Troutman Wins Summer Shootout Finale by 0.001 Seconds as LeClair Secures Championship

Loudon, NH — The season finale of the Red Light Racing (RLR) Summer Shootout at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on August 13, 2026, delivered a finish measured in the smallest possible sliver of time. With double points on the line, the “Magic Mile” provided a brutal test for the field of Tour Modifieds, with its low banking, high speeds and heavy weight transfer putting tremendous strain on the right-rear tires. When the dust settled, Ethan Troutman had won the race by just 0.001 seconds, while Fed LeClair survived an early disaster to claim the championship.

Ethan “The Mountain” Troutman led the 16-car field to the green flag from pole, but the championship picture became chaotic almost immediately. On Lap 3, Fed LeClair, who entered the finale with a commanding points advantage, was involved in a heavy collision with Jeff LeMire. The incident left LeClair with a meatball flag and significant left-front suspension damage, suddenly opening the door for rivals Brian Neff and Joshua Buckley to potentially steal the championship. The race remained green despite several other early incidents, including a spin by Kenny Allen and hectic mid-pack battles that saw Devin Visnaw weaving through traffic. Meanwhile, Eric Stout began a patient charge from 14th, methodically picking his way toward the front.

The first caution finally appeared on Lap 36 when Brian Neff and AJ Hamel made contact on the backstretch. The yellow flag triggered a flurry of pit-road strategy, with some drivers opting for two tires or fuel-only service while others, including Troutman and Stout, took four fresh tires. Another caution soon followed when Patrick Stout spun while battling underneath Todd Sargent. After the restart, Eric Stout emerged as the dominant force, taking control of the race and building a lead of more than a second as the field reached the halfway point.

That advantage gradually disappeared as Troutman found an unconventional way to attack the flat New Hampshire corners. By placing his left-side tires onto the apron, Troutman was able to rotate the car more effectively and gain valuable time. The unusual “grip strip” approach allowed Troutman and Trent Potter to steadily close the gap on Stout. By Lap 80, the three drivers were locked into a fierce battle for the victory, with Troutman eventually reclaiming the lead and Potter staying firmly attached to his rear bumper.

The final lap delivered the kind of drama that makes a season finale worth the price of admission. Entering Turn 3, Potter launched a “dipsy-doo” move to the inside and briefly wrestled the lead away from Troutman. Troutman anticipated the attack and immediately executed the crossover, setting up a drag race to the finish. The two Tour Modifieds charged toward the checkered flag side-by-side and even touched wheels as they crossed the stripe, but Troutman had just enough momentum to claim the victory by an astonishing 0.001 seconds, the narrowest margin possible in iRacing. Potter settled for second, while Eric Stout finished third after leading 29 laps.

Despite finishing 14th after his early-race wreck, Fed LeClair’s massive points cushion proved impossible to overcome, allowing him to secure the RLR Summer Shootout championship. The championship nearly slipped away in spectacular fashion, but LeClair ultimately had enough of a buffer to survive the disaster. Afterward, he joked that he had to shut off the game and go get ice cream to recover from the stress before realizing he had officially clinched the title. In a finale that delivered everything from championship panic to a finish separated by one thousandth of a second, the Summer Shootout went out with the stopwatch practically smoking.