The two best words to describe the ARCA Menards Series race at the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds on Sunday, Sept. 6, are messy and fun. Messy because several drivers left with beat-up racecars and fun because there were also a few contenders for the victory.
Alas, Carson Brown drove the best race and left the one-mile dirt track with the trophy. Brown’s triumph coupled with Max Reaves’ DNF tightened the owners’ points battle to five, with Reaves’ No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing team leading Brown’s No. 28 Pinnacle Racing Group team by five.
In the driver’s point standings, the margin between Nitro Motorsports teammates Jake Bollman and Thomas Annunziata is still single digits, with Bollman now leading by eight.
Obviously, those battles are important, but who really left DuQuoin with momentum?
1. Carson Brown
Brown was fastest in the practice session, won the pole, and led 90 laps en route to the victory. In only 10 starts, Brown leads the series in pole awards, has led the second-most laps, and is one of five drivers with at least two wins.
Brown’s successes in 2026 aren’t only in the ARCA platform. His wins at DuQuoin and Phoenix Raceway are his only two ARCA wins. Otherwise, he’s been good, but not as dominant as his PRG teammate Tristan McKee or Reaves.
In the ASA Stars National Tour, a super late model tour that Cole Butcher won the title last year, Brown has won four times and leads those points with five races left. In addition, Brown won a CARS Tour West super late model race this year. Between ARCA and late model racing,
Brown is gaining plenty of experience at different types of racetracks. That bodes well for him, too, because next year, he’s taking his talents to the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, succeeding Jesse Love in the No. 2 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet.
Brown’s run at DuQuoin marked his latest trip to victory lane, but don’t be surprised if he wins more this year and continues to reign atop these power rankings.
2. Jake Bollman
Bollman muscled his way into a runner-up finish at DuQuoin.
“Yeah, we ran second there for a while at the beginning part of the race,” Bollman told Frontstretch post-race. “I knew I had the pace to do it. Just got kind of screwed on a couple of restarts, which I mean, that happens here. You know, you can call it a two-lane racetrack. It’s kind of not there on exit. But you know, we made it work, and that last restart I really just did, you know, everything I could to get back to the front. I knew I needed to for the point’s sake. And, you know, I really want to get a win this year, and I’m going to keep driving harder this year to get that.”
In 17 starts, he has 11 top fives and 16 top 10s, both series highs. Of the top 10 in points, he has the best average finish too.
DuQuoin felt like a championship drive from Bollman. He clearly wants it. Not being afraid to bump fenders or use his bumper showed he can drive aggressively when needed. That mentality coupled with his incredible consistency could indeed be the combination for the remaining three races that nets him the championship.
3. Taylor Reimer
At first glance at the results sheet, you’ll see Taylor Reimer finished in sixth place. That is a gross understatement of her race at DuQuoin.
Reimer was third in practice, but she spun her No. 77 PRG Chevrolet in qualifying, so she subsequently started last (24th).
When the green flag flew, she quickly wheeled her racecar inside the top 10. However, the dirt led to her No. 77 overheating, so she pitted under the green flag before the competition caution at halfway. As a result, she fell two laps down.
Reimer regained one of her two laps as the free pass recipient at the competition caution. At that restart, Sean Corr was black-flagged for not listening to race control, so he lost a lap. Reimer therefore had to pass him to become the first driver one lap down. She succeeded, then leader Carson Brown lapped Ryan Vargas. Vargas was the lucky dog at the lap 78 caution, not Reimer.
Three laps later, the yellow flag flew, and Reimer finally returned to the lead lap. She wasn’t done. She drove her No. 77 from a 10th-place restart spot to sixth place.
According to the race report, Reimer gained 18 spots from start to finish. She likely passed the most cars throughout the race, and she could’ve earned a better result if she had more green-flag laps at the end.
Alas, Reimer’s impressive performance has her third in these rankings. Hopefully, she’ll have better luck in her next race, the ARCA Menards Series West race at Phoenix.
4. Gavan Boschele
After their contact at the Illinois State Fairgrounds, Gavan Boschele didn’t exact his revenge on Reaves.
Following Reaves’ crash, Boschele took the lead from Brown on lap 87 and held it until lap 92. Then, Brown made the race-winning move. Boschele ultimately wound up fourth.
It is worth repeating Boschele’s stout runs in ARCA this year. In nine starts, Boschele has seven top fives and eight top 10s, with his lone finish a 12th at Chicagoland Speedway due to a poor pit stop.
Boschele has the fourth-most top fives and the seventh-most top 10s. He has more lead-lap finishes than five of the drivers inside the top 10 in points.
Please let Boschele run more ARCA races in 2027, ideally full time. He would be so much fun to watch, and an instant championship contender.
5. Ryan Vargas
Admittedly, as the Frontstretch ARCA editor, I was unaware of the CGS Imaging Four Crown. Fortunately for Vargas, his finishes in the four races under that mini-series within the national division netted him the Four Crown title.
“Man, I was talking to Eric Brennan this week, and I said, ‘Man, I hate that we couldn’t fight for the driver’s title this year,’” Vargas told Frontstretch. “So, to be able to be in contention for the Four Crown, I know that there’s a lot of, you know, big names who’ve won it in the past, and as of right now, this is my last race … couldn’t be more happy to end it on a high like that, with a top 10 with a mostly clean racecar and the Four Crown, getting some nice money for the team.”
Vargas not only finished as the last driver on the lead lap in 10th place, but he did so driving a different racecar than initially intended.
In 10 starts, Vargas has six top 10s and 10 lead-lap runs. Yes, it is a shame that he didn’t run full time for the driver’s championship, because his average finish is the third-best compared to the full-time drivers.
Vargas’ success also has Maples Motorsports’ No. 91 seventh in the owner points, ahead of CR7 Motorsports’ No. 97 and Nitro’s No. 55.
Congratulations to Vargas on achieving the Four Crown title. Per the DuQuoin entry form, his feat earned him $3,000.
Paint Scheme of the Race
Under the lights at a one-mile dirt track, white paint schemes will stand out, because they’re going to get dirty, and they’re going to be the most noticeable ones. If you have a white car, you know that feeling all too well.
Chase Howard’s No. 89 Rise Racing Chevrolet was a purpose-built dirt car. The team did not have it prepared in time to compete at the Springfield Mile, but Howard piloted it to ninth place at DuQuoin, giving him back-to-back top 10s there. Moreover, the pink and blue accents, along with the pink No. 89, earned him the DuQuoin Paint Scheme of the Race Award.
You can find all Frontstretch’s video coverage from DuQuoin on the Frontstretch Grassroots YouTube channel.
ARCA makes its next stop at the Indiana short track Salem Speedway. The venue has hosted the series the most times in history and will do so for the 112th time in the Spruce 212. The 212-lap race will go green at 8 p.m. ET with TV coverage provided by FOX.
Mark Kristl joined Frontstretch at the beginning of the 2019 NASCAR season. He is the site's ARCA Menards Series editor. Kristl is also an Eagle Scout and a proud University of Dayton alum.
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