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Manchester United's woeful home form this season continued as they slumped to a 2-0 defeat by Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Sunday.
Despite United chasing a fourth successive win in all competitions, Palace were much the better side in the first half at Old Trafford, passing up several chances to capitalise on their superiority.
The visitors did make one count after 64 minutes, Jean-Philippe Mateta reacting first after the ball had come off the crossbar to give his side a deserved lead.
United upped the ante in search of an equaliser but lacked ideas, with Mateta condemning the hosts to a seventh home league loss and 11th in total this term with a late second, helping Palace climb above 13th-placed United into 12th in the standings.
"The result is really bad," United manager Ruben Amorim told Sky Sports. "The performance was a little bit better than the last games. We controlled the transitions quite well for Crystal Palace.
"It's normal for the fans to feel negative, it is a hard season for them but football can change in certain moments. I will prepare the next game and move forward. Better things will come."
United came into Sunday's encounter on the back of their best run under new manager Ruben Amorim, having secured a third successive win in all competitions at Steaua Bucharest on Thursday in the Europa League.
Carl Recine/Getty Images
Amorim has, however, yet to taste back-to-back league wins since he took charge in late November. No United manager since Tommy Docherty in 1972-73 has had to wait so long to achieve that.
After a pre-match tribute to those who died in the Munich air disaster 67 years ago, Kobbie Mainoo, playing in an unfamiliar central striker role, went close to giving United the perfect start, striking the post with a deflected shot.
Palace, in fine away form having won four of their previous five on the road, looked the more threatening early on, with defenders Daniel Muñoz and Tyrick Mitchell going close to an opener.
The visitors continued to press, with Mateta denied by a brilliant save from André Onana as half-time approached.
Needing improvement after again failing to score in the first half of a league match -- now 18 goalless opening periods in 24 this season -- United pushed forward after the break.
Palace goalkeeper Dean Henderson was finally called into action, denying Bruno Fernandes and Manuel Ugarte with smart saves, but Mateta's close-range finish, after Maxence Lacroix's header had hit the crossbar, was what the visitors' endeavour merited.
For all their pressure, United openings failed to materialise, with Mateta finishing off a Palace counter in the 89th minute to send the away supporters into raptures.
United defender Lisandro Martínez was carried off on a stretcher in the second half with what looked like a serious knee injury.
India 247 for 9 (Abhishek 135, Carse 3-38) beat England 97 (Salt 55, Shami 3-25) by 150 runs
On his watch, India romped to a massive total of 247 for 9, which would prove to be overkill in a crushing 150-run victory, and with it a 4-1 series scoreline.
In response, Phil Salt reprised some of the form that had lit up last year's IPL, to crack his way to a 21-ball fifty, but his was a lone hand in an overwhelmed England reply, as they stumbled to 97 all out in 10.3 overs.
And then, after Jos Buttler, Harry Brook and Liam Livingstone had each fallen in their quest to stay in touch with a rate of more than two a ball, Abhishek was tossed the ball for the ninth over, and duly bagged two more in five balls, as Brydon Carse and Jamie Overton each holed out.
Abhishek tears it up
All of that, however, was somewhat superfluous to the day's main action. The stats of Abhishek's innings were as breathless as his strokeplay. He creamed an India-record 13 sixes (equating to almost one in four of his balls faced), all of them in the arc from point to mid-on, with the crowd at extra cover living a particularly dangerous existence.
At times, it was like watching a full-fidelity game of Stick Cricket, with Abhishek's utter faith in the conditions, and in England's often guileless lengths, encouraging him to plant his front foot to pace and spin alike, and launch even 150kph deliveries with impunity through the line.
At the 10-over mark of the innings, the sky was the limit for India's ambitions. Abhishek had pumped his way to 99 from 36 balls, and with 143 for 2 on the board, the first Full Member 300 was very much on the cards.
India's onslaught could not be entirely contained, however. Abhishek reasserted himself as Carse's final over went for 17, and though a game of cat-and-mouse with Adil Rashid resulted in a miscued wrong'un to deep cover, that wasn't until Abhishek had connected with two more sixes back over the bowler's head.
There was no shortage of needle after the events at Pune, where Harshit Rana's controversial introduction as Shivam Dube's concussion substitute had left England feeling rather aggrieved. Buttler's description at the toss of England's four unselected players as "impact subs" was an amusing commitment to the rumpus.
The fact that Dube was back in action, just 48 hours after a heavy blow to the helmet from Overton, was further reason for England to look slightly askance at that call. But not only did Dube show no ill-effects, he underlined the fact that his own bowling - though noticeably less express than Harshit's - was every bit as capable of making an impression.
His first delivery, at the start of the eighth over, was the final death knell to England's innings. Salt had bludgeoned 17 runs from Shami's first over - the only moment at which England had been ahead of India's rate - but when he snicked Dube's 117kph sighter through to Dhruv Jurel, England were 82 for 5 and sinking fast. He then bowled Jacob Bethell with the first ball of his next over. Oh, and he also thumped 30 from 13 balls for good measure.
Carse keeps his cool
Carse has had an exceptional breakthrough winter for England across formats. His thirst for the hard overs means he has already inked himself in as their go-to third seamer in Test cricket, and many of those same big-hearted traits were on show in a gruesome match situation today.
Carse began his spell with India rattling along at more than 15 runs an over, having reached 127 for 1 after eight, but from the outset, his ability to hit hard lengths with canny changes of pace set him apart from the more one-dimensional block-knocking approach that his colleagues had settled for.
Mark Wood and Jofra Archer set the tone for England's approach with another deeply unsubtle powerplay display, albeit it was thrilling to behold. Archer's first-over duel with Sanju Samson featured two sixes, 16 runs and a nasty cut to the finger from a third-ball lifter into the gloves; Wood's follow-up barely dipped below 150kph, as Samson holed out to deep square leg - his fifth dismissal to the pull shot in as many innings this series.
Suryakumar Yadav had a similar experience - once again India's captain came a cropper to a leading edge as he finished his series with just 28 runs in five innings. But at the other end was Abhishek, and so it mattered little.
Andrew Miller is UK editor of ESPNcricinfo. @miller_cricket
Sources: Bonner joins Fever on one-year deal
Six-time WNBA All-Star DeWanna Bonner is signing a one-year deal with the Indiana Fever, sources told ESPN on Sunday.
Bonner has spent the past five seasons with the Sun, helping Connecticut get to semifinal appearances each of those years and a WNBA Finals berth in 2022. She is seven points away from moving up to No. 3 on the league's all-time scoring list.
The 6-foot-4 Bonner averaged 15.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game in 2024 and earned her third All-Star selection in four years.
A two-time all-WNBA selection and 15-year veteran, Bonner brings championship pedigree to Indiana from her first 10 seasons in the league with the Phoenix Mercury. She was part of Phoenix's 2009 and 2014 championship teams and was named Sixth Woman of the Year three times from 2009 to 2011.
The Fever, who went 20-20 in 2024 and were swept in the first round of the playoffs, have made notable moves this offseason to surround their young core of No. 1 picks Caitlin Clark and Aliyah Boston with veterans with postseason experience.
By re-signing star guard Kelsey Mitchell, trading for Sophie Cunningham and snagging free agents Natasha Howard and Bonner, the Fever have positioned themselves in the title contention conversation.
Their focus was the addition of veteran, championship experience this offseason after entering the 2024 playoffs with just 19 games of postseason experience across their roster, zero among starters. That youth showed at times when Bonner's Sun swept Indiana in the first round.
Bonner had familiarity with both Stephanie White, who was hired by the Fever in the offseason after coaching the Sun for two seasons, and newly appointed Fever GM Amber Cox, who was president of the Mercury during Bonner's time there and then helped recruit her to Connecticut.
After being one of the most consistently successful WNBA franchises in recent history, the Sun now face a complete rebuild after all five starters have either signed or been traded to new teams.
Alyssa Thomas -- Bonner's fiancée -- was cored and traded to the Mercury, Brionna Jones left for the Dream, and both DiJonai Carrington and Ty Harris were traded to the Wings.
Luka deal improves Lakers' title odds dramatically
The stunning trade that sent Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers and Anthony Davis to the Dallas Mavericks late Saturday night had swift, drastic implications on the sports betting markets.
Before news of the deal breaking, the Lakers were +4000 to win the 2025 NBA Finals and +2500 to win the Western Conference, according to ESPN BET odds. Immediately following the news, Los Angeles' odds shortened to +1800 to win the NBA title and sat at +1600 as of Sunday morning, the sixth-best odds in the league. The Lakers' conference title odds jumped to +900 before settling at +850.
ESPN BET reports that since midnight ET, the Lakers have received 46.6% of all bets and 65.2% of all handle to win this season's title. BetMGM places those numbers at 64% and 57%, respectively, and clarifies that there have been no "notable" big bets since the trade news broke. The book notes that Los Angeles is its largest liability for the Western Conference title.
The Lakers' season win total also bumped up from 45.5 to 48.5 at ESPN BET; they currently sit at fifth place in the Western Conference with 28 wins.
Jeff Sherman, a longtime NBA oddsmaker at the Westgate SuperBook in Las Vegas, said on X that the "Lakers must have seen their recent stretch without AD and said fine, we'll take Luka."
Meanwhile, the Mavericks saw their odds to win the NBA Finals lengthen from +2500 to +4000 immediately following the trade, though they came back to +3300 by Sunday morning at ESPN BET. Dallas' Western Conference odds stretched from +900 to +1500, then ultimately to +1600. The Mavs took 9.5% of all tickets and 11.1% of all money to win the championship since Sunday night at the sportsbook.
ESPN BET reports that, as of 11 a.m. ET on Sunday, the book has already taken the second-highest number of total bets in the NBA Champion market for any single day since the season started.
The sportsbook also released odds for Feb. 25's showdown between the Mavs and Lakers in Los Angeles, with the home team opening as 5.5-point favorites before quickly coming down to -4.5.
ESPN's David Purdum contributed to this report.
Jones wasn't getting carried away. A hat-trick, sure, but Ireland are up next and if any team is capable of taking the smile off a Scottish player's face it's the Irish.
Ireland have won 10 in a row against Scotland.
Last year in Dublin, Gregor Townsend's side were defensively sound but it was still a two-score game before Jones scored late. The visitors never looked like winning.
In the three meetings before that, the contest was as good as over in minutes 40, 62 and 60.
"We've wanted this one for a long time and never quite get it," said Jones of the holy grail of a win over Ireland. "It's a huge challenge for us.
"It's the big match temperament, isn't it? That's what we need to find within this squad. We've sort of had it in games but never strung it together.
"I feel like I say the same thing every year."
Scotland competed well in Dublin last year, but the main feature of their day was dogged defence of their own line rather than anything they did in attack.
They also gifted Ireland seven points early from a botched lineout. Go back over the 10 losses and you'll find multiple examples of awful Scottish errors costing them.
"Last year was one of our best performances in Ireland and it was a close game," Jone added. "But, again, one of those we didn't quite take our chances.
"This is the one we want. They've had our number for years now.
"It's time to front up and have a really special performance. You don't want to say anything that is going to come back to bite you, but I think we have an inner belief.
"But we've said that before and not been on the right side of the results."
Familiar words that Jones says he's tired of uttering. Sunday is an opportunity to ensure that he never has to utter them again.
England high-energy gameplan leaves them vulnerable
Ireland accelerated away from England, scoring 22 unanswered points in as many minutes in the second half.
It isn't the first time England have faded in the second half. It was a feature of their autumn defeats by New Zealand, Australia and South Africa. I think there are two aspects to it.
Firstly, their gameplan is very demanding. Perhaps too demanding.
In defence, they come up with a lot of line speed, phase after phase. Then in attack, they are focusing on moving the ball, involving forwards and backs. It can feel frenetic and frantic, burning through energy. It is certainly hugely ambitious. Ultimately I think they pay for it in the back end of games.
There needs to be someone who calms down the team and, occasionally, takes pace out of the match. At the moment, they are wedded to this all-action plan A, which is effective but very hard to sustain over the course of 80 minutes without a bench who can replicate what the starting team have done.
There was a stoppage in the second half, when Ireland were ahead, but the game was still in the balance, during which England's players were standing around in ones and twos having conversations, rather than getting huddled up and working out where they can get back at Ireland.
Every team has to face those moments and it is up to the number eight and half-backs as much as the captain to bring everyone together to work out a strategy and get on the same page.
As I alluded to, the second part of England's tendency to peter out of games is what should be part of the solution - the replacements.
I thought Fin Smith added to England when he came on in the final 15 minutes. There is something about him. He is supremely composed and invariably picks good options to keep the team moving forward in attack.
Flores Banks 10 Grand For 10th Indoor Racing Series Score
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. Ryan Flores etched his name into racing immortality Saturday night by capitalizing on an Andy Jankowiak flat tire in the late stages and holding off a charging Matt Swanson to win the 23rd Annual Gamblers Classic at Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall as part of NAPA Auto Parts Atlantic City race weekend.
The victory was the 37-year-old Huntersville, N.C., natives 10th with the Indoor Auto Racing Series Championship, putting himself firmly atop the series all-time wins list.
As a result of the win, Flores took home $10,000 which includes bonus money from the AC Sports Commission, Visit Atlantic City, and the Ironton Auto Body challenge. He fell one spot short of the Ironton Auto Body-sponsored prize during the Indoor Auto Racing Series opener inside the PPL Center Jan. 3 and 4.
To get back on top with a second Gamblers Classic and to become the first TQ driver with double-digit victories indoors, it means the absolute world to me, Flores, who won the race in 2018, said. Especially since I got to do with the same car, the same guys and the same motor Ive had for 10 years.
Flores path to the victory was rather unorthodox as he fell back to seventh from his second-place starting spot during the opening 12 laps. However, Flores found a new gear and sliced his way back up the running order like a knife through butter, eventually finding himself right on Andy Jankowiaks rear bumper for second.
A yellow on lap 29 put the two Indoor heavyweights side-by-side for a restart. Jankowiak had the advantage going into turn one as Flores tucked in behind when the duo roared passed the start-finish line. But in the center of the turn, contact between the two caused Jankowiaks left rear tire to go flat, giving Flores the top spot.
From there, Flores had to deal with multiple restarts, including a green-white-checkered as the yellow flew right before he zipped by the start-finish line to get the white flag. Second-place runner Matt Swanson threw everything he had at Flores, including giving Flores No. 15 a couple of shots in the rear going into turn one.
But Flores held his nerve like a champion and rocketed away to the win. Swanson had to settle for second as Briggs Danner, Andy Jankowiak, whose comeback drive made him the 2025 Indoor Auto Racing Series champion and Joe Bailey completed the top five.
Jankowiak topped the Indoor Auto Racing Championship standings besting Flores by nine points.
Watch a replay of the Gamblers Class at DirtTrackDigest.tv.
The finish:
23rd Gamblers Classic (40 Laps) 1. Ryan Flores 2. Matt Swanson 3. Briggs Danner 4. Andy Jankowiak 5. Joey Bailey 6. Scott Kreutter 7. Matt Janisch 8. Tyler Catalano 9. Mike Christopher Jr 10. Tim Buckwalter 11. Shawn Nye 12. Billy Pauch Jr 13. Tyler Ferris 14. Nick Ladyga 15. Tommy Catalano 16. Anthony Payne 17. Kyle Lick 18. Trevor Catalano 19. Jeremy Haudricourt 20. Cory DiMatteo 21. Jonathan Reid 22. Tanner VanDoren 23. Steve Kemery 24. Tyler Wagner 25. Ryan Smith 26. Kyle Herve
Slingshots (25 Laps) 1. Paulie Hartwig 2. Tyler Ulsh 3. Scott Neary 4. AJ Gerhart 5. Mark Mohr 6. Cody Kline 7. Matthew Mertz 8. Chris Laureigh 9. Brett Putnam 10. Dylan Hoch 11. Alex Reinsmith 12. Michael Lapicki 13. Cody Bleau 14. Alex Lizotte 15. Cody Kohler 16. Josh Roth 17. Danny Spellmon 18. Jimmy Spellmon 19. Lucas Pittenger 20. Jared Silfee 21. Jon Laureigh 22. Louden Reimert 23. Dennis Garl Jr 24. Justin House
Champ Karts (25 Laps) 1. Mike Perry 2. Missy Bootes 3. TJ Reed 4. Steve Adams 5. Logan Crisufulli 6. Milton Decker 7. Brandon Tiezzi 8. Doug Stearly 9. Chase Williamson 10. Dustin Gagne 11. Preston DeMello 12. Ryan Borges 13. Bryson Murray 14. Chase Keister 15. Alyssa Vanderpool 16. Tanner Emmons 17. Spencer Smolders 18. Max Pfeifer 19. Ryan Kendall 20. Jonathon Keister 21. Joe Mingoia 22. Quentin Graham Jr 23. Todd Crenshaw 24. Alex Smolders
600 Micro Sprints (20 Laps) 1. Tom Fraschetta 2. Scott Kreutter 3. Kyle Lick 4. DJ Shuman 5. Dan Lane 6. Matt Chowns 7. Sean Case 8. Stephen Fleetwood 9. Gary Bozowski 10. Tim Buckwalter 11. Chris Malaterre 12. Connor Mirabelli 13. Louis Horvath
Sexton Stops Webb For Glendale Triple Crown Score
GLENDALE, Ariz. Red Bull KTM Factory Racings Chase Sexton took the overall win at the Monster Energy AMA Supercross seasons first Triple Crown event with (3-3-2) race scores inside State Farm Stadium.
After winning the opener, Sexton took back the points lead at Round 4 of the Supercross Championship, which also serves as Round 4 of the SMX Word Championship.
Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racings Cooper Webb grabbed his second podium of the season after starting the night with a win in Race 1. Webbs Race scores of (1-5-3) were good for second overall.
The red-plate holder coming into Glendale, Progressive Insurance ECSTAR Suzukis Ken Roczen earned a victory in Race 2 and rounded off the podium with third place overall and (4-1-5) Race scores. Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racings Eli Tomac won Race 3 and took fourth overall with (6-4-1) finishes.
Defending Monster Energy Supercross Champion and Reigning SMX World Champion Team Honda HRC Progressives Jett Lawrence was in a good position entering Race 3, but a dab on the ground ended his night at the second corner with a (2-2-DNF) for eighth overall.
After the race his team reported that hed felt a strong, unfamiliar pain in his knee and pulled off; it was unclear what this means, but there was optimism that hell be back on the track at the next round.
The first two races were chaos. I had to fight really hard to get to a good position and be on the podium. In the last race I made a dumb mistake and let Eli get by me, Sexton explained. Honestly, Im a little bummed I didnt win that last race; I wanted that one. But I got the overall win and thats what were here to do. Were here to win and get the red plate back, and consistency paid off tonight. My speed was good were in a good spot and Im ready to fight for this thing.
Webb was pleased with his result.
Its been a rough go here in this stadium, Webb said. Ive heard it all week how I suck here, so everyone can shut up now Honestly, I had a lot of fun today. I turned the page. It was so close one point from a win and I won a [Race], so Im stoked with the night. Well keep the ball rolling as we head east. Those are my conditions that were headed to now, and Im super stoked with everything.
In Western Regional 250SX Class racing, Jordon Smiths consistency earned himself and the Triumph Racing team the win.
Smith becomes the fourth racer in four rounds to win, and Triumph becomes the fourth manufacturer to put their bike atop the 250SX podium this season. Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racings Haiden Deegan had speed enough for consistent (3-2-4) Race finishes and second overall.
Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racings Cole Davies was having a break-out ride in his fourth professional Supercross. The young New Zealand rider earned wins in Race 1 and Race 2, but a big crash in Race 3 put him at the back of the pack.
Davies charged through the pack and his (1-1-8) Race scores earned him the third spot on the podium. Points leader Red Bull KTM Factory Racings Julien Beaumer had two crashes while leading the first two races. He kept it on two wheels in Race 3 and used (4-7-2) scores to earn fourth overall in Glendale and retain the points lead.
LAKE CITY, Fla. Devin Moran surged from his 11th starting position, took the lead for good on the 43rd lap and held on for a green-white-checkered finish after a caution came out with two laps remaining, securing the $15,000 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series presented by FloRacing, Wieland Winter Nationals main event Saturday night at All-Tech Raceway.
In a race that featured six official lead changes among four different drivers, Moran, who led laps 13-16, regained the lead in the hard-fought contest from Ricky Thornton Jr. with seven laps remaining.
Jonathan Davenport finished in second, with the Hoker Trucking Hard Charger of the Race, Tyler Erb, rounding out the podium. Garrett Alberson was fourth and Tim McCreadie rounded out the top five drivers.
Brandon Overton, who started from the pole, led the first two laps until Alberson passed him coming off of turn four to take the lead on the third lap. It was Thorntons turn to lead as he claimed the top spot on lap 10. Thornton, who entered the event with three victories in his last four starts at All-Tech, aimed to win all three Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series events this week.
Thorntons stay at the point was short-lived as Moran charged from the inside of row six and made his first appearance at the top of the leader board, grabbing the lead on lap 13 from Thornton. But like Thornton, Morans lead was not for long, as by the 16th lap, Thornton was back out in front.
Thornton would then lead the next 25 circuits in what was shaping up to be an outstanding battle for the lead among Thornton, Moran, and Davenport, a trio later joined by Alberson.
Moran managed to regain the lead from Thornton on lap 43, as there was nearly a three-wide battle for second place coming off turn four with two laps remaining. However, Thorntons night ended abruptly after making hard contact with the front stretch wall. Moran then successfully navigated a two-lap sprint to the finish to secure the victory.
Moran celebrated his 16th career victory, marking his first win at All-Tech.
Its It was just awesome, Moran said. You know, everybodys been talking about the track and all that. I dont think you can find a better race track than tonight. It was so wild; it felt like we were running sprint car lines. I love watching sprint cars! You dive in, then come back down the hill, and we started ripping it. This place is so much fun; its so underrated. In my opinion, its a top five track in the country doubt.
Davenport finished second after starting in 14th, turning it into a four-car battle for the lead during the final 10 laps of the race.
No doubt another second, that was a lot of fun there, Davenport said. I dont know what happened to Ricky there. That stinks that all of us couldnt race it until the end. This place is just wild. Its so slick and slimy, and nobody knows where youre going. You just kind of hope and aim and point and then just mash the gas. You get sideways like a non-wing sprint car at some point because you dont have any front tires, so you just aim for a little grip.
Erb, who started 17th, passed Alberson on the final lap to take as he advanced 14 positions during the race.
Being the first car out tonight to qualify was pretty easy. I wasnt going to start out front; I just battled through; I won two B-Mains this week. The first night, I just kind of ran where we ran. The track was phenomenal tonight it was fun. Its so hard to drive; its so technical. The lane moves so much, and I really enjoyed it. I am happy we have a really fast race car, and we are getting closer to winning.
The finish:
Devin Moran, Jonathan Davenport, Tyler Erb, Garrett Alberson, Tim McCreadie, Daulton Wilson, Brandon Overton, Carson Ferguson, Kyle Bronson, Brandon Sheppard, Spencer Hughes, Max Blair, Drake Troutman, Daniel Hilsabeck, Donald McIntosh, Cory Lawler, Dan Ebert, Ricky Thornton Jr., Clay Harris, Ross Robinson, Dennis Erb Jr., Shane Clanton, Tyler Bruening, Hudson ONeal.
BARBERVILLE, Fla. As Justin Peck lined up eighth on the starting grid of Saturdays main event, the sprint car world watched intently as he attempted a third win in three nights. Thirty laps later, all doubters were silenced.
Peck, 27, of Monrovia, Ind., completed a sweep of the American Sprint Car Series (ASCS) National Tour action at Volusia Speedway Park, leading the final 14 laps of the feature to claim the $12,000 grand prize and the Big Gator trophy as division champion of the 54th Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals.
In doing so, Peck became the third driver in ASCS National Tour history to win the first three races of the season, joining Jason Martin (2023) and Sam Hafertepe Jr, who won the first five races in 2017.
Unlike his wins on Thursday and Friday, Peck was forced to come from deeper in the field on Saturday after drawing the 10 pill in the dash draw. He was able to move forward two spots in the dash to put him eighth on the feature starting grid. Still, Peck and the Rudeen Racing No. 26 refused to be hindered, driving by four of the seven cars ahead of him on the first lap.
Basically, what happened was, the whole outside row let go to the middlebottom and I was able to kinda have the top lane to myself in (Turns) 1 and 2, Peck said. That was kinda my plan to try to pick off a car or two in Turns 1 and 2 and then just kinda file out and pick them off as we went. Luckily, it worked out. I was able to pick off four of them right off the rip.
After getting around polesitter Austin McCarl for second on Lap 9, Peck set his sights on leader Brian Brown and quickly took the spot away with a single slide job maneuver in Turn 1 on Lap 16.
I was able to get such a run on him off of (Turn) 2 that I was way too close to him, and it was such a slick transition to try and to go from the top off of 2 to get to the bottom down into 3, Peck said. I could carry enough momentum, but Id spun my tires through that slick trying to peel across. I just had to set that gap going down the backstretch, that way I could get into 3 with clean air and try to get that big run down the frontstretch. Luckily, I was able to time it pretty good.
When (Peck) passed me, within reason, he made a really good move and cleared three lapped cars at the same time and that really was a race-winning move because now I have to race those lapped cars, Brown said.
Brown and the rest of the field got one final chance to make a bid for the lead when the caution flag was displayed with three laps left, erasing the near six-second lead Peck had amassed. However, not to be denied, Peck sped off before his opponents could catch him on the restart.
I knew I needed to get a good restart and get down the frontstretch with speed, that way I didnt open myself up for the slider, Peck said. It was such a slick bottommiddle that if I just had speed going down the frontstretch, I figured I was probably gonna be fine because there wasnt any traffic. There wasnt any dirty air, and Brian (Brown) had to be in my dirty air.
Brown crossed the stripe second, and while he applauded his teams efforts over the three-day stretch, he conceded to Peck.
Hes been the class of the field since we unloaded on Thursday, Brown said. I thought maybe with him getting buried hes been close to the front the last two nights, so I was thinking maybe a bad pill draw in the Dash and then him getting a row there and having him start eighth I was thinking it would take him too long to get there.
McCarl was able to hold onto the third spot after a fierce battle with Cole Macedo in the closing laps.
Lapped traffic got hairy, and me and Cole had a couple really good sliders, damn near banging wheels off of (Turn) 2 one time up in the stuff, McCarl said. Thats what this place should be. You watch a lot of old videos and its wide up on the fence. Ive always said I thought Volusia was one of the most underrated tracks in the country.
The finish:
Feature (30 Laps): 1. 26-Justin Peck[8]; 2. 21-Brian Brown[2]; 3. 88-Austin McCarl[1]; 4. 2C-Cole Macedo[7]; 5. 48-Danny Dietrich[6]; 6. 51T-Scotty Thiel[5]; 7. 15H-Sam Hafertepe Jr[4]; 8. 44-Chris Martin[11]; 9. 20-Brady Bacon[9]; 10. 27A-Emerson Axsom[3]; 11. 36-Jason Martin[12]; 12. 28F-Davie Franek[13]; 13. 52-Blake Hahn[21]; 14. 2J-Zach Blurton[18]; 15. 24M-Danny Martin Jr[14]; 16. 34-Sterling Cling[16]; 17. 95-Matt Covington[22]; 18. 88R-Ryder Laplante[15]; 19. 6G-Bryan Gossel[23]; 20. 4-Cameron Martin[19]; 21. 16TH-Kevin Newton[17]; 22. 63-Josh Weller[20]; 23. 2-Whit Gastineau[24]; 24. 13P-Daison Pursley[10]
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