Windham’s Brandon Barker outlasts rain to win the Oxford 250
Brandon Barker’s first Oxford 250 victory came after a night‑long battle that stretched from Sunday evening into the early hours of Monday at Oxford Plains Speedway in Oxford, Maine. The 53‑race‑long event—known as the Oxford 250—ended at 12:48 a.m. after a total of 4 hours, 49 minutes and a 2‑hour, 51‑minute rain delay that had the track and drivers in a state of constant readjustment.
Barker, the Windham native who has entered the event nine times, led 96 of the 250 laps and rode the lead to the checkered flag. His win brought a $25,000 purse plus an additional $9,600 for the laps he dominated. “It’s a great moment, and I’m just taking it all in,” he told reporters after the finish. “I drank a Celsius and a Red Bull, and I just waited it out like everybody else, strapped in, and, fortunately, the night went our way.”
The race was a roller‑coaster. DJ Shaw of Center, New Hampshire, captured the pole and led the first 69 laps, holding off his Canadian rival Alexendre “Fireball” Tardif of Quebec and Scarborough’s Garrett Hall. On lap 70 Gabe Brown overtook Shaw, and by lap 96 Brown had built a lead that he maintained while half the field pitted for the first caution. Tardif, who had started second and was forced to the rear after a spin in a later caution, finished fifth.
Rain began to fall on lap 127, prompting a 171‑minute pause that left the track slick and the drivers in a state of uncertainty.
