Seven women on one entry list. Six expected to take the green flag. The ARCA Menards Series West is heading into a historic weekend at Phoenix Raceway, where the Desert Diamond Casino West Valley 100 will set a new participation record for women in the series.
The original entry list featured Hailie Deegan, Isabella Robusto, Jade Avedisian, Taylor Reimer, Mia Lovell, Dystany Spurlock and Quinn Davis. Robusto subsequently withdrew, leaving six women in the field.
That still surpasses the previous ARCA West record of five, set at Las Vegas in 2021 and matched at Phoenix earlier this season. The original seven-driver entry list would have set a new high across the wider ARCA platform as well.
A record field with contenders at the front
This record is not just about numbers. Several of the women are positioned to make an impact on track.
Jade Avedisian qualified second, just 0.012 seconds behind pole-sitter Max Reaves. Taylor Reimer starts third, while Mia Lovell qualified fifth. Deegan will start eighth, with Quinn Davis 18th and Spurlock 22nd. The starting positions put Avedisian, Reimer and Lovell among the drivers to watch as the 100-lap race unfolds.
Deegan brings a proven ARCA West record. She returned to victory lane at Madera Speedway in September, earning her fourth career win in the series and ending a lengthy gap between victories. Her experience gives the field a benchmark, while Avedisian and Reimer represent a growing pipeline of dirt-track talent making the move to asphalt stock cars.
Spurlock’s participation adds another important dimension. In 2026, she became the first Black woman to compete in ARCA’s regional and national platforms, then made history again as the first Black woman to qualify and race in a NASCAR national touring series event, in the Craftsman Truck Series at Dover. She has already shown promise in ARCA, finishing seventh in her East Series debut and scoring a top-10 result in the national series at Kansas.
NEWS: Max Reaves (@MadMaxReaves) will start on the pole for Saturday's #ARCA Menards Series West event at Phoenix Raceway — the final race for @JoeGibbsRacing's ARCA program.
— Joseph Srigley (@joe_srigley) October 17, 2026
2. Jade Avedisian
3. Taylor Reimer
4. Gavan Boschele
5. Mia Lovell
How this compares with racing history
The previous ARCA West benchmark was five women in a single race. That happened for the first time at the Las Vegas Bullring in 2021, when Amber Balcaen, Bridget Burgess, Jolynn Wilkinson, Amber Slagle and Mariah Boudrieau competed. The mark was matched at Phoenix in March 2026.
Six women in one ARCA race is also significant beyond the West division. The wider ARCA platform has previously seen six women in a single field, including at Daytona in 2010 and in later ARCA/ARCA East combination events. Phoenix therefore puts the West series level with that broader record, despite Robusto’s withdrawal.
In NASCAR’s national divisions, the record of 3 women starting a single NASCAR national series race was matched on May 15, 2026, at Dover by Natalie Decker, Toni Breidinger, and Dystany Spurlock.
At the Indianapolis 500, four women started in 2010, 2011 and 2013. Formula 1’s history is more restrictive still: Lella Lombardi and Divina Galica were both entered for the 1976 British Grand Prix, although neither qualified for the race.
Those comparisons span different series, eras and entry rules, so they are not identical measures. But they underline the scale of Phoenix’s milestone: six women competing in the same stock-car field is rare, and a new ARCA West record.
The race also translates the work of teams and development programmes creating opportunities for drivers from different backgrounds. Avedisian and Reimer arrive from dirt-track competition, Deegan brings previous ARCA West wins, Lovell has qualified inside the top five, and Spurlock continues a season marked by historic firsts.
The Desert Diamond Casino West Valley 100 takes place Saturday, October 17, at Phoenix Raceway, a one-mile oval in Avondale, Arizona. The 100-lap race is scheduled for 11 p.m. ET and will be streamed live on FloRacing.
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