing | Toyota | 4 | 0 | Mechanical |
15 | 3 | 01 | Tim Monroe | Fast Track Racing | Ford | 2 | 0 | Mechanical |