Fresh off making his NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series short track debut at Bristol Motor Speedway (BMS) Wednesday, ARCA RE/MAX Series rookie Bryan Silas returns to familiar territory this weekend as the sanction heads to The Milwaukee Mile for the running of the Governor’s Cup 200 on Sunday.
Silas enters this weekend’s race after posting two solid top-20 finishes at Nashville Superspeedway and Illinois State Fairgrounds, but as the 2007 ARCA season begins to draw to a close, the Florida native would like to make his mark and he wouldn’t mind a top-five finish in one of the respected races on the tour.
Luckily for the Fast Track Racing (FTR) development driver, he competed in last year’s Governor’s Cup 200, so he won’t have to enter this weekend’s festivities blind sighted.
Rewinding back to last August, Silas started the event ninth and ran a very clean and competitive race before logging a 20th place finish. This year, with 16 races already under his belt and three top-10 finishes, Silas turns to “The Magic Mile” for a career best finish.
“I really enjoy The Milwaukee Mile, ” said Silas. “I had the opportunity to race here last year and I had a blast. This year, I have a lot more experience under my belt and I’m surrounded by a great team. That helps me as a driver. It’s been a couple of races since we’ve finished in the top-10, we’re due. Hopefully if we stay out of trouble, the team can reel in a good finish. ”
When asked about The Milwaukee Mile, Silas offered, “It’s a great facility. The track has a lot of history and I think it’s great that the ARCA RE/MAX Series is a part of that history. The track is a tight place to race. There isn’t a lot of banking, so spins and great side-by-side racing are normal, but the key to Milwaukee is staying out of trouble. ”
Another reason this weekend is crucial for Silas is the opportunity to gain ground in the championship standings. Currently sitting 10th, but tied for ninth, Silas knows that a good run on Sunday will propel him to his goal of finishing comfortably in the top-10.
“The points are something we’ve worked really hard on this season, ” Silas explained. “We’ve had our fair share of ups and downs this season, but in the end, this team has persevered. We hope it shows in the points at the conclusion of the season finale. ”
Nortrax, Shell Rotella T, Holland Pump and Palm Beach Grading (PBG) will all sponsor the No. 11 Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS in the 10th ARCA event held at the famed Milwaukee Mile.
“I have the best sponsors in the garage literally, ” sounded Silas. “This is a televised race and we have the opportunity to run up front on Sunday and that’s what we plan to do. I want to thank all of our sponsors for their support, I really appreciate it. Hopefully we can deliver our first top-five this weekend. ”
Heading into Milwaukee, Silas has 22 ARCA RE/MAX Series starts to his credit with a career best finish of eighth at Salem Speedway (April 2007) and Kentucky Speedway (July 2007) while holding an additional top-10 performance at USA International Speedway (March 2007). He holds a career best short track time trials effort of seventh at Berlin Raceway (July 2007). A fourth place qualifying effort at Pocono Raceway (June 2007) is Silas’s best speedway run to date. He has controlled the ARCA field for 15 laps in one race.
| 
|