CHICO, Calif. — A first-time winner emerged from a crash-filled feature on night two of the 72nd Gold Cup Race of Champions at Silver Dollar Speedway.
Twenty-year-old Californian Dylan Bloomfield exchanged the lead with veteran racer Tim Kaeding and held off High Limit Racing champion Rico Abreu on a late restart to earn his first High Limit victory.
Jett Yantis started on the pole and led the early laps before driving into the barrier in turn four and flipping.
Bloomfield inherited the lead, but tangled with James McFadden on a restart, sending McFadden spinning and triggering a multi-car melee.
Bloomfield retained the point for the restart and faced a furious challenge from Kaeding during the middle stages of the event, which continued to be slowed by multiple yellow flags.
Bloomfield was up to the task on a late restart, keeping Abreu, who started 13th at bay.
Daison Pursley finished third, with Kaeding and Tanner Thorson, who started 22nd, completing the top five.
Abreu returned to the High Limit Racing point lead after Aaron Reutzel was involved in an early race flip.
Abreu also leads the points after two nights of the Gold Cup and joins Bloomfield, Pursley and Shane Golobic as locked in for Saturday’s $100,072-to-win finale.
The finish:
Feature (30 Laps): 1. 5K-Dylan Bloomfield[5]; 2. 24-Rico Abreu[13]; 3. 9-Daison Pursley[6]; 4. 0-Tim Kaeding[2]; 5. 88-Tanner Thorson[22]; 6. 55-Kerry Madsen[12]; 7. 13-Tanner Holmes[9]; 8. 2X-Justin Sanders[24]; 9. 26-Justin Peck[21]; 10. 29-Bud Kaeding[11]; 11. 7BC-Tyler Courtney[25]; 12. 77A-Levi Klatt[14]; 13. 5-Dominic Scelzi[26]; 14. 17W-Shane Golobic[7]; 15. 19-Brent Marks[8]; 16. 77-Giovanni Scelzi[3]; 17. 7-Seth Standley[23]; 18. 88N-DJ Netto[15]; 19. 7C-Colby Copeland[20]; 20. X1-Chance Grasty[19]; 21. 22K-Kayden Smith[18]; 22. 21-James McFadden[4]; 23. 26R-Levi Hillier[17]; 24. W-Kaleb Montgomery[16]; 25. 31-Jett Yantis[1]; 26. 87-Aaron Reutzel[10]
