Mason Mingus Wrestles Top-20 Finish At Mobile International Speedway

Mason Mingus Wrestles Top-20 Finish At Mobile International Speedway

Topics: Mason Mingus, Mobile ARCA 200

Mason Mingus Wrestles Top-20 Finish At Mobile International Speedway

Chris Knight
Knight Motorsports Management
Win-Tron Racing
March 13, 2012

LAKEVILLE, Minnesota (March 13, 2012) - - Mason Mingus ran as high as third during this past Saturday’s inaugural Mobile ARCA 200 at Mobile (Ala.) International Speedway, but a late-race incident hampered the team’s hopes for a top-10 finish, nonetheless the rookie was able to salvage a respectable finish and take the checkered flag in the 19th position.

Description: C:\Users\Chris Knight\Desktop\Racing Seasons\2011 Racing Season\ARCA Racing Series Events\Salem Speedway, No. 17\Photos\32 Salem\IMG_1393.jpgIn his first race of the season driving the No. 32 Call 811 Before You Dig Toyota Camry, Mingus and his Win-Tron Racing team had set realistic goals for the 17-year old protégé.

Never have seeing Mobile’s half-mile oval before the start of Friday’s activities, Mingus conferred with crew chief Mike Chaffee about a conservative but tactful approach to the second race of the season. In practice and qualifying, Mingus landed his No. 32 Call 811 Before You Dig Toyota Camry 28th in the overall rundown, successfully locking the Brentwood, Tennessee native into his second career ARCA start.

At the drop of the green flag, Mingus patiently utilized traffic to his advantage and had maneuvered himself into the 24th position by lap 15. Twenty laps later, the rookie had inched up one position thus proving how difficult it was to pass on Mobile’s one-groove racetrack.

Remaining on the lead lap, the former ARCA CRA-Super Series standout had squeezed into the 20th position by lap 50 and when several cars ahead of him elected to pit, Mingus would restart the event in the 13th position. A yellow flag would waive just before lap 64 with Mingus maintaining a healthy presence on the race track. Under the caution, Chaffee elected to bring his development driver to pit road for fuel and tires before sending his teenager back into battle.

Restarting 14th on lap 85, the previous competitor in the MMRA Baby Grand Series, continued to fight for respect and rightful placement on the track but while racing with a wad cars just past halfway, Mingus’s machine would get crunched from the exchange thus forcing a pit stop to repair the rear-end of his automobile with the field paused on lap 104.

Quick repair work by the team would keep the No. 32 Call 811 Before You Dig Toyota Camry on the lead lap but buried 24th in the rundown.

After the lap 107 restart, Mingus would again have to show patience yet be aggressive as he worked his way back up through the field. Setting into a long-green flag run would put Mingus at an advantage with newer tires allowing him to slice and dice his way through the stout field and find himself comfortably inside the top-15 when the caution flag waived on lap 168. One lap later, Chafee decided to bring his driver down pit lane for their final stop. Electing to use some strategy and quick work by the pit crew would lift Mingus to third for the restart.

Racing resumed on lap 173 with Mingus trying to protect his position on the race track. Dabbling with ARCA’s finest, the High School junior would suffer from inexperience and slide down the running order just two laps later.

The team’s day took an unfortunate turn on lap 177 when contact from another competitor sent Mingus’s machine around in turn four bringing out the caution and eventually losing a lap to the leaders. Damage control from the Lakeville, Minnesota-based team would allow Mingus to return to the race track but take him from contention of a top-10 run but instead race towards the checkered flag which he did, bringing home his No. 32 Call 811 Before You Dig Toyota Camry in the 19th position.

“I’m upset with what happened there near the end of the race, because we really were starting to come into our own,” offered Mingus. “Our Call 811 Before You Dig car is pretty wrinkled up, but I guess that’s just the characteristics of being a rookie and racing on a short track. I couldn’t have asked anything more from the team. We went forward from the time the green flag dropped and the car was really good. Our goal this weekend was to finish the race and we accomplished that, I just wish it would have been a little better terms.”

Nate Thiesse, co-car owner of Win-Tron Racing was exceptionally pleased with his driver’s performance at Mobile. “Honestly, we couldn’t have any expected anything more from Mason,” he said. “He did everything right this weekend. He acquired seat time, ran competitive laps and made improvement during the race. I know he’s a little down because of the late race entanglement, but that’s just part of short track racing near the end of the race where the intensity picks up a ton. For just his second ARCA race, he was able to come from the back to the front twice and see the checkered flag, so we’re proud of him and look to build on this at our next venue at Salem.”

In addition to Call 811 Before You Dig, Diamond Equipment leaped aboard the team as an associate marketing partner for Mingus’s second-career start and first of the 2012 ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards season.

Further information including driver opportunities with Win-Tron Racing is available by visiting win-tronracing.com or contacting Nate Thiesse at 612.306.1641

For more input on Call 811 Before You Dig, please connect to call811.com.

For more on Mason Mingus, please visit MasonMingusRacing.com.

About Win-Tron Racing:

Located in Lakeville, Minnesota, Win-Tron Racing is the home of one the most potent ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards single-car operations. Owned by former racers Kevin Cywinski and Nate Thiesse, the team since has acquired the assets of County Joe Racing has become a favorable fixture on the circuit. Since Win-Tron Racing’s inception in 2007, the team has hosted a variety of drivers including leading drivers James Buescher, Blake Bjorklund, Justin Marks and Matt Merrell to their first career ARCA victories. In 2012, the team will begin its sixth year of competition under the helm of veteran crew chief Mike Chaffee with current drivers Chris Windom and Mason Mingus.

PHOTO CAPTION: Mason Mingus with his No. 32 Call 811 Before You Dig Toyota Camry in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards for Win-Tron Racing.

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TEAM COMMUNICATIONS CONTACT:
NAME: Chris Knight, Knight Motorsports Management
PHONE: 239.834.9797
EMAIL: chris@chrisknightpr.com / knight849@aol.com