ARCA / ARCA EAST: Matt Kemp the first of three Fast Track entries with short afternoons at Dover
by Ben Schneider / LASTCAR.info Staff Writer
PHOTO: Fast Track Racing/Facebook
Matt Kemp finished last for the 2nd time in his ARCA Menards Series career (and 1st in his ARCA Menards Series East career) in last Friday’s General Tire 150 at Dover Motor Speedway when his No. 01 ECHDetailing.com Toyota pulled behind the wall after 5 of 150 laps.
The finish came in Kemp’s 12th career start and 4th career ARCA East start.
Kemp has been one of many drivers appearing in Fast Track Racing’s rotation since 2023. While his entries are frequently forced to “start-and-park,” he has rarely been the first to pull behind the wall, as his only other appearance on this site to date was at the Toledo finale last season. Kemp has also enjoyed modest success in the ARCA East division when given the opportunity to run the full race. Building on last season’s sixth-place finish at Flat Rock, the Michigan driver returned to his home state in May and qualified on the front row, converting that strong qualifying effort into a career-best finish of fourth.
Unfortunately, those opportunities have been few and far between for Kemp, as those two races and a ninth-place effort at Berlin last month remain the only starts he’s made where he’s been running at the finish. Despite an early end to his afternoon, Kemp appeared upbeat about getting the opportunity to run at the Monster Mile, even though he was only able to run five laps. Two of his teammates also pulled behind the wall within the first 11 laps, as Blaine Donahue and Tony Cosentino were forced to park - all three Fast Track drivers’ reasons out were listed as “mechanical” on both The Third Turn and Racing-Reference. The Bottom Three sweep is not a first for Fast Track at an East Series race at Dover, as the team swept the final four spots in what was then an East standalone race in 2022, with Ed Pompa anchoring the field on that day.
A total of 25 cars appeared on the entry list - due to the withdrawal of Rise Motorsports’ No. 31 entry with Rick Goodale, only 24 started the race. Despite taking to social media to tease a new pit box on Tuesday night, the Rise team disappeared from the entry list Friday afternoon and has not updated their Facebook or X/Twitter pages since their last post. Practice damage prevented ARCA East championship contender Tyler Reif from taking a qualifying lap, leaving him to start in 24th place.
After the three Fast Track teammates pulled into the garage, Brent Crews became a surprise addition to the Bottom Five as a blown right front tire brought an early end to his day. The DNF marked the second-straight such result at Dover for Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 18 following William Sawalich’s accident in 2024. Rounding out the Bottom Five was ARCA veteran Brad Smith, with the team’s day ending after 55 laps due to handling issues. That issue was likely related to running old tires on Dover’s concrete surface.
Two championship battles converge among top five finishers
Up front, Brenden Queen led all 150 laps to take his fourth ARCA victory this season, as well as a win in his East Series debut. Longtime Monster Jam competitor Camden Murphy finished second in his return to stock car racing, while Isabella Robusto rounded out the top three.
While Queen remains the favorite for the ARCA national title (his closest competitors, Lawless Alan and Lavar Scott, finished 12th and 11th respectively), the two ARCA East championship protagonists completed the Top Five. Isaac Kitzmiller used a fourth-place finish to slightly extend his lead over Reif, who drove through the field from 24th to a strong fifth-place result. With all three remaining ARCA East races being combination events with the national ARCA Menards Series, increased car counts will create a unique dynamic as the two continue to battle for the 2025 East Series title.
THE BOTTOM FIVE
24) #01-Matt Kemp / 5 laps / mechanical
23) #9-Blaine Donahue / 8 laps / mechanical
22) #10-Tony Cosentino / 11 laps / mechanical
21) #18-Brent Crews / 44 laps / accident
20) #48-Brad Smith / 55 laps / handling
AUTHOR’S NOTE: While the collaborative effort from Jeff Smith’s Berlin last-place finish used Fast Track Racing owner points, it was primarily a Brad Smith Motorsports entry. For the sake of consistency with ARCA’s standings, Fast Track has been credited with the last-place finish in our standings below.
2025 LASTCAR ARCA MENARDS SERIES OWNERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP (After Race 10 of 20)
1st) Fast Track Racing (4)
2nd) Brad Smith Motorsports (2)
3rd) CCM Racing, Wayne Peterson Racing, Kimmel Racing, Clubb Racing Inc. (1)
2025 LASTCAR ARCA MENARDS SERIES MANUFACTURERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP (After Race 10 of 20)
1st) Ford (6)
2nd) Toyota (4)
AUTHOR’S NOTE: Click HERE throughout the 2025 ARCA season to view the full drivers’ standings for both the ARCA Menards Series and its East and West divisions. You can also find the manufacturers’ and owners’ standings for all three series HERE.
2025 LASTCAR ARCA MENARDS SERIES DRIVERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP (After Race 10 of 20)
AUTHOR’S NOTE: While the collaborative efforts from Rita Goulet and Jeff Smith’s Nashville and Flat Rock last-place finishes used Fast Track Racing owner points, both were primarily Wayne Peterson Racing and Brad Smith Motorsports entries, respectively. For the sake of consistency with ARCA’s standings, Fast Track has been credited with the last-place finishes in our standings below.
2025 LASTCAR ARCA MENARDS SERIES EAST OWNERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP (After Race 5 of 8)
1st) Fast Track Racing (3)
2nd) Venturini Motorsports, Brad Smith Motorsports (1)
2025 LASTCAR ARCA MENARDS SERIES EAST MANUFACTURERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP (After Race 5 of 8)
1st) Ford, Toyota (2)
2nd) Chevrolet (1)
2025 LASTCAR ARCA MENARDS SERIES EAST DRIVERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP (After Race 5 of 8)
