OREGON, Wis. — The first time Max Reaves saw Madison International Speedway was during an ASA Midwest Tour race at the facility last month.
Reaves only mustered an 11th-place finish that day, but the laps he logged around the half-mile complex provided him a blueprint to utilize for Friday’s Badger 200.
No one in the field could match Reaves’ pace in the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 18 Toyota, as he led every lap from the pole to secure his second national ARCA Menards Series win and his fifth on the platform.
Any opportunity to gain experience in full-bodied stock cars is something Reaves knows will be beneficial toward his long-term development. Enduring the highs and lows of his ASA Midwest Tour start at Madison helped bolster Reaves’ confidence going into the ARCA Menards Series race.
“That meant a lot just to be able to learn the track,” Reaves said. “We didn’t do too good in that race, but I have to thank my guys here with me, Joe Gibbs, [and] my coach Bobby [Labonte]. This Cook Out Camry was super fast today.”
In the three East Series events entered by Reaves so far, he did not lose any of them and led a combined 383 of 450 possible laps.
While the learning curve in the national ARCA Menards Series has not been as seamless, the results have still been great, with Reaves now prevailing in half his starts.
The only obstacles the young prospect faced during the evening were lapped traffic and a handful of restarts, all of which were handled in an expert fashion.
Without the prior ASA Midwest Tour start at Madison, Reaves does not believe his first ARCA Menards Series outing there would have been as polished. The abrasive, half-mile complex challenged Reaves both physically and mentally in July, but he translated those struggles into another positive chapter on the ARCA Menards Series platform.
“There was only] one time where Brenden [Queen] got under me, but we got away with it,” Reaves said. “[Springfield] would have been a lot more fun with practice, but we’ll be better [at DuQuoin]. I like the pavement better and want to stick with pavement.”
Following Reaves home in the second position was Lavar Scott, with Queen, Isabella Robusto and Julian DaCosta completing the top five.
Rounding out the top 10 were Mason Mitchell, Jason Kitzmiller, Kaylee Bryson, Tony Cosentino and Willie Mullins.
