Concord, NC (March 10, 2015)— Two-time ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards winner Brandon Jones will make his Venturini Motorsports (VMS) No.25 Ansell-Menards Toyota debut during ARCA’s first short track event of the season – the ARCA Mobile 200 at Mobile Int’l Speedway onSaturday, March 14th.
As annouced earlier this season, the 18-year-old will co-pilot the Ansell-Menards Toyota for 10 events during the 2015 ARCA season equally splitting seat time behind the wheel of the No.25 Toyota with 10-time ARCA series champion Frank Kimmel.
“I’m happy to have the support of Ansell and Menards along with Frank Kimmel as a teammate this year,” said Jones. “I’m equally excited to be joining Venturini Motorsports. Venturini has consistently been the premier ARCA team for many years. With Frank’s and Venturini’s experience I am confident I can win more ARCA races this year.”
In preparation for Saturday’s race Jones made an early appearance in Mobile this past weekend with a successful test.
“Brandon demonstrated maturity and a ton of speed behind the wheel this weekend,” said Billy Venturini, Competition Director for VMS. “There’s no question he’ll be a strong contender come race day.”
Jones, a Richard Childress Racing development driver, made three ARCA Series starts in 2014. In his first two consecutive series starts, Jones was victorious at Winchester Speedway (Ind.) and Lucas Oil Raceway (Ind.). In his third start in the series, Jones finished third at Madison Int’l Speedway (Wis).
In addition to his Mobile start Jones will also compete at ARCA’s April Salem Speedway event, Nashville, Talladega, New Jersey, Winchester, Iowa, Lucas Oil Raceway, Kentucky, and Kansas. Jones will also make 16 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series starts with GMS Racing starting with Martinsville Speedway (Va.) on March 28th.
The Atlanta, Ga. native began his racing career in 2010 under the tutelage of veteran Late Model drivers “Bubba” and Cale Gale. Jones completed his first full season in 2011, competing at Lanier Raceplex in Braselton, Ga., and Gresham Motorsports Park in Jefferson, Ga. He earned the points championships at both venues.
Jones advanced his career in 2012 by competing in the regional touring series Pro All Stars (PASS) Series and the United Auto Racing Association (UARA) Late Models. Jones won his first UARA-STARS race at Concord (N.C.) Speedway. In addition, at 15-years-old, he made his debut in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East (NKNPSE) at Greenville (S.C.) Pickens Speedway.
Jones assembled an aggressive schedule in the 2013 racing season, competing in a myriad of series. He continued his development by racing Late Models, and transitioned as well into the NKNPSE with a limited schedule, and also made his NASCAR Camping World Truck Series debut at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway on August 21.
Jones made five NASCAR Camping World Truck Series starts in 2014, and during the season posted his career-best finish of fourth at Dover (Del.) International Speedway. Jones also competed full-time in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East, and finished fourth in the championship point standings. Jones scored his first series victory at Iowa Speedway, and posted five top-five and 11 top-10 finishes in 16 starts.
The ARCA Mobile 200 race weekend will kick off on Friday, March 13th with practice and qualifying. The scheduled 200-lap race will start at 2 p.m. CT on Saturday, March 14th.
ABOUT ANSELL:
Ansell is a global leader in protection solutions. Headquartered in Iselin, NJ, 11,000 employees across 42 countries design and manufacture innovative products relied on by millions of consumers, workers, first responders and healthcare professionals. The Ansell vision is to create a world where people enjoy optimal protection against the risks to which they are exposed by delivering safety, peace of mind and performance with unmatched quality, comfort and technology. This vision is delivered by the Ansell core brand products, from the HyFlex®, AlphaTec®, TouchNTuff®, ActivArmr®, Projex®, VersaTouch®, Trellchem® and Viking product lines.
ABOUT MENARDS:
With 287 stores in 14 Midwestern states, Menards has the tools, materials and supplies for all your home improvement needs whether just needing a light bulb or can of paint to building a deck or new home. Menards is known throughout the home improvement industry as the low price leader; it’s no wonder their famous slogan – “SAVE BIG MONEY” – is so widely known and easy to remember. Menards does things right – the company’s strength and success can be seen in the well-stocked and maintained stores, the lowest prices in town and the way guests are always treated like family in a hometown hardware store atmosphere.
ABOUT VENTURINI MOTORSPORTS:
Venturini Motorsports (VMS), fielding cars for over 30-years in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards, is one of the premier NASCAR driver development programs in the country. Multiple team championships and consistent on-track success, VMS has evolved into one of the most recognizable names in motorsports. Since 2007, VMS has assisted in the career development of notable NASCAR drivers such as Joey Logano, Justin Allgaier, Ryan Blaney, Alex Bowman, Brian Scott, Kevin Swindell, John Wes Townley, Erik Jones, and Justin Boston. Over the years the Venturini name has become synonymous with modern-day racing in America. In 2012, the Venturini family was inducted into the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame (www.NIASHF.org) and now find themselves enshrined with such sports icons as Joe DiMaggio, Mario Andretti, Vince Lombardi, Tommy Lasorda and Rocky Marciano.
Official: www.VenturiniMotorsports.com | Twitter: @VenturiniMotor | Facebook: Venturini Motorsports
