Tony Marks Racing Forgoes ARCA Event At Illinois State Fairgrounds

Topics:  Jared Marks, Allen Crowe 100

Chris Knight
Knight Motorsports Management
Tony Marks Racing
August 16, 2011

SPRINGFIELD, Illinois (August 16, 2011) - - Officials from Tony Marks Racing (TMR) announced today that the team is forgoing its plans to compete in Sunday’s Allen Crowe 100 at the Illinois State Fairgrounds (Springfield) in order to allow its driver Maryeve Dufault to concentrate on her NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS) debut this weekend in Montreal.

The decision was a hard one for the Mooresville, North Carolina-based team as the freshman organization has recently surged into the ARCA spotlight with speed and solid finishes from primary driver Maryeve Dufault, part-time development driver Jared Marks and reining ARCA champion Patrick Sheltra. However, logistically the decision to skip the 14th race of the season offers a sense of relief for all parties involved.

“Of course, this was not an easy decision,” said car owner Tony Marks. “But, we’re looking at the best interest of the team. While we’re not running for points in the ARCA Racing Series right now, skipping Springfield allows Maryeve to fully concentrate on her efforts for her inaugural NASCAR Nationwide Series debut in her home Country.

We’ve spoken with all of our marketing partners and the team in great length about the decision and everyone has stood by it 100 percent. Anything could happen as far as weather, travel delays, etc., so it was just a smart decision for us to do this.”

Currently, the TMR team is strategically working on a plan that will satisfy ARCA Racing Series officials for the team’s No. 12 entry to be used by another competitor in order to keep the team’s current owner points active and in a competitive position.

Marks concluded by saying, “On behalf of the entire TMR team and our marketing partners, we are wishing Maryeve the best this weekend at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. She is grabbing a lot of attention for all the right reasons, so we will all be glued to the race and cheering her on in the Napa Auto Parts 200 presented by Dodge!”

Dufault will drive for MacDonald Motorsports, a longtime competitor in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) and NASCAR Nationwide Series. The team’s current position in the NNS car owner standings will guarantee her a starting berth in the No. 81 Quebec Dodge Dealers Dodge Challenger R/T on Saturday afternoon.

TMR is expected to return to the ARCA Racing Series scene in the 15th race of the season for the inaugural running of the Herr’s Live Life With Flavor 200 at Madison International Speedway on Friday, August 26.

The Allen Crowe 100 (100 laps / 100 miles) is the 14th of 19 events on the 2011 ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards schedule. The 29th ARCA event held at the Illinois State Fairgrounds is a one-day show. Practice begins Sunday, August 21 with a one hour practice session planned from 9:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. Menards Pole by Ansell qualifying is slated to begin at 11:00 a.m. The field will take the green flag Sunday afternoon shortly after 1:00 p.m. The event will not be televised but race coverage including live timing and scoring throughout the 1,326th race for the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards since it was formed in 1953 will be available through the ARCA Racing Network (ARN) online at arcaracing.com presented by ARCANation.com. All times are local.

For additional information on TMT, Inc. please visit; tmtcompanies.net.

For more on Maryeve Dufault, please log on to Maryeveracing.com.

Get Mad with Mad Croc Energy by visiting the World Wide Web at Madcroc.com.

To learn more about Tony Marks Racing and Jared Marks please click over to Tmr-racing.com.

TEAM COMMUNICATIONS CONTACT:

NAME: Chris Knight, Knight Motorsports Management
PHONE: 239.834.9797
EMAIL: chris@chrisknightpr.com