BROTHERS IN SPEED – 2024 South Boston Speedway Halifax Farm Bureau Championship Night

“Behind every champion is a team that prepared them to be that champion.”

Anderson Silva

This week there were several short track racing coverage options for us to choose from, any one of which would have made for a great report. That’s the benefit for any adamant short track racing fan in the central east coast region on any given week, but this week there were some truly great options to choose from. History can and will be made at any given moment at any of the region’s great short tracks. And so for us, this week, it was important to start putting into perspective the 2024 season. A season that we knew would have some serious historical significance for years to come. And in that quest, for us, there was no better place to be than at South Boston Speedway for the showcase short track’s local championship finale. As many know, local short tracks are the core of the sport of stock car racing. It’s where it all begins. It’s where the sport itself began and it’s still where the stars of stock car racing start their illustrious careers. It’s where they learn to be competitive. It’s where they learn how to win. And it’s where they learn what it takes to be a champion.

Any great NASCAR Cup champion can look back and tell you the local competitor that first took them to another level because they challenged them every week at their local short track where it all began. And although for some, it may be easy to forget the local unsung heroes that make up the regional short track racing contingent. For us, these drivers are the real stars. Yes, some go on to shine at the very top levels of the sport. But many spend their complete racing careers molding the future stars of tomorrow by challenging them with their racing skills, ethic, and most of all, downright gritty determination. The truth of it is that many of the best stock car drivers in the world compete at your local short track. And so this year, we felt it as an honor to be in South Boston, Virginia on championship night. A track known for creating great racing champions. Four divisions came into the night with titles in the balance. How did it all shake out? Let’s take a closer look at the racing from South Boston Speedway on August 31, 2024 with everything on the line.

VSP HEAT HORNET FEATURE

Dustin Davis in the # 51 will lead the Hornet field to green for the final time in 2024 alongside Cameron Moss in the # 29. # 18 Cameron Goble, # 33 Max Sangillo, and the # 83 of Landon Milam will round out the top five. Points leader Jordaine Penick in the # 07 will have to start in the rear due to pre-race tech issues, making her work a little bit harder for the next twenty laps. South Boston Speedway flagman Brandon Willard looks the field over, likes what he sees, and we’re green! Davis gets the quick advantage as Sangillo falls out of the top five. Milam rockets to third ahead of Goble and the # 54 of Jason DeCarlo. Goble regains third with DeCarlo following through, kicking Milam to fifth. Goble has a rocketship right out of the gate, speeding past Moss with his sights on Davis. DeCarlo is right in his tracks though, putting Moss to fourth while there’s trouble behind! Milam spins in three, leaving # 24 Chris Penick with nowhere to go as he slams into Milam’s machine! That’ll bring Chris Penick’s night to an unfortunate end while Milam will somehow get his machine back going. After the choose, Davis remains the leader now joined by DeCarlo who goes to the outside, Goble, Moss, and championship leader Jordaine Penick. Davis stumbles on the restart, stacking the inside line up and allowing DeCarlo to take the lead away! Goble capitalizes for second with DJ Moser in the # 19 rocketing to fifth. Davis is back up to speed, breaking all the way through to fourth ahead of Jordaine Penick. Up front though is DeCarlo, who takes the win tonight ahead of Goble, Moss, and Davis! And coming home fifth is your 2024 VSP HEAT Hornet champion, sixteen year old Jordaine Penick!

SOUTHSIDE DISPOSAL PURE STOCK FEATURE ONE

With points leader Johnny Layne sitting tonight’s twin Pure Stock features out in order to attend his daughter’s softball tournament, that opens up the points battle for brothers BJ Reaves in the # 11 and Zach Reaves in the # 77 to settle it amongst themselves. Former Pure Stock champion Scott Phillips in the # 66 starts first while BJ Reaves and Zach Reaves start second and third respectively. BJ Reaves gives Phillips a fit on the outside but Phillips makes the low lane work to clear for the lead. Zach Reaves starts to dance in his brother’s rear mirror, but it seems that BJ has the faster car to start the night as he keeps a steady pace in second. Neither one of them have anything for veteran Scott Phillips however as Phillips will lead every lap and win feature one on the night, beating out BJ and Zach Reaves as Colby Pool in the # 29 spins in two on the final lap.

SOUTHSIDE DISPOSAL PURE STOCK FEATURE TWO

Lane Thomason in the # 6 rolls off on the pole for race two with # 63 Dillon Davis starting second followed by Bruce Mayo in the # 00. Davis gets the jump on the outside with Kendall Milam in the # 28 hopping into second ahead of Mayo. Mayo powers to the inside of Milam, also bringing along now points leader BJ Reaves. Milam will give way as Thomason and championship contender Zach Reaves in the # 77 spin in turn four! A huge development for Zach Reaves who will now have to start at the rear for the restart! Davis, Mayo, and BJ Reaves is your top three for the restart as BJ Reaves takes over second. But not for long as Mayo has a run on the outside! Neither one gives an inch but the battle will be broken up due to Thomason spinning out of four, bringing out a caution. Mayo retains second for the restart as Davis once again gets a great launch. Mayo and BJ Reaves are right back to where they started with Mayo barely edging BJ out on the inside. Mayo now makes a bid for the lead! But he gets out of shape coming off of four and spins, making incredible impact with the inside wall! He ricochets off and also hits the outside wall, bringing the crowd to deafening silence. Thankfully, Mayo is able to make it out of his machine, albeit shaken up as the field goes under the red flag. After all cleanup is completed, Davis is still your leader with BJ Reaves and Milam completing the top three. Davis clears going into one but BJ Reaves pulls off an incredible crossover as they’re side by side coming to the white! Davis gives it his best on the outside, but BJ Reaves will prevail with the victory and with that comes the 2024 Southside Disposal Pure Stock championship! Davis comes home second followed by a late, spirited run from Phillips.

BUDWEISER LIMITED SPORTSMAN FEATURE

It’s a three way title fight between the # 22 of Eric Winslow, # 17 Jason Myers, and the # 75 of Nathan Crews. As for Crews, his evening will automatically start in a hole as pre-race inspection issues will put him in the rear for the start of the race. Winslow will also start in the rear, but by choice as extra points are on the table if he can make his way up. Jason Myers meanwhile will start on the pole followed by the # 88 of Justin Dawson, # 7 Karl Budzevski, # 8 Drew Dawson, and the # 12 of Zach Peregoy. It’s an early dogfight for the lead with Myers ultimately clearing. Drew Dawson will take over second from brother Justin Dawson, kicking Budzevski to fifth behind Jared Dawson in the # 01. Now Budzevski goes around in four after contact from Peregoy! That’ll bring the first caution of the race out. Peregoy will be put to the rear for the restart as Myers leads Drew Dawson, Jared Dawson, Justin Dawson, and an emerging Crews with an already fantastic run after the choose. Drew Dawson gets an amazing restart, but it’s not to the liking of the officials as we’ll try it one more time. This restart is much better as Myers jumps ahead with Justin Dawson taking second. Cory Dunn in the # 75 has found his way to third ahead of Drew Dawson and an amazing climb from Winslow in fifth. Behind, Jared Dawson and Crews make big contact on the frontstretch! Dawson doesn’t appreciate it and makes contact with Crews heading into two, spinning Crews around and collecting Peregoy! Peregoy’s night is over along with Crews, ending his championship hopes eleven laps in! Myers again takes the outside on the restart with Justin Dawson, Drew Dawson, Dunn, and # 45 Justin Towler behind.

Winslow immediately takes fifth back as Myers fends off Justin Dawson. Now Dunn has a flat tire, but he’s able to make it to pit road without issue. That’ll move Budzevski to fifth with Winslow challenging Drew Dawson on the outside. He’ll make it work as Budzevski follows through after a heated battle with Drew Dawson. Winslow and Budzevski will do the same to Justin Dawson, leaving Winslow just one point behind Myers as they run. Drew Dawson continues to look on Justin, as the brotherly duo have a heck of a battle for fourth. Justin Dawson will cling onto fourth by the skin of his teeth as Jason Myers comes around to win the race and his second consecutive Budweiser Limited Sportsman championship! He wins the title by one point over second place finisher Winslow, with third going to Budzevski followed by Justin Dawson and Drew Dawson.

SENTARA HEALTH LATE MODEL STOCK FEATURE

With a fast time of 15.131 seconds, second place points runner Blake Stallings in the # 77 will start on the pole. Qualifying second fastest is Trey Crews in the # 27 who is filling in for Jeb Burton who raced in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Darlington Raceway earlier in the day. Burton will make it in time for the Late Model Stock race, but will start in the rear due to the driver change. That’ll move Mike Looney in the # 87 to second accompanied by # 4 Kyle Dudley, # 15 Stacy Puryear, and defending Late Model Stock champion Carter Langley in the # 5. Willard looks over the mighty talented field, approves the formation, and we’re green for 150 laps! Stallings gets a tremendous start but Looney does as well and before you know it, they’re side by side for the lead! Looney will take it as the # 25 of Jacob Borst moves all the way to third. Points leader # 26 Peyton Sellers has entered the top five while Borst is quick early, now taking over second. Stallings on the other hand continues to fall back, losing positions to both Langley and Sellers. And now he gets hit going into turn one by Dudley, with both spinning around and collecting Puryear, Burton, and the # 91 of Jason Myers! All but Myers have considerable damage with Puryear sustaining the most, but they’ll come down pit road for repairs and somehow all make it back out in time for the restart. Looney will restart on the outside with Langley second, Sellers third, Borst fourth, and # 51 Toby Layne fifth. Langley slingshots to the lead and drags Sellers with him, pushing Looney to third. Dudley has brought his battered vehicle to fifth with Burton and Stallings trying to knife their way through the field as well. As for Puryear, he’s just trying to complete the race as he moves out of the way for the faster cars. But he and Burton make contact on the backstretch! Puryear hits the outside wall while Burton spins into three! Puryear’s night will definitely be done now while Burton will have to rebound once again.

Turn three is a fluid minefield, but a quick red flag involving South Boston’s diligent track crew has the surface cleared with ease. Langley restarts first ahead of Sellers, Looney, Borst, and Dudley. Sellers has the momentum on the outside and takes the lead, but it doesn’t last long as a little bobble allows Langley back by. Dudley peeks his nose under Borst in an effort to get under and by. Dudley’s machine will stick but Borst will give him a bump as soon as Dudley clears! Borst’s bumper will be used a few more times, but Dudley hangs on. Borst refuses to go away, but Dudley keeps shutting the door as we near our lap 100 competition caution. Ahead, Looney is able to find a little extra speed to pass Sellers, but does he have enough for Langley? Burton somehow takes his tore up car to fifth without a door, but all eyes are on Looney as he’ll shoot out to the lead ahead of Langley! The battle for fourth is amazing with Dudley, Burton, and Borst all under a blanket. Burton nearly dives onto pit road in an attempt to get by Dudley and gets it done just in time for the competition caution. The necessary adjustments are made. The drivers are ready for a fifty lap shootout. Looney. Langley. Sellers. Burton. Stallings. That’s your top five. Who ends the season on top? Willard unfurls the green flag and we’re off! Langley gets the bite up top and retakes the lead from Looney with Borst entering the top five again. Looney tries to take advantage of some lap traffic to get up to Langley, but it won’t be enough as Langley takes the win! Looney will finish second, Burton finishes fourth, and Borst finishes fifth. But finishing third and taking home his record tying seventh South Boston Speedway Late Model Stock championship is Peyton Sellers!

MY TAKE

For 26 years, David Blankenship was the driver with the most Late Model Stock, (previously Late Model Sportsman), championships at a track known for great Late Model champions. To give you an indication, Lennie Pond, Sam Ard, Jack Ingram, Geoffrey Bodine, Elliott Sadler, Timothy Peters, Lee Pulliam, and Layne Riggs are all on that champions list. As you can imagine, winning a Late Model Stock championship at South Boston has never been an easy task. But David Blankenship managed to win seven, his first in 1984, and his last in 1998. A driver that also managed three top fives in ARCA in 1978 in the five races he ran just as another indicator of his talents. Born in Moseley, Virginia, David spent quite a huge chunk of his life in the racing business, scoring 34 wins at the track where he had the most success, South Boston Speedway, in a career that earned the driver a place in the Virginia Motorsports Hall Of Fame, being inducted in 2016. And while no one can still boast to have more titles, this past Saturday night, another one of South Boston’s best managed to earn the spot beside of Blankenship’s name at the showcase track. In a sense, Peyton Sellers and David Blankenship are brothers in speed.

For Sellers, getting to the top of that ladder truly has been a family affair. There is a quote by successful martial artist and boxer Anderson Silva that says, “Behind every champion there is a team that prepared him to be that champion”. And for Peyton Sellers, brother H.C. Sellers has been an instrumental part of that team. And while Sellers drove for other teams, his family has always been an instrumental part of his racing success. In his 2021 title run, his father Burt was his spotter while H.C., as he has been for many seasons, was his crew/team chief. The whole family has been by his side and giving him support from the moment he took to the track in a Kart at age 7. He’s went on to race Open Wheel Sprints, eventually moving to full bodied stock cars, even racing in NASCAR’s Xfinity and Truck Series. And while Sellers is also a 2 time NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Racing Series Champion as well as a 4 time Virginia Triple Crown champion, the team after Saturday night can say that to win a Late Model Stock championship at South Boston, you have to go through them. Quite the accomplishment for truly one of Late Model Stock’s best all time drivers in the history of the genre.

Sellers wasn’t the only champion crowned this weekend at “The Jewel Of The Commonwealth” however as four campions earned the right to be called 2024 South Boston Speedway champs on Saturday. Jason Myers, after having the title allude him for many years, sealed the deal last year in 2023 and followed that up with a successful title reign here in 2024, becoming a back to back Limited Sportsman champion at the speedway. And speaking of Brothers In Speed, BJ Reaves had quite the title fight with brother Zach, sealing the deal however this weekend on Championship night with a hard fought second and a win in the Pure Stock Division twin features. And while Jason DeCarlo managed the win after an adventurous year in the final Hornet race of the season, the division crowned it’s first female champion as Jordaine Penick was crowned the 2024 Hornet Champion. It was a feel good moment for the 16 year old Penick as she got to celebrate with the first ever female champion at the track, 2004 Grand Stock division champion Terri Williams, a celebration twenty years in the making. Sisters In Speed if you will in a sport where female drivers are becoming more prominent, increasingly finding victory and more importantly, championships. South Boston Speedway 2024 Championship Night saw a year of hard work come to a head in the crowning of this year’s champions on a night that also saw racing history made on several levels. It’s championship time in the central east coast region, and so with that, as always, See You At The Track!

(Race write ups by Joshua Weatherman. Intro and My Take written by Billy Weatherman. Copyright 2024 SHORT TRACK REPORT)