Lowe Dominates Five Flags in Round 3 with the Bootleg Racing League

Round 3 of the Bootleg Racing League Late Model Invitational Series Season 36 brought competitors to Five Flags Speedway for a grueling 100-lap feature event that put technical discipline to the ultimate test. Renowned across asphalt short-track racing as a premier tire-eating facility, Five Flags presents a punishingly abrasive surface where managing right-front tire wear dictates the outcome. Strategic stakes were heightened by standard BRL regulations, which strictly prohibit pit stops for fresh rubber under the mandate that drivers must finish with the same set of tires that brought them to the green flag. This absolute rule established a stark strategic division between impatient early chargers willing to burn through their equipment for track position and disciplined strategists focused on long-run rubber conservation.

Pole-sitter Tom Hilbert capitalized on his front-row starting spot at the drop of the green flag, launching into an immediate lead. In contrast, his brother Steve Hilbert struggled on the high line of row one, quickly losing ground to Mike Holloway, Kurt Smith, and championship contender Michael Goodman. Out front, Tom Hilbert set a blistering early tempo, opening up a gap of nearly two seconds and controlling the race for the first 30 laps. However, his relentless pace exacted a severe tire-wear penalty that would return to haunt him. Behind him, Luke Logan Allen executed an explosive charge from 14th on the grid, aggressively picking off competitors line by line to surge into 2nd place within the first third of the race. While Allen’s high-risk charge provided thrilling early theater, it was also burning through his right-front tire on Pensacola’s abrasive surface leaving his car severely compromised late in the feature.

Meanwhile, points leader James Lowe executed a masterclass in patient strategy from his 9th-place starting position on the favorable inside line. Lowe remained focused on a disciplined target lap time in the low 17-second range—the ideal rhythm for preserving the right-front tire over a continuous 100-lap run. Allowing the early chargers to exhaust their equipment, Lowe methodically worked his way forward. He past Luke Logan Allen as Allen’s early surge stalled, then closed the gap on Tom Hilbert, whose right-front tire was rapidly fading. Executing a clean pass between laps 30 and 33, Lowe took command of the race at the point.

Once out front, James Lowe established complete control over the final 70 laps, maintaining an unbroken, smooth pace. Behind him, the physical reality of tire degradation began to tear through the field, catalyzed by the race’s first major caution when Chris Haizlip and Matt Hoose made contact at the entry of Turn 1. The resulting restart ruthlessly exposed drivers who had depleted their tires early. Tom Hilbert faded rapidly like a rolling chicane on worn rubber, while frantic mid-pack battles erupted behind him. Todd Liston attempted to make moves on the outside line but became trapped in a desperate three-wide situation alongside Joseph Snyder and Mike Holloway, culminating in Holloway making heavy contact with the inside wall after getting squeezed in the middle.

Long green-flag stretches ultimately rewarded drivers who had hoarded their tire wear during the opening stages, setting up late-race dramatics among the survivors. Joseph Snyder mounted a brave run on the outside line of row one during a late restart, battling two-wide for position before getting loose, clipping the apron, and eventually nosing his car into the inside wall, ending his podium hopes and relegating him to an 8th-place finish. Meanwhile, Matt Hoose—who had started dead last in 15th position after arriving late to the event—capitalized on his remarkably preserved rubber. Hoose sliced through the late-stage chaos and logjams while Charles Roth, Ruben Altice, and Michael Goodman engaged in a frantic, door-to-door battle for track position.

James Lowe smoothly navigated the final laps, taking the white flag and securing a decisive victory after leading the final 70 laps continuously. Behind the winner, Matt Hoose completed a sensational drive from the tail of the field to claim 2nd place on his saved tire wear, while Michael Goodman earned 3rd. In victory lane, James Lowe explained that he simply stuck to his practice pace and managed his right-front tire. With his victory at Five Flags Speedway, James Lowe extended his championship points lead as the Bootleg Racing League Late Model Invitational Series heads into the next round of Season 36.