Concord, NC (April 24, 2015) – The 2015 ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards season has been unique for the Venturini Motorsports (VMS) team. After several seasons of fielding at least one full-time driver for the series championship, the team focused its efforts on fielding its flagship No. 25 Ansell-Menards car in a split season for 10-time ARCA Racing Series champion Frank Kimmel and Richard Childress Racing Development Driver, Brandon Jones. Both drivers were originally scheduled to split the 20-race ARCA schedule with 10 races each with Talladega reserved for Jones.
Thanks to a collaborative effort between VMS, Menards, Tide, 101 Ranch Records and Richmond Water Heaters, the team will now field both drivers in the International Motorsports Hall of Fame 200 on May 1 at Talladega Superspeedway.
Jones will pilot the No. 25 Tide-Menards Toyota, while Kimmel will slide behind the wheel of the No. 15 101 Ranch Records-Menards Toyota. Jones will be debuting the bright orange Tide colors, a relationship he will carry on to the NASCAR XFINITY Series at Bristol Motor Speedway on August 21. Additionally, VMS will field the No. 55 JEGS Toyota driven by Joe Gibbs Racing development driver, Cody Coughlin giving the team a solid three-car effort in an event where teammates can make or break your chances to visit victory lane.
“Over the years, Frank has been one of our biggest rivals,” team co-owner Billy Venturini said. “We’ve raced him hard for race wins and championships, so it was a pleasant surprise when we were able to put this deal together at the beginning of the season. But we knew the way the deal was, we’d only have Frank for ten races. At Talladega, we have two young drivers in Brandon Jones and Cody Coughlin, and neither of them have a lot of drafting experience. We really pride ourselves in helping drivers develop the skills they need to go win races in an XFINITY or Cup car, which is why we worked so hard on this deal to get Frank on track at Talladega. It will be great to have his leadership to help our two young drivers in the draft, and he’ll have a great chance to get his third win at Talladega. Huge thanks to Menards, Richmond Water Heaters and 101 Ranch Records for jumping on board and making this happen.”
“I really want to thank Billy and all the sponsors for putting this deal together and giving me another race in one of the Venturini cars,” Kimmel said. “As a team, Venturini Motorsports had really fast cars at Daytona. Cody ran really strong, and although Brandon wasn’t in that race, Daniel Suarez was and we all had a shot to win. I think Brandon and Cody are both great young men and I can’t wait to get out there and work with them.
“Sometimes when you have a multi-car team you work extra hard to beat your teammates at the expense of beating everyone else. We’re going to make sure we don’t do that. We want to work together and get up front and then we’ll settle it among ourselves on the last lap.”
Menards is happy to extend its relationship with the Tide brand, a partnership that has seen the familiar orange and blue colors on many of the Eau Claire, Wis.-based retailer’s racecars over the years.
“Menards is excited to see both Frank Kimmel and Brandon Jones on the same track competing under the Menards name at Talladega. We appreciate the opportunity to partner with Tide, Brandon Jones and Venturini Motorsports for the Talladega ARCA race.” said Jeff Abbott, Menards spokesman. “We have a longstanding relationship with Tide and are excited that they are involved with us at this great event.”
The No. 25 Ansell-Menards Toyota has finished among the top five in all three ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards events in 2015. Kimmel started the season with a fifth-place run at Daytona while Jones scored a runner-up finish at Mobile and followed it with a fourth-place run in the series’ most recent event at Nashville. Jones will look to continue his top-five streak in this weekend’s Federated Auto Parts 200 at Salem Speedway.
The International Motorsports Hall of Fame 200 is slated for 6 P.M. Eastern on Friday May 1. The race is slated to be televised live flag-to-flag on Fox Sports 1.
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 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 RICHMOND AND MENARDS:
Richmond is a premium quality brand of water heaters manufactured by Rheem Manufacturing Company distributed primarily through Menards home improvement stores and other retail outlets. The Menards network of modern, spacious home improvement stores is located in 14 states throughout the Midwestern United States. Menards annually accounts for the largest number of Richmond water heaters sold in the nation. The shared Richmond-Menards service commitment is focused on making it easy for Menards guests to “Save Big Money” on the full line of high quality, efficient Tankless and Tank-type Richmond water heaters. Richmond products have been recognized with countless industry and consumer awards for reliability, innovative design and high quality.
ABOUT 101 RANCH RECORDS:
101 Ranch Records marks the second record label venture from Texas business man Bob R. Simpson, following the 2011 launch of the gospel label RayLynn Records. A truly talented innovator and leader, Simpson has been at the helm for multiple successful business ventures, including the multi-billion dollar deal to merge his XTO Energy Company with Exxon and the resurgence of Major League Baseball’s Texas Rangers. Tammy Collie, VP/GM of RayLynn Records, is also a member of the 101 Ranch Records management team.
101 Ranch Records with Billy Bob Thornton’s Boxmasters and Band of Ruhks (pronounced “Rooks”). American rock and roll band The Boxmaster’s “Somewhere Down The Road” was released on April 7. Formed in 2007, The Boxmasters consists of Billy Bob Thornton, Teddy Andreadis, J.D. Andrew and Brad Davis. Individually, the members have released multiple albums as well as appeared on GRAMMY award-winning projects such as Warren Zevon’s “The Wind” and Earl Scruggs’ “Earl Scruggs & Friends.” “Band Of Ruhks” includes Ronnie Bowman, Don Rigsby and Kenny Smith of the acclaimed Lonesome River Band. Written by Bowman, along with Mark Collie, the band’s first single “Coal Mining Man” includes the unmistakable vocals of iconic bluegrass artist Dr. Ralph Stanley.
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