Pedal Down Promotions
October 5, 2022 – After putting together an outstanding 2021 season, which resulted in earning both the Akright Auto Midwest Sprint Car Association and Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car titles, Travis Arenz and the Travis Arenz Motorsports team delivered a stirring encore performance during the 2022 campaign to claim both the MSA and PDTR championships for the second consecutive season.
The 16th-year Sheboygan Falls, Wis. racer entered championship weekend with a slim 17-point lead over Ben Schmidt in the MSA point standings needing smooth, consistent and incident-free runs at the “horsepower half mile” Dodge County Fairgrounds Speedway in Beaver Dam, Wis. on Friday, Sept. 23 and at The Plymouth Dirt Track in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Sept. 24 in order to secure the title.
With 18 MSA 360 Sprint Cars signed in at the Dodge County Fairgrounds Speedway for the Checkered Classic run in honor of Al Schmidt, Fuzzy Fassbender and Dick Witt, Arenz opened the program by qualifying second overall with a lap of 19.119 seconds around the half-mile clay oval.
After lining up fourth in the second eight-lap heat race, Arenz came home second to Schmidt to earn the eighth starting spot in the 20-lap MSA Checkered Classic main event. On lap 2, Arenz worked his way past Bill Taylor into second and quickly set his sets on the lead car of polesitter Tyler Brabant.
Arenz caught Brabant on lap 4 and the two drivers engaged in a two-lap duel before Arenz surged into the lead with a low move in turn two on lap 6. From there, Arenz survived two yellow flag periods on lap 13 to pull away to his eighth MSA A-main victory of the 2022 season and 30th career MSA 360 Sprint Car main event triumph.
“I enjoy racing at Dodge County because of the fast pace and it usually has a wide racing surface, which makes it more enjoyable,” Arenz said. “It was great to start off the MSA championship weekend with a win.”
Holding a 19-point cushion over Schmidt, Arenz moved on to the familiar confines of his “home track” The Plymouth Dirt Track in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Sept. 24 for the 2022 MSA season finale as part of the fifth annual Wisconsin Sprint Car Championships.
With 24 MSA-PDTR 360 Sprint Cars signed in for the 2022 curtain closer, Arenz registered the seventh-fastest overall MSA qualifying lap in a time of 12.494 seconds.
Arenz then lined up on the pole of the first 10-lap heat race and pulled away to notch his fifth MSA heat race victory of the 2022 season. Needing a solid finish in the top half of the field to secure his second consecutive MSA and PDTR 360 Sprint Car titles, Arenz started fourth in the 25-lap MSA-PDTR 360 Sprint Car A main and ran a smart, smooth and consistent race, while negotiating through two red flags and two caution periods to secure a fourth-place finish.
Although Schmidt won the main event, Arenz’s fourth-place showing was good enough to nail down the 2022 MSA championship by nine points over Schmidt.
“My approach to the last night of the season at Plymouth was a little different than normal,” Arenz said. “We had to make sure we were fast and aggressive, but also extremely cautious in traffic and to not have any mishaps.
“It means a lot to win the MSA and PDTR championships because of all the hard work, determination, pride, time and money that goes into it,” Arenz said. “The PDTR championship is very special to me with it being my home track and growing up there.”
During the 2022 MSA-PDTR 360 Sprint Car season, Arenz racked up eight A-main victories, 17 top-five and 18-top-10 A-main showings, five heat race wins and two fast qualifier awards en route to the MSA and PDTR championships.
Arenz also competed in seven 410 Sprint Car events with the Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association in 2022, earning one top-five, three top-10 main and four top-15 A-main showings, three dash appearances and one dash victory to finish 25th in the final 2022 IRA point standings.
The highlight of Arenz’s 2022 410 Sprint Car campaign was an IRA career-best second-place A-main finish at Wilmot Raceway in Wilmot, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 27.
Looking ahead to the 2023 season, Arenz is still working on finalizing his plans.
“Our plans for the 2023 season have not been solidified,” Arenz said. “We are going to run a couple races in a Dirt Late Model with Jake Van Engen Racing. We would like to run full-time with the IRA Sprint Car Series in 2023, but our options are open. We are interested in partnering up with someone for the 410 program. What we do during the 2023 season will depend on how the off-season goes.”
The 2022 Travis Arenz Motorsports sponsorship partners include Professional Plating Inc., Service One Transportation, Inc, Don and Lynn Kiel, Oostburg Concrete, Lakeshore Family Funeral Homes, Schoen’s Wildlife Removal, Premier Insurance Solutions-Craig Ladwig, Pallet Works, Retro Tire, DW Fence, Little Bears Tree Service LLC, Lake Auto Glass and Service, Myhre Construction LLC, Roth’s Auto Restoration, Hair Fellers Barbershop, Fastenal of Plymouth, Jensen Sales and Service, In The Bag, Amy Bruechert Reality, Cornwell Tools-Paul Epping, Advanced Engine Concepts, Inc., Duehring’s Tax Service, Everhope Show Cattle, HRP Wings and Behling Racing Equipment.
The 2022 Travis Arenz Motorsports team consists of pit crew members Greg Piedot, Jerrod Gamb, Emily Stadler, Curtiss Humphrey, Cameron Fritz, Alex Wesenburg, Taylor McAdams, Tony Fox and Trevor Hittman.
Additional information on the Travis Arenz Motorsports team can be found by visiting the team’s Facebook and Twitter pages.