AVONDALE, Ariz. — Ty Gibbs bagged his first NASCAR K&N Pro Series West victory during the season finale Saturday at ISM Raceway.
Most of the race was dominated by NASCAR K&N Pro Series East champion Sam Mayer. He started from the pole and appeared the man to beat, but restarts proved to be his undoing as Gibbs was able to get the lead on lap 71.
“There was a lot going on there,” Gibbs said of the finish to the Arizona Lottery 100. “Those restarts really kind of got me flustered there. I got nervous for a little bit. I could really set (Mayer) up on the restarts. That’s where I could get him the most. We just persevered, started in the back and the car was so good that we got to victory lane, it was a cool day.”
The win for Gibbs came under the Levin Racing banner in a partnership with Joe Gibbs Racing.
Derek Kraus clinched the series championship by simply taking the green flag to start the race. He finished the race in the third position.
“I really can’t thank all these (Bill McAnally Racing) guys enough,” Kraus said. “They work their tails off on this race car to get it as good as it is every single race. And to finish the year out strong finishing fourth after starting towards the back of the field, it was a really good night and I’m really excited for the following years.”
Mayer was second and Corey Heim crossed the finish line in third, but officially was credited with a 25th-place finish because his Chad Bryant Racing team ran an Illmor engine as a test. NASCAR and team officials agreed prior to the race the team would be scored in 25th regardless of where they finished on the track.
Kraus was thus credited with finishing third, followed by Hailie Deegan and Jagger Jones.
The finish:
Ty Gibbs, Sam Mayer, Derek Kraus, Hailie Deegan, Jagger Jones, Brittney Zamora, Trenton Moriarity, Trevor Huddleston, Todd Souza, Riley Herbst, Jack Wood, Matt Levin, Taylor Canfield, Travis Milburn, Takuma Koga, Billy Kann, Josh Jackson, Drew Dollar, Bobby Hillis Jr., Ty Majeski, Zane Smith, Bill Kann, Tony Cosentino, Keith McGee, Corey Heim.