The reigning ARCA Menards Series West champion and points leader Trevor Huddleston extended his command over the field with a dominant performance Saturday night (May 2) at Shasta Speedway.
Following wins by Kyle Larson in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series and Max Reaves in the ARCA Menards Series East, Huddleston kept the favorites on top of the leaderboard with his win. Much like Reaves, Huddleston led every lap of his race to deliver the ARCA West victory as ARCA Night in America went entirely chalk.
Although Huddleston dominated on track, he made it clear afterward that nothing came easy. Speaking with FloRacing, he emphasized the level of competition, noting that wins like this are “hard to come by” and adding, “this is a lot of great competition this year… there were a lot of contenders tonight.”
In a celebratory mood Huddleston went on to state “Now we get to go have some fun tonight. Go celebrate with my team there’s going to be some beers in the future.”
The ARCA West race at Shasta Speedway served as the nightcap to the ARCA Menards East and West doubleheader, following Max Reaves’ victory at Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway. The event also honored Bill Schmitt, a four-time ARCA West Series champion, as a memorial race in his name.
Huddleston’s dominance began right from the drop of the green flag, as he jumped out to the early lead. Massey applied pressure in the opening run, closing to Huddleston’s bumper before a caution slowed the field. The yellow was triggered when Josiah Reaume hit the wall, his second incident within the first 15 laps, which ultimately sent him to the garage for repairs. This started the trend of Huddleston fending off every battle on a restart that came his way.
ARCA West drivers seemingly had nothing for Huddleston. That is, until a late caution triggered by Julian DaCosta with about 37 laps remaining. That yellow flag was the last thing Trevor Huddleston wanted.
Though he had led every lap and stretched his advantage to five seconds at various points, the field was brought back to him for a restart. Just like he had all night, Huddleston was up for the challenge.
Earlier, a caution with 58 laps to go, brought out by Gavin Ray, started a battle that would ensue for the rest of the race putting Huddleston head to head with young upstart Cole Denton in the final third of the race.
Side by side at the start, Denton held the outside lane and seemed poised for an upset. However, Huddleston’s superior speed soon took over as he pulled away to widen the gap once more, eventually taking the checkered flag.
Cole Denton settled for the runner-up spot while Mason Massey followed in third. Andrew Chapman and Robbie Kennealy also put together strong runs to round out the top five.
ARCA West Results from Shasta Speedway
The ARCA West Series heads to Colorado National Speedway on Saturday, May 23. The race will begin at 10 p.m. ET, with coverage provided by FloRacing.
