ENID, Okla. – A.J. Brochu saw his victory hopes dashed two laps from the finish when Kip Hughes slipped past to win his seventh Sooner Late Model Series main event Saturday at Enid Speedway.
It was the third straight victory for Hughes in his quest for a second straight season championship.
Brochu drove off the pole into the early lead over Ross McCartney, Cliff Morrow and fifth starting Hughes. Brochu stretched his lead while Hughes was battling for third. Hughes managed to get past Morrow for third on a lap-four restart then started to run down McCartney.
Running on the high side Hughes found enough bite to pull alongside of McCartney on lap 12. Two laps later Hughes finally pulled ahead for second.
It took some time to rundown Brochu, but Hughes finally challenged Brochu on lap 15 pulling even with him at the start-finish line. After battling for three laps Hughes pulled into the lead with one lap remaining. Brochu settled for second as time ran out. McCartney, rookie Hayden Ross and Morrow finished third through fifth.
The finish:
Kip Hughes, A.J. Brochu, Ross McCartney, Hayden Ross, Cliff Morrow, Damian Patocka, Adam Popp, Zach Nickell, Jerry Derr, Phil Sager.Â