by Ben Schneider / LASTCAR.info Staff Writer

Dawson Sutton finished last for the 1st time in his ARCA Menards Series career in Thursday’s Bush’s Beans 200 at Bristol Motor Speedway when his No. 71 Wheeler Trucking / Victory Custom Chevrolet fell out with crash damage after 4 of 205 laps.

The finish came in Sutton’s ARCA Menards Series debut.

Sutton is the son of Rackley-W.A.R. co-owner Curtis Sutton. Unlike most of today’s up-and-coming drivers, the younger Sutton’s racing career only began a couple of years ago. “I started racing 2 ½ years ago,” he told the Milwaukee-Journal Sentinel earlier this summer. “Raced legends cars and started moving up to the pro late model division and ran all over the place last year with the pro late models.…we’re just making starts and learning.”

The first of those starts in NASCAR competition came in the Craftsman Truck Series at North Wilkesboro in May, when Rackley-W.A.R. entered a second truck, the No. 26, alongside the team’s flagship No. 25 driven by Ty Dillon. After finishing 28th on debut, Sutton followed up in a second start for the team at Nashville, improving his result by ten positions to finish 18th.

Last week, it was announced that Sutton would make his ARCA debut at Bristol, driving the No. 71 for Hettinger Racing. The race would also mark the first ARCA appearance for the team owned by Chris Hettinger. Hettinger’s daughter Katie made two appearances in the ARCA Menards Series West in 2022 and most recently competed in the CARS Tour, but recently stepped out of the driver’s seat to focus on finishing her senior year of high school.

In total, 34 cars appeared on the entry list, though only 33 took the green flag. Mitch Gibson, originally entered in Peterson Motorsports’ No. 06 entry, crashed in qualifying, and was unable to start the event. Nate Moeller’s No. 0 car was then renumbered to the No. 06, while Gibson was credited with a “did not start” status and received 34th-place points as the listed driver of the No. 0.

Initially, it looked as if Brian Clubb might pick up another last-place finish and take the LASTCAR championship lead from Brad Smith. Clubb, now driving the No. 93 in a collaboration with CW Motorsports, was noticeably off the pace during the opening laps and appeared set to complete his “start-and-park” before Sutton’s spin on lap 4 brought out the first caution. The extent of the damage instead made Sutton the first retirement of the race. The news has not all been bad for Sutton this week, however, as the Rackley-W.A.R. team announced Monday that Ty Dillon will step out of the driver’s seat for the final five Truck races this season, allowing Sutton to take over as the team’s primary driver of the No. 25 for the rest of the year.

Following Sutton up on the results sheet were Smith and Clubb, who pulled off the track after 12 and 13 laps respectively. The two remain tied for the LASTCAR ARCA Menards Series Drivers’ Championship lead with two races remaining. With Moeller taking the fourth spot in the Bottom Five, Smith also finished the season tied with Moeller for the LASTCAR ARCA Menards Series East Drivers’ Championship, leaving the two as co-champions for the 2024 season. Rounding out the Bottom Five was ARCA veteran Dale Shearer, who completed 29 laps before brake issues forced him behind the wall.

The front of the field saw William Sawalich come from behind to defend his ARCA Menards Series East championship over Connor Zilisch, who started from pole position and only needed to finish 13th or better to clinch the title. However, Zilisch was taken out in an incident involving Logan Misuraca and Amber Balcaen that saw Misuraca spin in Turns 3 and 4. As Misuraca’s car slid down the banking, Zilisch was unable to avoid her, ending his race. Meanwhile, Sawalich went on to score his third East Series victory of the season after a hard-fought battle with Landen Lewis, ultimately finishing the year 12 points ahead of Zilisch in the final standings.

DID NOT START

34) #0-Mitch Gibson

THE BOTTOM FIVE

33) #71-Dawson Sutton / 4 laps / crash

32) #48-Brad Smith / 12 laps / mechanical

31) #93-Brian Clubb / 13 laps / mechanical

30) #06-Nate Moeller / 17 laps / mechanical

29) #98-Dale Shearer / 29 laps / mechanical

2024 LASTCAR ARCA MENARDS SERIES OWNERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP (After Race 18 of 20)

1st) Clubb Racing Inc. (5)

2nd) Fast Track Racing, Brad Smith Motorsports (3)

3rd) Peterson Motorsports (2)

4th) Kennealy Keller Motorsports, Rise Motorsports, Shearer Speed Racing, Venturini Motorsports, Hettinger Racing (1)

2024 LASTCAR ARCA MENARDS SERIES MANUFACTURERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP (After Race 18 of 20)

1st) Ford (10)

2nd) Toyota, Chevrolet (4)

AUTHOR’S NOTE: Click HERE throughout the 2024 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.

2024 LASTCAR ARCA MENARDS SERIES DRIVERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP (After Race 18 of 20)

2024 LASTCAR ARCA MENARDS SERIES EAST OWNERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP (After Race 8 of 8)

1st) Fast Track Racing, Peterson Motorsports, Brad Smith Motorsports (2)

2nd) Clubb Racing Inc., Hettinger Racing (1)

2024 LASTCAR ARCA MENARDS SERIES EAST MANUFACTURERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP (After Race 8 of 8)

1st) Ford (5) 

2nd) Toyota (2)

3rd) Chevrolet (1)

2024 LASTCAR ARCA MENARDS SERIES EAST DRIVERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP (After Race 8 of 8)