Trainor awarded second Little 500 victory

ANDERSON — Long after the grandstands were emptied and teams were packing up equipment, Massachusetts driver Jake Trainor was awarded the victory in the Unified Group Services Little 500 at Anderson Speedway last year.

Trainor was declared the official race winner after apparent winner Dakoda Armstrong’s car failed a post-race technical inspection.

“Unfortunately, in post-race tech, the No. 1 car was found to have a digital device mounted in the car, which is a violation of the rule book for this event,” said Rick Dawson, owner of Anderson Speedway. “Subsequently, the car was disqualified from the event.”

Last year, Armstrong lost his bid for a Little 500 victory when he was passed by his cousin, Caleb, on the last lap.

In a Facebook post Armstrong showed some humor, noting how he lost the Little 500 for the second year in a row. He thanked race officials for putting on an awesome event and vowed to return in 2026.

“I want to apologize to my crew and everyone at Anderson for putting them in a position where they had to make a decision like this,” Armstrong wrote.

“The lap timer I had mounted on the dash of the car is something I’ve ran in a multitude of races over the last three years. I know the series is just following the regulations they have set and rules are rules.”

Armstrong would go on to claim his first 500 Sprint Car Tour championship in 2025.

For Trainor, who started 12th in the field, it was his second Little 500 victory in three years.

He ran in the top 10 for most of the race and took the lead when Tyler Roahrig’s car lost its drive train on Lap 297.

Following the last caution period on Lap 434, Armstrong led Kyle O’Gara, Davey Hamilton Jr. and Trainor.

Trainor moved into the second spot on Lap 481 with a pass of O’Gara.

“We just wanted to be there at the end,” Trainor said before being declared the race winner.

O’Gara salvaged a strong second place finish after being involved in a Lap 1 melee.

“We used our equipment up coming through the field,” he said of the climb through the field. “I can’t be disappointed.”

Hamilton came home in third, followed by Bobby Santos III and Jackson Macenko.

Rylan Gray, making a rare pavement start, won rookie of the year honors with his 12th place finish.

There was heartbreak for Tyler Roahrig who was seeking a third win when he retired on Lap 297 while leading the race with an apparent mechanical problem.

Roahrig started on the pole and led 87 laps in the middle stages of the race.

The start of the 77th Unified Group Services began in disaster for several drivers on the opening lap of the race, collecting nine cars before they got into Turn 1.

It appeared Davey Hamilton in the middle of the front row came up on rookie Colton Bettis on the front straightaway.