A particular standout of the 2025 ARCA season opener was Isabella Robusto, who ran comfortably at the front of the pack for most of the first half of the race - however, her strong debut at Daytona came to an unfortunate end when she was taken out just past the halfway mark.
The 2025 ARCA Menards season opener at Daytona proved to be a challenging race for the four female drivers on the grid, as all were running promising races before being caught in incidents that took them out of contention prematurely.
A particular standout was Isabella Robusto, driver of the #55 Venturini Motorsports Toyota, who ran comfortably at the front of the pack for most of the race, controlling the early stages in second place. However, her strong debut at Daytona came to an unfortunate end when she was taken out just past the halfway mark while in clear contention for a top finish.
The race featured four female drivers, continuing the tradition of strong female representation in ARCA as they aim to climb the ranks of American stock car racing on their path to NASCAR. The field included a mix of returning talents, veterans, and new faces.
Amber Balcaen, competing in a part-time schedule, has been a strong contender at Daytona in previous years. The Canadian had a promising 2024 season, often showing the speed to fight at the front, but a foot injury hampered her campaign.
Despite this setback, she finished sixth in the standings with seven top-ten finishes. For 2025, Balcaen announced a partial schedule with Nitro Motorsports, beginning with the season opener at Daytona.
Katherine Legge, a driver who needs no introduction, brought a wealth of experience across multiple disciplines. A sportscar and IndyCar star, Legge holds the record for the fastest-ever woman in Indy 500 qualifying and has competed in IMSA—where she was vice-champion in the GTD class—Formula E, DTM, and even tested Formula 1 machinery.
She also made a handful of starts in the NASCAR Xfinity Series between 2018 and 2024 and recently raced sprint cars on dirt. The British driver made her NASCAR Xfinity debut in 2018 at Mid-Ohio, followed by a start at Road America—where she secured a 14th-place finish—and her first oval race at Richmond Raceway. In 2024, she returned to Xfinity with a one-off appearance at Road America with SS Green Light Racing. Now, she was back behind the wheel of a stock car for the ARCA season opener, piloting the #23 Chevy for Sigma Performance Services in the Ride the 'Dente 200 at Daytona, the flagship event of the series.
Isabella Robusto is clearly another driver to watch. Despite making just a handful of ARCA starts in 2024, she delivered outstanding results, including three top-10 finishes in four races and a second-place result. Driving the #55 Mobil 1 Toyota Camry, Robusto was making her first-ever start at Daytona’s iconic circuit.
A Toyota Development Driver, the 20-year-old was entering the main ARCA Menards Series full-time for the first time after competing in ARCA East and ARCA West in 2024. She ran eleven races across both series, securing three runner-up finishes and a pole position at Kansas Speedway in her first-ever speedway race. Robusto is chasing history, aiming to become the first female driver to win in any of NASCAR’s top four divisions.
Becca Monopoli was also a strong addition to the field. After participating in the 2024 ARCA pre-season tests at Daytona, she later announced her intent to qualify for the race but ultimately failed to make the field. However, the Florida-based 35-year-old made her ARCA East debut at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park and later raced at Toledo, where she scored a personal best of eleventh. For 2025, she returned to Daytona, piloting the #86 Clubb Racing Inc. entry.
Balcaen shone in pre-event testing, topping the timesheets out of a massive 70-car field and proving to be a strong contender once again.
However, rain threatened the schedule during the race weekend, with heavy downpours in the days leading up to the race causing practice to be canceled and qualifying to be disrupted. When a practice session finally got underway, Robusto impressed with the second-fastest time. Legge also showed speed with a top-ten result, while Balcaen was 19th fastest. Monopoli finished P36.
With qualifying canceled, the starting grid was set by owner points, placing Robusto in fourth, Legge in ninth, and Monopoli in 25th. Unfortunately, Balcaen had to start from P30 in the 40-car field.
The story of the race
At the green flag, Robusto surged into second place, closely following Lawless Alan. Legge settled into P13, while Balcaen had a brilliant start, climbing to P14 within two laps.
Just four laps into the race, a massive crash involving Cody Dennison triggered a multi-car accident. Unfortunately, Legge was caught in the wreck, hitting the inside wall hard. Her car sustained too much damage to continue, and she was the first of the female drivers out of the race. The crash also collected Balcaen, though she was able to continue. The race was red-flagged with 15 cars involved.
After a restart on lap 9, Kole Raz took second place, but Robusto quickly reclaimed the spot behind Alan. However, the race was soon disrupted again when Balcaen spun, involving Garrett Mitchell and Kyle Steckly, bringing out another caution. Balcaen was able to continue after pitting for repairs but fell a lap down.
On lap 18, just after the next restart, chaos struck again: Balcaen suffered a tire failure and was collected at high speed by Mitchell and Becca Monopoli, ending all three of their races in a big crash.
Within 20 laps, three of the four female drivers were out of the race.
The next restart saw more trouble, with Bryton Laster spinning even before the green flag.
When the race finally settled into a rhythm on lap 31, Robusto remained near the front, running in fourth on the outside line. However, just two laps later, Scott Melton spun behind her, collecting Helio Castroneves and triggering another caution.
At the halfway mark, Robusto was still in contention, running in the top five and sticking to the outside line. But on lap 45, disaster struck. She was hit from behind by Michael Scofield, sending her across the track and into the path of Corey Day and Lawless Alan. The crash brought out another caution, one lap before the mid-race break.
A hugely promising race for the female drivers of the ARCA season opener ultimately ended in disappointment, with Robusto being the last of the four to be taken out—despite running the vast majority of the race in second place.
"Had a fast Mobil1 Toyota Camry at Daytona and got the chance to run up front, lead the pack, and learn a ton in the draft", Robusto commented. "Unfortunately, a bad push ended our day early, but the speed was there. Huge thanks to the team for all the hard work—ready for the next one!"
The 2025 Ride the 'Dente 200 at Daytona wasn’t meant to be for the female competitors, but the hope remains that we’ll see more full-season efforts in ARCA. Robusto is already confirmed at Venturini Motorsports, and her 2025 campaign promises to be a breakthrough year for the 20-year-old rookie.
The 2025 ARCA Menards Series season opener at Daytona International Speedway, the Ride the 'Dente 200, was a challenging race for the four female drivers on the grid. Whether you’re a seasoned fan of Sprunki or new to the series, Sprunki Retake provides a fun and innovative way to explore your musical creativity while embracing the spooky side of sound.