Brian Brown led flag-to-flag Friday night at Cocopah Speedway in Somerton, AZ, to earn his first win of the season and the third of his World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series career.

Brown won the pole for the race and that gave him a jump on the field, which proved to be invaluable on a track that dried quickly and made passing difficult.

None of the top 10 finishers in the Yuma Valley Showdown moved more than three positions away from their spots on the grid.

Brown breathed a sigh of relief after winning his first Outlaws race in more than three years. 



"It's been an awesome start to the year, but the last couple of nights haven't been good," Brown said. "The [crew] had a talk before the race and decided to hit the reset button."

Brown entered the night with five top fives, putting him fourth on that list. Those were his only top 10s; however, and he languishes 16th in the standings. 

"We've been in position to win some of these races this year; we just haven't capitalized," Brown added. "To beat these guys is an honor." 


The list of winners in the 2017 World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series season is finally filling out. Brown's victory at Cocopah makes him the sixth winner in the series this season, which did not seem likely at the beginning of the year. 

Donny Schatz dominated the first part of the season with five wins in the first six races. Once David Gravel snapped his five-race winning streak at Thunderbowl Raceway in Tulare, CA, Schatz proved to be human--or at least human-like.

While Schatz has given up a few victories in recent week, he has not struggled. His runner-up finish at Cocopah is his 10th top five in 11 races this year. 

"We had a decent enough car to win, but the way the track played out we had to be another row forward," Schatz said. "Everyone's tires were bald, and it was one groove in turns one and two. But turns three and four had two grooves. We just used so much tires at the end, just happy to salvage a second-place finish."

The multiple grooves in three and four provided much of the action. It also gave Schatz a chance to show why he scores so many top fives. 

Jason Sides started on the outside pole for the race with Sheldon Haudenschild lined up behind. In a thrilling three-car battle, Haudenschild tried to pull a slide job on Sides and lost momentum. Schatz capitalized within one straightaway to move into third. He caught Sides in traffic shortly after for second. 

Schatz ended the night in the runner-up position.

Brad Sweet finished third. Side was fourth, and Paul McMahan rounded out the top five.

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