Hoyt and Hull Haul Home SCoNE Winners at Unity

COLUMN BY: Justin St. Louis  /SPRINT CARS OF NEW ENGLAND – UNITY, ME – Matt Hoyt and Will Hull continued to make Unity Raceway their own personal playground over the weekend of July 10-11. The two former Sprint Cars of New England Tour champions each picked up an A-Main feature race victory and added another podium finish during the two-night doubleheader on Friday and Saturday, thrilling the packed grandstand crowds on a racy, two-groove surface that provided lots of passing and side-by-side action.

Friday was Hoyt’s night to shine. The Campton, NH native won his qualifying heat by a wide margin, but he had to work harder in the 25-lap A-Main. Former champion Tunk Berry started his outstanding weekend with a heat win as well, and he led the opening 12 circuits of the feature, holding Hoyt off for three laps before finally relinquishing command.

Overcoming adversity was the theme of the weekend as the bad luck bug seemed to bite often. Hull had a disastrous start with major engine trouble during before qualifying began. After completely rebuilding the left side of his engine in the pit area and barely making the start of the feature, Hull’s car appeared none the worse for wear and marched through traffic. He eventually reached Troy Comeau, Tunk Berry and his nephew, Kadyn Berry – the SCoNE Tour championship point leader – and was able to sneak past them after a pair of late restarts.

Hoyt was in his own zip code, though, and he drove away uncontested after the final restart on lap 20. The “King of Unity” notched his second SCoNE Tour win of the season and the fourth of his career at “Maine’s Toughest Oval”. Hull took the runner-up spot ahead of Kadyn Berry, Tunk Berry, and Mark Reynolds, who earned the first top-five finish of his SCoNE career.

On Saturday night, Hull’s powerplant was again feeling the effects of Friday’s issue and he again had to make hasty repairs, but he was finished in time for his qualifying heat, which he won. Comeau, who was knocked out of a podium position in Friday’s feature after his driveshaft and rear end came apart, turned his weekend around with a heat win, as well; family members back home in New Hampshire rounded up spare parts and delivered them to Maine early Saturday morning so Comeau could rebuild in time to race for the second night.

Another driver who had problems on Friday, Travis Billington, appeared as though he might have turned his season around for the better; after not racing the A-Main on Friday, Billington got his car running well and he jumped out front in Saturday’s 25-lapper. Hull passed Mac MacDuffie to reach Billington’s back bumper just before the halfway point of the race and tried to pass Billington on both the inside and outside lanes, but Billington was too strong each time and held Hull off for four laps, with MacDuffie in pursuit.

Everything changed suddenly, though, as MacDuffie’s rear end expired on lap 14 and Billington’s engine quit a half-lap later, and both exited the race; Billington had led every circuit prior to that point. Hull inherited the lead and soldiered on to win, despite having to fend off the field on two restarts in the final seven laps.

Kadyn Berry had another strong outing, driving from 10^th on the grid to the runner-up finish – his fifth podium result in as many races to open the 2026 season. Hoyt was third, followed by Tunk Berry and a rebounding Comeau, who pounded the wall on lap 11 and had a cut tire but was able to rejoin the race after repairs.

RACE NOTES:

• A field of 10 SCoNE Tour cars attended each of the Unity Raceway events during the weekend.
• Matt Hoyt’s victory was his second of 2026 and the 11^th of his career; he ranks seventh on the SCoNE Tour’s all-time win list.
• Will Hull’s victory was his second of 2026 and the 27^th of his career; he ranks third on the SCoNE Tour’s all-time win list.
• Friday’s qualifying heat races were won by Matt Hoyt and Tunk Berry, and Saturday’s heats were won by Will Hull and Troy Comeau; each earned a $50 bonus from Friend Construction of Middlebury, VT.
• Friday’s A-Main had two caution flags, on laps 11 (Caiden Herbert – Turn 4) and 20 (Troy Comeau – backstretch).
• Saturday’s A-Main had three caution flags, on laps 11 (Troy Comeau – Turn 1), 18 (Caiden Herbert – backstretch), and 20 (Caiden Herbert – Turn 4). All cautions were for mechanical failures or flat tires; there were no spins or accidents on either night.
• Chris Downs Motorsports presented the Hard Charger Award, with Friday’s $50 bonus going to Will Hull, who started ninth and finished second to gain a race-high seven positions, and Saturday’s bonus going to Kadyn Berry, who start 10^th and finished second to gain eight positions.
• Whitcomb Excavating & Landscaping of Francestown, NH posted $50 awards for drivers having a tough outing: Friday’s “Doug Luck” bonus went to Will Hull after his engine problems, and Saturday’s “Doug Luck” bonus went to Travis Billington, who had an engine failure while leading.
• C.V. Elms Livestock posted a $50 bonus for the driver who turned the fastest lap time on lap 6 on each night, which were Tunk Berry on Friday (15.269 seconds) and Will Hull on Saturday (14.442 seconds).
• SCoNE Contingency Program product certificates were awarded to Kadyn Berry and Matt Hoyt (Swagger Factory Apparel), Tunk Berry, twice (Night Owl Creations), Troy Comeau and Caiden Herbert (DMI/Bulldog Rear Ends), and Travis Billington and Mac MacDuffie (Waddell Communications).
• After five SCoNE Tour events, Kadyn Berry leads the point standings with 324 points, ahead of Matt Hoyt (320), Will Hull (304), Caiden Herbert (280), and Floyd Billington (272).
• After the first two events in the Maine State Championship Series, Matt Hoyt leads with 143 points, followed by Will Hull (138), Kadyn Berry (128), Tunk Berry (122), and Troy Comeau (115).

The Sprint Cars of New England are back at Bradford, VT’s Bear Ridge Speedway on Saturday, July 18, with both the winged SCoNE Tour and the new SCoNE Wingless Series in action. Racing begins at 6 p.m. To learn more about the Sprint Cars of New England organization, visit www.nesprintcars.com or find the “SCoNE – Sprint Cars of New England” page on Facebook.

OFFICIAL RESULTS – Sprint Cars of New England Tour

Unity Raceway – Unity, ME

Friday, July 10, 2026

A-Main Feature (25 laps)

Pos.-(Start)-Driver-Hometown

# – denotes rookie

1. (5) Matt Hoyt, Campton, NH
2. (9) Will Hull, Plainfield, VT
3. (6) Kadyn Berry, Goffstown, NH
4. (2) Tunk Berry, North Conway, NH
5. (1) Mark Reynolds, Hudson Falls, NY
6. (8) Floyd Billington, South Glens Falls, NY
7. (7) Mac MacDuffie, Salisbury, NH
8. (3) Troy Comeau, Wentworth, NH
9. (3) Caiden Herbert, New Hampton, NH

Did Not Start: Travis Billington, South Glens Falls, NY

Contingency Award Winners:

• Friend Construction Heat Winners: Matt Hoyt, Tunk Berry
• Chris Downs Motorsports “Hard Charger” Award: Will Hull (+7 positions)
• Swagger Factory Apparel: Kadyn Berry (3^rd)
• Night Owl Creations: Tunk Berry (4^th)
• DMI/Bulldog Rear Ends: Troy Comeau (8^th)
• Waddell Communications: Travis Billington
• C.V. Elms Livestock Lap 6 Fast Time Award: Tunk Berry (15.269 seconds)
• Whitcomb Excavating & Landscaping “Doug Luck” Award: Will Hull
• Whitcomb Excavating & Landscaping “Gravity Is Not My Friend” Award: n/a

OFFICIAL RESULTS – Sprint Cars of New England Tour

Unity Raceway – Unity, ME

Saturday, July 11, 2026

A-Main Feature (25 laps)

Pos.-(Start)-Driver-Hometown

# – denotes rookie

1. (4) Will Hull, Plainfield, VT
2. (10) Kadyn Berry, Goffstown, NH
3. (6) Matt Hoyt, Campton, NH
4. (9) Tunk Berry, North Conway, NH
5. (3) Troy Comeau, Wentworth, NH
6. (8) Floyd Billington, South Glens Falls, NY
7. (7) Mark Reynolds, Hudson Falls, NY
8. (5) Caiden Herbert, New Hampton, NH
9. (1) Travis Billington, South Glens Falls, NY
10. (2) Mac MacDuffie, Salisbury, NH

Contingency Award Winners:

• Friend Construction Heat Winners: Will Hull, Troy Comeau
• Chris Downs Motorsports “Hard Charger” Award: Kadyn Berry (+8 positions)
• Swagger Factory Apparel: Matt Hoyt (3^rd)
• Night Owl Creations: Tunk Berry (4^th)
• DMI/Bulldog Rear Ends: Caiden Herbert (8^th)
• Waddell Communications: Mac MacDuffie (10^th)
• C.V. Elms Livestock Lap 6 Fast Time Award: Will Hull (14.442 seconds)
• Whitcomb Excavating & Landscaping “Doug Luck” Award: Travis Billington
• Whitcomb Excavating & Landscaping “Gravity Is Not My Friend” Award: n/a

Upcoming SCoNE Events:

• Saturday, July 18 – Bear Ridge Speedway – Bradford, VT (SCoNE Tour & SCoNE Wingless Series)
• Friday, August 7 – Albany-Saratoga Speedway – Malta, NY (SCoNE Tour)
• Saturday, August 15 – Bear Ridge Speedway – Bradford, VT (SCoNE Tour & SCoNE Wingless Series)