Concord, North Carolina (August 31, 2017) – Dirt ace Tanner Thorson is gearing up for his Labor Day return to the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards and the 64th running of the General Tire GRABBER / Southern Illinois 100 at the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds ‘Magic Mile’.
Thorson, a 21-years old native of Minden, Nevada and reigning USAC National Champion, will make his second ARCA start of the season and third overall career appearance driving his Venturini Motorsports’ prepared No. 15 Toyota Camry.
“I can’t wait to get back in the ARCA car with Venturini (Motorsports) this weekend at DuQuoin, says Thorson. “The team was really fast at Springfield a few weeks ago – I know I’ve got a strong piece waiting for me when we unload. I’ve had a really solid career running midget cars on the dirt – it would be a huge accomplishment for me to switch over and win one in the ARCA Series.”
Debuting with VMS last season at Springfield Thorson returned to the ARCA Series this past June leading 27-circuits and earning a career best 10th place finish at Madison International Speedway’s half-mile pavement short track.
“We had a great run the last time out at Madison – I learned a ton and led some laps, it was a huge confidence booster. The biggest difference in these heavier cars is leaning how to get the car slowed down in the corners and getting it pointed for strong forward drive. Believe it or not, there are a lot of similarities to running on these cars on dirt and pavement – the biggest difference this week will be keeping the car down on the inside groove. If we can work on our braking we should have great results. I’m really excited – can’t thank Toyota and everyone else for giving me this opportunity – nothing would be sweeter than parking it in victory lane.”
Monday’s Labor Day feature will mark Thorson’s first ever appearance at DuQuoin’s ‘Magic Mile’ dirt track.
Widely known for his prowess behind the wheel of his open wheel machines, Thorson won his 25th career national midget feature win two weeks ago during Pennsylvania’ Midget week at Lanco’s Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway. With this dominating victory, Thorson delivered Keith Kunz Motorsports their 150th overall victory by a Toyota-powered car.
Follow Tanner Thorson on social media by visiting @Tanner_Thorson on Twitter and @TannerThorson on Instagram or visit his official website at www.TannerThorson.com.
General Tire Grabber 100:
The 64th running of the General Tire GRABBER / Southern Illinois 100 is scheduled to get the green flag at approximately 3 p.m. local Central time. Practice is from 10:45-11:45 a.m., with General Tire Pole Qualifying at 12:30 p.m.
ARCAracing.com will feature live audio coverage of all on-track activities including flag-to-flag coverage of the General Tire GRABBER / Southern Illinois 100. Live timing and scoring of all on-track activities and live chat will also be available throughout the afternoon at arcaracing.com. The race will air on MAVTV at a later date.
About Venturini Motorsports:
Venturini Motorsports (VMS), fielding cars for over 30-years in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards, is one of the premier NASCAR driver development programs in the country. Multiple team championships and consistent on-track success, VMS has evolved into one of the most recognizable names in motorsports. Since 2007, VMS has assisted in the career development of notable NASCAR drivers such as Joey Logano, Justin Allgaier, Ryan Blaney, Alex Bowman, Brian Scott, Kevin Swindell, John Wes Townley, Erik Jones and Justin Boston. Over the years the Venturini name has become synonymous with modern-day racing in America. In 2012, the Venturini family was inducted into the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame (www.NIASHF.org) and now find themselves enshrined with such sports icons as Joe DiMaggio, Mario Andretti, Vince Lombardi, Tommy Lasorda and Rocky Marciano.
Official: www.VenturiniMotorsports.com | Twitter: @VenturiniMotor | Facebook: Venturini Motorsports
Source: Venturini Motorsports
