The 2023 BRANDT 200 was the first stock car race of the

2023 ARCA Menards Series The 2023 ARCA Menards Series is the 71st season of the ARCA Menards Series, a stock car racing series sanctioned by NASCAR in the United States. The season began at Daytona International Speedway with the BRANDT 200 on February 18 and will end wi ...

season, and was the 60th running of the

event Event may refer to: Gatherings of people * Ceremony, an event of ritual significance, performed on a special occasion * Convention (meeting), a gathering of individuals engaged in some common interest * Event management, the organization of eve ...

. The race was held on Saturday, February 18, 2023, in

Daytona Beach, Florida Daytona Beach, or simply Daytona, is a coastal Resort town, resort-city in east-central Florida. Located on the eastern edge of Volusia County, Florida, Volusia County near the East Coast of the United States, Atlantic coastline, its population ...

Daytona International Speedway Daytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500, the most prestigious race in NASCAR as well as its season opening event. In addition to NA ...

, a 2.5 mile (4 km) permanent tri-oval shaped asphalt

superspeedway Oval track racing is a form of closed-circuit motorsport that is contested on an oval-shaped race track. An oval track differs from a Road racing, road course in that the layout resembles an oval with turns in only one direction, and the directi ...

. The race was contested over 80 laps. In a chaotic race that brought several cautions,

Greg Van Alst Gregory Michael Van Alst (born July 1, 1981) is an American professional stock car racing driver and team owner. He competes part-time in the ARCA Menards Series, driving the No. 35 Holden Commodore (VF)#Chevrolet SS, Chevrolet SS/Ford Fusion (Ame ...

, driving for his own team,

Greg Van Alst Motorsports Gregory Michael Van Alst (born July 1, 1981) is an American professional stock car racing driver and team owner. He competes part-time in the ARCA Menards Series, driving the No. 35 Holden Commodore (VF)#Chevrolet SS, Chevrolet SS/Ford Fusion (Ame ...

, would win the race after making a last lap pass on Jason White for the lead. This was Alst's first career

ARCA Menards Series The ARCA Menards Series is an American stock car series, the premier division of the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA). It is considered a minor, semi-professional league of stock car racing, used as a feeder series into the three national ...

win. To fill out the podium,

Connor Mosack Connor Charles Mosack (born January 20, 1999) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 24 Toyota Supra for Sam Hunt Racing and the No. 19 Supra for Joe Gibbs Racing ...

, driving for

Joe Gibbs Racing Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) is an American professional stock car racing organization owned and operated by former Washington Redskins (today the Washington Commanders) coach Joe Gibbs, which first started racing on the NASCAR circuit in 1991. His s ...

, and

Sean Corr Sean Corr (born February 21, 1984) is an American professional stock car racing driver and owner. He currently competes part-time in the ARCA Menards Series, driving the No. 8 Chevrolet SS for Empire Racing. Corr is also the president of Education ...

, driving for

Empire Racing Empire Racing Group (often just called Empire Racing) is an American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the ARCA Menards Series, fielding the No. 8 Chevrolet and Fords for driver Sean Corr and in late models with the No ...

, would finish 2nd and 3rd respectively. This race was known as the stock car debut for

Frankie Muniz Francisco Muniz IV (; born December 5, 1985) is an American actor. He is best known for playing the title character in the Fox sitcom ''Malcolm in the Middle'' (2000–2006), which earned him an Emmy Award nomination and two Golden Globe Award n ...

, the actor known for starring in the

FOX Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

sitcom ''

Malcolm in the Middle ''Malcolm in the Middle'' is an American family television sitcom created by Linwood Boomer for Fox. The series premiered on January 9, 2000, and ended on May 14, 2006, after seven seasons and 151 episodes. The series follows a dysfunctional ...

.'' This was his first start as part of his full-time season with

Rette Jones Racing Rette Jones Racing is an American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the ARCA Menards Series. The team is owned by Terry Jones and friend Mark Rette and currently fields the No. 30 Ford for Frankie Muniz in the ARCA M ...

Background

is one of three

s to hold

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...

races, the other two being

Indianapolis Motor Speedway The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is an automobile racing circuit located in Speedway, Indiana, an enclave suburb of Indianapolis, Indiana. It is the home of the Indianapolis 500 and the Verizon 200, and and formerly the home of the United State ...

and

Talladega Superspeedway Talladega Superspeedway, nicknamed “'Dega”, and formerly named Alabama International Motor Speedway (AIMS) from 1969 to 1989, is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base ...

. The standard track at Daytona International Speedway is a four-turn superspeedway that is 2.5 miles (4.0 km) long. The track's turns are banked at 31 degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, is banked at 18 degrees.

Entry list

* (R) denotes rookie driver.

Practice

The first and only practice session was held on Thursday, February 16, at 4:05 PM EST, and would last for 50 minutes.

, driving for

, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 49.393, and an average speed of .

Qualifying

Qualifying was held on Friday, February 17, at 1:30 PM EST. For qualifying, drivers were split into six different groups. The driver who sets the overall fastest lap will win the pole.

, driving for

, would score the pole for the race, with a lap of 49.396, and an average speed of .

Race results

Standings after the race

;Drivers' Championship standings *Note: Only the first 10 positions are included for the driver standings.

References

{{NASCAR on Fox NASCAR races at Daytona International Speedway

BRANDT 200 The Brandt 200 is a ARCA Menards Series race held during Speedweeks at Daytona International Speedway Daytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the ...