ARCA WEST: ‘Unfortunate circumstance’ leads to last-place result for Jade Avedisian
by Ben Schneider / LASTCAR.info Staff Writer
Jade Avedisian finished last for the 1st time in her ARCA Menards Series West career in last Saturday’s ARCA Menards West Tucson 150 at Tucson Speedway when her No. 13 Central Coast Cabinets Toyota fell out with mechanical issues following a flat tire after 61 of 150 laps.
The finish came in Avedisian’s fifth career ARCA West start and sixth overall ARCA start.
A Toyota Racing Development driver, Avedisian first earned national attention at the 2023 Chili Bowl, where she joined Kaylee Bryson as the second female driver to advance to the A-Main feature race in the history of the event. By 2024, Avedisian’s success in dirt racing and support from Toyota led both Fox Sports’ Bob Pockrass and The Athletic’s Jordan Bianchi to include her in their lists of top up-and-coming NASCAR prospects.
In September 2024, Avedisian suffered a concussion at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway dirt track. Much like fellow Toyota development driver Isabella Robusto in 2023, Avedisian made the wise decision to avoid rushing back from the injury and, as a result, was sidelined for the rest of the racing season. The long-term move paid immediate dividends for Avedisian, as she returned to the track in 2025 by winning at New River All-American Speedway in the CARS Pro Late Model Tour.
Avedisian’s victory highlighted her potential as she continued making the transition to pavement racing, though her first career ARCA start came on the dirt track at the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds with Venturini Motorsports, where she ran in the Top Five but finished 17th due to crash damage. Avedisian followed this up with a second start for Venturini, finishing 12th in the West Series race at the Las Vegas Bullring in the final race before Nitro Motorsports completed its acquisition of the team. In the 2026 ARCA West season-opener at Kern, Avedisian made her first start for the new Nitro team and qualified her No. 70 Toyota on pole position, ultimately finishing eighth. She then moved to the team’s No. 90 entry for Phoenix, where a combination of mechanical issues and accident damage left her 28th.
On Saturday, Avedisian moved to her third entry in three races to start the season by returning to Central Coast Racing’s No. 13 Toyota, with whom she had run the 2025 ARCA West season finale. Avedisian again showed speed in qualifying, starting fourth on the grid before a flat tire brought her to pit road. Following this, the team went under the hood of her Toyota to try to diagnose an apparent mechanical issue, but Avedisian was unable to rejoin the race. The team’s Instagram account simply described it as “an unfortunate circumstance.” Avedisian is currently scheduled to continue running part-time with Nitro this season - including an ARCA national start at Kansas this weekend in the team’s No. 15 entry - though an exact number of races is still to be determined.
Of the 17 drivers who took the green flag Saturday night, Avedisian was the only driver to leave Tucson with a DNF. Anchoring those running at the finish was Will Robinson in 16th, making his ARCA debut in a joint effort between Jerry Pitts Racing and Nitro Motorsports. Robinson spent a handful of laps behind the wall after stopping on track, but eventually returned to complete a total of 128 laps. David Smith made series history before finishing 15th, as the 76-year-old Canadian driver took advantage of the rest of the field saving their tires to take the lead from Cole Denton on Lap 48, holding it for 19 laps. In doing so, Smith broke the record for the oldest driver to lead a West Series race, previously held by NASCAR Hall of Famer Hershel McGriff (age 70). Smith ultimately finished three laps behind the leaders and one lap back of Tyler Tomassi, who finished 14th. Rounding out the Bottom Five was Quinn Davis, who herself ran as high as third but admitted she “wore out [her] tires a little too soon,” forcing her to settle for 13th.
At the front of the field, 16-year-old Cole Denton took his first career win, leading 127 laps from pole position in just his third ARCA West start. Defending West Series champion Trevor Huddleston finished second, while 2024 ARCA West Rookie of the Year Eric Johnson Jr. finished third.
THE BOTTOM FIVE
17) #13-Jade Avedisian / 61 laps / flat tire or mechanical
16) #70-Will Robinson / 128 laps / running
15) #05-David Smith / 147 laps / running / led 19 laps
14) #51-Tyler Tomassi / 148 laps / running
13) #77-Quinn Davis / 149 laps / running
2026 LASTCAR ARCA MENARDS SERIES WEST OWNERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP (After Race 3 of 13)
1st) Strike Mamba Racing, Rise Racing with Earnhardt-Shearer Racing, Central Coast Racing (1)
2026 LASTCAR ARCA MENARDS SERIES WEST MANUFACTURERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP (After Race 3 of 13)
1st) Chevrolet (2)
2nd) Toyota (1)
AUTHOR’S NOTE: Click HERE throughout the 2026 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.
2026 LASTCAR ARCA MENARDS SERIES WEST DRIVERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP (After Race 3 of 13)
