Murtaugh Captures Canandaigua DIRTcar Sportsman Series Showdown
McPherson wraps up Western Region points title; Newton nabs New Legends Fair win
Canandaigua, NY – July 22, 2026 – Tom Skibinski, Land of Legends Raceway PR
Auto racing during the 183rd edition of the Ontario County Fair arrived mid-week with a big DIRTcar doubleheader hitting the Land Of Legends Raceway clay. While stock cars filled the twin-bill for many seasons prior, a pair of Sportsman divisions headlined the Wednesday special this time around at the popular Routes 5&20 oval.
Current track points leader Richard Murtaugh III showed the way, leading all but the opening two circuits to capture the Stirling Lubricants Sportsman Modified main while fourth-generation upstart Lucas Newton staved off every bid by Brianna Murtaugh to claim the companion MighTea Boba New Legends Sportsman feature.
Despite the unseasonably cool temperatures and overcast skies throughout the day, a solid field of 38 Sportsman Modified racers signed in pitside as the battle for DIRTcar Sportsman Series supremacy continued in Canandaigua with drivers in search of Central and West Region titles traveling into Finger Lakes territory for a combined points event culminating with the 30-lap feature paying $1,000 to win.
Murtaugh had his #33 180 Flood Drive Properties-Predator Race Cars & Fabrication/Bicknell entry dialed in from the get-go, stopping the clock at 19.127.127sec. (94.108mph) in timed hot laps then winning his qualifying heat before dominating the 15-mile main event. Despite the fast track conditions, Kane Bristol, who also won the main event the last time Sportsman competed during the Ontario Co. Fair in 2019, still holds the fairgrounds Sportsman speed record of 18.783sec. (95.831mph) posted in September of the same year.
“Wow, what a car, this thing’s phenomenal,” beamed Murtaugh, following his sixth career win at LOLR with two now registered on tour, his first coming during the ‘24 Gerald Haers Memorial Weekend. “To beat who I think is probably the best driver (Cody McPherson) in the class right now, and Karl (Comfort) obviously, so this says a lot about this car, this team and what we got going.”
Showing early signs of “yellow fever” on this night, a frontstretch low speed pile-up occurred before the 30-lap headliner even began with track regular Justin Liechti’s mount shutting down as the 31-car starting field sauntered down the front straightaway. Among the handful of cars involved in the pre-race mishap were Canadian invader Matteo Panunte and Central Region points leader Hunter Hollenbeck, with all able to continue once the initial green flag finally flew.
After Nick Cooper slowed on the opening circuit to incur the first caution, a multi-car pile-up on lap four involving no less than a half-dozen drivers forced a rare red flag situation as the track was blocked at the beginning of the back chute. Making his first-ever appearance at the fairgrounds, top-10 runner Taylor Wason looped his ride rounding turn two leaving those directly behind little room to escape contact.
Meanwhile, outside pole-sitter Evan Nugent and front row partner Chase Spoor shared the early lead before sixth-place starter Murtaugh took control for good on lap three. As more yellow flags unfurled keeping the pack tight, McPherson was the man on the move, cracking the front-five and looking for more as the halfway mark approached.
Murtaugh maintained a comfortable advantage through 15 laps with Comfort, Austin Germinio and Nugent narrowly ahead of McPherson, who filed in 21st on the starting grid. Possibly the fastest car on the track in the closing stages, provisional starter Cody Manitta (started 28th) moved in to challenge McPherson yet suddenly dropped off the pace to require the sixth and final yellow flag on lap 26.
The final five laps proved beneficial only for McPherson as the St. Catharines, Ont. veteran disposed of Nugent, Germino and then Comfort before settling for runner-up laurels 1.4sec. behind the victorious Murtaugh machine. Liechti rallied to finish fourth following his pace lap issue while Nugent placed fifth in a valiant effort. Germinio, Hollenbeck, Spoor, Nigel Pendykoski and Quinn Wallis rounded out the top-10 with 21 cars completing all 30 laps in the final rundown.
“I didn’t know where to be and the flagger wasn’t telling me how big of a lead I had so I was just kinda basing it off feel,” remarked Murtaugh, with his second win of the ‘26 Canandaigua campaign tying the Fulton driver with Hollenbeck atop the DIRTcar Central Region points standings. “Just kept getting such good runs going into the corners and out over there (turn 4) so I just stuck with it and here we are.”
While Murtaugh was on rails up high all night, McPherson came alive at feature time steering owner Bubby Pawlak’s no. 1 Hy-Tech Concrete-CanAmerican Stone Spreader/ Bicknell entry, his normal Friday night ride out west at Ransomville (NY) Speedway.
“(Car) was way too tight in hot lap time trials and the heat, went to work and luckily I could get up to second,” noted McPherson, after wrapping up the Western Regional title with a pair of wins (Merrittville, Ransomville) and Wednesday’s runner-up tally in the Finger Lakes. “It’s tough to say it’s frustrating when you go from 21st to second but I just think we could’ve got there quicker if we didn’t have that break up with the motor and stumble.”
“For Scotty and the boys … felt bad had to go through a consi and start 21st so I wanted to make sure I got a good run for them just because I appreciate all the hard work they do and let me drive. I just show up and drive and this car was a rocketship. I struggle here (LOLR) and last year when we won (tour race) it was a shock to me. Once this place slows down we’re pretty good, especially on the bottom, just had that stumble,” reflected McPherson, who drove his own no. 7 Willard Concrete & Trucking-Rick's Delivery-C.McPherson Jr. Trucking/Bicknell to the series win last September in the Haers Memorial.
Eventual 2025 LOLR points champion Comfort won the Sportsman Series stop last July at the fairgrounds before filling out the podium in defense on Wednesday.
“Kinda hit the hole a couple times in the end there and the front-end pushed out and that cost me second but I really wanted to see (race) stay green when Richard caught up to the lap cars,” lamented Comfort, pilot of the potent #10 Steve General Contractor-Millco Woodworking-Honeoye Auto Parts/Bicknell car. “But it was a good night. Everything’s clean, (car) is in one piece, everybody worked hard and the track was really good.”
New Legends Sportsman teams joined their big brothers on Wednesday, trading in the normal 12-lap feature for a 25-lapper with the nine cars entered running an expanded 8-lap heat. Newton won the qualifier over Murtaugh and the ‘heads-up’ feature race starting format pitted them side-by-side on the front row to begin the main event beyond the midway.
As expected the lead pair was the cream of the class running uncontested, with Murtaugh chasing Newton the entire distance hoping to match her older brother Richard’s march to the checkers. Brianna remained in striking distance throughout, finally pulling low alongside the leader down the backstretch on lap 24 before Newton regrouped aboard his no. 54N Park Home Improvement & Repair=Mogaveros-Salon Envy-Red Osier Landmark Restaurant/Bicknell entry to author a narrow one-second victory at the line.
Third-place finisher Jon Almekinder crossed the scales underweight in the customary post-race inspection, advancing Dominic Albanese, Trent Regan and Matt Scott in the top-five running order.
“Kinda heard Brianna coming a little bit then she got underneath me,” stated the 13-year-old go-kart graduate, with four feature wins in the Novice Sportsman class at both Ransomville (Fri.) and The Dirt Track at Genesee (Sat.) in Batavia this season. “It’s special because my dad won here so I’m glad to get a win here.”
Lucas is a fourth-generation driver following in the tire tracks of his great grandfather Rich Newton, who drove Modifieds for many years. His grandfather Rick Newton was the 1996 Sportsman Modified track champion at the formerly named Genesee Speedway and dad Ricky Newton, a long-time competitor in the Sportsman (6 LOLR wins), 358-Modified and Big Block Modified classes, still contends today in the Sportsman division at the Genesee Dirt Track.
2026 DIRTcar Sportsman Series Central Region Schedule
Sun, May 3 @ Weedsport Speedway - Hunter Hollenbeck
Fri, June 26 @ Brewerton Speedway - Cody Manitta
Wed, July 1 @ Can-Am Speedway - Rain-delayed to Sept. 10
Wed, July 22 @ Land of Legends Raceway - Richard Murtaugh III
Sat, July 25 @ Fulton Speedway - ? ?
POINTS (thru July 22)
520 - Richard Murtaugh 520 - Hunter Hollenbeck 504 - Tony Finch II 464 - Taylor Wason 462 - David Hackett
2026 DIRTcar Sportsman Series West Region Schedule
Fri, May 29 @ Ransomville Speedway - Cody McPherson
Sat, May 30 @ Merrittville Speedway - Cody McPherson
Wed, July 22 @ Land of Legends Raceway - Richard Murtaugh III
FINAL POINTS 446 - Cody McPherson 416 - Brett Senek 394 - Nigel Pendykowski 378 - Matteo Panunte 352 - Martin Polhill
LEGEND LEDGER
With no racing scheduled this Saturday, July 25 due to the continued Ontario County Fair festivities, the final full month of racing at Land Of Legends Raceway kicks off Aug. 1 with Lake Beverage headlining the six-division slate of Pepsi Big-Block Modified, Stirling Lubricants Sportsman, DisBatch Brewing Company 305 Sprint Car, Proctor Enterprises Street Stock, Smith Bros. Drywall Hobby Stock and MighTea Boba New Legends Sportsman action. Mac’s Dairy Bar Kids Club presents the annual Powerwheels races during intermission, making this another fun-filled night for the entire family trackside. The first qualifying heat goes green at 6:30pm, pit gates open at 3:30pm, spectators gain entrance at 5 o'clock and hot laps start at 5:30 on the fast fairgrounds half-miler.
SKIDMARKS
Guided by award-winning executive producer Art Rorick, the talented LOLR TV broadcast team boasting production assistant Teara LeGrett, graphics coordinator Mark Rose, camera operators Mike Yawney, Jim & Michelle Mullen, and veteran voice Steven Ovens (PA announcer) and Adam DelGrosso (pit reporter) is once again on-site to provide LIVE video coverage of every event through Land of Legends TV, with LIVE streaming continuing to be offered FREE in 2026. On-line registration at https://landoflegendstv.com for a free account is the only step to take.
Also available for download is the LOLR mobile app found at Google Play
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.goodbarber.landoflegends or
App Store
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/land-of-legends/id1508128970?uo=4 to secure your raceday pass today.
In addition to LOLR's weekly racing being simulcast on Land of Legends Raceway TV, each show will also be broadcast live on DIRTVision and highlighted by the mighty DIRTcar Big-Block Modifieds. To watch, sign up for an annual Platinum FAST PASS with DIRTVision and experience every event either online or through the DIRTVision App.
LOWER PRICES PROVIDED WITH SPECIAL 2026 TICKET & PASS PACKAGES
General Admission Ticket and Pit Pass bundles continue to be offered to LOLR fans and race teams while providing a great opportunity to save money in the process. G.A. packs of 20 ($220) or 50 ($475) and Pit bundles of 20 ($700) or 50 ($1700) must be pre-ordered to be used during the upcoming season.
Regular weekly ticket prices remain set at $15 Adults, $13 Seniors, Kids 16 yrs. and under FREE. Pit passes are $40. For those youngsters needing pit access, Child Season Pit Passes are $50 for 2 yrs. & under and $150 for kids 3-13. Camping is FREE at all race events.
To purchase ticket and pit pass bundles, review marketing opportunities still available at the track in 2026 or make media credential inquiries and vendor requests, please e-mail manager@landoflegendsraceway.com. Be sure to check out www.landoflegendsraceway.com often as the latest news and season schedule information will be posted right up to raceday.
Land of Legends Raceway is located on County Road 10 at the Ontario County Fairgrounds, just 1-1/2-miles north of Routes 5&20, and is easily accessible from the NYS Thruway (I-90), taking Exit 43 (Manchester, Route 21 South) traveling from the east or Exit 44 (Farmington, Route 332 South) coming from the west.
Land of Legends Raceway Event Summary – July 22, 2026
183rd Ontario County Fair Championships
Stirling Lubricants Sportsman Modified
DIRTcar Northeast Series Central/West Region Race #3
*Feature (30 laps): 1. 33-Richard Murtaugh III ($1,000), 2. 1-Cody McPherson, 3. 10-Karl Comfort, 4. 21j-Justin Liechti, 5. 25n-Evan Nugent, 6. 10g-Austin Germinio, 7. 72-Hunter Hollenbeck, 8. 41s-Chase Spoor, 9. 78jr.-Nigel Pendykoski, 10. 31b-Quinn Wallis, 11. 0f-Tony Finch II, 12. 111-Brett Senek, 13. 82-David Hackett, 14. fox28-Tyler Stevenson, 15. 7g-Tyler Guzzardi, 16. 123-Dale Welty, 17. 43j-Jayden Wust, 18. 18r-Madyson Rouse, 19. 54-Sullivan Dickey, 20. 212-Martin Polhill, 21. 10h-Trevor Houghton, 22. 6m-Cody Manitta, 23. 113jr.-Frank Guererri Jr., 24. 64-Tyler Corcoran, 25. 9-Tim Baker, 26. 28$-Brian Harber, 27. 714-Chris Darling, 28. 12g-Matt Guererri, 29. 07w-Taylor Wason, 30. 99jr.-Matteo Panunte, 31. 35-Nick Cooper.
West Region Champion: Cody McPherson.
Heats (8 laps / 5 qualify / top-2 redraw)
#1: Spoor, Corcoran, M.Guererri, Hackett, Darling, Senek, Dickey, Houghton, Rouse, Woodworth.
#2: Murtaugh, Nugent, Germinio, Wason, Hollenbeck, McPherson, Ridley, Polhill, Bullock, Manitta(DNS).
#3: Comfort, Baker, Pendykoski, Guzzardi, Welty, Wallis, Finch, Galusha, Lloyd.
#4: Cooper, F.Guererri, Liechti, Panunte, Wust, Harber, Lupold, Stevenson, Borden.
(DNS).
Last Chance Showdown (10 laps/ 3 qualify)
#1: McPherson, Senek, Dickey, Polhill, Woodworth, Rouse, Ridley, Houghton, Bullock.
#2: Harber, Wallis, Finch, Manitta, Stevenson, Lupold, Borden, Galusha, Lloyd(DNS).
Provisionals: Polhill, Manitta, Stevenson, Rouse, Houghton.
Group Time Trials (3 laps / 38 cars)
#1: Spoor 19.278sec. (93.371mph), M.Guererri 19.288, Corcoran 19.295, Hackett 19.335, Senek 19.348, Dickey 19.351, Houghton 19.554, Darling 19.555, Rouse 19.556, Woodworth 19.760.
#2: Murtaugh 19.127.127sec. (94.108mph), Nugent 19.282, Germinio 19.337, McPherson 19.364, Wason 19.364, Hollenbeck 19.399, Manitta 19.440, Ridley 19.485, Polhill 19.661, Bullock 19.677..
#3: Comfort 19.294sec. (93.293 mph), Baker 19.452, Pendykoski 19.485, Guzzardi 19.557, Finch 19.605, Wallis 19.663, Galusha 19.733, Welty 19.744, Lloyd(-NT-).
#4: Cooper 19.389sec. (92.836 mph), Panunte 19.479, Wust 19.516, F.Guererri 19.538, Liechti 19.612, Harber 19.693, Stevenson 19.802, Lupold 19.857, Borden 19.937.
DNQ (7): 1f-AJ Lloyd, 20-Nick Galusha, 20b-Brayden Bullock, 20k-Kyle Ridley, 23b-Timmy Borden Jr., 45-Michael Lupold, 63-Dylan Woodworth.
MighTea Boba New Legends Sportsman
*Feature (25 laps): 1. 54n-Lucas Newton, 2. 33b-Brianna Murtaugh, 3. 72a-Dominic Albanese, 4. 17r-Trent Regan, 5. 4-Matt Scott, 6. 26-MItchell Hyde, 7. 19-Benny Wagner, 8. 11-Parker Ridley, 117-Jon Almekinder(DSQ).
Heat (8 laps)
#1: Newton, Murtaugh, Wagner, Regan, Ridley, Albanese, Almekinder, Scott, Hyde(DNS).
NEXT EVENT: Saturday Spectacular, August 1 @ 6:30pm; Lake Beverage presents Big-Block Modified/Sportsman/305 Sprint/Street Stock/Hobby Stock and New Legends Sportsman plus Kids Powerwheels races.
*No Racing Sat., July 25.
Track Instant Info
Website: www.LandOfLegendsRaceway.com
E-Mail: info@LandOfLegendsRaceway.com
Twitter: @LandofLegendsNY
Facebook: @LandofLegendsNY
Instagram: @LandofLegendsNY
Live Stream: https://landoflegendstv.com/
Along with recognizing select 50/50 raffle fund beneficiaries, Land of Legends Raceway is proud to salute several sponsors and corporate partners that continue to help bring its fans the best Saturday night racing show in the Northeast. Listed alphabetically are 2026 division sponsors
DisBatch Brewing Company (305), MighTea Boba (Leg), Pepsi Geneva Club Beverage (Mod), Proctor Enterprises (Sts), Smith Brothers Drywall (Hob), Stirling Lubricants (Spt); event sponsors Admar Construction Rentals, A-Verdi Storage Containers, Lake Beverage, Copart, *DisBatch Brewing Company, DC Rauscher Contractor, Ferris Mowers, Fulldraw Hunting Equipment, Honeoye Auto Parts, LSI Solutions, Marine Blue, *Pepsi/Geneva Club Beverage, Phelps Cement Products, *Proctor Enterprises, Prouty's Bar & Grill, Regional Truck & Trailer, Rose City Drive In, Ryan Phelps Auto Sales, Seneca Meadows Landfill, *Smith Brothers Drywall, Superior Plus Propane, Tradition Automotive Group, Wilbert's U-Pull It; promotional partners Baker's Exterminating, Champion Power Equipment, Close Racing Supply(CRS), Comfort Windows, Elab Smokers Boutique, Emerson Oil Company, Fast Lane Rod & Customs, Hoosier Racing Tire, Mac's Dairy Bar & Mini Golf, Marine Blue, Meyer's Finger Lakes RV, *MighTea Boba, Mike Emhof Motorsports, NG Promotions, Ontario County Fairboard, Phelps Cement Products, Prouty's Bar & Grill, PumperJack Septic Services, The "Original" Red Osier Landmark Restaurant, Schultz Heating & Cooling, *Stirling Lubricants, Turn 5 Media, VP Racing Fuels, Weedsport Hall of Fame, Wicked Tees.