Sam Corry, driver of the No. 25 Nitro Motorsports Toyota, led all 47 laps in Friday’s General Tire 150 ARCA Menards Series West (AMSW) race at Sonoma Raceway (SR) to earn his first career AMSW win in his Sonoma Raceway series debut.
“I’m super proud of these Nitro Motorsports guys, and to be able to come to Sonoma and win is so special to me,” said Corry after earning the win. “This is a really huge win for us. It’s our first in the ARCA Series, so super excited to keep the momentum going.”
Corry’s Nitro Motorsports teammate, Mia Lovell, driver of the No. 15 Toyota, finished second, just 0.84 seconds behind Corry after briefly taking the lead in turn 11 with eight laps to go. Corry quickly stole it back and led the way to the checkered flag. Lovell battled hard, knocking on Corry’s door all day long with the second-fastest lap time in practice (1:18.670 | 91.064 mph) and qualifying (1:17.5 | 92.48 mph) behind Corry who was P1 in practice (1:17.990 | 91.858 mph), qualifying (1:17.2 | 92.806 mph) and ultimately, the race.
“She went for the inside in the last corner there, and we were just able to easily cross over and, you know, keep trucking along,” said Corry about the battle with Lovell. “That was really the only kind of pressure we had today, but you know, it’s just a testament to this team and how good they are.”
Eric Johnson Jr. (No. 5 Toyota), Cole Denton (Ford) and Patrick Staropoli (Chevrolet) rounded out the top-five.
2020 AMSW Rookie of the Year Hailie Deegan of Temecula, Calif. finished 20th in her No. 16 Bill McAnally Racing Chevrolet after sustaining early damage. Today’s race served as her AMSW debut at SR after a five-year hiatus from the series, during which she spent three seasons (2022-2024) in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series, made 17 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (NOAPS) starts in 2024 and joined the open-wheel development series, INDY NXT, in 2025.
Sonoma, Calif. native Rodd Kneeland, who, in addition to driving the No. 68 Rodd Racing Chevrolet in the AMSW also serves as Captain of the Sonoma Valley Fire Department, earned an 18th-place finish.
Prior to the General Tire 150, NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) regular Shane van Gisbergen, driver of the No. 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolet earned the NOAPS pole for Saturday’s Pit Boss/FoodMaxx 250 with a 75.029-second lap time (95.483 mph) – 0.227 seconds faster than fellow front-row-starter Brent Crews, driver of the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.
On-track action for SR’s tripleheader NASCAR weekend continues Saturday with practice (11 a.m. PT) and qualifying (12:10 p.m.) sessions for the NCS followed by the NOAPS Pit Boss/FoodMaxx 250 at 2:30 p.m. on The CW, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
The weekend will culminate with the Toyota/Save Mart 350 NCS race on Sunday at 12:30 p.m. on TNT Sports, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
Click HERE for the full weekend schedule.
Tickets:
For individual tickets, weekend packages and camping, fans can visit SonomaRaceway.com. With a ticketed adult, kids 12 and under get in FREE on Saturday for the NOAPS Pit Boss/FoodMaxx 250 and for only $10 on Sunday for the NCS Toyota/Save Mart 350. College students can purchase a discounted $25 ticket in the exclusive college student section at the Turn 3 Terrace.
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