ARCA Menards Series

The series was founded in Toledo, Ohio in 1953 by John Marcum, a friend and former competitor of NASCAR founder Bill France Sr. and a former NASCAR employee. Marcum created the organization — initially named the Midwest Association for Race Cars (MARC) — as a northern counterpart to the southern-based NASCAR. Early competitors included Iggy Katona and Nelson Stacy, and the series initially operated as a regional touring group in the Midwestern United States.

In 1964, at France's request, the series joined Daytona Speedweeks, opening its season on the same weekend as the Daytona 500. That same year, France suggested renaming the series from MARC to ARCA — Automobile Racing Club of America — to give it broader national appeal. The Daytona connection became one of the series' defining characteristics, providing young drivers an opportunity to experience superspeedway racing before advancing to NASCAR's national tours.

The ARCA Racing Series became widely regarded as one of the premier development ladders in American stock car racing. The series required drivers to be at least 17 to race at superspeedways such as Daytona and Talladega — one year younger than the minimum age in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at the time — making it an entry point for young talent seeking NASCAR approval for superspeedway events.

Notable alumni include Benny Parsons, Ken Schrader, Kyle Petty, Kyle Busch, Justin Allgaier, Casey Mears, Sam Hornish Jr., Michael McDowell, Davey Allison, Jeremy Mayfield, and Parker Kligerman. Other drivers, including ten-time ARCA champion Frank Kimmel, chose to build their careers within the series rather than pursuing full-time NASCAR employment.

ARCA was historically known for using veterans of the NASCAR Cup Series car fleet — older steel-bodied Gen 4 chassis that continued racing in ARCA long after they were retired at the Cup level. Following the Cup and Xfinity Series transition to the Car of Tomorrow, ARCA continued running 2007-style models of the Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS, Ford Fusion, Toyota Camry, and Dodge Charger.

Engines were carbureted V8 units built to similar specifications as NASCAR counterparts, occasionally sourced from NASCAR teams. Car owner Larry Clement estimated the cost to field an ARCA car at roughly ten percent of a NASCAR Cup Series budget, making the series accessible to a wider range of competitors.

In 2014, ARCA president Ron Drager announced a new engine option — the ARCA Ilmor 396 (also called the ARCA Control Engine or ACE) — developed by Ilmor using Holley electronic fuel injection and based on the Chevrolet LS engine family. The Ilmor unit produced 700 horsepower and 530 ft-lb of torque, cost $35,000 to build, and was designed to last up to 1,500 miles between rebuilds.

New composite car bodies based on the NASCAR Sprint Cup Gen 6 platform were unveiled at the 2014 SEMA Show and gradually phased in. Steel bodies were eliminated from superspeedways in 2018 and from all tracks by 2020.

The series presented several annual awards. The Rookie of the Year award recognized the highest-scoring first-year competitor. The Bill France Four Crown award, inaugurated in 1984, honored the driver accumulating the most points across four specific event types: dirt ovals, short ovals, superspeedways, and road courses. Frank Kimmel won the Four Crown award seven times. Davey Allison won the inaugural edition in 1984.

The series also recognized the Superspeedway Challenge (for owners), the Short Track Challenge (for drivers), the Marcum Award, and the Most Popular Driver Award, among others.

On April 27, 2018, NASCAR announced it had acquired ARCA. The 2018 and 2019 seasons continued under existing plans, and full NASCAR sanctioning began in 2020. At that point, the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East and West were rebranded as the ARCA Menards Series East and West respectively, creating a unified developmental ladder under the NASCAR umbrella. The series retained the Menards title sponsorship that had been in place since 2011.

In 2019, ARCA announced that every race that season would be broadcast live on television — the first time in series history — split between FS1, FS2, and MAVTV. Starting in 2023, all races moved to FS1 or FS2 under a multi-year television deal extending through 2028.

For roughly six decades as an independent entity, the ARCA Racing Series occupied a unique position in American motorsport: affordable enough to attract regional talent and hobby racers, yet credible enough to launch the careers of future NASCAR champions. Its integration into the NASCAR structure in 2020 formalized what had long been an unofficial relationship, placing the series at the foundation of NASCAR's official developmental pathway.