For the first time since 2019, Hailie Deegan has found victory lane in the ARCA Menards Series West.
Deegan utilized a last lap, final corner pass on Trevor Huddleston at Madera Speedway to come home victorious.
It also marks the first time since 2020 a woman has found victory lane in the series, dating back to Gracie Trotter that year.
“I’m like, tearing up right now,” Deegan told FloRacing. “It’s been a long time since I’ve run a race. It’s been very hard.”
Huddleston still came home second, with Kenna Mitchell scoring her best career ARCA finish in third.
“At the end of the day, the three-peat wasn’t in the cards for us,” Huddleston told FloRacing. “Sometimes you’re the pinball instead of the pinwheel.”
Robbie Kennealy crossed the line in fourth and Mason Massey in fifth. Massey was able to rebound for a top five finish despite a late race spin.
Joey Iest, Ethan Nascimento, Will Robinson, Andrew Chapman and Eric Rhead round out the top-10 finishers.
On the initial start of the race, Huddleston was able to clear Massey for the lead, but a quick yellow for Ian Wood brought the early battle to a close.
The first restart of the night offered a little more competition up front. Massey initially held the lead, but Huddleston put the bumper to him and got around him in short order to regain the lead. The run would be allowed to settle into a green flag rhythm unlike the first, with Huddleston pulling away from Massey.
Cole Denton had a mechanical issue, stalling into the turn 3 grass and bringing out the second caution of the evening. Denton had been running well inside of the top 10 at the time of the incident, but his night was over early.
Huddleston continued to lead the race as it got back to green, with Mia Lovell capitalizing and entering the top three in the process as well. Huddleston, however, did not have any contest for the lead and was able to regain full control. He again pulled out to quite the gap, holding it well beyond the halfway point in the race.
Just beyond that halfway point, Huddleston got caught behind a slew of lapped traffic. Massey eventually got to the bumper and side-by-side with the No. 50. Deegan also drew alongside the lead battle, but the three made contact with Wood attempting to put him a lap down, spinning him in the process for another caution.
The subsequent restart saw much of the same process, as Huddleston had no issues clearing Massey for the lead. He looked to be setting sail for the win as the laps wound down, though Deegan was beginning to find speed as the run progressed. But another spin by Wood racked the leaders up for another restart with under 30 laps to go.
Deegan used the bumper as the field came to green, shoving Massey into the inside of Huddleston in turn 1, spinning him out in the process. Massey spun, avoiding any further contact, but lost all of his track position.
The final restart of the night saw Deegan initially get underneath the No. 50 of Huddleston, but she was not able to complete the pass. Josiah Reaume went for a spin inside of 10 laps to go, though, setting up for a restart with under five laps to go.
Lovell and Eric Johnson Jr. both spun as the field worked the closing laps after firing back off, forcing yet another late race caution to be flown.
On the final restart of the night, Deegan upped the aggression, using the bumper and the door to get to, move and stay in front of Huddleston for the win, her first of the season.
ARCA West returns next Friday, Oct. 22 at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway Bullring for the Kyle Busch Classic, with the race airing exclusively on FloRacing that evening at 9 p.m. ET.
Josh joined Frontstretch in 2023 and currently covers the ARCA Menards Series. Born and raised in Missouri, Josh has been watching motorsports since 2005. He currently is studying for a Mass Communication degree at Lindenwood University
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