Trans Am Representation on Display This Weekend at Lime Rock Park

After its inaugural NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series weekend one year ago, Lime Rock Park welcomes the Truck Series and ARCA Menards Series back to the Connecticut facility this weekend. There will be no shortage of drivers who honed their road course craft in the Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli taking the track on Friday and Saturday, July 10-11.

Last year, Thomas Annunziata won the inaugural ARCA Menards Series event at Lime Rock Park. He will be looking for a pair of wins this weekend in Lime Rock. The four-time winner in the CUBE 3 Architecture TA2 series will pilot the No. 1 TRICON Garage Toyota in Saturday's NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series event, as well as the No. 70 Nitro Motorsports Toyota in Friday's ARCA Menards Series contest.

Gio Ruggiero currently sits fourth in NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series points in the No. 17 TRICON Garage entry. Ruggiero has five career TA2 starts, including a fifth-place finish at Lime Rock Park one year ago.

Connor Mosack will make his sixth start of the Truck Series season in the No. 7 for Spire Motorsports. A two-time winner in Trans Am competition, Mosack finished third in the CUBE 3 Architecture TA2 Series event at Lime Rock Park over Memorial Day weekend.

Ben Maier made his NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series debut last year at Lime Rock Park, finishing 18th. The 2024 TA2 winner at Worldwide Technology Raceway climbs behind the wheel of the No. 42 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet this weekend.

Maier will have a pair of teammates who both made their CUBE 3 Architecture TA2 debuts this year. Full-time NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series competitor Andres Perez de Lara made his TA2 debut earlier this season, finishing second at Road Atlanta. Landen Lewis, a champion on the zMAX CARS Tour, debuted at Lime Rock Park in May.

Another lesser-known Trans Am race winner is 2024 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion Ty Majeski. Prior to competing at Road America in the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series in 2018, Majeski made a start in the TA2 series at the Wisconsin facility. He scored the win in that race ahead of Matt Tifft and Rafa Matos.

While better known as a veteran of the NASCAR ranks with eight wins across NASCAR's national series, Justin Haley competed full-time in the CUBE 3 Architecture TA2 Series in 2016. Haley, who will drive the No. 16 Kaulig Racing RAM in the Truck Series event, finished sixth in points that season with six top-five finishes and three pole position starts.

Coincidentally, Chandler Smith and Tyler Ankrum each have one career TA2 start, both coming in 2022 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Ankrum finished 15th in that race, with Smith finishing 25th after an accident. Smith is currently third in the NASCAR Truck Series points, with Ankrum ninth.

Georgia racer Wesley Slimp made an appearance in the XGT Class of the Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2022. He will compete in the No. 62 Halmar Friesen Racing Toyota in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.

Friday's ARCA Menards Series event will also feature plenty of Trans Am flavor, including the 2025 CUBE 3 Architecture TA2 Series champion.

Last year, Tristan McKee made history as the youngest champion in the history of the Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli. His title in the CUBE 3 Architecture TA2 Series included four victories. McKee won in his last ARCA Menards Series start at Toledo Speedway, as well as one year ago with the series at Watkins Glen International.

Jake Bollman leads the ARCA Menards Series championship standings entering the 12th race of 2026. Bollman finished 11th in the Nitro Motorsports No. 90 Toyota in the Lime Rock TA2 event this year, and now hopes to parlay that experience to a strong showing for the team's ARCA operation on Friday.

Carson Brown made five CUBE 3 Architecture TA2 starts during the 2025 season, including a victory at VIRginia International Raceway. He'll look for his second win of the season in the No. 28 Pinnacle Racing Group Chevrolet.

Will Robinson made 10 TA2 starts during the 2025 season in the No. 51 Ford for Mike Cope Racing, with five top-10 finishes. The Wyoming driver will make his third ARCA Menards Series start, and his first on a road course, Friday in the No. 15 Nitro Motorsports Toyota.

Max Reaves made his CUBE 3 Architecture TA2 Series debut in the doubleheader at Sonoma and finished fourth in TA2 at Lime Rock in May. The North Carolina driver will be looking for his sixth career ARCA Menards Series win on Friday in the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.

The Lime Rock Park ARCA 100 is scheduled for 4 p.m. ET on Friday, July 10. Television coverage will be on FS2, with radio coverage on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series takes the green flag in the LiUNA 150 at 1 p.m. ET on Saturday. Coverage of that race will be provided by FS1, the NASCAR Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

-Photo credit: Chris Clark