Toledo Speedway

(TOLEDO, Ohio – May 11, 2014) – And the teams just keep coming. Roulo Brothers Racing, with 16-year-old Kyle Benjamin in the driver’s seat, celebrated Mother’s Day at Toledo Speedway testing both the 17 and the 99 Fords, ahead of the upcoming Menards 200 presented by Federated Car Care May 17-18.

Benjamin drove in from his hometown of Easley, South Carolina the day before. The team plans to spend Sunday and Monday, weather permitting, testing on the half-mile oval. Despite his younger years, Toledo is one track that Benjamin has raced on before, in both the ARCA cars and ARCA CRA Super Series late models. And as a result, he’s feeling confident about the whole thing.

“Feel pretty confident about it,” Benjamin said.

“I know the Roulo Brothers brought some really good cars here (for the test). I know they’ve had good cars here in the past.”

Good cars in the past at Toledo from the Roulo Brothers would certainly not be a stretch. The 2012 ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards championship team has won eight times (with four different drivers) at Toledo reaching back to 1989 when Bob Strait drove a Roulo Brothers car to Victory Lane. Strait repeated in the win column at Toledo in 1990 before Dave Weltmeyer did the same in 1993. Ken Schrader captured the first of his five Toledo wins in a Roulo Brothers car in 1997. Then, 13 years would blow by before Chris Buescher steered the No. 17 Roulo Brothers Ford back to Victory Lane at Toledo in 2010. Buescher repeated as victor in the fall of 2010, in 2011 and 2012.

Benjamin earned the Menards Pole presented by Ansell at Toledo last year, becoming the youngest polesitter in ARCA history. He knows the Toledo track as well as any, and better than most.

“There’s not really much to it,” Benjamin added. “For the most part, the track’s pretty forgiving and pretty straight forward. Let’s just say…I’d call it less complicated than most short tracks I’ve been on.”

Despite winning the pole at Toledo last year, Benjamin said that his test Sunday was mostly about getting the right race set-up under him.

“Long runs. We want to be really good once the tires wear out.”

Benjamin, who typically balances his part-time ARCA schedule against his late model racing, is placing the majority of his focus in 2014 on his ARCA schedule.

“We actually haven’t been running anything. We’ve slowed our late model racing way down. Right now, we’re just focusing on a lot of the heavy car stuff…ARCA.”

Benjamin also became the youngest winner in ARCA history in 2013, winning at Madison Int’l Speedway in late August, just shy of his 16^th birthday. He then repeated in the win column at Salem Speedway in early September, 2013.

Cunningham Motorsports, with drivers Tom Hessert and Austin Wayne Self, are expected to join Roulo Brothers Racing at Toledo Monday for more team testing.

Tickets are on sale now for the Menards 200 presented by Federated Car Care at Toledo Speedway. Tickets are $15, compared to $25 on race day, and are now available at Menards stores in Toledo, Defiance, Holland, Oregon, Sandusky and Findlay.

The weekend’s activities include two ARCA Racing Series practice sessions Saturday, May 17 from 11:45-12:30 and 1-1:45, with Menards Pole Qualifying presented by Ansell at 3:30. An ARCA-sanctioned Sportsman feature race will follow qualifying Saturday afternoon. The Menards 200 is Sunday at 2, with an autograph session from noon to 1. Pre-race and driver introductions follow the autograph session.

The Menards 200 is live on FOX Sports 1.

@DonRadebaugh
dradebaugh@arcaracing.com