BRISTOL, Tenn: Thursday will be busy for ARCA Menards Series winner Greg Van Alst.
The Anderson, Ind. native will return to the ARCA Menards Series scene for the first time since competing at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park a month ago and utilize the 18th ARCA Menards Series race of the season as a preamble to his duties later that night in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series.
Considered a stout Midwest short-track racer, Van Alst is ready to hone his skills at the “World’s Fastest Half-Mile” and contend for his second career ARCA Menards Series victory.
“I love Bristol,” said Van Alst. “It’s one of my favorite short tracks, both as a fan and a driver. It will be a busy day of racing, but I would not have it any other way.
“Bristol is my last planned ARCA race of the season, so I would like to end my season the same way I started in Victory Lane.”
Last Fall at Bristol, Van Alst did not get a fair shot to contend for a strong finish in the ARCA Menards Series race as he was hindered by brake issues, which regulated the No. 35 CB Fabricating Racing driver to a 14th-place finish after starting 19th.
This year, Van Alst believes brakes won’t be an issue, and it will allow his team to focus on race setup.
“We are headed to Bristol vowing to finish what we started in the ARCA race last year,” explained Van Alst. “We were just plagued by brake issues last year from practice to qualifying and then the race. I thought we would be OK in the early laps, but the brake issue prevented us from being much faster and contending for a top-10 finish.
“We know what contributed to the brake issue. I believe we have taken the necessary steps to eradicate the issue, and we can focus on our race day setup and track position.”
Hunting his fifth top-10 finish of the 2023 ARCA Menards Series season in his seventh start this year, Van Alst believes delivering a solid finish in the Bristol 200 will give him a boost of momentum for the 200-lap UNOH 200 presented by Ohio Logistics Truck Series, which immediately follows the ARCA race.
“I’m not worried about doing double duty at all,” added Van Alst. “In my opinion, I feel like you can never have enough laps at Bristol. I will be busy jumping between the ARCA car and the truck with Young’s Motorsports – but I know that a good run in the ARCA race will help with the adrenaline and support of helping make Thursday night a career night in the Truck Series.”
Longtime Van Alst supporter CB Fabricating will continue its support this week in Thunder Valley.
Chris Barkdull’s CB Fabricating, a longtime partner with Greg Van Alst Motorsports, has boosted its commitment to the team for his 38th career ARCA start and will serve as the primary marketing partner of Van Alst’s No. 35 Ford.
Headquartered in Anderson, Ind., CB Fabricating offers a complete list of fabricating from design, laser cutting, CNC punching, forming, welding, powder coating, and assembly.
Their 26,000-square-foot facility allows them to service the needs of many different industries. Everything from the Automotive, agricultural, aquatic, medical, transportation, electrical enclosures, and much more.
“I appreciate Chris and everyone at CB Fabricating for continuing to support myself and my racing endeavors, whether in the ARCA Menards Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series, or the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series with Young’s Motorsports.
“We have together enjoyed success, and I would love nothing more than to have a great night of racing with not just one good finish but two. Our season is slowly starting to wind down, and without the support and friendship of Chris, a lot of this year would not have been possible.
“He loves Bristol, and I’d love to hand him one of those Bristol swords on Thursday night!”
Since 2002, Van Alst has 37 ARCA Menards Series starts to his credit with a career-best finish of first (win) at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway (Feb. 2023). Overall, he has earned three top-five and 18 top-10 finishes and holds an average series finish of 13.8. He finished a career-high fifth in the championship standings in 2022.
For more on Greg Van Alst and Greg Van Alst Motorsports, please visit GregVanAlst.com, like them on Facebook (Van Alst Motorsports) and follow him on Twitter(@GregVanAlst35).
The Bristol 200 (200 laps | 106.6 miles) is the 18th of 20 races on the 2023 ARCA Menards Series schedule in the 71st consecutive ARCA season. Practice begins Thursday, September 14 from 2:00 p.m. – 2:45 p.m. General Tire pole qualifying in a timed session will begin a short time later at 3:00 p.m. The race is set to take the green flag shortly after 6:00 p.m. ET. The event will be televised live on FOX Sports 1 (FS1) with the Motor Racing Network (MRN) and SiriusXM Satellite Radio (XM channel 391 | online channel 981) handling the radio waves. ARCARacing.com will also stream live timing and scoring throughout the entire weekend festivities.
The UNOH 200 presented by Ohio Logistics (200 laps | 106.6 miles) is the 20th of 23 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN® Truck Series races on the 2023 schedule. Practice begins on Thursday, September 14 from 4:00 p.m. – 4:35 p.m. Qualifying will immediately follow at the conclusion of practice from 4:35 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. The 36-truck field will take the green flag shortly after 9:00 p.m. with live coverage on FOX Sports 1 (FS1), the Motor Racing Network (Radio) and SiriusXM NASCAR Channel 90. All times are Eastern.
