Sports
Layne Riggs holds on to claim first NASCAR Trucks street race
Feb 12, 2026; Daytona Beach, Florida, USA; NASCAR Truck Series driver Layne Riggs (34) during practice for the Fresh from Florida 250 at Daytona International Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — In a thrilling run to the checkered flag, Layne Riggs bobbed, weaved and saved just enough fuel to keep a pair of hard-charging fellow Ford drivers in Ty Majeski and Ben Rhodes behind him to win the OnlyBulls Green Flag 150 on Saturday afternoon.
Riggs’ No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford crossed the line .879 of a second ahead of Majeski for his first victory of the year and sixth of his career as the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series held its inaugural race on the streets of downtown St. Petersburg.
Starting 28th in the 36-car field, Riggs turned in remarkable work moving forward from the drop of the green flag. He finished seventh in the opening 20-lap stage and won the second stage 20 laps later. Riggs said the fuel light was flickering with about eight laps to go and that he was almost certain he wasn’t going to have enough to finish.
“Just didn’t know how long it was going to last,” Riggs said.
It lasted long enough to take the win and allow for victory donuts around the crowded course as he celebrated the first road course victory of his career, leading a race-best 41 of the 80 laps.
“It was a lot of fun racing here at St. Pete, I think everybody heard street course and thought they weren’t going to be able to pass and there wouldn’t be great side-by-side racing, but this was one of the race-iest tracks we’ve ever gone to, at least in the truck series in my time,” Riggs said with a smile. “It was a lot of fun.
“I call myself a road racer now,” he added, noting it was only the fifth road course race of his life. “It’s amazing to race so many well-known guys, going past some and knowing these guys are road-course ringers and we were faster today.”
Sunny skies and a scenic 1.8-mile 14-turn course along the downtown St. Pete waterfront provided a great scene for the series’ first street course event — and the trucks did not disappoint the large and enthusiastic crowd.
At one point late in the race, Riggs, 23, held a two minute-plus advantage on the field, but lapped traffic in the final 10 laps allowed Majeski and Rhodes to close in. With a lap to go, it looked like Majeski had put his No. 88 ThorSport Racing Ford in position to make a final challenge on Riggs, but he overshot Turn 13 for the second time on the day.
Majeski recovered enough to hold on to second, but left the track feeling he’d lost an opportunity.
The 2024 series champion also climbed out of his Ford truck encouraged by the venue.
“It was probably the most fun I’ve had in a race car in a long time,” Majeski said. “A lot of fun. It’s a racey race track with three good passing zones and rewards discipline.
“Just finding that balance between being aggressive and making mistakes and staying disciplined,” Majeski said of his day, which included two laps out front and that runner-up finish after starting 22nd.
“Just made a little mistake into (Turn) 13, got a little wheel-hop and had to chase it and battle my way back. Hope everyone enjoyed the show. We passed a lot of trucks today.”
Rhodes, who led 23 laps early, similarly could not mount a challenge in the closing laps as he, too, had to save fuel.
“That’s all we had in the tank for our F150 here, literally I was running out of gas those last two laps,” said Rhodes, who has a pair of top-five finishes through the season’s opening three races.
“Really proud of Ford Racing for bringing us a fast truck. Our truck’s in one piece and a lot of these trucks aren’t. Very excited, though. Brand-new truck and a good showing for it.”
Former IndyCar stars — Dario Franchitti and James Hinchcliffe and current IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Series full-timer Colin Braun — added an extra element of intrigue to the field. Braun, who started 16th in Kaulig Racing’s No. 25 RAM Truck, finished ninth to pace that esteemed trio.
Hinchcliffe, the former Indy 500 polesitter and multi-race winner, finished 10th in the No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet. Franchitti, the three-time Indianapolis 500 winner, was officially scored 27th as his No. 1 TRICON Garage Toyota pitted late in the race and lost a lap.
Fords swept the top four positions, with Riggs’ teammate Chandler Smith finishing fourth after leading seven laps. TRICON Garage’s Kaden Honeycutt rounded out the top five in a Toyota.
Neice Motorsports teammates Landen Lewis and Andres Perez De Lara were sixth and seventh with McAnally-Hilgemann’s Daniel Hemric, Braun and Hinchcliffe completing the top 10.
“I think the overall headliner is that a Bahamian, North Carolina, boy won on a road course against some of the best in the world,” a grinning Riggs said. “It’s a testament to everyone at Front Row Motorsports and a shoutout to (sports car driver) Joey Hand, who did a lot of work with me.”
“It is an amazing place to come and I don’t know why we couldn’t come back next year … I couldn’t believe how packed the grandstands were and I thought it was one of the best road course races the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series has ever seen,” Riggs said of running the doubleheader weekend along with the IndyCar Series, which races Sunday. “Thank you to all the fans for coming out.”
Smith now leads the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series championship standings by 34 points over former two-time series champion Rhodes.
NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series Race — OnlyBulls Green Flag 150 at St. Petersburg
Grand Prix of St. Petersburg
St. Petersburg, Florida
Saturday, Feb. 28, 2026
1. (28) Layne Riggs, Ford, 80.
2. (22) Ty Majeski, Ford, 80.
3. (4) Ben Rhodes, Ford, 80.
4. (5) Chandler Smith, Ford, 80.
5. (19) Kaden Honeycutt, Toyota, 80.
6. (8) Landen Lewis, Chevrolet, 80.
7. (14) Andres Perez De Lara, Chevrolet, 80.
8. (34) Daniel Hemric, Chevrolet, 80.
9. (16) Colin Braun, RAM, 80.
10. (3) James Hinchcliffe, Chevrolet, 80.
11. (35) Ben Maier, Chevrolet, 80.
12. (11) Justin Haley, RAM, 80.
13. (1) Connor Mosack, Chevrolet, 80.
14. (30) Cole Butcher #, Ford, 80.
15. (31) Christian Eckes, Chevrolet, 80.
16. (18) Tyler Reif, Chevrolet, 80.
17. (12) Daniel Dye, RAM, 80.
18. (9) Jake Garcia, Ford, 80.
19. (20) Kris Wright, Chevrolet, 80.
20. (29) Tanner Gray, Toyota, 80.
21. (26) Carter Fartuch, Ford, 80.
22. (25) Grant Enfinger, Chevrolet, 80.
23. (10) Adam Andretti, Toyota, 80.
24. (15) Brenden Queen #, RAM, 80.
25. (2) Giovanni Ruggiero, Toyota, 79.
26. (17) Stewart Friesen, Toyota, 79.
27. (6) Dario Franchitti, Toyota, 79.
28. (21) Mini Tyrrell #, RAM, 77.
29. (24) Jackson Lee, Ford, 75.
30. (23) Frankie Muniz, Ford, 74.
31. (13) Tyler Ankrum, Chevrolet, 70.
32. (36) Timmy Hill, Toyota, 63.
33. (33) Dawson Sutton, Chevrolet, Accident, 62.
34. (27) Nathan Nicholson, Chevrolet, Accident, 55.
35. (32) Derek White, Ford, Fuel Pump, 52.
36. (7) Wesley Slimp, Toyota, Power Steering, 15.
Average Speed of Race Winner: 58.756 mph.
Time of Race: 2 Hrs, 27 Mins, 3 Secs. Margin of Victory: 0.879 Seconds.
Caution Flags: 6 for 17 laps.
Lead Changes: 9 among 5 drivers.
Lap Leaders: C. Mosack 1-6;B. Rhodes 7-21;C. Mosack 22;B. Rhodes 23-30;C. Smith 31-37;L. Riggs 38-54;T. Majeski 55;L. Riggs 56-60;T. Majeski 61;L. Riggs 62-80.
Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): Layne Riggs 3 times for 41 laps; Ben Rhodes 2 times for 23 laps; Chandler Smith 1 time for 7 laps; Connor Mosack 2 times for 7 laps; Ty Majeski 2 times for 2 laps.
Stage #1 Top Ten: 99,7,45,38,17,1,34,18,11,44
Stage #2 Top Ten: 34,38,45,88,99,17,18,1,9,44
–NASCAR Wire Service
Sports
Cincinnati cruises past Oklahoma State with 3-point barrage
Cincinnati Bearcats forward Baba Miller (18) makes a basket from the two point line in the first half of a NCAA men’s basketball game between the Cincinnati Bearcats and Oklahoma State Cowboys, Saturday, Feb. 28, 2026, at Fifth Third Arena in Cincinnati. Day Day Thomas heated up from long range, draining seven 3-pointers en route to a 26-point performance, Moustapha Thiam added 24 points and grabbed 15 rebounds and host Cincinnati rolled to a 91-68 home victory over Oklahoma State on Saturday afternoon.
The Bearcats (16-13, 8-8 Big 12), which entered No. 54 in the NET rankings, have won five of their last six. Jizzle James and Baba Miller each finished with 11 points for Cincinnati.
Oklahoma State (17-12, 5-11), playing its first game since losing big man Parsa Fallah to a torn ACL, was overwhelmed throughout. Vyctorius Miller led the team with 15 points, while Jaylen Curry and Kanye Clary both added 11 points. The Cowboys have lost six of their last seven games.
The Bearcats seized control early, going on an 11-2 run highlighted by 3-pointers from Thomas and Thiam to lead 12-4 less than four minutes into the game.
Those early minutes foreshadowed the rest of the game.
Cincinnati dominated from the start, leading 51-33 at halftime. The Bearcats shot 53.1% from the floor, made seven three-pointers and won the rebounding battle 20-15 in the first half. They finished with a two-handed dunk by Thiam. Miller was credited with an assist on the play as he found Thiam open underneath.
In the second half, the Bearcats pulled away. They went on an 11-2 run, capped by a 3-pointer from Thomas to lead 65-37 with just under 15 minutes remaining. Cincinnati continued to extend the lead, reaching as many as 32 points, with an 81-49 advantage after another 3 from Thomas at the 8:22 mark.
Cincinnati finished with 14 made 3s, dished out 24 assists, and had a 24-7 edge in second-chance points. The Bearcats also led for 39:24 of the 40 minutes and improved to 14-3 at home.
Both teams return to action on Tuesday. Cincinnati hosts No. 19 BYU, while Oklahoma State travels to UCF.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Bobby Durkin has career night as Minnesota tops UCLA
Feb 24, 2026; Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers forward Bobby Durkin (3) dribbles against Michigan Wolverines guard Elliot Cadeau (3) in the second half at Crisler Center. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images Bobby Durkin scored a season-high 23 points with seven made 3-pointers and Langston Reynolds added 21 points with six assists as Minnesota claimed another victim at home with a 78-73 victory over UCLA at Minneapolis.
Cade Tyson also scored 21 points for the Golden Gophers (14-15, 7-11 Big Ten), who shot 62.3% from the floor and 52.2% from 3-point range. Durkin, who reached 1,000 points for his college career in the first half, went 7 of 11 from long range.
Minnesota improved to 12-4 at home this season with victories in its own building over a trio of ranked teams in Indiana, Iowa and Michigan State.
Tyler Bilodeau scored 32 points with eight rebounds and Eric Dailey Jr. added 18 points for the Bruins (19-10, 11-7), who failed to build off huge victories over No. 10 Illinois and rival Southern California over the past week.
Skyy Clark scored 17 points, while Donovan Dent had 15 assists but just three points, as UCLA now prepares for a key home game upcoming against No. 12 Nebraska.
With the game tied 61-61 with 7:59 remaining, Cade scored four points in a 6-0 run for Minnesota to give the Gophers a 67-61 lead with 6:15 left. The Bruins got within 76-73 on a three-point play from Bilodeau with 1:50 remaining.
The Bruins then missed four consecutive 3-pointers over the final 1:08, including two by Bilodeau, as the Gophers held on for the victory.
In a first half of swings, Minnesota led by as many as nine points early before UCLA went on a 17-3 run to lead by as many as seven points before taking a 41-40 lead into the break. Bilodeau had 16 points in the first half, while Dent had nine assists for UCLA.
Durkin scored 15 points in the first half for Minnesota and reached 1,000 points on one of his five 3-pointers before halftime. UCLA’s Clark reached 1,000 career points on a basket in the second half.
–Field Level Media
Sports
On his bobblehead day, Nick Martinelli lifts Northwestern over Oregon
Feb 28, 2026; Evanston, Illinois, USA; Northwestern Wildcats guard Angelo Ciaravino (44) blocks the shot of Oregon Ducks forward Kwame Evans Jr. (10) during the first half at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images Nick Martinelli produced the game-winning runner with one second remaining as part of his game-high 22 points to lift Northwestern to a 63-62 Big Ten win over Oregon on Saturday afternoon in Evanston, Ill.
On a day Northwestern handed out bobbleheads bearing his likeness, Martinelli added 11 rebounds, a career-high seven assists and career-high-tying three steals to lead the Wildcats (13-16, 5-13) to their third win in a row. Jayden Reid added 11 points.
Nate Bittle paced Oregon (11-18, 4-14) with 19 points and nine rebounds. Kwame Evans Jr. piled up 15 points and 15 rebounds while Takai Simpkins posted 11 points.
The Ducks led 36-29 at halftime and by 12 two minutes into the second half before Northwestern scored 17 of the ensuing 19 points to leap to a 48-45 lead with 12 minutes left.
Over the final seven minutes, the teams swapped the lead six times in their battle to move into 14th place in the Big Ten.
Oregon regained the front on a 3-point play by Bittle at the 4:37 mark, but the Wildcats tied it at 59 on Martinelli’s second-chance layup with 4:10 to play.
After empty possessions by both teams, Northwestern went up on Jayden Reid’s turnaround jumper with 2:24 remaining. The Ducks regained the lead when Wei Lin hit a 3-pointer with 50 seconds to play.
Martinelli missed a go-ahead jumper with 18 seconds left, but Northwestern’s Tre Singleton grabbed the rebound and the Wildcats called a timeout to set up a play. Martinelli got hemmed in 12 feet from the hoop, but he spun free for a left-handed runner that hung on the back of the rim for a few beats before falling through.
Oregon launched a 40-footer at the buzzer that did not fall.
Neither team could create separation early on. Northwestern built a 24-18 advantage on two Martinelli free throws with 8:04 to play until halftime, but the Ducks owned the rest of the half. They used a 10-2 run, capped by Bittle’s 3-point play, to take a 28-26 edge.
Bittle’s 12 points led all scorers before halftime while Martinelli paced the Wildcats with eight.
–Field Level Media
Cincinnati cruises past Oklahoma State with 3-point barrage
Bobby Durkin has career night as Minnesota tops UCLA
