MVRL ARCA SERIES S1 R3 Recap

14 April 2025
Maximum Velocity Racing League | Season 1 | Round 3
ARCA Series | Richmond Raceway

On Monday, April 14th, the Maximum Velocity Racing League’s ARCA Series stormed into Richmond Raceway for round 3 of season 1 — and fans were treated to a photo finish for the ages.

Justin Michael led the field to green with a 21.586 pole time, and he looked dominant early on, keeping James Lehman and the rest of the field at bay. Lehman fought hard to grab 2nd from Heath Smith, while Scott Patten quietly worked into 3rd as Smith dropped through the field.

The first half was filled with strategy options thanks to a handful of cautions, but it was Zack Saunders who turned heads by staying out on older tires and taking the lead into the second half. He made it work, holding strong out front until Michael and Lehman — on fresher rubber — came charging back with 30 laps to go.

A late caution reset the field again. Michael stayed out and regained the lead, but Charles Widner took it from him on the restart — only for another yellow to freeze the field with Widner narrowly ahead. When they went back green, Saunders muscled his way underneath both Widner and Michael to retake the lead, with Lehman following him through into 2nd.

The closing laps were wild. Lehman stalked Saunders but couldn’t find a way by — until the final corner on the final lap when he launched it around the outside in a last-ditch move. At the line, it was Lehman by inches, stealing the win in dramatic fashion.

Widner finished 5th, just enough to take over the points lead, now 8 points ahead of Tuffy Casey.

The MVRL ARCA Series returns Monday, April 21st, from Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Catch all the action live at 9:30PM ET, only on the Virtual Grip Network!