MVRL ARCA SERIES S1 R3 Recap

21 April 2025
Maximum Velocity Racing League | Season 1 | Round 4
ARCA Series | Las Vegas Motor Speedway

On Monday, April 21st, the Maximum Velocity Racing League’s ARCA Series rolled into Las Vegas Motor Speedway for round 4 of season 1, with points leader Charlie Widner carrying an 8-point advantage into the night. But by the end of 100 fast-paced laps, it was Justin Michael who put together a statement win to take control of the standings.

James Lehman led the field to green with a blistering 30.381 in qualifying, flanked by Michael on the front row. When the green dropped, Michael held steady on the outside and cleared Lehman for the top spot by lap 2. Behind them, the battle for second intensified with Lehman, Rob Haynes, and Greg Maul going at it. Haynes showed strong pace, eventually taking the spot and closing the gap to Michael with Maul and Lehman in tow.

But Haynes’ promising run came to a sudden end on lap 11 when contact with Chris Howell sent him hard into the outside wall. That brought out the first major caution, shaking up the rhythm early.

The real turning point came on lap 24. Nearly the entire field ducked onto pit road for fresh tires and fuel — all except Lehman and Tuffy Casey, who stayed out to grab critical bonus points by running 1-2 across the stage break one lap later. Michael crossed in third and rejoined the hunt after pitting.

Lehman and Casey hoped for more cautions to follow, but that restart on lap 31 turned into a long green flag run, putting their strategy in jeopardy. Forced to pit under green on lap 44, both drivers went a lap down while Michael cycled back to the lead and never looked back.

A caution with 26 laps to go gave the field one last shot — fresh tires for everyone, and a lucky break for Lehman and Casey who got back on the lead lap. But Michael proved untouchable. On the restart, he broke the draft and drove away from the field with authority, closing out a dominant performance under the lights.

The win vaults Justin Michael into the points lead, now 8 points ahead of Tuffy Casey, with Widner slipping to third after a quiet night.

The MVRL ARCA Series continues next Monday, April 28th, from USA International Speedway. Don’t miss it — the action goes live at 9:30PM ET, only on the Virtual Grip Network!