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Tanner Rides the Top to Triumph at Bear Ridge

First win of the season comes from 12th place starting spot

BRADFORD, Vermont (July 21, 2025) – Sometimes, you must adventure out alone. Matt Tanner did just that at Bear Ridge Speedway on Saturday, July 19, finding a groove all to himself at the very top of the racetrack surface and winning the McGee Automotive Family Sprint Cars of New England Tour (SCoNE) event in impressive and authoritative fashion.

The rustic, quarter-mile track – the unofficial “home” for SCoNE – was dry-slick and very tricky in qualifying heats, but an expert call made by track promoter C.V. Elms III and SCoNE Director of Competition Dan Douville to adjust the surface just prior to the 25-lap A-Main feature paid off in spades, providing two intensely competitive lanes and a wildly entertaining race.

Local favorite Will Hull of Plainfield, VT turned his miserable season in the right direction by winning his heat and drawing the #1 pill to start on the pole position for the feature. After a quick caution period on the opening lap for Tyler Chartrand’s spin, Hull led the field for 17 laps as the action behind him got white-hot. Caiden Herbert, Scott Holcomb, Jake Williams, and the fast-charging Tanner diced and dueled for position inside the top five for several laps before Tanner found the extreme outside lane.

Once he set sail, Tanner was on a mission. Coming from the 12th starting spot, the Stephentown, NY driver caused fans to hold their breath as he flirted with the outside retaining wall nearly every lap. He reached Hull in lapped traffic with 10 laps to go and searched for a way by, pulling up to draw even with Hull for a three-lap fight. He finally cleared Hull at lap 18 and cruised off for his first victory of the season.

Hull was the best of the rest, finishing a strong second for his top finish of 2025. Sophomore driver Herbert ran third for his second consecutive podium finish at Bear Ridge. Jake Williams and defending McGee SCoNE Tour champion Matt Hoyt each posted their first top-five finishes of the year in fourth and fifth, respectively. Travis Billington, who battled with Williams and Hoyt in the closing laps, finished sixth, followed by Troy Comeau, Chris Donnelly, and Holcomb, who faded in the closing laps. Nick Kruger rebounded from bad luck in recent events with his first top-10 finish of the year.

RACE NOTES:
• A field of 20 cars attended the Bear Ridge Speedway event.
• Matt Tanner’s victory was his first of the 2025 SCoNE season and was the 12th of his SCoNE career, ranking him sixth on the Tour’s all-time win list.
• Half of the top-10 finishers earned their best result of the season: Matt Tanner (1st), Will Hull (2nd), Jake Williams (4th), Matt Hoyt (5th), and Nick Kruger (10th).
• The front row of the A-Main starting field – Will Hull and Shawn Lawler – marked one of the more accomplished front rows in recent memory; between them, the pair owns three SCoNE Tour championships a combined 31 race wins. Both drivers were piloting ex-Caleb Lamson chassis purchased in the off-season, with Hull making his first start in the car. They also finished 1-2 in the first qualifying heat.
• The two qualifying heat races were won by Will Hull and Caiden Herbert.
• Chris Downs Motorsports presented the Hard Charger Award, with a $50 bonus going to Matt Tanner, who started 12th and finished first to gain 11 positions.
• Tyler Chartrand won a $50 bonus from Dave Bowser Motorsports as the top-finishing registered rookie in 12th place; Mac MacDuffie finished 15th and Mark Reynolds was 16th.
• Through the first five events of the McGee Automotive Family SCoNE Tour schedule, Matt Tanner is the championship leader with 224 points. Travis Billington is second at 191, followed by Matt Hoyt with 183, Caiden Herbert with 175, and Chris Donnelly with 173.
• Herbert leads the Bear Ridge Speedway Track Championship standings through two of five events, tallying 105 points. Donnelly (92) is second with Troy Comeau (90) third, Tanner (86) fourth, and Williams (84) fifth. The next Bear Ridge event is scheduled for Saturday, August 16.

The McGee Automotive Family Sprint Cars of New England Tour heads east to Maine’s Unity Raceway on Friday, July 25, for the first round of the three-race Maine State Championship Series. 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
Bear Ridge Speedway – Bradford, Vermont
Saturday, July 19, 2025

A-Main Feature (25 laps)
Pos.-(Start)-Driver-Hometown
(#) – denotes rookie

1. (12) Matt Tanner, Stephentown, NY; 2. (1) Will Hull, Plainfield, VT; 3. (4) Caiden Herbert, New Hampton, NH; 4. (9) Jake Williams, Tuftonboro, NH; 5. (8) Matt Hoyt, Campton, NH; 6. (11) Travis Billington, South Glens Falls, NY; 7. (6) Troy Comeau, Wentworth, NH; 8. (14) Chris Donnelly, Piermont, NH; 9. (7) Scott Holcomb, North Granby, CT; 10. (3) Nick Kruger, Rupert, VT; 11. (10) Kadyn Berry, Goffstown, NH; 12. (5) # Tyler Chartrand, Johnsonville, NY; 13. (18) Floyd Billington, South Glens Falls, NY; 14. (13) Tunk Berry, North Conway, NH; 15. (19) # Mac MacDuffie, Salisbury, NH; 16. (15) # Mark Reynolds, Hudson Falls, NY; 17. (2) Shawn Lawler, Nashua, NH; 18. (17) Mark Cole, Lebanon, NH; 19. (16) Mia Koponen, Ludlow, VT; Did Not Start: Nick Comeau, Hebron, NH.

Lap Leaders (1 lead change among 2 drivers): Will Hull, 1-17; Matt Tanner, 18-25.
Cautions (1): Lap 1.

Contingency Award Winners:
• Heat Winners: Will Hull, Caiden Herbert
• Chris Downs Motorsports “Hard Charger” Award: Matt Tanner (+11 positions)
• Dave Bowser Motorsports Rookie of the Race: Tyler Chartrand (12th)

Upcoming Events:
• Friday, July 25 – Unity Raceway – Unity, ME
• Saturday, August 9 – Airborne Park Speedway – Plattsburgh, NY
• Sunday, August 10 – Devil’s Bowl Speedway – West Haven, VT

(Photos by Alan Ward, Don MacIntosh, and SCoNE Media)

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