After the lead swapped hands five times in the closing 10 laps, Max Reaves came home victorious in the ARCA Menards East Series race at Flat Rock Speedway on Saturday, Aug. 1.
The win marks Reaves’ second win of the East season to date. Reaves won at Flat Rock for the second straight year and fifth of his career.
After pole sitter Carson Brown endured mechanical and handling issues early, Reaves took the lead after 20 laps. He held off Tristan McKee for a pair of restarts before the brawl that was the final restart with inside 10 laps to go.
Between Reaves, McKee, and Isaac Kitzmiller, the trio held the lead in the final 10 laps. The lead changed hands five times, with Reaves emerging victorious. McKee and Kitzmiller got into one another after Reaves took the lead, taking away any final opportunity for a last-lap bump-and-run for the win.
“That’s racing, you know?” Reaves told FloRacing. “I was just making sure to stay on the outside of the No. 79, and staying on his outside and not tucking behind him is what won the race.”
McKee and Kitzmiller came home second and third, respectively.
“Everything was fair; we were all just racing. Except the restarts, that’s a little unacceptable. Running me up like that, and slinging stuff everywhere, ” McKee told FloRacing. “Everything on the track was fine; we were just beating and banging- that’s what happens when you’re on a track this small.”
Matt Kemp finished fourth, the final car on the lead lap. Quinn Davis crossed the line fifth, earning her career-best ARCA platform finish.
Esteban Rodriguez, Austin Vaughn, Jackson McLerran, Craig Pellegrini Jr. and Blaine Donahue rounded out the top 10 finishers in sixth through 10th, respectively.
The shortest track on the ARCA schedule at 0.25 miles delivered its fair share of bumping and rubbing in the 150-lap event.
Brown held the lead from the start, but Reaves was on his bumper the entire time. After numerous attempted bump-and-runs and a few lapped cars, Reaves moved Brown up the racetrack and passed him for the lead.
Lapped traffic was the story of the race in the early stages. Reaves and McKee pulled away from the rest of the pack, and McKee got to the bumper of the No. 18 as they worked through traffic.
It was the same lapped traffic, however, that brought out the first caution of the race. Jeffery MacZink spun from just outside the top five after clipping the grass in turn 2, nearly collecting Reaves and McKee in the process. All cars involved got out unscathed.
As the field worked the first caution, Brown visited pit road for an unscheduled pit stop. This put the No. 28 Chevrolet one lap down, forcing him just outside the top 10.
When the green flag flew for the first restart, McKee beat Reaves to the restart line. An official review was conducted, deeming the restart fair, but Reaves quickly got around McKee regardless to regain the lead. McKee kept him close, though, as Reaves worked through heavily lapped traffic. Reaves made decent contact with Alex Malycke as he lapped the No. 86, but Reaves avoided any damage to the tires of his car.
The lapped traffic spread out a bit, allowing Reaves to pull away from McKee, putting over a straightaway between the two. However, the caution flew once again for MacZink, who spun in turn 2. As for Brown, he pulled his No. 28 down the pit lane just as the caution flew. The team put the hood up, and his night came to a close with an 18th-place finish.
Reaves got a much cleaner restart and pulled out to a straightaway-length lead after just a handful of laps. McKee and Kitzmiller had a spirited battle for the runner-up position, with McKee eventually keeping the spot. Just as it looked like Reaves would cruise to a victory, the caution flew once more with just under 15 laps to go. Donahue and MacZink spun in turn 1, once again just in front of Reaves’ No. 18.
The final restart of the race turned out to be the most chaotic. McKee arced his No. 77 Chevrolet on the restart, falling into line behind Reaves as the field entered turn 1. Into turn 3, McKee put the bumper to Reaves, taking the lead. Reaves returned the favor in the next set of turns, allowing Kitzmiller to take the lead. It was Reaves who got the last laugh, moving Kitzmiller for the lead a lap later. McKee and Kitzmiller made contact for second shortly after, allowing Reaves to pull away with the victory.
ARCA East Race Results from Flat Rock
Next week, the East series returns to the track to run another combination event with the ARCA Menards Series. Both series will run Friday, Aug. 7 at Iowa Speedway. Teams will have practice at 3:30 p.m. ET with qualifying at 4:30 p.m. The green flag for the race will fly at 7 p.m. ET with TV coverage on FOX Sports 1.
Josh joined Frontstretch in 2023 and currently covers the ARCA Menards Series. Born and raised in Missouri, Josh has been watching motorsports since 2005. He currently is studying for a Mass Communication degree at Lindenwood University