ARCA RE/MAX Series Wolverine Power Systems 200 presented by Generac
BERLIN

RACE REPORT
LOFTON LEADS TEAM ESR BACK TO VICTORY LANE!!

Justin Lofton in Victory Lane

MARNE, Michigan (July 25, 2009) -- Justin Lofton claimed his second race win of the ARCA RE/MAX Series season in dominating fashion on Saturday at Berlin Raceway. 23-year-old Lofton, wheeling the No. 6 Valvoline Instant Oil Change Toyota for Eddie Sharp Racing, paced practice, earned his fourth pole award of the season by setting a new track record, and led all but 36 laps, dominating 171 of the extended 207-lap Wolverine Power Systems 200 presented by Generac.

"We accomplished what we set out to do. We mixed it up with that pit call. Everything just went our way. It's about time we got back to victory lane. It's been way too long," Lofton said. "This is my favorite racecar and it proved why tonight. It ran really well. My crew chief Mark Rette, all of the guys, they've been working so hard and we deserved this one."

Craig Goess

Lofton's ESR teammates also showed well in the event as Craig Goess, Jr., driver of the No. 81 Greenville Toyota of N.C. Toyota followed up his career-best showing from Kentucky by flexing his muscle yet again within the top 10, coming home seventh. Steve Arpin, in his final ride behind the wheel of the No. Toyota, narrowly missed out on his fifth straight top-10, crossing the stripe in 11th. Tim George Jr., driver of the No. 2 Ruby Tuesday Toyota, unfortunately got caught up in a mid-race melee, resorting him to a 25th place result.

The win was the first for Eddie Sharp Racing since Lofton visited victory lane in April at Talladega Superspeedway. The entire organization has been running strong as of late, with three of the four ESR entries entering Berlin fresh off of top-10 showings the week before at Kentucky Speedway.

The switch to the .4375-mile short track in Marne, Michigan however, meant trouble for the competition as Lofton rolled out his favorite racecar. Prior to Berlin, Lofton's trusty short track speedster had garnered two pole awards and four top-10 showings. He continued the trend Saturday, setting a new track record with a speed in 16.857 seconds, a top speed at 93.54 mph.

Goess lined up fifth, while George Jr. started 18th and Arpin 19th.

Not even his teammates however, had anything for Lofton throughout the event, as he went on to lead through the halfway mark. It was then that the team mixed things up on pitroad, finally bringing Lofton down for fresh tires on lap 125 of the 200-lap event. Most of the lead lap cars pit much earlier, around lap 65. Though Lofton wasn't the only leader to pit under the lap 125 caution, his car remained the strongest.

For the restart on lap 137, he lined up behind his teammate in the No. 20, Arpin, in the eighth position. By lap 144, he was back in the lead, driving by nine-time series champion Frank Kimmel on the outside.

Despite a late race caution flag with just two laps remaining, extending the race to 207 laps and ending the race under a green-white-checkered flag finish, nobody had anything for Lofton.

His return to victory lane signified not only a trophy for the ESR camp but a turnaround for the No. 6 team entering the second half of the season. Prior to Berlin, Lofton acknowledged a change in the team's approach for the second half, citing race wins as their primary goal, rather than strategically counting points. The new plan seems simple enough but it is twofold; by gunning for race wins, Lofton and crew chief Mark Rette will be able to nab the most points possible. After the race on Saturday, Lofton erased 50 points from Parker Kligerman's lead. He now trails Kligerman by just 100 markers entering next weekend's event in Pocono.

With Arpin's final ride in the No. 20 falling at Berlin, Team ESR's remaining drivers, Craig Goess, Jr., sits fifth in points, while Tim George Jr. is 10th.

DRIVER REPORT


LOFTON PERFECT AT BERLIN!!

Debuts new approach, dominates practice, qualifying and race

Justin Lofton

MARNE, Michigan (July 25, 2009)--Justin Lofton entered the Wolverine Power Systems 200 presented by Generac at Berlin Raceway with one goal in mind – to return to victory lane. Piloting the No. 6 Valvoline Instant Oil Change Toyota for Eddie Sharp Racing, Lofton did just that, winning his second race of the ARCA RE/MAX Series season.

Prior to the race, Lofton announced that the No. 6 ESR team were taking on a new approach to the season for the second half. Rather than racing for points, they were instead gunning for race wins.

"We accomplished what we set out to do. We mixed it up with that pit call. Everything just went our way," Lofton said of his winning run.

"This is my favorite racecar and it proved why tonight. It ran really well. My crew chief Mark Rette, all of the guys, they've been working so hard and we deserved this one. It took us a while to get back here (to victory lane) but I can guarantee this won't be the last."

Lofton dominated the day at Berlin, first pacing practice before going on to claim the pole, his fourth of the season. Once the green flag fell and despite frequent caution flags, his machine maintained the position, jumping out to a lengthy lead with every restart.

The first sign of Lofton and Rette's new strategy fell just after the lap 65 mark under a caution flag. While Lofton held his position at the front of the field, the majority of the lead lap cars pit. Despite his competition having fresh tires, Lofton's No. 6 Toyota held the lead through the halfway mark at lap 100.

By lap 125 however, Lofton's tires began to show signs of wear as he rode in the fourth position. A caution flag waved allowing Lofton to drop down pitroad for his one and only stop of the day. The Mark Rette-led crew swapped out the tires and sent Lofton back on track.

He lined up eighth for the restart on lap 137 but by lap 144, he overtook then-leader, nine-time champion Frank Kimmel, sailing by on the high side.

Lofton takes the checkered flag

From then on, the race was Lofton's to lose. His Valvoline Instant Oil Change machine clicked off the laps unchallenged through a final caution flag just two laps from the finish.

The timing of the caution extended the race to 207 laps, with Lofton leading the way to a green-white-checkered flag finish. As Lofton guided the field to the final restart of the night, the second place car of Matt Merrell was tight on his bumper but Lofton got a good jump, driving away to his second win of the season.

Lofton's new approach paid off in a big way as he also picked up ground in the point standings, shaving 50 points off of Parker Kligerman's lead.

ESR ARCA RE/MAX Series Driver Point Standings
Driver	Position	Points
	2	2955
	5	2580
	7	2460
	10	2200

DRIVER REPORT


ROUGH STUFF ENDS WITH A TOP TEN

Goess Manages a Seventh-Place Finish at Berlin with Damaged Car

Craig Goess

MARNE, Michigan (July 25, 2009)-- Craig Goess and the #81 Greenville Toyota team headed to Berlin Raceway (MI) for the ARCA RE/MAX Series event on July 25th looking to continue his recent string of strong runs. Despite an accident that took him out of contention to win, Goess manhandled his damaged Eddie Sharp Racing car to a seventh-place finish.

“It was an up and down day,” said Goess. “Everyone was on a different pit strategy. We ended up getting caught up in a wreck in front of us when we got back in the field after pitting. There was nowhere to go and I smacked the tire barriers pretty hard. It folded up the left side of the car and folded up the right side of the car. It looked like a crushed Pepsi can that got stretched back out.”

With the car damage more than cosmetic, Goess had to drive hard just to keep the car between the walls.

“We had some damage and the toe got messed up. The car after that wasn’t handling as good as it was before then. We had to give it all we had to keep it where it was. With all that happened, a seventh-place finish wasn’t all that terrible. It is short track racing.”

Goess and his team will now head back to Pocono Raceway (PA), where he had success earlier in the season before a parts failure took him from a winning car to a ninth-place finish.

“We have a good car that we are taking to Pocono. Some of the improvements we were able to make at Kentucky will help. We are taking the sister car to that and we learned a lot out there that we are going to apply to this car, so it should be a good weekend for us.”

The next ARCA RE/MAX Series event is on Saturday, August 1st, at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania.

DRIVER REPORT


A HARD HIT ON A SHORT TRACK

Tight quarters at Berlin bite George Jr

Tim George, Jr.

MARNE, Michigan (July 25, 2009)--The challenges of short track racing are something Tim George Jr. is working towards mastering. As a rookie in the ARCA RE/MAX Series, and stockcar racing in general, George Jr. knows that in order to learn all that he can throughout his debut season, he has to take the good with the bad.

On Saturday at the .4375-mile Berlin Raceway, George Jr., driving the No. 2 Ruby Tuesday Toyota, had another lesson thrown at him, one of circumstance and perseverance. He started the Wolverine Power Systems 200 presented by Generac mid-pack, within the top 20, from the 18th position.

Entering the event weekend, George Jr. familiarized himself with the unique short track, and became well aware early into the race that a foray into the woods off of the backstretch was a possibility.

"I didn't quite know what to expect when I arrived at Berlin. Sure enough, there wasn't a back stretch wall. I got to see a car (that of Billy Leslie) go off in front of me, almost into the woods. I made sure I didn't track all the way to the edge out of turn 2," George Jr. said.

In addition to the uniqueness of the track, George Jr. was challenged by track position. With the track less than a half-mile in length, it didn't give the wide-eyed rookie much time to or room to maneuver his way through the field. Unfortunately, the same tight conditions that hindered his ability to pass, also left him nowhere to go and left him a victim of circumstance, getting caught up in a late race wreck.

"We were running pretty strong and probably had an eighth place run going. Several cars spun in front of me and I couldn't avoid one of them," George Jr. explained.

"A few of the cars that were also involved in this incident finished within the top ten, but our damage was more significant. The guys did a good job and hustled to get the No. 2 Ruby Tuesday Toyota back out, but we must have had a right front suspension problem because all of the sudden, it just wouldn't turn left. For a short track, that was a very hard hit, but I'm okay."

After extensive repairs to his Ruby Tuesday sponsored machine, George Jr. got back on track temporarily before his ailing machine let go. He finished the race in the 25th position.

This week George Jr. has a week of testing ahead of him before he and the Ruby Tuesday / Eddie Sharp Racing team return to Pocono Raceway. In June George Jr. started 10th and finished 19th on the tricky triangle.

"I'm looking forward to testing at Watkins Glen this week and regrouping for Pocono and the New Jersey test," he said.

QUALIFYING UPDATE
LOFTON ON POLE!

Justin Lofton and Team Owner Eddie Sharp

MARNE, Michigan (July 25, 2009)--Eddie Sharp Racing's Justin Lofton (No. 6 Lofton Cattle-Valvoline Instant Oil Change Toyota) earned his fourth Menards Pole Award presented by Ansell of the 2009 ARCA RE/MAX Series on Saturday evening, circling the .4375-mile Berlin Raceway in 16.857 seconds for a speed of 93.54 mph. The time was good enough to set a new ARCA RE/MAX Series one-lap track record at Berlin Raceway, eclipsing the 16.963 second/92.955 mph lap set by Justin Allgaier in 2008.

Lofton will start on the pole in tonight's Wolverine Power Systems 200 presented by Generac. Teammate Craig Goess rounded out the top-5.

The Wolverine Power Systems 200 presented by Generac, race 12 of 21 in the 2009 ARCA RE/MAX Series, is scheduled to begin at approximately 8:30 p.m. Eastern. Live timing and scoring and a live audio and video feed will be available at arcaracing.com.

PRACTICE UPDATE
Lofton Tops Practice Charts at Berlin Raceway

No.6 Lofton Cattle-Valvoline Instant Oil Change Toyota

MARNE, Michigan (July 25, 2009)--Eddie Sharp Racing's Justin Lofton (No. 6 Lofton Cattle Toyota) topped 34 drivers who participated in an ARCA RE/MAX Series practice session at Berlin Raceway on Saturday afternoon with a 17.227 second/91.531-mph lap around the .4375-mile Marne, Michigan-based short track. Teammate Craig Goess (No. 81 Greenville Toyota of NC Toyota/Eddie Sharp Racing) rounded out the top-5 during the 1.5-hour practice session, designed to prepare teams for tonight's Wolverine Power Systems 200 presented by Generac, race 12 of 21 in the 2009 ARCA RE/MAX Series.

"Berlin is a throttle sensitive racetrack," said Lofton after the practice session. "You really have got to be easy on the throttle and really finesse it here. I learned that skill early in my career racing in the desert so I really think that has helped me at short tracks like Berlin. We were fast right away today and a lot of the reason we are so fast on the charts right away is because Mark [Rette, crew chief] and everyone on the Eddie Sharp Racing 6 team give me a real good racecar. It makes it easy to be fast right off of the truck."

"Valvoline Instant Oil Change came back on as a sponsor for this race. We have a couple of representatives from Valvoline here tonight and it would be good to back up our practice times with a win so that I can get my picture taken with them in victory lane."

Next up for the ARCA RE/MAX Series is Menards Pole Qualifying presented by Ansell, set for 5 p.m. Eastern. The race is scheduled to begin at approximately 8:30 p.m. Eastern. Live timing and scoring and a live audio and video feed will be available at arcaracing.com.

DRIVER PREVIEW

Lofton excited about short track return

Lofton finished 4th at Berlin last year

After last weekend's run in Kentucky Justin Lofton was content, but slightly frustrated. Lofton finished third last Saturday but he entered the race weekend with one goal in mind; to return to victory lane.

To date, Lofton has one win this season, scored in April at Talladega, and currently sits second in the driver point standings. He leads the series with eight top five finishes. He also has three straight top-10s, nine total through the 11-race season to date.

Though the majority of his competitors envy his results, Lofton, driver of the No. 6 Toyota for Eddie Sharp Racing, wants more. His position in the point standings and his absence in victory lane is his motivation this weekend as the series heads to Berlin Raceway.

"We're going to start going for wins. That's always been the goal overall but we've played it conservative, watching the points. We're going to take more risks in the pits with strategy and change things up a bit," Lofton said. "The effort that we put in as a team is not going to change one bit. We're just going to mix it up."

Justin Lofton

As Lofton and crew chief Mark Rette embrace the "take no prisoners" approach for the second half of the season, the competition should be on the lookout. Not only is the No. 6 team's motivation high but this weekend's race at Berlin shows all signs pointing to Lofton.

The Berlin track measures less than half a mile in length, giving Lofton the clear advantage. The team will roll out Lofton's favorite car for the weekend and so far this season, its amassed stellar results. Lofton has garnered two pole awards, nabbed four top-10s and finished runner-up in the previous short track runs so far this season. As if that weren't enough, last season in Berlin Lofton finished fourth.

"We're all excited about this race. I love short track racing and I'm running my favorite car. I feel like we're right there, and winning is definitely the plan this weekend," he added.

Joining Lofton and the No. 6 ESR team this weekend is primary sponsor Valvoline Instant Oil Change. Valvoline Instant Oil Change first appeared on Lofton's Toyota in June at Michigan. As part of the partnership this weekend, Lofton will be meeting fans and signing autographs prior to the 200-lap event. He will be appearing at a local Valvoline Instant Oil Change center, located at 7501 E. Main Street in Jenison, Michigan on Friday, July 24th from 11 A.M to 1 P.M. and again from 4 P.M. to 6 P.M.

DRIVER PREVIEW

Berlin Speedway Arpin's Final Run for ESR

Steve Arpin

Steve Arpin is set to do battle in this weekend's ARCA RE/MAX Series event at Berlin Speedway located just outside of Grand Rapids, Michigan. The 'Wolverine Power Systems 200 presented by Generac' at the half-mile racing facility will be Arpin's last run for the Eddie Sharp Racing team as Arpin moves on to new opportunities in his young racing career.

This will be the final run for the Fort Frances, Ontario driver in the seat of an ESR car as the young Canadian racer fulfills his driving obligation to the team prior to moving forward to a new opportunity. Arpin's team partners Taylor Motorsports, Lo-N-Bro Enterprises and Pinewood Sports & Marine will follow him to his new efforts elsewhere. Arpin has gained much momentum during the 2009 season on the ARCA RE/MAX campaign and is excited about the prospect of scoring another strong finish at the Johnny Benson owned Berlin Speedway.

Steve Arpin last week

'We are excited about heading back to a short track next week at Berlin,' points out Arpin. 'I'm pleased with the performance that I have been able to turn in on the superspeedways and intermediate tracks, but those who have followed my career during the past few years understand what I have been able to accomplish in terms of wins on short-tracks, so this could be the week that we pull into the winners circle,' smiled Arpin.

'Short tracks have been our strongest suit all year long. We had a good run at Mansfield and with this being our last week with sponsorship here at ESR we are looking for a storybook ending and a trip to Victory Lane. Our team has a lot of momentum going and we are more than capable of winning this race. It's been an exciting run at ESR and we are a little disappointed that we aren't able to continue with the crew that has worked together, but we are going to do whatever we can to keep racing and chase after every opportunity available,' said Arpin emphatically.

The ARCA Racing Network will cover all the on-track activity for the ARCA RE/MAX Series from Marne, Michigan. Listen and watch live streaming audio and video of practice, qualifying at ARCAracing.com inside the ARCA Nation. The official web site for Steve Arpin on the internet is www.stevearpin.net. In addition to his ARCA and superspeedway racing talents, Arpin's racing expertise led the young gun to 7 World Titles in snowmobile competition as a lead driver for Team Polaris. In addition, Arpin is a former multi-time champion in Open Wheel Modified action, while also displaying his winning talent in USAC Silver Crown and late model completion.