Jason Parkhurst Jr. had already found Victory Lane twice at Brewerton Speedway in 2025. But to do it a third time, he needed to use his experience around the “D-Shaped Dirt Demon” to his advantage.
That experience paid off, as Parkhurst passed Richard Murtaugh III for the lead just as Murtaugh had mechanical problems and held on to win Friday’s DIRTcar Sportsman Series Central Region Feature.
“This feels great,” Parkhurst said. “I found something on the outside in (Turns) 3 and 4, and I slowly, slowly, slowly, started catching Richard. I was able to sneak by him going into (Turn) 1, and then the caution came out.”
Murtaugh led the opening circuit of the 30-lap Feature, with Parkhurst and reigning Central Region champion Zach Sobotka trying to chase him down. However, Murtaugh’s momentum was slowed as the first of five cautions fell on Lap 4.
On the first four restarts, nobody could sneak by Murtaugh as drivers made their way through the field behind the No. 33. That included current region points leader Gavin Eisele and Tony Finch II, who were trying to run down the top two.
With two laps to go, it looked like Murtaugh would cruise to another Series win. But Parkhurst had other ideas. With a burst of speed, Parkhurst drove around the outside of Murtaugh right as ground wire burnt in Murtaugh’s car, bringing out the yellow flag.
From there, Parkhurst held off Eisele in the final two laps to score his first career DIRTcar Sportsman series win and the $1,000 prize.
Parkhurst said his experience racing at Brewerton every week played a significant role in his ability to win.
“I always know the top side in (Turns) 3 and 4, if you can hit it right, it’s really, really good,” Parkhurst said. “Hats off to the Brewerton Speedway track crew. It was phenomenal up there. It was nice and racy.”
Eisele crossed the line second, extending his Series points lead to 10 over Parkhurst and 12 over Emmett Waldron, who finished fifth.
Eisele said he didn’t feel like he had a car that would get him to the podium.
“We weren’t great, we were good,” Eisele said. “We just kind of maneuvered on those [restarts] and got our way up to third. That set us up for a couple of decisions to make on [Parkhurst]. But he played it perfect, and he got the win.”
Finch rounded out the podium, earning his best career Series finish. The five-time Brewerton winner said he wished the cushion came in a little sooner.
“We felt good coming to Brewerton after winning last week,” Finch said. “My car wasn’t any good on the bottom, which was surprising. It usually is. So, I was glad to see that restart because we had just got jingled up and fell back right before the end.
“To come back and finish third was really good.”
Tyler Corcoran, the current Brewerton points leader, finished fourth.
UP NEXT: The DIRTcar Sportsman Series Central Region returns to action on Wednesday, July 2, at Can-Am Speedway as part of the annual Pabst Shootout. The event is also a combined Feature with the North Region.
The DIRTcar 358 Modified Series will also join the card.
For more on the DIRTcar Northeast, follow the DIRTcar Northeast Facebook page and the Series’ X/(Twitter) page.
DIRTcar Sportsman Series Central Region Feature: 1. 38JR-Jason Parkhurst Jr[2]; 2. 18-Gavin Eisele[8]; 3. 0-Tony Finch II[4]; 4. 64-Tyler Corcoran[7]; 5. 4-Emmett Waldron[10]; 6. 38-Zach Sobotka[3]; 7. 6-Cody Manitta[9]; 8. 72-Hunter Hollenbeck[17]; 9. 12-Owen Bird[22]; 10. 10G-Austin Germinio[16]; 11. 20K-Kyle Perry[6]; 12. 44-Ryan Barrett[12]; 13. 25-Evan Nugent[11]; 14. 410-Mike Fowler[13]; 15. 711-Nick Ventura[25]; 16. 83-Brett Sears[5]; 17. 54-Sullivan Dickey[30]; 18. 3-Colby Herzog[18]; 19. 10-Trevor Houghton[27]; 20. 17A-Michael Button[14]; 21. 16-Earl Rudy[19]; 22. 7UP-Gary Smith[29]; 23. 32-Joe Trichilo[20]; 24. 92-Frank Sibley[28]; 25. 14-Samuel Groom[24]; 26. 33-Richard Murtaugh[1]; 27. 16X-Savannah Laflair[26]; 28. R1-Riley Rogala[23]; 29. 33JR-Clayton Brewer III[21]; 30. 22A-Avery Decker[15]
Post Race Tech: MSD Boxes, Wiring, and Distributor Voltage were checked on top five. All cars passed.
