Of all the tracks on the Super DIRTcar Series schedule, it’s clear that Brockville Ontario Speedway is Alex Payne’s favorite.
Less than a year after scoring his first Series victory at the track, he backed it up with another triumph, leading all 75 laps on Wednesday to win his second consecutive Canadian Classic.
The Hopewell, NY driver said that even though he won last year, he came into the race with no expectations.
“I came into tonight open-minded,” Payne said. “We put the car back to exactly the way it was last year, and it was absolutely terrible. So, we just did what we’ve been doing this year. Worked hard at it and made some adjustments, completely opposite of what last year was.
“The competition is so tough these days, and the cars are so close that it’s hard to get these. And when it happens, it feels good.”
Payne, the SRI Performance and Stock Car Steel Pole Award winner, led the field to the green, outdueling Mat Williamson as they drove into Turn 1. That advantage was short-lived, however, as the race’s first caution came out on Lap 2 for Gabriel Cyr, who slowed on the backstretch.
When the race resumed, Payne continued his lead and pulled away from Williamson, opening a full-straightaway lead on the No. 88. Lap traffic didn’t stop that momentum, either, as Payne drove past traffic one-by-one during the long green flag run.
Another caution slowed the field on Lap 24, when Malcomb Banks hit the implement tire in Turn 2, but again Payne held the lead on the restart. His ability to drive away from Williamson on restarts was key, until Williamson found an opportunity to strike after a caution on Lap 40.
When the green flag came out, Payne was searching for the best line on the track, keeping his No. 70A on the bottom through Turn 2. However, Williamson’s momentum was more substantial, as he nosed ahead down the backstretch.
But while Payne and Williamson battled for the lead, Carey Terrance, who was in ninth, clipped an implement tire in Turn 1. That sent him into the infield and brought out another yellow, negating Williamson’s pass for the lead.
Payne pulled ahead with ease after the ensuing single-file restart, driving away from Williamson with a clean track ahead of him. But he wasn’t done with the defending Series champion. Payne reached traffic with six laps to go, allowing Williamson to catch Payne’s back bumper.
Williamson chased him for four laps, trying to find enough momentum to take the lead. But as Williamson ran the top, Payne thundered by Kalen Draper on the bottom with two laps to go to gain separation between the two.
That was all Payne needed to hold on, driving to his second career Super DIRTcar Series win, worth $7,500.
Payne said he struggled trying to find the right racing line, including when Williamson briefly passed him for the lead.
“That sucked,” Payne said. “I was like, if this goes green, I’m in trouble. But I just didn’t know where to be. I just tell my guys I’d rather draw third or fifth every night, because if you’re good enough, you’re good enough.
“I hate starting on the pole. I’d rather start 12th. But it just worked tonight, and we did it again.”
Williamson finished second, earning his third runner-up finish in the last four races. He said if that second yellow didn’t come out on Lap 40, there might’ve been a different outcome.
“He ran a great race for 75 laps and didn’t really make a mistake,” Williamson said. “He did enough to move around and hold me up and keep me guessing. I don’t know if we had a great car, but I felt good enough to win the race.
“When I could run the top, slide to it, and try to diamond off it, I felt like I was as good as he was. Clean air probably meant a little bit more.”
With his second-place finish, Williamson extended his points lead for the second straight night over Alex Yankowski, who finished fourth. He leads the Covington Township, PA driver by 13 points.
Matt Sheppard crossed the line third, after starting eighth. The Waterloo, NY driver made a late race charge for the second straight season at Brockville but ultimately came up short in his quest for a victory.
“It was a good run for us tonight,” Sheppard said. “It was a bad redraw. I got shuffled back early. Got caught on the outside and kind of got freight trained, and I think we were back to 11th or 12th.
“Luckily, the track came around a little bit and got a little bit racier, and we found that top and were able to inch our way back to the podium. A respectable run for where we were running on Lap 20.”
Felix Roy rounded out the top five.
UP NEXT: The Super DIRTcar Series makes its highly anticipated return to Sharon Speedway on Monday, Aug. 11 for the Steel Valley 75 presented by Capital Renegade Custom Coaches.
If you can’t make it to the track, watch all the action live on DIRTVision, either online or with the DIRTVision app.
Canadian Classic (75 Laps): 1. 70A-Alex Payne[1]; 2. 88-Mat Williamson[2]; 3. 9S-Matt Sheppard[8]; 4. 84Y-Alex Yankowski[7]; 5. 91-Felix Roy[5]; 6. 35-Mike Mahaney[11]; 7. 25-Erick Rudolph[9]; 8. 98H-Jimmy Phelps[4]; 9. 21A-Peter Britten[6]; 10. 2-Jack Lehner[19]; 11. 83X-Tim Sears Jr[12]; 12. 54R-William Racine[10]; 13. 17D-Tristan Draper[16]; 14. 4-Anthony Perrego[22]; 15. 6-Matt Stangle[3]; 16. 15B-Brianna Ladouceur[20]; 17. 52-Jessica Power[25]; 18. 44-Johnathon Ferguson[15]; 19. 18-Kalen Draper[24]; 20. 12-Darren Smith[26]; 21. (DNF) 15X-Justin Stone[14]; 22. (DNF) 17M-Gavin MacFarlane[27]; 23. (DNF) 66X-Carey Terrance[17]; 24. (DNF) 19-Tim Fuller[13]; 25. (DNF) 94-Gabriel Cyr[18]; 26. (DNF) M75-Melcolm Banks[28]; 27. (DNF) 1K-Kyle Dingwall[21]; 28. (DNF) 22S-Shane Stearns[23]
