After a three-year wait, Brett Senek returned to DIRTcar Sportsman Series Victory Lane in front of his hometown crowd.
The Ransomville, NY driver led all 30 laps and held off defending Series champion Cody McPherson to win Friday’s West Region opener at Ransomville Speedway.
“It feels good,” Senek said. “Starting up front makes it a little easier. I didn’t know where anyone else was running, so I stayed on the top and hoped I didn’t jump over the cushion.”
Senek led the field to the green in the 30-lap Feature, driving away from Kevin Willis as he thundered down the backstretch. But while Senek was in front, McPherson, the three-time defending DIRTcar Sportsman Series champion, worked his way forward. McPherson needed seven laps to reach second place and set his sights on the back of Senek’s No. 111.
It looked like McPherson would get his chance to take the lead on Lap 14 as Senek tried to pass a lap car in Turns 3 and 4. However, the first yellow flag of the race for Jessie Truax in Turn 2 stopped McPherson’s momentum.
Following two more cautions, including a nine-car pileup in Turn 2, McPherson got another shot at Senek on a restart with 11 laps to go. When the two drivers entered the corner, McPherson attempted to slide in front of Senek as they exited Turn 2. Despite the attempt, McPherson couldn’t break Senek’s momentum as he continued to lead in the race’s closing stages.
That’s as close as McPherson would get, as Senek earned his fourth DIRTcar Sportsman Series Feature win and first since 2022.
“Cody’s tough to beat,” Senek said. “He’s tough to beat here, Merrittville, and everywhere. I was sick of seeing those restarts, but I knew if I stayed on the top, I could get away. He ran me really clean. He could’ve slid me really hard into (Turn 1) if he wanted to.
“He’s one of the best, and it feels good to beat him.”
McPherson settled for second as his three-race West Region win streak ended. The St. Catharines, ON driver said he tried to force Senek into a mistake, but that moment never came.
“I did everything I could to make him try to make a mistake on those restarts, but the top in (Turn) 1 and 2 are really good,” McPherson said. “Brett’s really good here. He’s really good everywhere. He never made that mistake, and I never had the chance to make the pass. Hats off to those guys; they did really well tonight.
“We’ll regroup for tomorrow and see what we can do at Merrittville.”
Derek Wagner crossed the line third after starting eighth. The Middleport, NY, driver said his car was fast but didn’t have anything for the top two.
“It’s tough to catch these guys, especially in a Series race when you’re starting that far back,” Wagner said. “We were able to drive to the front, and I can’t say much more. We went forward.”
Jacob Bansmer finished fourth, and Cameron Tuttle rounded out the top five.
UP NEXT: The DIRTcar Sportsman Series West Region heads to Merrittville Speedway on Saturday, May 31, for the second race of the season.
For more on the DIRTcar Northeast, follow the DIRTcar Facebook page and the Series’ X/(Twitter) page.
DIRTcar Sportsman Series West Region Feature: 1. 111-Brett Senek[2]; 2. 7-Cody McPherson[5]; 3. 61-Derek Wagner[8]; 4. 71-Jacob Bansmer[3]; 5. 35T-Cameron Tuttle[4]; 6. 44-David Conant Jr[9]; 7. 11-Dan Ferguson[7]; 8. 99S-Stephen Miller[22]; 9. RV44-Ryan Barrett[10]; 10. 78JR-Nigel Pendykoski[12]; 11. 7G-Tyler Guzzardi[13]; 12. 54-Tommy Catalano[24]; 13. 44C-Abby Castile[15]; 14. 99PJR-Matteo Panunte[18]; 15. 28-Jordan Moden[21]; 16. 56-Trevor Catalano[16]; 17. 24M-Tyler Moore[20]; 18. 78-Luke Blose[14]; 19. 51-Kevin Wills[1]; 20. 18W-James Harbison[6]; 21. 82-Derek Smith[11]; 22. 53-Tyler Foster[17]; 23. 72-Jessie Truax[23]; 24. 99-Brett Martin[25]; 25. (DNS) 81-Austin Susice
POST RACE TECH: Carburetors and Seals were checked on the top five. All cars passed.
