By Tadd Haislop-ARCARacing.com
Sammy Smith celebrates after winning Saturday night s ARCA Menards Series East race at Five Flags Speedway. Photo: Morgan Givens/ARCA Racing
PENSACOLA, Fla. - Based on the way he barely lost the ARCA Menards Series East season-opener to fellow rookie Max Gutiérrez a few weeks ago, Sammy Smith’s eventual first win on the platform felt inevitable.
It became a reality Saturday night at 5 Flags Speedway in Pensacola, Florida, where the 16-year-old from Johnston, Iowa, won the Pensacola 200 in convincing fashion.
Smith’s first victory came in just his second series start.
Smith, who earlier Saturday earned the General Tire Pole Award when he put the No. 18 Engine Ice Toyota on the top of the speed chart toward the end of an open qualifying session, finished ahead of second-place Mason Diaz by more than two seconds on the half-mile paved oval.