DREVICKI CHARGES TO SUMMER-ENDING USAC EAST COAST SCORE AT BRIDGEPORT

Winner #19 Steven Drevicki passes #67x J.R. Fulper for the lead late in Saturday night’s
USAC East Coast Sprint Car feature at New Jersey’s Bridgeport Motorsports Park.
(Steve Koletar Photo)

By: Kurt Bettler

Steven Drevicki waited until August to find victory lane in 2026.

Now, the five-time series champion is finding it more often.

Drevicki charged from his third place starting position to steal Saturday night’s summer-ending showdown at Swedesboro, New Jersey’s Bridgeport Motorsports Park, taking advantage of a late-race opportunity to capture his second victory of the season with the USAC East Coast Sprint Cars Presented by Baer Den Farms.

The Reading, Pennsylvania racer entered the night having collected a string of top-five finishes throughout the season, but the defending champion’s winless streak finally came to an end in August.

On Saturday night at the “Kingdom of Speed,” Drevicki proved once again that he is finding his stride at the right time of the season.

Twenty-three cars entered the event, with Christian Bruno, Chris Allen Jr., and J.R. Fulper picking up heat race victories. Jonathon Swanson captured the semi-feature.

Twenty cars took the green flag for the feature, with Kenny Miller III drawing the pole. When the green flag dropped, Miller immediately established himself as the car to beat. Miller’s No. 23m set the pace at the front while Kyle Spence charged forward from 10th and Christian Bruno worked his way through the field. Behind Miller, drivers exchanged slide jobs as the field battled for position and attempted to close the gap on the early leader.

J.R. Fulper, starting second, stayed within striking distance of Miller while putting together the best run of his USAC East Coast career. Then, on lap 15, the complexion of the race changed.

Miller jumped the cushion and made contact with the fence. The Weikel Sportswear ride then suffered a mechanical failure, ending the night for the early race leader and handing the lead to Fulper. The Milford, New Jersey rookie wasted no time opening up a sizeable advantage.

Fulper appeared headed toward his first USAC East Coast victory, but with three laps remaining, Drevicki began closing in while navigating heavy lapped traffic. With the laps winding down, Drevicki found himself in a three-wide battle with Fulper and lapped traffic. The defending champion made his move, throwing a slide job to take the lead coming to the white flag.

Fulper’s impressive run then turned into heartbreak. Fulper’s No. 67x stumbled in the closing laps, and ultimately, ran out of fuel, ending what had been a career best performance and leaving Fulper to wonder what could have been.

Drevicki took the checkered flag to secure his second USAC East Coast Sprint Car win of the season. Chris Allen Jr. came home second after starting fifth, while Kyle Spence continued his charge through the field to finish third.

Christian Bruno turned in another impressive drive, charging from ninth to finish fourth, while Ronald Helmick completed the top five.

Joe Kata continued his consistent season with a sixth-place finish, while Fulper salvaged seventh despite the late heartbreak. Jared Kreider brought the Kelly No. 51 home eighth, while Ed Aikin gained six positions to finish ninth, and Bruce Buckwalter Jr. rounded out the top 10.

As the 2026 USAC East Coast Sprint Car season enters its final stretch, Drevicki’s late-season surge has put the defending champion back at the front of the championship fight. Drevicki now leads Bruno by 19 points.

The battle for the 2026 championship continues as the USAC East Coast Sprint Cars Presented by Baer Den Farms head toward the final events of the season at Bridgeport on October 30-31.

USAC EAST COAST SPRINT CARS PRESENTED BY BAER DEN FARMS RACE RESULTS: September 19, 2026 – Bridgeport Motorsports Park – Swedesboro, New Jersey

E. SCHNEIDER & SONS FIRST HEAT: (8 laps, starting positions in parentheses, top 5 transfer to the feature) 1. Christian Bruno (#3BC JMO) (2), 2. Steven Drevicki (#19 Drevicki) (3), 3. Bruce Buckwalter Jr. (#83 Buckwalter) (1), 4. Kyle Spence (#42 Fraker) (5), 5. Frank Frasco (#186 Frasco) (4), 6. Dan Malley (#H20 Malley) (6), 7. Brett Rose (#45R Rose) (8), 8. Greg Shepis (#75 Shepsis) (7). NT

BDB GRAPHICS SECOND HEAT: (8 laps, starting positions in parentheses, top 5 transfer to the feature) 1. Chris Allen Jr. (#71 Allen) (1), 2. Ronald Helmick (#22R Helmick) (3), 3. Joe Kata (#10 Kata) (7), 4. Steve Downs (#12 Downs) (2), 5. Jared Kreider (#51 Kelly) (8), 6. Scott Frack (#39x Frack) (6), 7. Heidi Hedin (#3H Hedin) (5), 8. Gary Huston (#44 Huston) (4). NT

MALLEY POOL WATER THIRD HEAT: (8 laps, starting positions in parentheses, top 5 transfer to the feature) 1. J.R. Fulper (#67x Fulper) (3), 2. Kenny Miller III (#23m Miller) (6), 3. Brenden Hires (#2 Danner) (1), 4. Shane Braxton (#35 Braxton) (2), 5. Ed Aikin (#7 Aikin) (5), 6. Jonathan Swanson (#17 Swanson) (7), 7. Sean Case (#9c Case) (4). NT

BOULEVARD TRUCK REPAIR SEMI: (10 laps, starting positions in parentheses, top 5 transfer to the feature) 1. Jonathan Swanson (3), 2. Scott Frack (2), 3. Dan Malley (1), 4. Sean Case (6), 5. Heidi Hedin (5), 6. Gary Huston (8), 7. Brett Rose (4), 8. Greg Shepsis (7). NT

BAER DEN FARMS FEATURE: (25 laps, starting positions in parentheses) 1. Steven Drevicki (3), 2. Chris Allen Jr. (5), 3. Kyle Spence (10), 4. Christian Bruno (9), 5. Ronald Helmick (8), 6. Joe Kata (6), 7. J.R. Fulper (2), 8. Jared Kreider (14), 9. Ed Aikin (15), 10. Bruce Buckwalter Jr. (4), 11. Jonathan Swanson (16), 12. Scott Frack (17), 13. Dan Malley (18), 14. Sean Case (19), 15. Heidi Hedin (20), 16. Kenny Miller III (1), 17. Brenden Hires (7), 18. Shane Braxton (12), 19. Frank Frasco (13), 20. Steve Downs (11). NT

FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-15 Kenny Miller III, Laps 16-23 J.R. Fulper, Laps 24-25 Steven Drevicki.

USAC EAST COAST SPRINT CARS PRESENTED BY BAER DEN FARMS POINTS: 1-Steven Drevicki-784, 2-Christian Bruno-765, 3-Kenny Miller III-719, 4-Kyle Spence-599, 5-Joe Kata-596, 6-Ed Aikin-560, 7-Ronald Helmick-494, 8-Olivia Thayer-455, 9-Bruce Buckwalter Jr.-433, 10-Chris Allen Jr.-419.

NEXT USAC EAST COAST SPRINT CARS PRESENTED BY BAER DEN FARMS RACES: October 30-31, 2026 – Bridgeport Motorsports Park – Swedesboro, New Jersey

CONTINGENCY AWARD WINNERS:

RAD Race Design Hot Lap Hero: Kenny Miller III

Bitner Automotive Fast Time of the Night: Steven Drevicki

Hoosier Tire Pill Draw: Scott Frack (12)

C & C Landscape Hard Charger: Kyle Spence (10th to 3rd)

JPA Hard Luck Award: J.R. Fulper

J & W Home Improvement Highest Finishing Crate or 305: Sean Case (14th)