Mobile Recap

Mobile Primary Car

The car is back from being painted at Kahl's body shop, team working on finishing up the setup and then decal. The team is headed out on Thursday for Mobile, Alabama.

Press Release - 3/6/12 - Kimmel Racing

Ambition Takes Sponsorless Kimmel Racing To Mobile

“Unofficial Points Leader Set To Take On Mobile”

MOBILE, Alabama (March 6, 2012) - - It goes without saying that Kimmel Racing and new driver Will Kimmel were one of the “feel good stories” upon the conclusion of the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway. After starting 23^rd, Kimmel cleverly crafted his No. 68 Ford Fusion to an impressive third place. 

This weekend though, as the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards resumes action and steers back South to Mobile (Ala.) International Speedway for the running of the Mobile ARCA 200, the Kimmel Racing team led by championship crew chief and owner Bill Kimmel return to the racetrack but without sponsorship, something the team graciously clasped in the season-opener. 

However, with Daytona winner Bobby Gerhart and second-place finisher Drew Charlson not expected to compete in Saturday’s contest, the family-owned team had felt they had no choice but to dig deep into their own personal pockets and make the drive to Mobile (Ala.) International Speedway for a variety of reasons.

“We talked it over and we felt like we just had to do it. I don’t know how, but we are,” said driver Will Kimmel, who will make his 26^th career start this weekend. “Dad’s been working the phones and we have some sponsorship stuff in the works, just nothing in time for Mobile. But, we’re still going and we’ll take shortcuts that won’t affect us on the racetrack but will make the trip a little easier to swallow.”

The former Super Late Model champion at Salem (Ind.) Speedway added, “Honestly, Daytona kept our Kimmel Racing team alive. The phone was ringing when we came home and that was a good sign, but we still have a lot to prove. Realistically, we’ll enter the weekend as the point’s leader after finishing third, so we have to build on that. We’re bringing a really good short track car to Mobile, but we know we have to do everything in our power to try and bring it home in one piece.” 

While many of the ARCA Racing Series teams elected to participate in private testing sessions at the half-mile oval, Kimmel Racing was forced to sit on the sidelines and will have to wait until Friday’s three and a half hour practice to dial in their No. 68 Kimmel Racing / Clarksville Schwinn Ford Fusion. 

“Obviously, there’s a little disadvantage for those of us who didn’t have the chance to test, but most of us will be on the same playing field, so that puts our mind at ease a little bit,” Kimmel offered. “We’re going with a baseline setup and after talking to some of our friends in the garage, we kind of know what to expect, so I think we’ll be okay. We just need to stay focused on the job at hand and hope again we’ll have some luck.”

Beyond Mobile, Kimmel feels that the third race of the season at Salem (Ind.) Speedway will be a race that they confidently feel they’ll be able to compete at – but past that, the remainder of the season remains up in the air. 

“We need some help,” the elder Kimmel explained. “Will did a phenomenal job at Daytona and it’s nice to know that we have some things working – but nothing’s secure until the contracts are signed. A third place finish was nice at Daytona, but one of the main reasons sponsor or no sponsor that we’re heading to Mobile is because we believe that Will can put our car in Victory Lane. We’re not just going for him but for everyone else that believes in our race team”

Kimmel’s nearest competitor in the championship standings is Brennan Poole who currently sits seventh overall and 20 markers behind the Sellersburg, Indiana racer in the race for the coveted ARCA championship trophy in its 60^th season of competition.

For sponsorship inquiries with Kimmel Racing, interested parties are urged to contact Bill Kimmel at 502.645.9370 or bill@kimmelracing.com. 

The Mobile ARCA 200 (200 laps / 100 miles) is the second of 20 events on the 2012 ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards schedule. The first ARCA race held at MIS is a two-day show. Practice begins Friday, March 9 with a three and a half hour practice session planned from 1:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. Menards pole qualifying presented by Ansell is set for later in the day at 7:00 p.m. An on-track autograph session has been etched in on race day, Saturday, March 10 from 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. The event will take the green flag shortly after 2:00 p.m. The race will not be televised on SPEED but additional race coverage including live timing and scoring will be available through the ARCA Racing Network (ARN) online at arcaracing.com. All times are local.

For more on Will Kimmel, please visit willkimmel.com. 

PHOTO CAPTION: Will Kimmel, driver of the No. 68 Kimmel Racing / Clarksville Schwinn Ford Fusion in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards for Kimmel Racing.

MEDIA CONTACT:

NAME: Chris Knight, Knight Motorsports Management
PHONE: 239.834.9797
EMAIL: chris@chrisknightpr.com

Kimmel Racing Press Release 2-20-12

Kimmel Racing Surges To Third Place Finish At Daytona   "Father-Son Duo Surge To Podium Finish In Season-Opener"

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida (February 20, 2012) - - Kimmel Racing opened up the 60th season of competition for the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) with a fresh face and a lot of unknowns. However, by the end of Saturday night's Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200, it was Will Kimmel who shined into the spotlight by producing a thrilling third-place effort at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway. Kimmel taking the vacated seat of his Uncle, Frank Kimmel was optimistic heading into his second career start at "The World Center of Racing." Primed and ready in his No. 68 Enterprise Software Development / Clarksville Schwinn Ford Fusion when Thursday morning arrived, it was time to get down to business. In the first practice session of the weekend, Kimmel in his blue-oval produced the 15th fastest time overall in an affair that was consisted of both drafting and single-car runs. Under the guidance of his father and multiple ARCA championship crew chief Bill Kimmel, the duo consulted about ideas to make minor tweaks for their No. 68 Enterprise Software Development / Clarksville Schwinn Ford Fusion in time for Menards pole qualifying presented by Ansell on Friday afternoon. In time trials, Kimmel circled the legendary racetrack in 50.375 seconds topping a speed of 178.660 miles per hour which lined the Indiana-based team in the 21st position. Safely in the starting field, the team turned their attention to the short but influential final practice session on Saturday morning to fine-tune their automobile for ARCA's version of the Super Bowl. Acquiring the ninth fastest time overall in the "happy hour" practice session, the Kimmel Racing team remained optimistic despite their No. 68 Enterprise Software Development / Clarksville Schwinn Ford Fusion wasn't exactly drafting to their liking. 43 cars took the green flag with Kimmel easing his way towards the front. Climbing into the top-20 by the end of the first lap, Kimmel's blue-oval continued to climb the leaderboard until the race's first caution occurred on lap six when Milka Duno went for a spin on the frontstretch. Electing to utilize pit strategy, the call from atop of the pit box was to bring the 23-year old to pit road to top off the fuel tank. Restarting in the 29th position on lap 13, Kimmel would have to show extreme patience as he tactically began working his way back towards the front. Another caution for Leilani Munter jumbled up the field again but with Kimmel restarting the event on lap 17 in the 19th position. Methodically, the No. 68 Enterprise Software Development / Clarksville Schwinn Ford Fusion continued its march forward and entered the top-10 on lap 47. Continuing to hover in a single-car formation, Kimmel would squeeze underneath the No. 58 of Chad Hackenbracht on lap 60 to steal another position in the top-10. A multi-car incident ensued on lap 69 with Kimmel knocking on the door of entering the top-five. A restart with five laps remaining would begin to seal up the exciting finish in the 49th ARCA race held at Daytona International Speedway. With some cars electing to make a trip down pit lane for a splash of fuel, Kimmel would take the lap 75 restart in the fourth position behind fellow Ford driver Chris Buescher (No. 17). While Buescher tried to make an attempt to pass second-place second Chris Windom on the outside, Kimmel kept his No. 68 Enterprise Software Development / Clarksville Schwinn Ford Fusion on the yellow-line freight-training the No. 17 and moving into third. Buescher brought out the final caution of the race on lap 78 when we tagged from behind by another competitor setting up for a green-white-checkered finish. With father Bill encouraging his driver to try his best and save fuel, the family-owned team knew they had the opportunity to win ARCA's most prestigious events. On the restart, Kimmel remained glued to the yellow line on the back bumpers of McReynolds and Windom. The group would take the white flag with Kimmel searching for a way to maneuver past the two leaders. As the field thundered out of turn four, both leaders nearly simultaneously ran out of gas forcing Kimmel to take abrasive maneuvers to avoid a collision but it allowed the Chevrolets of Bobby Gerhart and Drew Charlson to make a bold move to the outside to take the checkered flag first and second. Brett Hudson and Nelson Canache both made moves underneath Kimmel for third coming to the stripe but ARCA officials quickly would yank those positions away from them for passing below the yellow line to move Kimmel from fifth into the third position in the final rundown. "Wow, that was crazy," said Kimmel, who collected just his third top-five finish of his ARCA career. "We had a shot at winning the race but when those guys ran out of gas, I had to check-up and I was done. I tried to keep those guys from passing me but it was already then too late. At that point, I was happy to finish fifth, but when they penalized them and moved us back into third, it was even a better feeling." He added, "I can't thank everyone on this Kimmel Racing team for all of their support and dedication. We have an all-volunteer crew and we picked up some sponsorship from Enterprise Software Development and man, I'm happy for them. Hopefully this run will help us moving forward and we can acquire some more sponsorship that will keep us in the ARCA championship battle." In addition to Enterprise Software Development (ESD), Kimmel Racing extends a huge thank you to their other sponsors for the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 including Clarksville Schwinn, Crosley Radio and Ingersoll Rand. Kimmel unofficially sits third in the ARCA championship standings just 10 points from leader Bobby Gerhart. Kimmel though could inherit the point's lead by traveling to Mobile (Ala.) International Speedway for round two on March 10 as Gerhart and Charlson are not expected to enter that event. Next up for the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards will be the first of two stops in the state of Alabama with the sanctions first ever visit to Mobile (Ala.) International Speedway for the running of the Mobile ARCA 200 on Saturday, March 10. For more on Will Kimmel, please visit willkimmel.com. PHOTO CAPTION: Will Kimmel, driver of the No. 68 Enterprise Software Development / Clarksville Schwinn Ford Fusion in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards for Kimmel Racing.

W Kimmel finishes 3rd for Kimmel Racing

Will drove #68 "Sandra" across the line in 3rd place for Kimmel Racing in the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 at Daytona Speedway. The team worked hard all weekend and what a great start to the 2012 season.

Friday - Qualifications for Daytona

Will Kimmel qualified 21st in the Kimmel Racing Ford Fusion

Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 at Daytona - Practice

ARCA practice is from 1pm-5pm on today (Thursday) at Daytona Speedway. Live timing and scoring at www.arcaracing.com.

The team had a busy day on Wednesday getting through tech. They have worked throughout the morning preparing for practice of the #68 Ford Fusion driven by Will Kimmel.

Become a fan of Kimmel Racing on Facebook for updates and pictures from the track.

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