After struggling to reach Victory Lane over the past month, Mat Williamson returned to form Thursday night at Can-Am Speedway.
The St. Catharines, ON driver thundered past track champion Billy Dunn on Lap 16 and never looked back to score his third DIRTcar 358 Modified Series win of 2026.
Williamson’s $4,000 victory was one he said he needed to have.
“The last month or so has been tough,” Williamson said. “We haven’t won in a while. We’ve been struggling a bit with every car. Went to Quebec to try and get some momentum in a car we don’t really race that often, and we were rolling really good until the accident (Tuesday’s flip at Le Rpm) happened.
“To get a win after that kind of puts it behind us, and now we can kind of move forward.”
Dunn, the 2026 Can-Am track champion, led the field to the green in the 50-lap Feature, quickly gaining an advantage over second-place Derek Webb.
Behind the Watertown, NY driver, Williamson charged forward from his seventh starting position, using the outside lane to gain positions. “Money Mat” was the only car using the outside early in the race, allowing him to reach second by Lap 7.
Out front, Dunn continued his pace, but it wasn’t long before he caught lap traffic, which proved vital to the race’s outcome.
As Dunn approached C.G. Morey, a lap car, Williamson continued his momentum on the top of the racetrack, pulling even with Dunn at the end of Lap 15. Then, as they battled into Turns 3 and 4 on Lap 16, Williamson nosed ahead of Dunn, using Morey as a pick to take the lead away.
Williamson drove his No. 6 away from Dunn over the next few laps, but Dunn got closer as Williamson battled through traffic. Dunn wouldn’t get another chance yet, though, as three consecutive cautions on Lap 30 slowed the field.
When the race resumed, Williamson pulled away from Dunn, gaining almost a full straightaway advantage over the No. 49. But that advantage went away with five laps to go as Williamson caught the back of the field. The defending Series champion didn’t leave the bottom of the racetrack, forcing Dunn to peek to the outside with two laps to go.
As the two drivers came to the white flag, Dunn took one last shot at the win in Turns 1 and 2, moving to the outside lane to wrestle the lead away as Williamson did early in the race. Unfortunately for Dunn, Williamson’s momentum was too much, as he pulled away down the backstretch.
That burst of momentum was all Williamson needed as he scored his 23rd career Series win, breaking a tie with Tim Fuller for fourth on the all-time wins list.
“I saw him on the outside getting into (Turn 1), and I knew I had to go at that point,” Williamson said. “Luckily, I had a good run off of (Turn) 2, and I could get inside the lap car, and kind of ruin the run for him getting into (Turn) 3. Billy is one of the best here, and I figured with him and Lance (Willix) running in the top three, they were going to throw something at me that I would probably do to them.”
With his victory, Williamson extended his Series points lead to 82 points over Mike Mahaney, who was credited with 28th after having starter issues before the race.
While Dunn chased Williamson on the final lap, he left the bottom open for Lance Willix to steal second as they raced down the backstretch. That forced the seven-time Can-Am track champion to settle for third.
“The best car for sure won,” Dunn said. “But lap cars were really tough tonight, and whoever got to the lap cars first really struggled. I took a shot on the last lap and lost second, but I’d rather go down swinging than just ride.”
Carrey Terrance crossed the line fourth, and Fuller rounded out the top five.
UP NEXT: The DIRTcar 358 Modified Series returns to Can-Am Speedway on Friday, Sept. 11, for night two of the Showdown in September weekend.
How do you buy tickets to the Showdown in September weekend? You can buy tickets at racecanam.com.
For more on the DIRTcar Northeast, follow the DIRTcar Northeast Facebook page.
DIRTcar 358 Modified Feature (50 Laps): 1. 6-Mat Williamson[7]; 2. 31-Lance Willix[3]; 3. 49-Billy Dunn[1]; 4. 66X-Carey Terrance[4]; 5. 19-Tim Fuller[9]; 6. 3M-Franklin Mackin[12]; 7. 21A-Peter Britten[14]; 8. 01-Chris Raabe[5]; 9. 7S-Shaun Shaw[8]; 10. 66W-Derek Webb[2]; 11. 74-Lucas Fuller[13]; 12. 60-Jackson Gill[28]; 13. 23-Cameron Black[11]; 14. 21-Larry Welling[10]; 15. 11S-Steve Lewis Jr[16]; 16. 18R-Brad Rouse[23]; 17. 21R-RJ Tresidder[15]; 18. 74F-Dave Flannigan Jr[19]; 19. 117-CJ Castelletti[22]; 20. 14-CG Morey[24]; 21. 22C-Cedric Gauvreau[20]; 22. 5-Jack Butler[21]; 23. 11B-Genavieve Bartlett[25]; 24. (DNF) 92-Andrew Buff[18]; 25. (DNF) 91R-Josh Reome[17]; 26. (DNF) B24-Brendan Gibbons[26]; 27. (DNF) 17-Tyler Meeks[27]; 28. (DNS) 35-Mike Mahaney; 29. (DNS) 28-Jordan McCreadie
Hoosier Racing Tire Award (Free Tire): Dave Flannigan
