The last time Thomas Annunziata was in a racecar, he finished third at Phoenix Raceway. That was on March 5, more than a month ago.

Now sixth in the point standings, albeit after only two races of the 20-race 2026 ARCA Menards Series season, Annunziata will climb back into his No. 70 Nitro Motorsports Toyota at Kansas Speedway. It will be his first time at Kansas.

“I feel good about it,” Annunziata told Frontstretch. “The team’s been going to work and we’re going to have a fast piece there. I’m excited. It’s the first ARCA race I’ll have on a long mile-and-a-half, so that’ll be exciting. I’ve never been to Kansas before but very hungry for a win and excited to go over there and try to do that.”

Without prior experience there, like many of the upcoming tracks on the ARCA schedule, Annunziata has done his homework and will lean on his crew chief Shannon Rursch.

“Watched a ton of film, been doing a lot of iRacing, and preparing for it,” he continued. I’m really excited for it. I’ve been doing a lot of my own work, so I’m excited to go over there and see if it’s paid off.”

Rursch has won twice at Kansas. His two victorious drivers? Reigning NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series champion Jesse Love and reigning NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion Corey Heim. With a 30-car field, Rursch’s experience will be vital to Annunziata’s performance.

“He’s got way more experience than I do in terms of all these places and that is in my favor or in our favor because he knows exactly what the car needs to do to go fast here,” Annunziata added. “So, it’s going to be on me. We’ll see if we have enough for Joe Gibbs Racing and the Pinnacle Racing Group car and we’re going to give it our everything.”

Plus, Annunziata and his team still have that momentum on their side following a crash in the season opener at Daytona International Speedway.

“Yes, that was a confidence booster, especially after Daytona,” he added. “We need to get ourselves on our own upward trajectory. So that was a nice feeling and we’re going to Kansas now with that same momentum and we’re going to try to do the same thing, if not better.”

With one month and 13 days off in between races, Annunziata is eager to wheel his racecar again. He couldn’t stay away from the racetrack, though. Nope, he went with Nitro to the ARCA Menards Series East season opener at Hickory Motor Speedway to support his boss Nick Tucker, who piloted the No. 70 in that race.

“I wanted to go in general because I just like that stuff,” Annunziata stated. “Plus, I wanted to see him race. I’ve never seen him race. I know he used to. So, I was interested to see what he could do and then also interested to see how I could help in certain ways. But he’s also revived my career and he’s also the reason I am where I am today. So, it was my duty to go over there and support him. I also learned from the other side of it. Just figure out how I could help the driver instead of being a driver who needs to be helped. So, it was interesting for sure.”

“I gained an understanding of what it is like to be a guy in the garage looking at the other racecars to see what the other teams are potentially doing. Also, because I’m a racecar driver, I was watching Nick and diagnosing what the car could do better and I was almost like a second voice. I was keeping him cool too with some fans on the side. I was doing anything I could to provide him with some value.”

While Tucker spun his car during the race, he ultimately finished fifth, impressing Annunziata.

“He’s a dog,” Annunziata said. “That’s my takeaway that he’s still incredible at what he does. And it makes me understand more that he knows what he’s talking about. He really knows; he’s very good. So now he understands how these cars handle. So, he’ll have a better understanding of what to do to our racecars.”

The week before Kansas, the NASCAR national series competed at Bristol Motor Speedway. In the NASCAR Cup Series, Ty Gibbs broke through for his first career victory. Because Gibbs won the 2021 ARCA title, Gibbs’ Bristol triumph is important for Annunziata.

“It’s important for ARCA, it’s important for every ladder system for NASCAR because it’s proof that this works and it’s also proof that anything is possible,” he concluded. “I’m on the right track, I have the right team and we’re on the right route and are going to go far, for sure.”

You can see Annunziata and the ARCA drivers compete at Kansas in the Tide 150 on Saturday, April 18. The Tide 150 will begin at 12:30 p.m. ET with TV coverage provided by FOX Sports 1.