Beaulieu scores second GSPSS win with Speedway 95 sweep

What had the makings of a promising season for Evan Beaulieu looked to be over only a month and a half ago.

Saturday night, Beaulieu’s season had new life.

The Durham, Me. racer outgunned home-track hero Mike Hopkins in a late-race duel to pick up his second career Granite State Pro Stock Series win at Speedway 95, scoring a season sweep at the third-mile oval in Hermon, Me.

Saturday’s visit to the “Vacationland” oval was the series’ first since August’s announcement that owner Del Merritt will step back at the end of this season, selling the venerable track to Maine native and national-level motorsports veteran Ricky Craven.

Hopkins, who swept both GSPSS events at Speedway 95 last year, was not in the field for the June race at the track nearest to his race shop. Nevertheless, Hopkins unloaded fast, setting a fast lap in time trials and winning his heat to earn a front-row starting position. Wheeling a new Hamke chassis originally set up for his teammate Travis Stearns, Hopkins set the early pace on a long green-flag run.

Beaulieu, meanwhile, rolled off fifth and appeared to be stuck mid-pack early. As the race wore on, Beaulieu’s car came to life. Picking his way through the top five, Beaulieu emerged in second place with Hopkins holding steady out front.

A lap-85 caution flag was exactly what Beaulieu needed, as he closed the gap to Hopkins and lined up alongside the veteran for the restart. In a rematch of last summer’s Speedway 95 feature, Beaulieu battled Hopkins for the lead, finally pulling ahead with the checkers in sight.

After earning an emotional first GSPSS win in June, Beaulieu held on to score his second career win at the same track, becoming the first series driver to score multiple wins in 2025.

Hopkins came up just short after a dominant run, scoring his second straight GSPSS runner-up finish. Points leader Cole Robie was third, a welcome rebound of his own after a mid-pack showing at Lee.

Ryan Deane and defending champion Casey Call rounded out the top five.

Multiple wins on the season fell in line with Beaulieu’s preseason expectations, especially after building a new car in the offseason with local fabricator Alan Berry. But several weeks ago, Saturday’s result was unimaginable for the family team.

In July’s Iron Sight 125 at Lee USA Speedway, Beaulieu was caught up in a lap-nine conflagration that left him with terminal damage to his new car. As Beaulieu loaded up after the race, he felt it was unlikely they could be ready for the next Saturday’s race at Riverside Speedway in northern New Hampshire.

Berry’s shop, surprisingly, turned the car around fast enough for Beaulieu and his crew to cobble it back together in time. But with a short entry list for the summer’s fifth straight feature race, GSPSS president Mike Parks called off the Riverside event early.

With no other events scheduled in August, that gave Beaulieu a month to get the car right without rushing. What looked like a likely freefall in the points at best became a return to the track where, still mourning the passing of mother Lesha this spring, Beaulieu first found GSPSS’ victory lane.

Beaulieu had a stout performance going last year before contact with Hopkins bounced him from the lead. Hopkins went on to win, while Beaulieu salvaged a top-five finish. This time around, Beaulieu prevailed in the rematch.

Beaulieu also defended the Pine Tree State streak of Maine-only winners in Maine-hosted GSPSS events dating back to 2017. D.J. Shaw was the last driver not from Maine to win in the state, taking a feature at Wiscasset Speedway in 2016.

With the absence of Cory Casagrande and Wayne Helliwell, Jr., three full-time competitors remain in the title race, with defending champ Call a distant third to rookie Robie and last year’s runner-up Beaulieu. Robie lost minimal ground Saturday, but will need a bad hand from fate to give up the ground Beaulieu needs to win. Conversely, Beaulieu will need strong runs at Lee and Autodrome Chaudiere in the coming weeks. Lee has not been Beaulieu’s best track; Chaudiere is a wildcard for most of the GSPSS competitors. And with local racer Alexendre Tardif entered, everyone else may be racing for second on back.

But Beaulieu’s fortunes spun a losing hand into a big payoff once already this season. Perhaps another winning round is in store.

Unofficial Results
Granite State Pro Stock Series | GSPSS 100
Speedway 95, Hermon, Me.
1. (56) Evan Beaulieu
2. (15) Mike Hopkins
3. (29) Cole Robie
4. (22) Ryan Deane
5. (90NH) Casey Call
6. (8) Connor McDougal
7. (14) Josh St. Clair
8. (5) Troy Patterson
9. (07) John Curtis
10. (23) Dave Farrington, Jr.
11. (11B) Matt Beers
12. (81ME) Bryan Lancaster
13. (21) Shane Clark

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