Gus Dean Earns Pole Position After Bollman Disqualified
Gus Dean has secured the pole position for the 2026 ARCA Menards Series season opener at Daytona International Speedway after Jake Bollman’s fastest qualifying time was disallowed by series officials on Friday, February 13.
Dean’s pole marks his third career top starting position and his first since 2018 at the Illinois State Fairgrounds. The veteran driver adds to his Daytona resume, having claimed victory at the track in 2024.
Front Row and Field Lineup
Isabella Robusto, Dean’s Nitro Motorsports teammate, will join him on the front row after qualifying second. Daniel Dye—making his first ARCA race start since 2022—earned the third starting position, while Sean Corr qualified fourth.
Garrett Mitchell, known as ‘Cleetus McFarland,’ secured fifth place, marking his best ARCA qualifying effort to date. The remainder of the top 10 includes Derek White, Bobby Dale Earnhardt, Mimi Tyrrell, Gio Ruggiero, and Robbie Kennealy.
Field Details and Race Information
With 50 cars entered and only 40 allotted starting positions, ten drivers failed to qualify for today’s race. Bollman and Jason Kitzmiller, whose times were disqualified, will attempt to make the field on provisional provisions. Kole Raz moved into the top 32 following Bollman’s disqualification, while Logan Misuraca was bumped from the field.
The ARCA race today spans 80 laps on Daytona’s 2.5-mile superspeedway. Known as the General Tire 200, this marks the 63rd running of the event and kicks off the 2026 ARCA Daytona 2026 season. The green flag flew at 12 p.m. ET with live coverage on FOX.
