Long Pond, Pa. ? Scott Riggs made the most of his first race at Pocono Raceway. He hopes it’s a preview of what’s to come.

Riggs won the 80-lap Pocono ARCA on Saturday, only a day before he starts on the same track for NASCAR’s Pocono 500.

Riggs started 30th in his 2003 Pontiac Grand Prix and steadily moved up during the race. While he hopes for a repeat performance, it will probably be difficult to duplicate from his No. 40 spot today against a more experienced and talented lineup.

“It will be a lot harder tomorrow for sure,” Riggs said, smiling.

Still, Riggs will take the victory. He needed the confidence boost after a tough first year with NASCAR. Though he’s coming off a fifth-place finish at Dover, thanks to crashes that wiped out a chunk of the field, Riggs hadn’t finished better than 15th in any of his 12 previous races.

He hoped racing on the track would help him today.

“I think it definitely helps, especially at a place like this I’ve never been to,” Riggs said. “There are a lot of different humps and a lot of different grooves. It helps you focus on what you need to do.”

Ken Schrader was second, 18.219 seconds behind. AJ Henriksen was third, and Billy Venturini and Bobby Gerhart rounded out the top five.