ELMA, Wash. — Leading start to finish to open up the Fred Brownfield Classic at Grays Harbor Raceway, 16-year-old Devon Borden added his name to the list of winners with the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by the MAVTV Motorsports Network to become the 148th different winner with the series.
Borden edged Ricky Stenhouse Jr. by 40 days to become the youngest winner in the history of the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car.
“This thing was on rails here tonight. My crew, my Dad, just everyone with this thing had it perfect,” said Borden.
Stalked into traffic by John Carney II on two occasions, Borden was able to keep pace. Asked if he could hear the No. J2 closing in, Devon replied, “I couldn’t hear him. It got a little hairy there in traffic and I made some small mistakes, but all that matters is we’re standing on the frontstretch.”
Winning the drag race off the fourth turn over Bailey Sucich on two occasions, as the first start fell victim to caution when Austen Wheatley spun in the second turn, Borden opened his advantage quickly as the race for second went to John Carney II.
Finding traffic on lap six, Borden was quick around the slower machines. Having to move off his preferred high line a couple of times, the moves allowed Carney to close in before the caution lights came on with nine laps complete for Jay Cole.
Restarting with a slower car between himself and Carney, clean air was to the advantage of the No. 8 as Devon ran to a nearly two-second advantage before finding traffic again on Lap 16.
Racing back and forth with Sam Hafertepe Jr. as the pair also found the back of the field, Carney traded the runner-up position through a series of slide jobs with Carney holding the position at the flag-stand with each exchange.
Closing on Borden, the distance between the top two positions had shrunk to only a few tenths of a second as slower traffic raced wheel to wheel directly ahead of the leaders. Making a couple of small mistakes trying to navigate the backmarkers, both Carney and Hafertepe were locked in, only to have the caution fly working lap 22 as Roger Crockett lost power down the back straightaway.
Back in clean air, Borden gapped the race for second, opening his lead by 1.298 seconds at the checkered flag. Trading second numerous times over the final four laps, Carney kept pace for his eighth career runner-up finish against the National Tour with Hafertepe third for the 16th time.
Rattling off this third top five of the season, Arkansas’ Jordon Mallett crossed fourth with Seth Bergman making up eighth positions to finish fifth.
The finish:
Feature (25 Laps): 1. 8-Devon Borden, [2]; 2. J2-John Carney II, [3]; 3. 15H-Sam Hafertepe Jr, [7]; 4. 14-Jordon Mallett, [4]; 5. 23-Seth Bergman, [13]; 6. 28-Scott Bogucki, [6]; 7. 33-Colton Heath, [17]; 8. 14B-Bailey Sucich, [1]; 9. 44W-Austen Wheatley, [5]; 10. 52-Blake Hahn, [11]; 11. 17-Cam Smith, [9]; 12. 21P-Robbie Price, [16]; 13. 18-Jason Solwold, [15]; 14. 95-Matt Covington, [21]; 15. 17W-Harli White, [23]; 16. 9R-Reece Goetz, [10]; 17. 11-Roger Crockett, [18]; 18. 9-Shawn Rice, [14]; 19. (DNF) 22X-Travis Jacobson, [20]; 20. (DNF) 0J-Jay Cole, [8]; 21. (DNF) 6-Breyton Davison, [12]; 22. (DNF) 6A-Kyle Miller, [19]; 23. (DNF) 77X-Alex Hill, [24]; 24. (DNF) 57-Jake Helsel, [22]