BARRE, Vt. — Brooks Clark took advantage of a late restart to grab the biggest win of his career at the 40th VP Racing Fuels Vermont Governor’s Cup late model race Thursday night at Thunder Road Int’l Speedbowl.

Clark rode the outside around Barre’s Nick Sweet with just seven laps remaining in the 150-lap event to beat a stout field, which included NASCAR star Christopher Bell, for a career-defining victory.

While Clark started on the pole and led the first 43 laps, his road to victory lane was anything but clear sailing. Even while pulling away from most of the field early, the veteran had to hold off several early charges from outside polesitter Marcel J. Gravel. The fiercest came following the third caution of the event on lap 36 after Bell spun while dueling with Kyle Pembroke for the ninth spot.

Clark was able to hold the lead each time while Sweet got underneath Gravel for the second spot on lap 41. When Stephen Donahue pounded the frontstretch wall two laps later and collected Scott Dragon in the process, Sweet got the chance to work the outside on Clark. Sweet, who was a last-minute replacement for Eric Chase in the No. 40VT for the second straight week, made it work up high to move to the point.

Both Sweet and Clark pulled away from the field on a long green-flag run that followed with Sweet slightly faster. When the fifth caution flew on lap 96 after Jason Corliss cut a right-front tire, the lead duo embarked on a torrid duel that lasted more than 25 laps.

Except for one circuit, Clark was able to use the outside momentum to stay ahead, until Sweet finally got back in front on lap 121 and cleared Clark two laps later. The four-time Governor’s Cup champion again began to pull away and seemed primed for a record-setting fifth victory in the event.

But Corliss shut down again to bring out the sixth and final caution on lap 143, setting up a seven-lap dash for the Cup. Clark seized his opportunity, letting it ride on the outside groove and going back to the front. Sweet was unable to mount a counter-attack in the final circuits as Clark captured his fifth career victory at Thunder Road.

Sweet finished second for the second straight week. Trampas Demers held off Cody Blake for third, padding his points lead in the process thanks to the misfortune of Corliss and Dragon. Jimmy Hebert, Pembroke, Matt White, Phil Scott, Bell, and Josh Masterson completed the top 10.

Jason Pelkey also got the maximum from a late caution to score his second career Lenny’s Shoe & Apparel Flying Tiger win. Pelkey was running a distant second to first-year Tiger racer Danny Doyle when Kevin Streeter blew a right-rear tire and spun in turn one to bring out the caution with three laps left in the 40-lap feature.

The restart put Pelkey alongside Doyle, and Pelkey had the nose in front as the field took the two-to-go. At almost the same time, Mike Martin and Brandon Lanphear got into the wall while fighting for the third spot, and they eventually came to a halt on the backstretch.

The lap was ruled completed, putting Pelkey on the inside for the green-white-checkered finish. Pelkey scooted away for the victory as Doyle got shuffled in the final corners and caused a scramble throughout the pack.
Brett Wood ended up a career-best second after running in the top-five all night. Joe Steffen snuck through the final-lap scrum to take third.

Cooper French became a first-time Thunder Road winner in the Allen Lumber Street Stock feature. The rookie went wire-to-wire in the 25-lap main event, holding off challenges from veteran Dean Switser Jr. and sophomore Kasey Beattie. The trio duked it out under a blanket following the second and final caution on lap 18, but French held strong to grab the breakthrough victory.

Beattie got underneath Switser on the final restart to take second with Switser finishing third.

GREENWOOD, Neb. — For the second consecutive year, Jonathan Davenport claimed a thrilling victory in the Malvern Bank Go 50 at I-80 Speedway.

The race saw five different drivers grab the lead at one point. Davenport became the last of the five, as he took the point on lap 34 from Brandon Sheppard and cruised on to his 10th Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series win of the season.

Davenport and Sheppard were followed to the finish line by Devin Moran, Mason Zeigler and Shannon Babb.

Tyler Bruening led the first lap until Tyler Erb took over the top spot just one lap later. Erb held his lead until Zeigler; last year’s Lucas Oil Rookie-of-the-Year; grabbed the lead away from him. Zeigler held on to the point until Sheppard went by him on lap 21.

Sheppard and Davenport ran one-two using the top groove for several circuits, until Davenport caught Sheppard on lap 34 to gain the lead and held it to the finish line.

Davenport was able to pull away on the final lap to pick up the victory and extend his series points lead over Josh Richards and Tyler Erb.

“It was a little shaky at the end,” Davenport said. “But once we got passed traffic, we were good to go. I knew he [Sheppard] would probably be on the top. We had a little problem with the car after the heat, but Jason and the crew got it fixed. We took off pretty good and then started to pick up the pace around the halfway mark when we got in to second. Brandon and I rode that top groove for a long time until I was finally able to catch him and pass him. I am sure that was a heck of a race to watch.”

Sheppard, who has one LOLMDS win this season, led 13 laps and came home in second place. “We had a really good car,” Sheppard said. “I want to thank Mark Richards, Steve Baker and my whole crew. We were right there at the end. I thought maybe with two to go we had another shot at him. That one caution hurt us because we had a run up top on the restart and I think we might have cleared him [Davenport], but we will come back tomorrow night and hope for a good racetrack like they gave us tonight.”

Moran, who earned the Optima Batteries Hard Charger of the Race, came home third.

“We finally got it rolling after a while,” Moran said. “Tyler [Erb] and I had a great race for a long time, we were throwing sliders on each other. I think we touched maybe once but it was good hard racing. I didn’t need those last cautions because we were moving good on the bottom through the middle. Congrats to JD and Sheppy. This is our first-time here and it has quickly become one of my favorite tracks to race on.”

The finish:

Jonathan Davenport, Brandon Sheppard, Devin Moran, Mason Zeigler, Shannon Babb, Chase Junghans, Scott Bloomquist, Josh Richards, Dennis Erb Jr., Hudson O’Neal, Dale McDowell, Chris Madden, Tim McCreadie, Kyle Bronson, Tyler Erb, Tyler Bruening, Billy Moyer Jr., Stormy Scott, Earl Pearson Jr., Shanon Buckingham, Chris Simpson, Cody Laney, Terry Phillips, Jimmy Owens.

TUSTIN, Calif. — Chevrolet has officially introduced the 2020 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, the brands first production mid-engine Corvette.

“Corvette has always represented the pinnacle of innovation and boundary-pushing at GM. The traditional front-engine vehicle reached its limits of performance, necessitating the new layout,” said GM President Mark Reuss. “In terms of comfort and fun, it still looks and feels like a Corvette, but drives better than any vehicle in Corvette history. Customers are going to be thrilled with our focus on details and performance across the board.”

The 2020 Stingray’s exterior has a bold, futuristic expression with mid-engine exotic proportions, but it is still unmistakably Corvette. It’s lean and muscular, with an athletic sculptural shape conveying a sense of motion and power from every angle.

“As America’s most iconic performance nameplate, redesigning the Corvette Stingray from the ground up presented the team a historic opportunity, something Chevrolet designers have desired for over 60 years,” said Michael Simcoe, vice president of Global Design, General Motors. “It is now the best of America, a new arrival in the mid-engine sports car class. We know Corvette can stand tall with the best the world has to offer.”

A supercar level of craftsmanship, premium materials and attention to detail were critical in designing every component of the Stingray. The new location of the engine is truly the focal point for the car’s design. It’s the heart of this next generation Corvette and it sits like a jewel in a showcase, visible through the large rear hatch window.

The added attention to detail optimized the appearance of every wire, tube, bolt and fastener, similar to those found in modern track and all-road motorcycle design.

True to its aeronautical and racing roots, the 2020 Stingray’s canopy-forward stance was inspired by F22s, F35s and other modern fighter jets and Formula One racing. Other classic Corvette signatures adapted to the Stingray include a distinctive face that communicates the purpose of the vehicle’s mission, a classic horizontal crease, aggressive front fenders and familiar positioning of the dual-element headlamps.

Corvette’s structure is built around its backbone: the center tunnel. This enables a light, stiff structure to serve as the foundation for the suspension system to perform in an optimized manner. By removing unwanted body compliance, Corvette customers will experience the ultimate in ride performance with outstanding lateral grip capabilities. The car has a solid, connected-to-the-road feel with minimal vibrations at high speeds or on long road trips.

“Our mission was to develop a new type of sports car, combining the successful attributes of Corvette with the performance and driving experience of mid-engine supercars,” said Tadge Juechter, Corvette executive chief engineer.

SINGAPORE -- Inter Milan manager Antonio Conte has said he wants to sign Romelu Lukaku from Manchester United.

The two clubs have held talks about the Belgium striker but a deal is yet to be agreed. Inter are willing to offer around £60 million with £15m in add-ons but United value the 26-year-old at between £80m and £90m.

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Conte also said Mauro Icardi and Radja Nainggolan will not be part of his "project" at the Serie A and suggested that he will play against United in Singapore on Saturday without a striker while the pursuit of Lukaku continues.

"Lukaku is a United player," Conte told a news conference at Singapore's National Stadium on Friday. "This is the reality.

"You know very well I like this player. In the past when I was Chelsea coach I tried to bring him to Chelsea. But I repeat, today Lukaku is a player of Man United. This is the reality and this is the truth.

"I think that in this moment, we are talking about player of another club. For this reason it's right I don't talk about Lukaku. I have great respect for United. As I said before for sure I consider this player. I like this player.

"I consider him an important player for us to improve. There is a market. We know our situation. We'll see what happens. Now Lukaku is United's player."

Speaking earlier in the day, United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said there was no update on Lukaku's situation but that the former Everton forward would not be available to face Inter because of injury.

Sources have told ESPN FC there are no meetings scheduled while the two clubs are in Singapore because Ed Woodward and chief negotiator Matt Judge are in London.

United are willing to sell Lukaku, who is keen to move to Italy, if they receive an acceptable offer. At a meeting in London last week, Inter were informed that a loan bid, or a bid involving players moving in the opposite direction, would not be considered.

It's the most complicated time of the year for MLS teams, with the weather steamy, the transfer window open and nothing yet secure when it comes to playoff places. This week the intrigue kicks up just a small notch more with a United vs. United showdown in Atlanta, a chance for another United to prove their postseason bona-fides versus Real Salt Lake and the latest installment in Matias Almeyda's man-marking revolution in San Jose.

United vs. United

There's drama in Atlanta following Gonzalo "Pity" Martinez's comments to an Argentine media outlet that he wasn't happy with United head coach Frank de Boer's decision to speak to the media about subbing off Martinez in a game against the Montreal Impact on June 29. The club says the air is "cleared," but there's a real concern that the 25-year-old just doesn't fit with the Dutchman's system.

Atlanta earned an important confidence-boosting 5-0 win over the Houston Dynamo on Wednesday without Martinez in the starting lineup. De Boer's decision to use Martinez as late substitute made sense with a hectic schedule, but it means that the player missed out on the mental boost from the goal party against Houston. Will De Boer turn back to Martinez against D.C. on Sunday (4 p.m. ET, ESPN)?

It seems like a lifetime ago, but these two teams opened the season against each other. DCU got the better of the champs on that day, ruining De Boer's MLS debut with a 2-0 win at Audi Field.

D.C. has its own issues with a creative Argentine player. Luciano Acosta was Robin to Wayne Rooney's Batman during a run to the playoffs in 2018, but his production has dropped off dramatically this season. The simplest explanation for the dip is that a failed move to Paris Saint-Germain during the offseason changed the alchemy in D.C. and put Acosta off his game.

There's no indication that Acosta is a problem child. He's not Martinez. There are no interviews on Argentine television. The problem for D.C. is that as long as he's not creating goals, it's all the same.

Minnesota playoff credentials to be tested in Utah

The longest active winning streak in Major League Soccer belongs to Minnesota United. One more win and the Loons will tie the longest winning run in the league this season of five, reached by both LAFC and Atlanta.

Does that mean they've turned the corner? Minnesota's three-year plan was always aimed at the first year playing in Allianz Field, and so far in 2019, the plan seems to be working. The additions of Darwin Quintero, Angelo Rodriguez and Jan Gregus in the past year not only filled up Minnesota's quota of Designated Players, it has brought a swagger to the club that was much needed.

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The Loons are utilizing depth, and to excellent effect at the moment as well. The hottest Loon is Mason Toye, a second-year forward with four goals in his past four games despite playing understudy to Rodriguez. A packed schedule and a run to the semifinals of the U.S. Open Cup forced head coach Adrian Heath to get creative with his personnel -- who duly responded.

An away date in Utah on Saturday (10 p.m. ET, ESPN+) is the next test for the Minnesota project. For their part, Mike Petke's men are flying high off a 4-0 trouncing of the Philadelphia Union last weekend. Jefferson Savarino dominated that game, scoring two goals and setting up a third. Real Salt Lake isn't among the league's best, but it won't be an easy out for Minnesota.

In fact, RSL could bolster its own playoff credentials with second consecutive home win against a team in the playoff places.

Almeyda's Quakes set example for Dos Santos' Caps

When you start to really understand what Matias Almeyda's particular brand of soccer philosophy entails and what it requires from his players, it's impossible not to be impressed by what's happening in San Jose. The Earthquakes were an abject disaster for the first month of the season. Since then, they've been one of the league's best teams.

Vancouver has ... not been one of the league's best teams. That sets up Saturday's showdown at BC Place as a match between a team grasping for consistency under a new head coach and one looking to consolidate its place among the league's elite.

One of the more fascinating elements of the Quakes' rise is that the roster isn't stocked with stars; players such as Valeri "Vako" Qazaishvili, Magnus Eriksson, Cristian Espinoza and Jackson Yueill (to name just the midfield) don't jump off the page. But together, working as a unit in Almeyda's man-marking system, they're incredibly effective. The Quakes added a few names (most recently Carlos Fierro) since the Argentine coach's arrival, but he's working largely with the same group that finished dead last in 2018.

Almeyda's early success stands in opposition to the struggles of Marc Dos Santos in Vancouver. The Whitecaps completely overhauled their roster, saying goodbye to some key figures and bringing in 15 new players for 2019. The results have been poor, with the Caps now sitting where the Quakes once were: at the bottom of the Western Conference.

Dos Santos will get a chance to make it work no matter what 2019 delivers. Still, beating the upstart Quakes on Saturday (10 p.m. ET, ESPN+) would be a good way to send a message a turnaround is on the horizon.

Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh took a dig Thursday at former Ohio State coach Urban Meyer, who retired last season in the wake of a scandal involving domestic violence allegations against a former assistant.

"Urban Meyer's had a winning record. Really phenomenal record everywhere he's been," Harbaugh said on The Athletic's "The TK Show" podcast. "But also, controversy follows everywhere he's been."

Harbaugh, who will speak Friday during Big Ten media days, went 0-4 against Meyer. He says those who criticize his inability to win the big one, and especially to beat Ohio State, have a right to complain.

"You welcome the accountability," Harbaugh said. "All you can be judged on is your record -- what your record is overall, what your record is in your conference, and what your record is in head-to-head matchups with other teams that you play. I think you'll find that right now Ohio State is the only team that has a better record than us, has a better conference record than us, has the better overall head-to-head matchup with us.

"Yeah, we are -- we talk about the goals that we have. We have two: win multiple championships and run a first-class program. That's what we aspire to. We're learning and we take accountability and we learn from it. Hope springs eternal, and we're fired up for this season going forward. It's been good, and now we're gonna take it over the top."

Harbaugh has a 38-14 record since taking over at Michigan in 2015. He has brought Michigan into the national conversation but has fallen short of taking the Wolverines to the next level. To do that, he will need to beat Ohio State.

Ryan Day has taken over in Columbus following Meyer's resignation.

Meyer, 55, will have a role as an analyst on FOX's college football show in the fall. He was the Buckeyes' coach for seven seasons and won a national title in 2014, but last season began with a three-game suspension following an investigation into his handling of allegations of domestic abuse against former assistant Zach Smith. Meyer returned and finished the regular season, then announced his retirement Dec. 4. He coached his final game in the Rose Bowl on New Year's Day.

He also experienced success and controversy as head coach at Florida. He won two titles with the Gators but was criticized for the number of off-the-field incidents involving his players. Over six seasons, 31 of his players were arrested, some on serious charges.

The Buckeyes will play the Wolverines in Ann Arbor on Nov. 30.

Hall of Fame coach C. Vivian Stringer, who left the Rutgers program in February for an unspecified health-related issue, has returned to the Scarlet Knights and "looks great," athletic director Pat Hobbs said Thursday.

The 71-year-old Stringer, who left with two weeks remaining in the regular season, originally said she'd return for the postseason. However, she stayed on leave, on advice from doctors, while assistant Tim Eatman served as acting coach for the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments.

"She's back," Hobbs told NJ Advance Media on Thursday. "She looks great. ... There's no one more looking forward to walking into the RWJBarnabas Health Athletic Performance Center than C. Vivian Stringer.''

Stringer, who will earn $875,000, will be entering her 25th season at Rutgers and 49th overall as a coach. She has a career mark of 1,018-410 in 48 seasons, making her the sixth-winningest coach in women's basketball, and is 498-275 at Rutgers. She picked up win No. 1,000 on Nov. 13, becoming just the fifth Division I women's coach -- and first African-American coach -- to achieve the milestone, and sixth overall.

"It's a good time for her to transition back in,'' Hobbs said. "She's raring to go.''

Her contract runs through the 2020-21 season.

She is the only women's coach to take three different schools to the Final Four: Cheyney State in 1982, Iowa in 1993, and Rutgers in 2000 and '07. Her teams have appeared in 26 of the 36 NCAA tournaments and made 10 regional finals.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.