ARCA: Sheltra crowned 2010 series champ at Rockingham.

Patrick Sheltra has won this year's ARCA Series championship at Rockingham Speedway's season-closing race, becoming the first owner/driver in over 40-years to claim the title.

Sheltra came home in fourth position with chief title rival Craig Goess immediately behind him in fifth. Having entered the race five-points clear that was enough for Sheltra, who also collected the fastest lap bonus to eventually finish 20 points ahead of Goess. The winning margin equals Benny Parsons' 1968 advantage over Les Snow, making it the sixth-closest title spread in ARCA's 53 year history.

Tom Hessert had also entered the race with a shot at the title but finished down in 19th spot, leaving him just over 100 points shy of Sheltra in the final standings.

Sheltra's title owes much to his back-to-back wins at Illinois State Fairgrounds and Chicagoland Speedway in August, and his record of 17 top-ten finishes from 20 races. The Toyota driver spoke afterwards of his pride at becoming a series champion.

"You look at who's won here, and to win the championship here is amazing to me. To be a part of that history now is a big part of my career," Sheltra said post-race.

"I've got to thank the Sheltra Motorsports guys, and my mom and my dad and everyone who's been behind me all this year. This isn't a one-race deal. It started out in Daytona and ended up here at 'The Rock.' The guys worked their tails off every day, late hours, just to prepare these cars and get them here to be competitive. I owe everything to them right now."

The race was won by TY Dillon, his second successive victory, with Kevin Swindell second and Chad Finley third.


James Weeks.