PORT ROYAL, Pa. — Ricky Thornton Jr. took the lead from Chris Madden on lap 46 and then pulled away to win the Rumble by the River presented by UNOH on Saturday night at Port Royal Speedway.
Thornton not only won $50,000 but also received a $7,500 bonus from UNOH for leading the championship points at the end of the night. He holds a 10-point lead over Jonathan Davenport, who finished fifth in the 50-lap race.
Madden, who led the most laps during the race, finished in second, while Devin Moran finished third. Brandon Sheppard took the fourth spot ahead of Davenport.
Madden maintained a strong lead for the first 23 laps until Thornton, who started sixth, charged into the top spot on lap 24. Thornton then led until lap 37, when Madden executed a slider on turn two to reclaim the lead as Moran moved up to second place. Madden then led Moran and Thornton until a caution with 41 laps completed bunches the field for a single-file restart with nine laps to go.
Thornton, who restarted in third, got by Moran on lap 45 and Madden on lap 46 to retake the lead for good, which he held to the finish line, winning by 1.7 seconds to complete a sweep of the weekend at Port Royal.
Thornton won all three Lucas Oil races at Port Royal in 2025, as he also went to victory lane back in April at “The Speed Palace.”
In Lucas Oil Victory Lane for the 12th time this year and for the 54th time in his career, Thornton had to earn his fourth career win at Port Royal.
“I just hoped I got back to him (Madden). It almost sounded like he was firing a little bit before I was (on the restarts), so he would get a little bit of a run down the hill. The first time, he didn’t slide me, and you, I thought maybe he’s not going to slide me, so on the next restart, he slid me. It was either wreck or get wrecked there. I started driving pretty hard against the wall to get sideways and try to get by Devin, and at that point, it was really the right move. I knew Devin was going to run the wall for a couple of laps, but he wouldn’t really commit up there. He would get his right rear close to the fence, but you almost had to get the right front in the fence and just hold it on the floor and pray it doesn’t turn bad turns,” said the Chandler, Arizona native.
“I got by Devin and slid past him there in three,” Thornton said. “He tried, I think, to drive it harder into the corner, and I believe that backfired on him instead of just slowing down to cross me like he did the time before. I reached second, and after that, I didn’t hit the throttle again until I got to turn one.
“I just wanted to make sure I caught up to Madden, and once I did, I aimed to position myself so he couldn’t cross me or beat me into one and slide me again. This time, he didn’t slide me, so I was ready for it—I entered in a way to ensure I could turn. He didn’t slide all the way across, so I stayed on the throttle around the wall. Once I was in front, I knew I had to drive as hard as I could and pray another yellow flag wouldn’t come out. Luckily, it worked out for us.”
Madden, who finished second a week ago in the Topless 100, collected another $20,000 check for car owner Kale Green with his second-place run.
“We were racing for 50 grand and had a good restart,” Madden said. “We drove into one there, and I had him cleared in the middle of the corner. He could have turned left or hit the brakes or whatever, but he slid into me in three and four, and I had to hit the brake. It is what it is. We had a great race at the end. Thornton got the job done, and we had a great race car tonight. Thanks to all the fans for coming out.”
Moran, who moved into third place in the championship points, finished third.
“Man, I’ve got a good car, so for some reason I can’t get that top run. I’ve tried and tried, but I just can’t make the speed up there like Ricky. However, I am starting to figure this place out a little more. I was good the first couple of times I came here, then I really struggled for probably two or three years. Now I feel like I’m in the top five, top three, top two. We just haven’t got that win, but we’ve got a good package, and I’m starting to get the hang of this place.”
The finish:
Feature (50 Laps): 1. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[6]; 2. 44-Chris Madden[2]; 3. 99-Devin Moran[4]; 4. 1-Brandon Sheppard[7]; 5. 49-Jonathan Davenport[5]; 6. 157-Mike Marlar[11]; 7. 111-Max Blair[15]; 8. 22G-Gregg Satterlee[17]; 9. 76-Brandon Overton[9]; 10. 71-Hudson O’Neal[3]; 11. 79-Donald McIntosh[14]; 12. 93-Carson Ferguson[1]; 13. 58-Garrett Alberson[10]; 14. 66C-Matt Cosner[8]; 15. 24-Rick Eckert[25]; 16. 60-Dan Ebert[20]; 17. 18D-Daulton Wilson[23]; 18. 6-Clay Harris[21]; 19. 7-Ross Robinson[16]; 20. N1-Michael Norris[13]; 21. 22F-Chris Ferguson[12]; 22. 22-Daniel Hilsabeck[24]; 23. 25Z-Mason Zeigler[19]; 24. 15K-Wil Herrington[18]; 25. 48-Colton Flinner[22]
