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Wood Begins ARCA West Season with Top-Ten Run at Phoenix

Jack Wood ARCA West 2024 NAPA Auto Care 16 Phoenix feat

Jack Wood began the ARCA Menards Series West (AMSW) campaign with a seventh-place finish on Friday evening at Phoenix Raceway to mark his second consecutive top-10 result at the one-mile tri oval. The driver of the No. 16 NAPA Auto Care Chevrolet SS kick started his AMSW championship bid with his 12th-career top-10 finish as the race was called short due to rain and lightning after 115 of 150 scheduled laps.

Jack Wood ARCA West 2024 NAPA Auto Care 16 Phoenix feat

Wood began his effort in the desert by posting the eighth-quickest time in practice and followed that up with an eighth-place qualifying effort. The Californian began the event by wrestling an extremely loose handling condition in the NAPA Auto Care Chevrolet. Wood radioed the team that his balance was a “10 out of 10” loose on both ends of Phoenix’s flat mile but managed to stay on the lead lap during the first half of the event.

Jack Wood ARCA West 2024 NAPA Auto Care 16 Phoenix feat

Crew chief Kevin Bellicourt took advantage of a caution on lap 70 to bring Wood to pit road for a crucial wedge adjustment while running 14th. On the ensuing restart at lap 75, Wood rocketed forward to claim the sixth position by the time the halfway caution flew on lap 76.

Jack Wood ARCA West 2024 NAPA Auto Care 16 Phoenix feat

Wood took on four fresh General Tires, fuel, and additional chassis adjustments during the halfway break to tweak the improved balance on his Chevrolet. When the race restarted on lap 81, Wood was a mainstay in the top-10 until a caution for lightning slowed the field on lap 113. Wood was credited with a seventh-place finish as a rare thunderstorm enveloped the desert mile and forcing an official finish after 115 laps were completed.

Jack Wood ARCA West 2024 NAPA Auto Care 16 Phoenix feat

“With as deep as the field was here, seventh is a solid start to our season,” Wood said. “Our NAPA Auto Care Chevrolet was too loose in the first half of the race, and we really needed that caution before halfway to get an extra adjustment. Kevin and the guys made a good call, and it really improved the car. I would have liked to see us run out the full distance to see if we could have gotten into the top-five, but that’s a solid finish for our first race as a group. We have a good foundation here and we’ll work on getting ready for Irwindale in a couple weeks.”

Start / Finish: 8 / 7
Points Standing / Total: 7th / 37 pts.

Next Race: Saturday, March 30, Irwindale Speedway
How to Watch or Listen: 10:00 p.m. ET on FloRacing

NAPA: @NAPARacing
Jack Wood: @DriverJackWood
Bill McAnally Racing / McAnally-Hilgemann Racing: @BMR_NASCAR

Bill McAnally Racing View All

Bill McAnally Racing (BMR) holds the ARCA Menards Series West (AMSW) record with 11 championships and eclipsed the 100-win mark in 2022. The team has piled on six titles in the last eight seasons with four different drivers since 2015. Loomis, California, native Jack Wood takes control of the No. 16 NAPA Auto Care Chevrolet for the 12-race campaign in 2024 and looks to add another title trophy to the BMR archive in his first full-time AMSW campaign.

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