It is announced today that Michael Lira will be making his ARCA Racing Series dirt-track debut in the No. 6 Musselman’s Apple Sauce Ford Fusion in the General Tire Grabber 100 at the mile-dirt DuQuoin State Fairgrounds in DuQuoin, Illinois this Sunday.

Lira is looking forward to being back behind the wheel of an ARCA car, especially with having the talent of Josh Williams in his ear as his crew chief for the event.

“It will be interesting having Josh as the crew chief,” Lira said. “It’s nice to have people working with you that have also raced, that way they understand more of what you’re going through. He has so much knowledge and up-to-date experience in these cars, so I am excited to have him as my crew chief. I’m really honored that Josh and his team wanted me to drive the No. 6 this weekend at DuQuoin.”

Lira has never started a race at either one of the dirt-mile tracks that the ARCA Racing Series has on its schedule. In 2014, he tested an ARCA car for the Kimmel Racing on a dirt track, but that is the extent of his dirt-racing career. Having very little experience on dirt, Lira is up for the challenge that DuQuoin has to offer.

“What’s going to be tough is keeping up with how the track changes throughout the day and making the right adjustments to the car to correspond to that. One thing I remember from when I tested was there is a distinct racing line, and if you go outside of that line, there’s zero grip and a good chance you’ll wreck. Staying in the groove will be key to having a good night on Sunday,” said Lira.

The No. 6 car has already had two wins this season at Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway and Madison International Raceway which encourages Lira as he heads into the race on Sunday.

“I want to bring the car home in one piece and have a good points day for Josh and his crew, but I also want to give them the best finish I can. I have a good feeling we will be in position for a good result at the end of the night Sunday. I cannot thank Josh, Musselman’s Apple Sauce, and the rest of the team enough for this opportunity, and I hope to make them proud this weekend with a good finish.”

Fans can follow the on-track action by viewing live timing and scoring and listening to the ARCA radio live-broadcast at ARCARacing.com. They can also access live-tweets by following @1MichaelLira on Twitter and follow along on the Michael Lira Racing Facebook page. The race will be tape delayed on American Sports Network on September 21 at 7pm/CT.

About Michael Lira: Michael Lira, the son of race car driver Carlos Lira, has been racing since the young age of 9. Starting in a quarter midget, Lira’s love for racing grew. Throughout the years, he has moved up the ranks as a respected talent. Currently, he competes in the pro-late model division at New Smyrna Speedway, and he also runs part-time in the ARCA Racing Series, the NASCAR Xfinity Series, IMSA, and SCCA.