ARCA West Season Starts with Hemric’s Debut in the NAPA Chevy
Venue: Kevin Harvick’s Kern Raceway
Events: West Coast Stock Car Motorsports Hall of Fame 150
Date: Saturday, January 25th
Location: Bakersfield, CA
Track Description: 0.5-mile tri oval
Distance: 150 laps, 75 miles (6:20 p.m. ET, FloRacing)
A New Era… Before beginning his full-time NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series (NCTS) schedule with MHR, Daniel Hemric will swing over to the west coast and jump behind the wheel of the No. 19 NAPA Auto Care Chevrolet SS for Bill McAnally Racing this weekend in the ARCA Menards West Series (AMSW) to compete for victory at Kevin Harvick’s Kern Raceway. The Kannapolis, N.C. native is no stranger to the short tracks but will be marking his first AMSW start at the 0.5-mile trioval in Bakersfield, Calif. Saturday’s showdown serves at a tune-up for Hemric and his new crew chief, Josh Graham, who will lead the duo’s NCTS effort. Graham has joined the No. 19 NCTS team after serving as crew chief for the past two seasons in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
Back When…Hemric’s lone prior AMSW start came at Sonoma Raceway in 2019 when he made his first start for BMR, and battled the 12-turn road course to come up just shy of the victory with a runner-up result. In 2015, Hemric tallied three starts in the ARCA Menards East Series, and scored all top-10 finishes with a best result of fifth coming at Greenville-Pickens Speedway where he also earned the pole position.
BMR History at Kern County… The high-banked half mile of Kern Raceway has been a point of strength for the BMR teams over the years. Since the venue hosted its first AMSW event in 2013, BMR has tallied six victories. All six victories came in succession from 2016-2019, split between current NASCAR Cup Series driver Todd Gilliland (two) and Derek Kraus (four). Hemric seeks to add to that list this Saturday and make it victory number seven and jumpstart his 2025 campaign.
Tune In… Follow along with FloRacing’s live coverage at Kern Raceway that will begin prior to green flag at 6:20 p.m. ET (www.floracing.com). Stay connected with the NAPA Auto Care team by following @BMR_NASCAR on Twitter, @bmrnascar on Instagram, and Bill McAnally Racing on Facebook.
Daniel Hemric Quote:
“This is a new beginning for me and I’m looking forward to making some great memories this year. I feel fortunate to be in this position to compete in race-winning equipment and be part of NAPA’s 100th anniversary. It’s been a while since I last raced at Kern in a late model, but this is a good chance for Josh (Graham) and I to work together, get our communication down and warm up for Daytona. I’m looking forward to it and hopefully we can add to Bill’s trophy case this weekend.”