MVRL ARCA SERIES S1 R11 Recap

09 June 2025
Maximum Velocity Racing League | Season 1 | Round 11
ARCA Series | Martinsville Speedway

The penultimate round of Season 1 in the Maximum Velocity Racing League’s ARCA Series brought the field to the paperclip — Martinsville Speedway — and the short track drama did not disappoint. In a night dominated by cautions, contact, and comebacks, James Lehman delivered a wire-to-wire masterclass, leading every green-flag lap and making a huge statement with just one race left in the season.

The chaos started early. On lap 1, a massive pileup in Turn 3 took out several contenders — including Cal Majkowski and Chris Braley, both of whom found the wall and struggled to recover. Juen-Jen Wang jumped up five positions during the shuffle and looked like a serious dark horse in the early going.

When the dust settled and racing resumed, Lehman and Greg Maul broke away from the pack. The two-car train pulled clear as the rest of the field scrapped for stage points and survival. Maul was glued to Lehman’s bumper for most of the race, but never quite found the momentum to make a pass stick.

Back in the pack, the championship picture started to shift. Aiden Young, one of Lehman’s main title rivals, was caught up in the opening crash and fell two laps down. But Young refused to give up. Staying out during the stage break and taking the wave-around, he began methodically clawing his way back into the top 10 — fighting hard for the Lucky Dog and holding off faster cars just to stay in contention.

With about 30 laps to go, tire wear became a major factor. Drivers started to slide, and that’s when Wang’s night unraveled — a late-race spin sent him hard into the outside wall. That caution shook up the top 10 and gave Michael Milfelt the break he needed to slide up into the top tier. From there, it was a tense final run to the finish.

But through all of it, Lehman never cracked. He held the lead on every restart, kept Maul at bay, and crossed the line for his second win of the season, delivering a dominant and decisive drive at one of the trickiest tracks on the schedule. Maul had to settle for second, while Jack “Killer” Watts finished third after a quiet but efficient race.

Young’s comeback to finish 10th could be pivotal in the championship, especially with drop weeks in play — and with rivals like Justin Michael struggling all night, the title race is now officially Lehman’s to lose.

Next Monday night, it’s the season finale at Michigan International Speedway, and with its long straights and wide corners, it’ll be a very different kind of challenge. The title fight remains wide open, and after what we saw at Martinsville, there’s no telling how this one will end.

Catch all the action live next week only on the Virtual Grip Network!