DeHart Breaks Through for First USA Tires Modified Victory; Liguori Dominates Tri-State Sprints at Anderson Speedway
ANDERSON, Ind. – Tyler DeHart’s persistence finally paid off Saturday night at Anderson Speedway as he captured his first career USA Tires Modified feature victory during Sherwin-Williams Night.
After showing race-winning speed throughout the season, including earning three fast-time awards in qualifying, DeHart finally put together the complete night to reach Victory Lane.
Rookie Josh Ebbert Jr. jumped to the lead at the start of the 40-lap Herald Bulletin feature after the inversion of six, with fellow rookie Lucas Ball settling into second. Point leader Josh Poore and Dalton Conner followed closely behind while DeHart worked his way forward from the fifth position.
The race changed dramatically on lap 18 when contact between Conner, Ball and Poore in turn four brought out the caution. Ball and Poore were eliminated from contention, while Conner was sent to the rear of the field.
On the ensuing restart, DeHart quickly moved into second by passing Nathan Greene before setting his sights on Ebbert. DeHart completed the winning pass entering turn three on lap 20 and never looked back.
Despite battling an overheating issue throughout the second half of the race, DeHart pulled away to score the victory by 1.2 seconds.
“The car was really fast tonight,” DeHart said in Hoosier Lottery Victory Lane.
Ebbert recorded his best finish of the season in second, followed by Greene, Joe Beaver and Conner, who rallied back into the top five after restarting at the rear.
Liguori Dominates Tri-State Sprint Debut
The Tri-State Sprint Cars made their first appearance at Anderson Speedway, and Joe Liguori put together a dominant performance.
After setting fast time in qualifying, Liguori worked his way through the inverted starting lineup, cracking the top three by lap five. He quickly closed the gap to early leader Andrew Bogusz before Bogusz suffered what appeared to be a suspension failure on lap 10.
Liguori inherited the lead and drove away from the field, winning by an impressive 7.6 seconds over Dorman Snyder. Quintin Saayman completed the podium in third.
“We worked on the car a little bit,” Liguori said after the race. “This track is really fun. I wish we would run here more often. I like this place.”
Liguori’s victory marked his first win at Anderson Speedway since 2011.
Phillips Wins Mini-Outlaws Debut
The Mini-Outlaws also made their first appearance at Anderson Speedway, with Alex Phillips leading all 20 laps for the victory.
Rodney Smith finished second while Mike Coop completed the podium in third.
Southerland Continues Strong Season
Caleb Southerland continued his impressive season in the Front Wheel Drive Division by setting fast time for the third time this year before earning his second feature victory.
Driving the same car that Josh Ebbert previously piloted to two division championships, Southerland held off Dustin Bartlett for the win. Nick Warner rounded out the top three with another podium finish.
