Brent Crews has had a busy week. He scored a win at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park, announced his ownership of a new NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series team, and earned the pole at Iowa Speedway.
Was it time to ride the hot hand and award him the top spot in our ARCA power rankings? The answer came on lap 56 when Brenden Queen overtook Crews on a restart, just before a caution flag flew for a Lavar Scott spin. Queen took the lead and, despite some late-race efforts from Crews, never looked back.
It was the second straight race in which Queen and Crews led the most laps and looked to be the class of the field. Crews kept Queen’s lead within a second, while the rest of the top five trailed several seconds behind. Over the past two races, they’ve separated themselves as the two strongest contenders on track.
The rest of the rankings are filled out by ARCA regulars. An interesting stat: series regulars have combined for six wins this season. While that number is inflated by Queen’s five victories, it’s still a clear improvement from last year, when no full-time drivers reached victory lane.
1. Brenden Queen
Queen has led a staggering 744 laps this season. His dominance comes as no surprise. A more surprising statistic, however, is that out of his five wins, this was his first victory at a short track. Given his background in the zMax CARS Tour, it’s unexpected that his initial four wins came at a superspeedway (Daytona International Speedway) and three other very unique racetracks (Kansas Speedway, Michigan International Speedway, and Dover Motor Speedway).
Before his first road course race in the series at Lime Rock Park, he reflected on his pre-race nerves, telling Motorsports Today, “Man, what a day… I was probably more nervous for our race than I have been in a while because I don’t have any road [course] experience at all.”
Despite that, he finished with an impressive top-five result, running fourth. With Watkins Glen International coming up next on the calendar, it will be worth watching to see if he can replicate that success.
2. Brent Crews
Over the past three ARCA events, Crews and Queen have been the top two cars in practice, qualifying, and during the races themselves. If not for a right-front tire failure at Dover, Crews might have been able to make things a little less comfortable for Queen. At Iowa, Crews made a late charge to take the lead, but it wasn’t enough.
Following the race, Queen spoke with Frontstretch about their recent battles and praised Crews, calling him his toughest competition.
“We push each other to be better, and that’s all you can ask for,” Queen said. “When you’ve got a competitor that you think is the best, you’ve got to beat him.”
Crews wanted the win, though.
Next week at Watkins Glen is a major milestone for Crews, as he will be on double duty running both the ARCA race and the Truck Series event, where he will make his debut as a team owner.
3. Lawless Alan
Lawless Alan sits second in points and has finished in the top five in nine of 12 races this season. At times, it looked like he might capitalize on the aggressive racing and tire wear affecting the leaders, but he didn’t have the speed to make a pass for the top spot.
His lone win came at Talladega Superspeedway, but next week’s race at Watkins Glen could present a prime opportunity for win number two. In his only other road course start this season at Lime Rock, Alan finished third behind road course specialists Thomas Annunziata and Alon Day.
While he has been consistently strong all year, another victory would help strengthen his case to secure a ride in the Truck Series next season, a goal he is motivated to achieve.
4. Isabella Robusto
At number four is Alan’s Venturini Motorsports teammate, Isabella Robusto, who is currently on a seven-week streak of top-10 finishes. Even more impressive are her last three results: third at Dover, fourth at IRP, and fourth at Iowa. This consistency places her in fourth position, ahead of Scott, who has averaged a seventh-place finish over the same span.
Although she sits fifth in the current point standings, her strong run of finishes elevates her to fourth in the power rankings. It will be interesting to see if she can maintain her top-five form at Watkins Glen, following a solid 10th-place finish at Lime Rock.
5. Lavar Scott
Rev Racing’s Scott claims the final spot in these power rankings. He has been a pillar of consistency this season, with his worst finish being 11th at Dover, which is the only time he has finished outside the top 10. This consistency highlights his skill as a driver, especially considering that even in that 11th-place run, he was battling an extremely loose car that did not seem top-10 worthy.
Currently, Scott sits third in the ARCA point standings. Coming off another top-five finish at Iowa, he will look to improve on his performance at Watkins Glen, where he finished ninth last year.
Paint Scheme of the Race
Prior to the start of the race, Zachary Tinkle in his No. 11 Fast Track Racing Toyota would be tough to top. The purple and yellow scheme always sticks out on the track, but it just hits differently in Iowa, as it reflects the colors of the University of Northern Iowa Panthers.
The top paint scheme of the day, however, goes to Quinn Davis in the No. 31 car for Rise Motorsports.
The team arrived in Iowa with a new wrap honoring former Marine Corps officer Max Buchanan and the Max Buchanan Foundation. The blue turtles on the hood against the bright yellow exterior stood out on the track. Combined with the fact that the foundation provides scholarships and support to marginalized individuals and those in need, this design easily takes home top honors.
Davis finished 15th in the race, and while she may not have been fully satisfied with her performance on track, it was certainly a better way to spend the day than sitting in a classroom. The 16-year-old chose to compete in the Atlas 150 instead of attending her first day of school.
Next up is the General Tire 100 at The Glen. The event features an early start time as it precedes the Truck Series race. Practice is scheduled for 10 a.m. ET followed by qualifying at 11 a.m. ET. Afterward, ARCA drivers will make way for Truck Series practice and qualifying. The green flag for the ARCA race will wave at 2 p.m. ET, with television coverage on FOX Sports 2 and streaming available on the FOX Sports App.
