Moran Tops SCoNE Stars in Devil’s Bowl Thriller

Veterans have a big night in top five

WEST HAVEN, Vermont (July 14, 2025) – It has become obvious that Chase Moran has two settings – “Sleep” and “Go” – and his eyes were wide open at Devil’s Bowl Speedway. The 21-year-old rising star turned in the performance of his young career in the McGee Automotive Family Sprint Cars of New England Tour (SCoNE) event at the Vermont track on Saturday, July 12, earning his first win of the season in a jaw-dropping drive that brought fans to their feet.

The Fultonville, NY racer shredded through traffic with flat-out passes in three different lanes, and he capitalized on a late-race opportunity to seize the win and a $1,200 payday – which included a Hard Charger Award bonus – to win the coveted Coastal 181 Cup, presented by noted motorsports book publisher Coastal 181.

It was not the Chase Moran Show all night, though; Massachusetts racer Kyle Smith was in command for much of the evening, winning his qualifying heat in convincing fashion and leading most of the A-Main feature race. Polesitter Scott Holcomb jumped out to the lead on the opening lap, but the first of five caution flags waved shortly after; Smith had a perfect restart to squeeze his way past Holcomb and into the lead, and then he survived two more quick restarts before pulling away.

Behind Smith, the racing throughout the field was intense, with traffic sometimes fanning out three- and four-wide on a fast, challenging track surface. The father-son duo of Floyd and Travis Billington mixed it up with Holcomb, Jeff Trombley, Moran, Chris Donnelly, point leader Matt Tanner, and others as positions were swapped every lap.

Another caution with 16 laps complete erased Smith’s advantage, though, as Tanner spun while battling Travis Billington for position. Smith was up to the task at the restart and pulled away for a few laps, but once Moran cleared second-place runner Trombley, he turned up the wick. Moran arrived on Smith’s back bumper with five laps to go and tried two different grooves to get by, and then slingshot his way past with a breathtaking move on lap 22.

It appeared that Moran was in the clear with Smith coming home the runner-up, but on what was supposed to be the final corner of the race, Smith’s steering broke, sending his car sailing off-track and ending his otherwise spectacular night. The yellow flag waved before Moran crossed the finish line, forcing a green-white-checkered restart and extending the race by one circuit to 26 laps. Moran pulled away, though, and earned the second SCoNE Tour win of his career.

The graybeards got their due behind young Moran, proving that they’re as competitive as ever; Floyd Billington, age 60 and driving the oldest car in the field, scooted into the runner-up position on the final restart for his best finish of the year. Trombley, 67, earned his second podium finish of 2025 in third place, and Holcomb, 56, was never outside the top five during the race, finishing fourth. Travis Billington took fifth, with the balance of the top ten rounded out by Chris Donnelly, Matt Hoyt, a rebounding Tanner, Kadyn Berry, and Chad Miller.

RACE NOTES:
• A field of 22 cars attended the Devil’s Bowl Speedway event. Three drivers – Mia Koponen and Donald Ottati – made their first SCoNE appearance of the year.
• Chase Moran’s victory was his first of the 2025 SCoNE season and was the second of his SCoNE career.
• The two qualifying heat races were won by Kyle Smith and Scott Holcomb.
• Chris Downs Motorsports presented a boosted Hard Charger Award at Devil’s Bowl, with a $200 bonus going to Chase Moran, who started 10th and finished first to gain nine positions.
• Mark Reynolds won a $50 bonus from Dave Bowser Motorsports as the top-finishing registered rookie in 17th place; Tyler Chartrand finished 19th.
• Coastal 181 and Baker River Racing combined to post a $150 Hard Luck Award, which went to local driver Nick Kruger of Rupert, VT. The sophomore Sprint Car racer spun his car in pre-race Hot Laps and hit the backstretch wall, breaking the rear end in his car; he was not able to make repairs in time for qualifying or the A-Main.
• Coastal 181 also provided an additional $100 bonus; a young fan was selected from the grandstand crowd and drew the #7 pill, giving seventh-place finisher Matt Hoyt the cash prize.
• Through the first four events of the McGee Automotive Family SCoNE Tour schedule, Matt Tanner is the championship leader with 170 points. Travis Billington is second at 152, Chase Moran is third at 149, Floyd Billington is fourth at 143, and Matt Hoyt sits fifth at 141.

The McGee Automotive Family Sprint Cars of New England Tour is back at Bear Ridge Speedway in Bradford VT, on Saturday, July 19. To learn more about the Sprint Cars of New England, visit www.nesprintcars.com or find the “SCoNE – Sprint Cars of New England” page on Facebook. For more information about McGee Mazda Claremont, NH, McGee Toyota of Claremont, NH, and McGee Toyota of Epping, NH, visit their award-winning dealerships or click on McGeeCars.com.

OFFICIAL RESULTS – McGee Automotive Family Sprint Cars of New England
Devil’s Bowl Speedway – West Haven, Vermont
Saturday, July 12, 2025

A-Main Feature (25 laps – extended to 26 laps by green-white-checkered restart)
Pos.-(Start)-Driver-Hometown

– denotes rookie

(10) Chase Moran, Fultonville, NY; 2. (4) Floyd Billington, South Glens Falls, NY; 3. (5) Jeff Trombley, Altamont, NY; 4. (1) Scott Holcomb, North Granby, CT; 5. (7) Travis Billington, South Glens Falls, NY; 6. (8) Chris Donnelly, Piermont, NH; 7. (12) Matt Hoyt, Campton, NH; 8. (11) Matt Tanner, Stephentown, NY; 9. (9) Kadyn Berry, Goffstown, NH; 10. (14) Chad Miller, Amsterdam, NY; 11. (3) Caiden Herbert, New Hampton, NH; 12. (16) Jake Williams, Tuftonboro, NH; 13. (15) Tunk Berry, North Conway, NH; 14. (13) Troy Comeau, Wentworth, NH; 15. (17) Mia Koponen, Ludlow, VT; 16. (2) Kyle Smith, South Egremont, MA; 17. (18) # Mark Reynolds, Hudson Falls, NY; 18. (6) Will Hull, Plainfield, VT; 19. (19) # Tyler Chartrand, Johnsonville, NY; 20. (20) Shawn Lawler, Nashua, NH; 21. (21) Donald Ottati, Rumney, NH; Did Not Start: Nick Kruger, Rupert, VT

Lap Leaders (2 lead changes among 3 drivers): Scott Holcomb, 1; Kyle Smith, 2-21; Chase Moran, 22-26.
Cautions (5): Laps 1, 2, 3, 16, 24.

Contingency Award Winners:
• Heat Winners: Kyle Smith, Scott Holcomb
• Chris Downs Motorsports “Hard Charger” Award: Chase Moran (+10 positions)
• Dave Bowser Motorsports Rookie of the Race: Mark Reynolds (17th)
• Coastal 181/Baker River Racing “Hard Luck” Award: Nick Kruger
• Coastal 181 Bonus: Matt Hoyt (7th)

Upcoming Events:
• Saturday, July 19 – Bear Ridge Speedway – Bradford, VT
• Friday, July 25 – Unity Raceway, Unity, ME

(Photos by Bill McGaffin)

Submitted By: Justin St. Louis