Tristan McKee wins his ARCA Menards Collection Debut at Watkins Glen Worldwide on Friday evening within the Normal Tire 100 at The Glen.
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. – Final Sunday, Tristan McKee was a dozen laps away from a $50,000 payday at North Carolina’s Hickory Motor Speedway.
A Disappointing Loss at Hickory Motor Speedway
On his fifteenth birthday, McKee had goals of a marquee Late Mannequin Inventory Automotive victory. However destiny — particularly, a crash after a late restart — had completely different plans for the motive force from Kannapolis, North Carolina.
“That was a troublesome one after main 115 laps for $50,000 solely to get right into a wreck there on the finish, however you’ve simply bought to place that previous you and transfer on to what’s subsequent,” McKee mentioned. “I rapidly moved on previous that and bought proper again to the workplace.”
Destiny, because it turned out, had one thing completely different in retailer for McKee simply 5 days later.
Tristan McKee Wins Debut
McKee, driving the No. 77 Chevrolet for Spire Motorsports, capitalized on Brent Crews’ mechanical misfortune to win Friday’s Normal Tire 100 on the Glen in his ARCA Menards Collection debut.
The victory, the primary for the Spire Motorsports workforce in ARCA competitors, made McKee the second youngest driver to win an ARCA Menards Collection occasion at 15 years and 5 days previous.
“We bought somewhat fortunate there clearly with Brent having points,” McKee mentioned. “I used to be ready rather well coming into this race with the sim stuff and pre-race from Josh Sensible and Scott Velocity. I bought on top of things actually rapidly.
“To win in my debut is one factor, however to win typically is one other. A number of guys have by no means gained within the ARCA collection, and so they’ve been doing it a very long time. It simply goes again to everybody who has helped me get right here.”
The Street to Watkins Glen
The highway to Friday has been lengthy and intensive for McKee, who has been racing Late Fashions at tracks throughout the Southeast since 2022.
Throughout that point, he gathered wins at a few of the area’s most recognizable and historic tracks, together with North Wilkesboro Speedway, Hickory, Caraway Speedway, Orange County Speedway, Dillon Motor Speedway and Cordele Motor Speedway.
Solely within the final 12 months has McKee added highway racing to his repertoire. He signed a developmental take care of Spire earlier this 12 months, and inside a couple of months, he scored his first Trans Am Collection TA2 class victory on the Mid-Ohio Sports activities Automotive Course, changing into the second youngest winner in Trans Am historical past (14 years, 10 months, 19 days).
He added a second Trans Am win final month at Watkins Glen, giving him helpful expertise as he ready to make his ARCA debut on the identical monitor.
“I used to be fairly nicely ready. We run somewhat bit completely different of a monitor, as a result of (in Trans Am), we run the boot,” McKee mentioned. “I knew the place I used to be going after I bought right here. I simply sort of knew the monitor somewhat bit, in order that takes somewhat bit out of the training half out of shape.”
Disappointment Awaits Brent Crews
Paradoxically, the file holder for youngest Trans Am winner is the aforementioned Crews, who appeared on his solution to a cushty victory throughout Friday at Watkins Glen earlier than catastrophe struck.
Crews certified on the Normal Tire Pole aboard the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, and he had the quickest automobile all through Friday’s race. He held a cushty lead when a warning with six laps left for a crash involving Jason Kitzmiller modified all the things.
Whereas circulating below warning, a voltage concern induced Crews’ automobile to out of the blue crawl to a cease. That handed the result in McKee, who had spent a lot of the race engaged in a battle with Tyler Reif over the runner-up place.
“I bought round Tyler there close to the top of the primary stage, and I used to be operating second after we got here to the break,” McKee mentioned. “I didn’t get an amazing restart in the course of the second stage there, and Tyler bought again by me. I needed to work on him for a pair laps, and I ended up getting again by him once more.
“My automobile was somewhat free, so I used to be simply making an attempt to take care of in case we had a warning on the finish like we did. I feel we’d have been simply high-quality even when we needed to begin subsequent to Brent, as a result of I used to be simply sustaining my tempo and saving my tires somewhat bit for the top.”
Nearly a Repeat for McKee
With a one-lap conflict to the checkered flag on provide, issues almost went flawed once more for McKee. Popping out of the thirteenth flip, down the frontstretch in the course of the restart, McKee and Reif each made contact with the surface wall.
The contact broken the left facet of McKee’s automobile, and smoke rapidly billowed from his left-rear tire. However he stored his foot within the gasoline and stayed in entrance of Kris Wright, who had moved previous Reif to take second shortly after the restart.
“I used to be simply making an attempt to be as aggressive as I probably may,” McKee mentioned. “Restarts are tremendous, tremendous necessary. I had gotten away from (Reif), and I bought somewhat free and bought into the wall. I undoubtedly had some tire smoke taking place into flip one and up the esses.”
Regardless of the injury, McKee maintained his tempo and crossed the end line 1.127 seconds forward of Reif, who narrowly slipped previous Wright on the line to complete second. Glen Reen scored a career-best fourth-place end forward of Dale Quarterley in fifth.
With a win in ARCA competitors now within the financial institution, McKee’s focus shifts again to his busy schedule of Late Mannequin and Trans Am racing that may hold him busy for the remainder of the season.
He’ll be again in ARCA competitors when the West Collection discipline wraps up the 2025 season at Phoenix Raceway on Nov. 1. If issues go in accordance with plan, he’ll be a menace to win that race, too.
“I’ve already began to do a few of my sim work (for Phoenix),” McKee mentioned. “Phoenix is a extremely enjoyable monitor so far as the sim stuff goes. I’ve by no means pushed it in actual life, clearly, however I’m wanting ahead to that. There are a number of completely different grooves. There’s undoubtedly plenty of soiled air and stuff like that with the ARCA automobiles there.
“I really feel like I’ll be rather well ready coming into that race.”
Though Brenden Queen completed twenty first and 19 laps down, he maintains his factors lead over Lawless Alan by 24 factors. Lavar Scott, Jason Kitzmiller, and Isabella Robutsto full the highest 5.
Subsequent Up
The ARCA Menards is again in motion Sunday, Aug. 17 with the operating of Springfield ARCA 100 on the Illinois State Fairgrounds in Springfield, Illinois. FS1 will present dwell protection at 1 p.m. CT / 2 p.m. ET.
