Hickle Springs Into Devil’s Bowl Victory Lane With The Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series

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The 1,000th Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by the MAVTV Motorsports Network A-Feature came with a first-time winner as Washington’s JJ Hickle stormed into Victory Lane on Night 1 of the 48th annual Devil’s Bowl Spring Nationals.
 
The 156th different winner with the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by the MAVTV Motorsports Network, the 2021 Brodix Rookie of the Year contender worked slower traffic to perfection for his Devil’s Bowl triumph.
 
Asked what the win meant, JJ replied, “It means everything. This sets the stage, and this is why we came out here. It proves to all of us that, yes, we do belong out here. It’s an honor, and hopefully, we can keep this going.”
 
Chasing Oklahoma’s Danny Jennings, the first 10 laps, the No. 1j found his road blocked. Seeing a nearly one-second advantage evaporate in an instant, Hickle worked into the lead on Lap 11, with Seth Bergman also gaining the advantage for second on Lap 12.
 
On having to work slower traffic for the lead, JJ stated, “I just had to go where they’re not. Ivan gave me an awesome race car. I could drive this thing anywhere on the track and just bide my time. I knew I was pretty good off of four, so I just tried to be smooth.”
 
Red working Lap 13 as Blake Hahn and Garet Williamson made contact, the No. 24 flipped wildly off the top of the back straightaway but thankfully was unharmed. Realigned into the Delaware Double File Restart following an open red, Hickle had company as Seth Bergman charged the low line through the first and second turns. Unable to get the advance, clean air played to JJ’s advantage as the Ivan, and Jane Worden owned No. 63 steadily pulled away.
 
Into traffic with five laps to run, Bergman, like Borden 10 laps earlier, closed the gap in no time. Stalking Hickle, the two were inseparable before the caution lights came on. Red on the restart as Dylan Westbrook took flight in the third turn, the ensuing restart went single file with Seth again charging hard into the first turn. Keeping momentum over the Evergreen Coffee Co. No. 23, Hickle opened up his advantage to 1.164-seconds to become the sixth different Washington winner.
 
Seth Bergman held on for second over Blake Hahn, with Scott Bogucki rolling from 10th to fourth while Matt Covington raced from 13th to fifth. Chase Randall was sixth, with Roger Crockett emerging as the night’s Hard Charger with a run from 20th to seventh. Danny Jennings slipped to eighth with Jake Bubak tying Crockett at 13 positions advanced. Sammy Swindell completed the top ten.
 
A field of 37 teams from 10 states and three countries took part in Friday’s Devil’s Bowl Spring Nationals event. Four SCE Gaskets Heat Races were contested, with wins going to Dylan Westbrook, John Carney II, Chase Randall, and Sammy Swindell. A trio of Hoosier Tire Qualifiers was topped by Garet Williamson, Devon Borden, and Blake Hahn. BMRS B-Features went to Casey Burkham and Colby Thornhill. Two provisions were used by Alex Hill and Ryan Bickett.
 
The Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by the MAVTV Motorsports Network is back at the Devi’s Bowl Speedway on Saturday, March 20. Races are slated to start at 8:00 P.M. (CDT). For tickets and directions, log onto http://www.devilsbowl.com or call (972) 222-2421.
 
The 2021 season is the 30th year of competition for the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by the MAVTV Motorsports Network.
 
For the first time, the series can be seen live on two platforms, with Racinboys.com and FloRacing.com both featuring National Tour events in tandem. Both are subscription-based sites. FloRacing.com is $20 per month, billed annually at $150 per year. Racinboys.com is $29.99 per month.
 
For other news, notes, and information on the American Sprint Car Series, from the National Tour to any of the Regional Tours that make up ASCS Nation in 2021, log onto http://www.ascsracing.com, follow on Facebook, on Instagram, and Twitter (@LucasOilASCS).
 
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