Greg Van Alst Set to Tackle Michigan International Speedway
BROOKLYN, Mich: After a much-welcomed weekend off, ARCA Menards Series veteran Greg Van Alst and his team return to competition eyeing his second top-five finish of the season in Friday night’s Henry Ford Health 200 at Michigan International Speedway.
Returning to the Irish Hills of Michigan for the first time since the 2022 ARCA Menards Series season, Van Alst has his Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway Ford massaged and ready for 100 laps of competition at one of the fastest tracks on the ARCA Menards Series circuit.
Van Alst rebounded two weeks ago at Elko Speedway with a top-10 finish after a frustrating summer finish at Salem (Ind.) Speedway the weekend before.
Knowing it would likely take a miracle for him to gain significant ground on the ARCA Menards Series championship race, the Anderson, Indiana native is instead focused on making gains on the track and delivering strong finishes from now until the end of the season at Toledo Speedway in October.
“I am looking forward to returning to Michigan International Speedway this weekend,” said Van Alst. “This weekend presents an excellent opportunity to take the notes we learned from Charlotte Motor Speedway and apply them from practice to qualifying. I hope we can dial in our car for 100 laps of action.
“We’ve preached throughout the year that we’ve been focused on making gains. We have. Not enough, but we are still digging. You always want to be better, but I can’t tell you how much I appreciate the long nights and tireless efforts of my Greg Van Alst Motorsports team.
“They have spent their summer helping our team do big things. We want to get back to Victory Lane. With such a competitive field, we know that will be a challenge this weekend, but we believe we’re bringing a fast car to keep up with the pack and contend for a strong finish.”
The fast speeds that Michigan International Speedway, the 2.0-mile oval nestled in Brooklyn, Mich., delivers will allow plenty of opportunity for drafting. Van Alst is considered one of the best on the circuit when it comes to the draft, and the former ARCA | CRA Super Series champion plans to use his expertise to his advantage.
“The draft will be a huge factor this weekend, very similar to Daytona and Talladega,” explained Van Alst. “That’s why we are bringing the car we utilized at Charlotte Motor Speedway. We had a good pace with the car and just missed a top-10.
“A couple of years ago, we fought hard, learned even more about the draft with these ARCA cars, and finished ninth. The second time around, I know what to expect with the draft, especially the slight difference in utilizing the draft to our advantage compared to a place like Daytona or Talladega.
“I expect the draft to be in play from the drop of the green flag until the checkered flag on Friday evening.”
This weekend, the family-owned team welcomes back CB Fabricating as the primary partner of the team’s No. 35 Ford Mustang for the 13th ARCA Menards Series race of the season.
Headquartered in Anderson, Ind., CB Fabricating offers a complete list of fabricating from design, laser cutting, CNC punching, forming, welding, powder coating, and assembly.
“The ARCA season is a continued grind, and I’m super blessed to have CB Fabricating back on board as the primary partner this weekend at Michigan,” sounded Van Alst. “He’s been around since practically the start of this journey. His support and commitment to this team are priceless, and we’ll race hard to try to bring him another win.”
Friday night’s 100-lap race will mark Van Alst’s 51st career ARCA start.
With 12 races completed, Van Alst sits third in the ARCA Menards Series championship standings, 21 points behind Lavar Scott for second, and 65 points behind championship leader Andrés Pérez de Lara, with eight races remaining this year.
Since 2002, Van Alst has 50 ARCA Menards Series starts to his credit, one win, five top-five and 25 top-10 finishes.
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 X | Twitter (@GregVanAlst35).
The Henry Ford Health 200 (100 laps | 200 miles) is the 13th of 20 races on the 2024 ARCA Menards Series schedule. Practice begins Friday, August 16, from 1:30 p.m. to 2:10 p.m. General Tire pole qualifying follows beginning at 2:30 p.m. The race is set to take the green flag later in the day shortly after 6:00 p.m. ET. The event will be televised live on FOX Sports 1 (FS1) and streaming on FloRacing. ARCARacing.com will also stream live timing and scoring throughout the entire weekend festivities. All times are local (ET).
