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81-year-old breaks race record

PORTLAND - Eighty-one-year-old Hershel McGriff became the oldest driver to take part in a national Nascar series race, finishing 13th in a Camping World West Series event at Portland International Raceway on Sunday.

PORTLAND - Eighty-one-year-old Hershel McGriff became the oldest driver to take part in a national Nascar series race, finishing 13th in a Camping World West Series event at Portland International Raceway on Sunday.

Jim Inglebright of Fairfield, California, won the Bi-Mart Salute to the Troops 125 on Portland's 3,18km road course.

In a career that has spanned more than six decades, McGriff has four Nascar Cup series victories and 37 wins on the West series. He is a member of the Motorsports Hall of Fame.

McGriff was the defending champion in Portland, winning the only other time the series - then known as Winston West - visited the track in 1986.

McGriff, who last raced in 2002, broke his own record as the oldest driver.

The odds were against him before the race started. He had to start at the back of the pack of 26 drivers and one lap down because of changes he made to the car after the qualifying session. - Sapa-AP

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