I Dig Sports
Eight teams, six points, four spots - the URC's play-off race
Despite the well-documented struggles of Welsh rugby recently, Cardiff have worked their way into a strong position to make the play-offs but have a tricky final three fixtures at home to Munster followed by a South African double-header with the Bulls and Stormers.
Cardiff are one place below 2021 Pro14 champions Benetton, who finish up with trips to the Stormers and Munster either side of a home match with Glasgow.
While it is tight between the sides, the three-point buffer Benetton and Cardiff hold to the cut line could be crucial.
As previously mentioned, Edinburgh are in a unique position as they have two routes to Champions Cup rugby available for next season.
If they cannot qualify by winning the Challenge Cup, then they can book their place by sneaking into the top eight.
Games away to Zebre and Connacht are certainly winnable and, as we've mentioned, that final game at home to Ulster could be crucial.
It may come down to the number of match wins, which is the first tie-breaker before points difference. At the moment, Benetton have eight wins, Cardiff, Munster, Stormers, Scarlets and Ulster all have seven, Edinburgh have six while Connacht have five.
The Stormers are in a strong position heading into the final three fixtures as they round out the season with three home fixtures against Benetton, bottom side Dragons and Cardiff.
With so much still to be decided, the final few weeks of the regular season promise much drama, joy and heartache.
ABBOTTSTOWN, Pa. Anthony Macri earned a hard-fought victory in Saturday nights Weldon Sterner Memorial at Lincoln Speedway.
Macri bested a stout field and walking away with the $10,069 payday after an intense 33-lap feature filled with high-speed drama, three-wide racing and lapped traffic.
Matt Campbell and Cameron Smith led the field to the green, with Campbell gaining the early advantage exiting turn two. Smith kept pace, while Macri, Danny Dietrich, and Cale Thomas rounded out the early top five. By lap 5, Campbell had built a 1.7-second lead as the leaders neared the tail of the field. He caught lapped traffic on lap 6, allowing Smith to close the gap.
The races first caution came on lap 8 for a spinning Derek Hauck in turn two, setting up a pivotal restart. Campbell stumbled at the drop of the green, opening the door for Macri and Smith, who went three-wide off turn four. Macri moved into second, with Campbell narrowly holding the lead.
As the race neared the halfway point, lapped traffic once again came into play. Macri reeled in Campbell in heavy traffic, but Campbell masterfully picked his way through the back markers to maintain the lead. Dietrich took advantage of the congestion to get by Smith for third.
A caution on lap 19 for Brady Bacon and Darin Naida bunched the field back together, with Macri clipping Naida as he slipped by. On the restart, Macri threw a massive slider in turn three, but Campbell held strong at the line. Macri would not be denied, however, and made the pass for the lead on the following lap.
The race was slowed again on lap 21 for a spinning Aaron Bollinger, who had been running seventh. The restart saw Smith and Chase Dietz battling hard for fourth, with Dietz reclaiming the spot on lap 23. Another yellow on lap 25 for a 360 spin by Bollinger cooled a fierce four-car battle for sixth involving Thomas, Chad Trout, Troy Wagaman, and Freddie Rahmer.
On the restart, Dietrich surged past Campbell for second, while Dietz challenged for third but couldnt make it stick. Dietrich quickly closed in on Macri in the final five laps, with lapped traffic looming just ahead. With two laps to go, the red flag flew for a flip by Cale Thomas in turn four, setting up a dramatic two-lap dash to the finish.
Macri held strong on the restart and went on to score the Weldon Sterner Memorial win his second consecutive victory in the prestigious event. Danny Dietrich crossed the line second and Matt Campbell held on to third. Chase Dietz was fourth and Cameron Smith completed the top five.
Dylan Norris has shown speed behind the wheel of Brad McClellands 358 sprint car, and on Saturday night at Lincoln Speedway, that speed led to a dominant feature win earning the team a whopping $2,169 payday.
The finish:
Feature (33 Laps): 1. 39M-Anthony Macri[4]; 2. 48-Danny Dietrich[3]; 3. X-Matt Campbell[1]; 4. 23-Chase Dietz[8]; 5. 75-Cameron Smith[2]; 6. 1X-Chad Trout[7]; 7. 27-Troy Wagaman Jr[13]; 8. 51-Freddie Rahmer[16]; 9. 5R-Tyler Ross[17]; 10. 95-Kody Hartlaub[5]; 11. 5W-Lucas Wolfe[10]; 12. 11P-TJ Stutts[20]; 13. 41-Logan Rumsey[12]; 14. 99M-Kyle Moody[19]; 15. 20-Brady Bacon[18]; 16. 5E-Aaron Bollinger[9]; 17. 69-JJ Loss[24]; 18. 91-Preston Lattomus[23]; 19. 6-Cole Knopp[21]; 20. (DNF) 1A-Cale Thomas[6]; 21. (DNF) 88-Brandon Rahmer[14]; 22. (DNF) 7N-Darin Naida[15]; 23. (DNF) 39-Derek Hauck[22]; 24. (DNF) 69K-Ryan Smith[11]
Mohamed Salah may have signed a new contract at Liverpool, but he still "fits the identity" of what the Saudi Pro League is looking for, Saudi Arabia's sports minister said.
Salah, 32, finally ended months of speculation when he committed his future to Liverpool earlier this month, signing a two-year contract despite reports of lavish interest from Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF).
The country's minister of sport, Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, suggested interest in the Egypt forward has not dampened, though made it clear that signing younger players has been a clear ambition for the league.
"I mean, he's a superstar," Al-Faisal told reporters ahead of F1's Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. "He's an iconic Arab Muslim. He fits the identity of playing in the Saudi league. It was his decision to renew with, but linking Saudi to him and everything ... I think from Day 1 they link Saudi to him. There wasn't any discussions. But it's good to have that.
"Now you can see that any player wants to renew their contract or sign their, they [the media] are saying that they're coming to Saudi and most 90% of it is not true. But I think we have a strategy that we're working on and everyone is saying that we're just signing any players."
Salah has been in career-defining form this season, scoring 32 goals and recording 23 assists in 46 games in all competitions as Liverpool storm towards to the Premier League title.
The Saudi Pro League looked at one time to be the obvious destination for Salah, with efforts to attract the game's star names leading to the arrivals of ageing stars Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Neymar.
However, this league's transfer activity this season has skewed much younger, such as 21-year-old Jhon Durán joining Al Nassr, or 25-year-old Moussa Diaby joining Al Ittihad.
"If you see the last number of players that we signed or the club signed are mostly young players wanting to develop the league," Al-Faisal added.
"To have the league very competitive. I'm not sure if you're following the league this year, but the competition is unbelievable in the top four clubs."
Al Ittihad top the table with 65 points after 28 games, four ahead of Al Hilal.
Saudi Arabia's minister of sport, Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, insisted workers' safety was being taken "seriously" and that an investigation had been launched over the death of a migrant worker during construction of a stadium for the 2034 World Cup.
Besix Group, a construction company overseeing the site of Aramco Stadium in Al Khobar, told media outlets last month that "a worker sadly lost their life" at the construction site on March 12.
The Guardian reported that Muhammad Arshad, from Pakistan, had fallen to his death from an upper level.
"Every incident we take seriously, we file an investigation, we look at what went wrong," Al-Faisal told reporters ahead of Sunday's Saudi Arabian Formula 1 Grand Prix. "Unfortunately in construction, these things happen. We don't want them to happen. But you can take, for instance, Diriyah; they have around 35,000 workers, and I think it was 20 months or something like that without any issues happening to any of their labor.
"But we take that seriously. As soon as it was highlighted, we filed an investigation, we checked what is happening, we make sure that they put the right system in and make sure that it doesn't happen again at Aramco Stadium. And we supervise it with the contractors and so on to make sure that they deliver on these things to make sure that we deliver on our commitment, as well, to the world."
Saudi Arabia was officially confirmed as host of the 2034 World Cup in December after a mostly opaque 15-month bid process that FIFA president Gianni Infantino helped steer toward Saudi Arabia without a rival candidate and without taking questions. Human rights groups warned that the decision will put the lives of migrant workers at risk.
FIFA and Saudi officials have said hosting the 2034 tournament can accelerate change, including more freedoms and rights for women, with Infantino calling the World Cup a "unique catalyst for positive social change and unity."
"I fully trust our hosts to address all open points in this process and deliver a World Cup that meets the world's expectations," the FIFA president said.
An international collective of rights groups said at the time that FIFA made a "reckless decision" to approve Saudi Arabia without getting public assurances, and the Football Supporters Europe group said it was "the day football truly lost its mind."
Similar criticism over the treatment of migrant workers cast a shadow over more than a decade of preparations for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
"We've learned from that," Al-Faisal said. "We met with the Qataris, what they've been through, what they've gone through. We have ongoing communication with them, with FIFA, as well, on what needs to be done, how do we make sure that workers' safety is a highest priority.
"And it's a mandate on us, and it's one of the most important things on us because we saw the impact that it had on Qatar."
Information from ESPN's Laurence Edmondson and The Associated Press was used in this report.
Redick: Wolves' 'physicality' caught us off guard
LOS ANGELES -- After pushing themselves in the play-in tournament the past two years just to qualify for the postseason, the Los Angeles Lakers relished the chance to earn a week off leading into Game 1 to prepare for their first-round series against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The break might have allowed players to heal minor injuries and the coaching staff to dive into strategy, but what was clear after L.A.'s 117-95 loss to the Wolves on Saturday was that the Lakers were wholly unready for the raw, bruising physicality that Minnesota played with.
"It's not to say our guys weren't ready to withstand a playoff-level basketball game. ... I'm not sure physically we were ready," Lakers coach JJ Redick said. "And really when [the Wolves] started playing with a lot of thrust and physicality, we just didn't respond to meet that."
Said Lakers guard Austin Reaves: "I think that they just physically beat us from the get-go."
From the start of the second quarter past the midway point of the third, the Wolves outscored the Lakers 67-33 as Minnesota's plus-sized frontline of 7-1 Rudy Gobert, 6-9 Jaden McDaniels and 6-9 Julius Randle controlled the boards, forced L.A. turnovers and generally dictated the game flow with their defensive presence. Luka Doncic said L.A. "let go of the rope."
LeBron James, who has played in the most playoff games in NBA history (including the most Game 1s), chalked it up as a costly entry fee for his team to know what to expect in the series.
"Maybe it took us one playoff game to now get a feel for it and know what type of intensity, the type of physicality is going to be brought to the game," James said after finishing with 19 points. "But that's just the way they play. So we should be more than prepared for that on Tuesday night [in Game 2]."
L.A., led by Doncic scoring 16 of his game-high 37 points in the first quarter, were the aggressors early, with Doncic drawing two fouls on Gobert, a foul on McDaniels and another one on Wolves' star Anthony Edwards in the opening frame.
As Doncic got going, L.A.'s other offensive threats in James and Reaves were slow to find a rhythm as Doncic's attacks generated shots for himself, rather than teammates. "I just tried to set the tone early," Doncic said. "But obviously, one assist, that's not good enough for me."
Edwards, who scored 22 points despite cramping in his left calf, said the Wolves tried to straddle the line between pushing the boundaries in establishing what kind of contact would be allowed by the referees, while not finding themselves in foul trouble.
"Just tried to be as physical as possible," Edwards said. "The main thing for us was, we didn't want them to get into the bonus early. Because ... you see a couple free throws go in, Luka gets into a rhythm, Bron gets into a rhythm."
L.A. took 16 free throws compared to 11 for Minnesota.
Just two minutes into the second half, Redick benched starting center Jaxson Hayes. What the Lakers gave up in size without the 7-footer out on the court, Redick hoped he could gain in activity from going small by relying on wings Dorian Finney-Smith and Jarred Vanderbilt to slot in at the 5.
Vanderbilt had some success, helping L.A. cut the deficit from 27 to 16 in the final four minutes of the third quarter. The closest the Lakers got was 12 with 10:27 remaining before the Wolves pushed their lead back to over 20.
"I think we got to be the aggressor," Vanderbilt said of Game 2. "I feel like they hit us first. And they were the more physical team for the majority of the game. ... It's the playoffs, man. We got to play hard. I think they were beating us to all the 50-50 balls and offensive rebounds, the loose balls. Just everything, they were winning that battle. And I think in the playoffs, the tougher team that wins that battle wins the game."
When L.A. wasn't getting punished inside, the Wolves were presenting problems on the perimeter, setting a postseason franchise record by hitting 21-of-42 3-point attempts. McDaniels (25 points, including 3-for-3 from 3) and Naz Reid (23 points, including 6-for-9 on 3s) were particularly devastating.
And now the Lakers say they know what to expect -- with only two days off this time before tipping off Tuesday.
"It was a great atmosphere," Doncic said. "I'm sorry we couldn't get the win -- the first win. But it's always first to four."
Making History: Calderanos Quest and Chinas Young Stars Take Centre Stage at ITTF World Cup Finals
The ITTF Mens and Womens World Cup reaches its climax today at Macaos Galaxy Arena, with finals that showcase both the breathtaking talent of Chinas next generation and a potential watershed moment for Brazilian and Pan American table tennis.
This year, the ITTF World Cup has highlighted a remarkable youth movement within their ranks. The tournaments finals day features three Chinese players with an average age of just 21.7 years, signalling the seamless transition to a new generation of superstars.
In the Womens Singles final, defending champion Sun Yingsha may seem like a veteran with her vast collection of titles, but at just 24 years old, she remains firmly in the early prime of her career. Already boasting an impressive 89% career win rate and 23 professional titlesincluding two in 2025 aloneSun has established herself as the premier force in womens table tennis.
Across the table will be her 21-year-old compatriot Kuai Man, whose breakthrough season has captured the attention of the table tennis world. With an outstanding 84% win rate this year and her first title of 2025 already secured, Kuai has announced herself as the sports next great talent.
Despite Kuai Mans remarkable rise, history heavily favours Sun Yingsha in this all-Chinese final. Sun has won all three of their previous encounters without dropping a set, including their most recent meeting at the 2025 Singapore Smash, where she prevailed 4-1 (11-8, 7-11, 11-9, 11-6, 11-4).
In the Mens Singles, 20-year-old Lin Shidong represents the vanguard of Chinas next generation. The world number one has enjoyed a meteoric rise with an 83% career win rate and eight titles already to his name despite his tender age.
Lins semifinal victory over compatriot Liang Jingkun showcased the poise and adaptability that belie his years. After dropping a tightly contested first game, Lin methodically dismantled his senior teammate, winning four consecutive games to secure his place in the final.
Standing in Lin Shidongs path to glory is Brazils Hugo Calderano, whose journey to the final has already rewritten the history books. By defeating World No. 2 Wang Chuqin in a seven-game thriller, Calderano became the first Brazilian and Pan American player ever to reach an ITTF World Cup final.d Pan American player ever to reach an ITTF World Cup final.
At 28 years old, Hugo Calderano brings considerably more experience to the table, with 968 career matches and 24 professional titles to his name. Though he has yet to capture silverware in 2025, his remarkable form in the World Cup suggests that drought might soon end in spectacular fashion.
Intriguingly, Calderano holds the psychological edge in their head-to-head matchup, having staged a remarkable comeback from 0-2 down to defeat Lin in five games at the 2023 WTT Contender Durbantheir only previous encounter.
Todays finals not only showcase exceptional talent but also represent potential watershed moments. For Kuai Man, victory would announce her arrival as table tennis newest superstar. For Lin Shidong, it would confirm his status as the sports present and future. For Sun Yingsha, another title would further cement her legacy as one of the all-time greats.
For Hugo Calderano, however, gold would transcend personal achievement to become a landmark moment for an entire continent. A Brazilian victory would represent a seismic shift in a sport traditionally dominated by Asian and European nations.
The Womens Singles final begins at 19:30 local time, followed by the Mens Singles final at 20:15. Catch the action live on ITTFs YouTube or find out more on where to watch here. To follow the results as it happens visit the event website here.
LOUDON, N.H. Unseasonably warm weather greeted New England race fans at the Magic Mile on Saturday morning for the fifth annual Northeast Classic at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Although the radar made officials sweat, Mother Nature couldnt stop the efforts of the Milton CAT American-Canadian Tour and Pro All Stars Series one week after she threw a snowstorm through the area!
The Milton CAT American-Canadian Tour got a 34-car start to the 2025 season with Gabe Brown earning an outstanding +7 handicap to nab the pole position after breaking the third link in his rear-end during practice, which also busted a transmission and bent his driveshaft in the process. Under the green flag, outside polesitter Tom Carey III led the pack on the outside until Brown regained control on lap 15. Stephen Donahues spin cycle in turn three called out the lap 17 caution, which Officials doubled as the competition caution for teams to jump on pit road, make adjustments, take tires and add fuel.
Brown continued to lead the pack on the return to green flag racing until lap 23 when the driveshaft vacated the Cam Huntress-machine entering turn one and ended his day. The field maintained another strong run as teams drove up and down the field in furious competition.
The final yellow flag would stall the field with five laps remaining as something went amiss in the rear-end of Ben Rowes No. 28ME in turn three, sending the former Milton CAT American-Canadian Tour champion hard into the outside wall. With a five-lap shootout remaining, Gabe Brown made it look easy as he took off like a rocket sled on rails to his first New Hampshire Motor Speedway victory.
Brandon Barker brought the Sullivan Construction No. 0NH to second-place with Derek Gluchacki taking third in his first of five double point opportunities in the Kulwicki Driver Development Program (KDDP). Tom Carey III took home another strong New Hampshire Motor Speedway finish in fourth with D.J. Shaw rounding out the top five. Jimmy Renfrew Jr. hard-charged to sixth from a thirty-third-place starting spot followed by Jesse Switser, Raphael Lessard, rookie Connor Souza and Jamie Swallow Jr. to round out the top 10.
The Pro All Stars Series kicked off Saturdays feature racing action with Eddie MacDonald and Ryan Kuhn facing off on the front row. Looking ahead to the competition caution, the field quickly found its groove in single-lane speed before the caution flew on lap 26. Back under the green flag, Derek Griffith broke MacDonalds grip on the lead with 23 laps remaining. The best race on the track had all eyes on the battle for fifth with D.J. Shaw, Alexendre Tardif, Ben Rowe and Brandon Barker included in the gaggle of top-ten cars. In the closing laps, Derek Griffith never let off, claiming his first Northeast Classic victory at the Magic Mile with MacDonald and Johnny Clark rounding out the Pro All Stars Series podium.
The Pro Truck Challenge Series was next on the track with Thompson Icebreaker winner Randy Burr holding his own at the front of the pack. Even with a mirror full of fellow longtime veteran Duane Knoll, Burr held steadfast as Burrs teammate Ryan Kuhn began to pull away from the pack in third. Randy Burr saw his day end early with a dislodged window net earning him the black flag and gifting the lead to Knoll as Kuhn continued to gain ground. In a side-by-side battle to the end, Duane Knoll took the win on the track but an apparent post-race disqualification gave the Pro Truck Challenge Series victory to Ryan Kuhn.
The Mighty Modifieds returned to the Magic Mile for the special Northeast Classic exhibition. Inverted from their heat race results, Jon McKennedy quickly pulled out from shotgun on the field to become the leader in the first five laps, leaving Anthony Nocella, Matt Swanson and Jeffrey Battle to fight for second. Nocella would lose that fight with five laps remaining, a hard lick into the turn one wall ended his day as he continued to fight hard for second place. Jon McKennedy would keep his foot to the firewall, pulling away with the Northeast Classic win over Swanson and Battle at the end.
The R&R Race Parts Open Street Stock Series rounded out Saturdays program as the incoming weather began to completely break up and sun shone down on the Magic Mile.
Slowed by an opening lap caution for the slowed Charlie Baldwin, the showdown between Kris Watson and Shane Gendron was short lived as multi-time Open Street Stock winner Watson launched into the lead, keeping an eye on the team cars of Derek Gluchacki and Ryan Lineham bearing down from behind. Undeterred, Kris Watson parked his No. 35 in Northeast Classic victory lane for the first time with Lineham and Gluchacki rounding out the top three.
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. Red Bull KTM Factory Racings Chase Sexton took the Holeshot and left the field in his dust at Round 14 of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross season inside MetLife Stadium.
Sexton stretched the lead past 18 seconds at one point. The win moved Sexton within nine points of the championship lead; a win in each of the three remaining rounds would assure Sexton the title.
Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racings Cooper Webb, the current points leader, moved into second place immediately after the Holeshot but slowly lost touch with Sexton on the rutted and challenging New Jersey track.
Red Bull KTM Factory Racings Aaron Plessinger battled much of the race with Rockstar Energy GASGAS Factory Racings Justin Barcia.
After Barcia crashed in the closing laps, Plessinger held on to earn the final podium spot.
I felt good all day. The two whoop sections helped me out a lot, Sexton said. I really feel like I made a lot of time up there. The KTM group has the bike working great. I had such a good flow that moto, and it really just felt like it was effortless for me, which is what we want. [Well just try to] keep that going, but Im stoked. Fifth win of the season, so just try to keep truckin and focus week in/week out and see where we get. Overall, [Im] having fun. I got a great start and made it happen.
In the Eastern Divisional 250SX class, Seth Hammaker became the first rider to give Kawasaki a win in the 250SX class in East Rutherford. Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racings R.J. Hampshire kept the racing close but never reached striking distance of the rider he shared the points lead with going into the New Jersey round.
Defending champion Red Bull KTM Factory Racings Tom Vialle earned the final step on the podium, bouncing back from two tough finishes in the previous rounds that saw him surrender the points lead.
TOLEDO, Ohio There cant possibly be a better way to celebrate a 100th career USAC Silver Crown start the way Justin Grant did during Saturday afternoons Hemelgarn Racing/Super Fitness Rollie Beale Classic at Ohios Toledo Speedway.
Grant started from the outside of the front row, but he didnt run second for very long. In fact, by turn one, Grant had taken a stranglehold of the lead and never relented as he led all 100 laps en route to a dominating 6.684 second margin of victory on the half-mile paved oval in his Hemelgarn Racing/NOS Energy Drink Super Fitness Hemelgarn Enterprises/Beast/Speedway Ford.
Grant completed the 100 lap, 50 mile contest in caution free fashion. In fact, his time for the distance of 26:38.254 (112.623 mph average) set a track record at Toledo, breaking the former mark of 27:07.40 by nearly half a minute, which was set by Jerry Coons Jr. in 2012.
But this particular one hit differently. Grant, who has driven for Toledo native Ron Hemelgarns team since 2017, had never finished better than third. However, on Saturday, in the very same event that Hemelgarn has supported as a sponsor for all these years, Rons day in the sun at his hometown track had finally arrived.
Its incredible to pick up a win here at Toledo Speedway for Ron Hemelgarn, Grant exclaimed. Hes been a great supporter of my career and hes let me drive this number 91 for eight or nine years now. Ron said hes never won at Toledo. Its an honor for me to pull that off for him. Its the least I can do to say thanks for all the years hes let me try.
it was Grants eighth victory of his USAC Silver Crown career, tying Chris Windom for 16th place all-time. Known primarily for his dirt success, Grants score was his second in USAC Silver Crown competition on pavement. Back in 2021, he captured a win at Indianas Winchester Speedway. Its a persistence that has paid off. Over the winter, Grant put a laser focus on bettering his game on the blacktop.
I really felt like I went to work this winter on the pavement stuff, Grant explained. I bet Ive watched Kody run 5,000 laps around Toledo, in the dead of winter, and I really tried to study and get serious about this pavement stuff. Im just super glad it paid off.
To start the day, the question pondered among those on hand was, wholl stop the rain? Early morning storms delayed the days activities by several hours. After Honest Abe Roofing Qualifying, the question changed to, wholl stop the reign?
That, of course, refers to Kody Swanson, winner of the past six USAC Silver Crown main events at Toledo dating back to 2018. In all, Swanson owns eight Silver Crown wins at Toledo, and in qualifying, he added his ninth pole position at Toledo, the 55th overall of his career.
However, Swanson, who had led 778 of the 1,200 total laps ever run in Silver Crown competition at Toledo (64.8%) never led a lap on Saturday. Instead, Grant got the advantage over him at the start and never looked back, an ideal situation for Grant which went exactly to his plan.
Ive watched a lot of laps around here and the one thing Ive learned was that its tough to pass here, especially if theyre good, Grant pointed out. Youve got to wait for their car to fall off and you cant count on that with Kody. I knew it would make our life a heck of a lot easier if I could get the jump on him. Its 100 laps but Id rather spend 100 trying to keep him behind me than trying to get by him. Hes pretty good. Hes really good.
Tyler Roahrig moved forward to second from his fifth starting spot after dueling side-by-side with Swanson for several laps before emerging into the runner-up spot on lap 37. Seventh starting Dakoda Armstrong muscled past Swanson on the bottom of turns three and four to wrestle away the third spot on the 83rd lap.
All the while, Grant was setting a blistering pace, and shockingly, put Swanson a lap down with an outside pass in turn four on lap 95. That left only three cars on the lead lap at the finish line, a remarkable pace that placed Grant into untouchable mode from start to finish in the car set up to perfection by crew chief Dennis LaCava.
Any advantage I could gain, thats what I was looking for, Grant admitted. I knew on practice day that I could run between 15.6 to 15.8 (seconds) on really old tires. (Spotter Brian Karraker) kept me running 15.8s the whole race and it felt like a Sunday drive. When these pavement cars are good, theyre incredible. This might be one of the best racecars Ive ever driven. This thing was on rails. It was incredible.
Six days after taking second on the dirt in the USAC Silver Crown season opener at Indianas Terre Haute Action Track, Grant pummeled the Toledo field to raise his point lead to 24 after the first pair of events.
Roahrig equaled his best career USAC finish with a second.
Armstrong took third for his best performance yet at Toledo. Swanson crossed the line in fourth, which equaled his worst Silver Crown outing in 12 series starts at Toledo after also garnering a fourth in 2012. C.J. Leary rounded out the top-five in the one-of-a-kind, first ever traditional pavement Silver Crown car built by DRC chassis.
USAC Silver Crown National Championship, Toledo Speedway Toledo, Ohio April 19, 2025
HONEST ABE ROOFING QUALIFYING: 1. Kody Swanson, 77, Doran Binks-15.223; 2. Justin Grant, 91, Hemelgarn-15.244; 3. Kaylee Bryson, 26, Pierce-15.311; 4. Mario Clouser, 22, Rice/Abacus-15.393; 5. Tyler Roahrig, 41, Newman-15.409; 6. C.J. Leary, 21, Team AZ/Petty/Rossi-15.414; 7. Dakoda Armstrong, 5, C & A-15.425; 8. Colton Bettis, 126, Pierce-15.429; 9. Bobby Santos, 98, DJ-15.481; 10. Jake Trainor, 6, Klatt-15.556; 11. Kyle Steffens, 8, Steffens-15.615; 12. Jackson Macenko, 124, Hayes-15.697; 13. Kyle OGara, 141, Maxwell-15.726; 14. Taylor Ferns, 55, Ferns-15.819; 15. Matt Westfall, 54, 4 Kings-15.831; 16. Gregg Cory, 32, Williams/Cory-16.819; 17. Dave Berkheimer, 31, Berkheimer-19.155.
FEATURE: (100 laps, starting positions in parentheses) 1. Justin Grant (2), 2. Tyler Roahrig (5), 3. Dakoda Armstrong (7), 4. Kody Swanson (1), 5. C.J. Leary (6), 6. Bobby Santos (9), 7. Kyle OGara (13), 8. Mario Clouser (4), 9. Kaylee Bryson (3), 10. Taylor Ferns (14), 11. Jackson Macenko (12), 12. Matt Westfall (15), 13. Kyle Steffens (11), 14. Gregg Cory (16), 15. Colton Bettis (8), 16. Jake Trainor (10), 17. Dave Berkheimer (17). 26:38.254 (New Track Record)
ROCKINGHAM, N.C. Jesse Love endured a crash-marred race to win Saturdays North Carolina Lottery 250 NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Rockingham Speedway.
It was a sold-out crowd in the first Rockingham Xfinity Series race since 2004.
Love, driving the Richard Childress Racing No. 2 survived an overtime restart to win the first Xfinity Series race at the .94-mile track since 2004.
Love led a race-high 77 laps to win the 256-lap event.
JR Motorsports Chevrolet driver Sammy Smith finished second, while Parker Retzlaff, Harrison Burton and Brennan Poole rounded out the top five.
With a second-place finish, Smith picked up the final $100,000 Dash 4 prize.
Phone: (800) 737. 6040
Fax: (800) 825 5558
Website: 
Email: 
