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ARCA: Cowtown 250 Winner May be Heading for Stardom

29 August 1998

FORT WORTH-DALLAS - When the checkered flag falls on the Automobile Racing Club of America's (ARCA) Cowtown 250 Saturday, Sept. 19 at Texas Motor Speedway, the driver gracing victory lane may well have a star-filled career awaiting him.

ARCA has proven to be a fruitful stock car training ground for future NASCAR Winston Cup stars. Success in ARCA often precedes NASCAR greatness. ARCA's most notable graduate is Benny Parsons, the 1973 NASCAR Winston Cup champion and currently a noted television and radio racing commentator. Parsons captured ARCA championships in 1968 and 1969 prior to making the move to NASCAR stock car competition.

Tim Steele, ARCA champion in 1993, 1996 and last year, was picked as Bud Moore's 1998 Winston Cup driver until off-season injuries delayed his debut.

NASCAR Winston Cup drivers who have won ARCA races in the past include Loy Allen, Brett Bodine, Kyle Petty, Ken Schrader, Mike Skinner, Dick Trickle, Darrell Waltrip, Michael Waltrip, Bobby Allison, Harry Gant and the late Davey Allison.

"A lot of young drivers are coming along and using ARCA as their stepping stone to Winston Cup," said Petty, a 1979 ARCA winner at Daytona. "ARCA is now where Winston Cup racing was just a few short years ago, ARCA is now a top-flite racing series."

The ARCA Bondo/Mar-Hyde Series' debut at Texas Motor Speedway will take the green flag at 1:00 p.m. on Sept. 19. The Cowtown 250 starting lineup will be determined on The Dallas Morning News Pole Day Sept. 18.

Tickets for the inaugural Cowtown 250 are available at the Texas Motor Speedway ticket office, by calling (817) 215-8500 or at all area TicketMaster locations.