Series announces lap leader award report

Tom Hessert Wins $5000 ARCA Aaron's Lap Leader Award

(TOLEDO, Ohio) - Tom Hessert and the No. 77 Cunningham Motorsports Dodge led in eight races for a total of 387 laps in 2010 - more than any other driver in the ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/MAX and Menards - to win the $5000 Aaron's Lap Leader Award.

Hessert edged Steve Arpin and the No. 55 Venturini Motorsports team, leaders of 270 laps over eight of the series' 20 races.

Hessert also won the S&S Volvo Laps Completed Award for finishing a series-high 2631 of the 2652 laps contested this season.

One point toward the Aaron's Lap Leader Award is earned for every lap led by an ARCA Racing Series driver carrying on their car the decal of Aaron's, Inc., the nation's leader in sales and lease ownership and the official sales and lease ownership company of ARCA.

Hessert spoke to the significance of the award in relation to his team's success.

"The Aaron's Lap Leader Award is a very neat award. For my Cunningham Motorsports team to be out front more than any other team this season proves that they gave me every opportunity to win many times this year," Hessert said. "It speaks volumes for how hard my team worked throughout the whole season. As evidenced by leading 387 laps in eight races, we were in position to win more than the one race that we won.

"Thanks to Aaron's and the entire Butler family for sponsoring this award in the ARCA Racing Series. I am proud to know the family. Knowing them makes this award very special to me."

The Cherry Hill, N.J. native assumed the lead in the year-long standings for good in the autumn event at Toledo Speedway, leading 133 laps before finishing seventh. Remarkably, Hessert led just 24 laps in the first eight races of the season, but truly entered the pursuit by leading 126 laps in a dominating win at Iowa Speedway.

Series champion Patrick Sheltra finished third in the Aaron's Lap Leader Award standings with 241 laps led. Chris Buescher was fourth at 237, and Mikey Kile was fifth with 183. In all, 27 drivers led at least one lap over the course of the season, with 11 leading at least 100.

Hessert finished third in the overall series standings with 4860 points, a total assisted by his 50 points in lap leading bonuses. Hessert led more laps than any driver in a single race on two occasions, at Iowa in July and Toledo in September, to win two $500 Aaron's Lap Leader of the Race Awards.

Justin Marks led the series with three $500 Aaron's Lap Leader of the Race Awards, having led the most laps at Palm Beach, Texas, and New Jersey. Sheltra won the race award twice (Chicagoland, Rockingham), as did Arpin (Salem - April, DuQuoin), Kile (Pocono - June, Kansas), and Frank Kimmel (Pocono - July, Berlin).

Other race award winners in 2010 include: Bobby Gerhart (Daytona), Grant Enfinger (Talladega), Buescher (Toledo - May), Craig Goess (Michigan), Max Gresham (Mansfield), Ron Cox (Springfield), and Dakoda Armstrong (Salem - September).

The 2010 ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/MAX and Menards Championship Awards Banquet will take place Saturday, December 4 at the Northern Kentucky Convention Center in Covington, Ky., near Cincinnati.

-source: arca