Joey Scarborough isn’t the first Vermont driver to win a DIRTcar Sportsman Series Feature at Bear Ridge Speedway, but he still made history on Saturday night. 

The Brandon, VT driver became the first non-Bear Ridge regular to win a Series event at the 1/4-mile bullring, leading all 40 laps to score the $1,059 victory.

“We haven’t been here in four years,” Scarborough said. “Right from the get-go, we time-trialed fast, and the car was good. We didn’t really change anything for the Feature, adapted driving styles to the track, and nailed it.”

Scarborough led the field to green in the Feature, quickly taking the lead over Martin Lessard. Despite leading the opening lap, Scarborough’s lead was short-lived, as the race’s first caution flew on Lap 2.

When the race resumed, Scarborough gained control of the race again, keeping Lessard behind him. Lessard chased Scarborough for the entire race and on several restarts, but couldn’t get close enough to wrestle the lead away from the No. 11X. 

Even dealing with lap traffic, Scarborough kept enough of an advantage to score the win—his first career DIRTcar Sportsman Series victory.

“Starting up front, there’s only one way to go,” Scarborough said. “Usually, it comes down to the faster I go, the quicker the race ends. And we did exactly that.”

Lessard crossed the line second, earning his best DIRTcar Sportsman Series finish. The Drummondville, QC driver said it was the third time he’s raced at Bear Ridge, and that the experience paid off.

“We came here with a planned setup,” Lessard said. “We put it in the car today, and it was perfect.”

Bear Ridge regular Robert Tucker finished third, earning his first Series top five.

Max Dolliver finished fourth, and Jeremy Huntoon rounded out the top five.

UP NEXT: The DIRTcar Sportsman Series East Region returns to action on Thursday, June 11, at Airborne Park Speedway in Plattsburgh, NY. They’ll be joined by the DIRTcar 358 Modified Series as part of the Battle of Plattsburgh.

For more on the DIRTcar Northeast, follow the DIRTcar Northeast  Facebook page.

DIRTcar Sportsman Series East Region Feature: 1. 11x- Joey Scarborough, 2. 2x-Martin Lessard, 3. 42- Robert Tucker, 4. 29- Max Dolliver, 5. 26- Jeremy Huntoon, 6. 12- Cody Gregoroupoulous, 7. 26m-Derrick McGrew Jr., 8. 916-Nick Brundige, 9. 07- Taylor Wason, 10. 33-Melvin Pierson, 11. 16- Brian Chaffee, 12. 51- Bryan Preville, 13. 10 – Ryan Christian, 14. 86- Mike Ryan, 15. 631- Todd Buckwold, 16. 91NH- James Fadden, 17. 22- Thomas Placey, 18. 24- Ashton Pierson, 19. 31x – Matt Lashua, 20. 3H- Kyle Huntingon, 21. 39- Jason Horniak, 22. 33m- Bodie Marks, 23. 00-Jason Gray, 24. 47- Owen Brown, 25. 11- Josh Sunn, 26. 208- Andrew Martell, 27. 12- Katrina LaClaire, 28. 21- Mitchell Bunnell, 29. 343- Richie Simmons

Hoosier Racing Tire Award (Free Tire): Brian Chaffee

Post Race Tech: Carburetors, Rocker Arms, and Body Width. All cars passed. 

This article was republished with the permission of DIRTcar. Original article can be found here: https://dirtcar.com/recap/joey-scarborough-drives-to-dirtcar-sportsman-series-east-region-win-at-bear-ridge/