Lowe Dominates New Smyrna, Secures Fifth Win En Route to Second BRL Championship

New Smyrna Beach, FL — James Lowe, the reigning Season 30 champion, reinforced his status as the driver to beat in the Bootleg Racing League’s Late Model Invitational Series, claiming victory in Round 9 at New Smyrna Speedway. Lowe, who led a commanding 65 laps after starting eighth, picked up his fifth win of Season 32, further positioning himself to become only the fourth multi-time BRL late model champion.

The 18-car field utilized the BRL tradition of inverting the top 13 from the previous race to set the grid. This inversion placed Mike Holloway on pole, flanked by “The Caveman”, Tre Blohm. However, the favored inside line proved decisive immediately. Mark Hertzog, starting third, quickly snatched the lead on the first lap, pulling away from the front-row starters. Todd Liston, starting fifth, also capitalized on the preferred inside groove to move into second. Early race analysis noted that the cars were tight entering the corner but loose coming off, forcing drivers to carefully manage throttle on exit to avoid spinning.

Liston spent the early laps relentlessly pressuring Hertzog for the lead, using a late turn-in and early throttle style to try stretching the straightaways. This aggressive approach caused Liston’s car to get loose often, putting strain on the right rear tire.

Tre Blohm eventually displaced Liston for second. While Blohm drove hard on the bottom, Hertzog played the long game, rolling the outside and maintaining momentum.

The race saw its first interruption around Lap 20 when Bruce Pearson and Kurt Smith made contact down the back straight. Under caution, Blohm admitted that his early efforts to run down Hertzog may have already taxed his tires and hinted at the need to settle into the inside line on the restart.

On the restart, points leader James Lowe quickly climbed to second, clearing Liston. Lowe then zeroed in on Hertzog, working the leader’s bumper with relentless precision. Using the same late turn-in, early throttle technique he’d observed earlier, Lowe methodically built runs underneath Hertzog through the corners.

Lowe completed the decisive pass around Lap 35. Once in clean air, he showed superior pace, stretching his lead to nearly 20 car lengths. Observers noted Lowe was driving intelligently, saving tires in case cautions later erased his margin.

The middle stages featured several cautions, including incidents involving John Wilson and Kyle Feimster, and later Allen Wannamaker and Tom Hilbert. These resets allowed tire-conscious competitors like Brennan Myers and Matt Hoose to regroup. Hertzog admitted he had been saving tires early because New Smyrna “tended to eat up the late model tires,” though his conservative approach soon made him the “cork in the bottle” as Liston searched desperately for a way by.

A tense podium fight brewed late. Tre Blohm and Rubin Altice waged a prolonged side-by-side battle, with Altice determined to hold the top line even as traction faded. Meanwhile, Darryl Wineinger delivered one of the night’s standout climbs, surging from P15 into the top five.

On the final restart, Hertzog made an assertive move to hold onto second, dropping from the outside lane to defend against Altice and Liston. But out front, Lowe remained untouchable over the last six laps, cruising to his fifth victory of the season. Hertzog took second after leading 34 laps early, while Altice secured third after finally prying the spot away from Liston, whose tires were spent. Liston finished fourth, with Blohm completing the top five. Wineinger settled for sixth, followed by Myers and Holloway.

Lowe later credited the winning pass to being stronger off Turn 2 than Turn 4 and emphasized the urgency of completing passes quickly to avoid overheating his tires. Hertzog concluded that to beat Lowe, the field would likely need the No. 99 to slip because “he’s the guy to beat right now.”