When fans arrive at Kingsport Speedway Friday night they will notice one car missing that’s been a staple of the Bloomingdale, TN track. Multi-time Kingsport champion, Kres VanDyke recently announced that he would not continue to chase the championship at Kingsport Speedway but would instead move his championship effort to Motor Mile Speedway in Fairlawn, VA.
The move was a surprise to many as VanDyke unveiled his plans in an interview with Lenny Batyki on PRN’s At the Track podcast.
“This year is going to be kinda unique and different for our KVR team,” VanDyke stated. “What we’re going to be doing is we put together a brand new race car over the winter and taking it to Motor Mile Speedway. Between both race tracks, I’m going to be running for the championship at Motor Mile.”
VanDyke said he’d run Kingsport on a limited schedule but will miss the next race despite having a five-point advantage in the points standings and having won two of the first three events on the season already.
“I’m going to run Kingsport on a limited schedule. So, I’ll be backwards and forwards there between the two tracks but I’m going to put my full intentions to capture another title at another race track.”
VanDyke feels as if it’s time to try and win a championship at another race track and doesn’t want to be known as one-track wonder despite having won on multiple tracks already and a championship at the now dirt Lonesome Pine Raceway.
“I feel like that it’s time for us to do that. For anything to grow and for anyone to grow in any of these sports, I’ve always been a big supporter of Kingsport and I love that place but I feel like in my career of racing, I need another stepping stone to stand on. You’re going to be known as a one-track winner if you stay at one track and win championship and championship.”
VanDyke hopes the move allows him to become one of the drivers who can go anywhere and compete for wins.
“I want to be versatile and move around and be able to adjust and massage in different ways to help me out at different places and I think this is our next at doing that.”
VanDyke will have his work cut out for him at Motor Mile Speedway with a full field of cars expected to compete in the season opener on the 4/10 mile track this Saturday. Among the expected entrants are five-time NASCAR Whelen All-American Series National Champion Philip Morris, former Martinsville winners Mike Looney and CE Falk and many others.
Cover photo by Kimberly Austin.
