Farmington’s Jeff Taylor has built numerous cars that raced in the Oxford 250 and he drove in a number of them himself but he had never won it in all the years he raced in it.
That changed late Sunday night as he captured the 51st annual Oxford 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway following a lengthy rain delay.
The nine-time OPS track champion had come close, finishing second to Hallowell’s Johnny Clark as recently as 2020.
He pulled away from 2018 winner Bubba Pollard of Senoia, Georgia and D.J Shaw of Center Conway, N.H. to take the checkered flag.
Berwick’s Joey Doiron was the leader at lap 116 when rain, thunder and lightning overswept the area and parked the race cars for a long delay in excess of two hours.
Doiron started second alongside pole-sitter Ryan Kuhn from East Bridgewater, Mass. and took the lead on lap six by accelerating past Kuhn on the inside.
Doiron, who won the inaugural Celebration of America 300 race at Oxford in July, continued to pace the field while Kuhn began sliding back.
There were a number of cautions and, as the race closed in on the halfway point, it began raining.
Thunder and lightning entered the region and the rain intensified which stopped the race nine laps away from the halfway point of lap 125.
In NASCAR, to be considered a completed race and have the results count, drivers must finish at least half of the laps.
At the time the race was stopped, Doiron was still leading.
Doiron finished second to Nova Scotian Cole Butcher in last year’s 250.
Derek Griffith of Hudson, N.H. had moved into second place with Shaw in third, Trevor Sanborn in fourth and Gabe Brown, also from Center Conway, N.H., rounding out the top five.
Shaw has finished third twice in his last five 250s and has four top six finishes in his last six 250s.
Shaw is currently leading the Pro All Stars Series North and National Super Late Model standings.
Butcher, the defending two-time champ, was banned from this year’s race by PASS founder, owner and president and Oxford Plains Speedway owner Tom Mayberry for his aggressive driving tactics.
