Every year, the Virginia Late Model Triple Crown is contested among the best drivers along the east coast in three of the most prestigious Late Model races at South Boston Speedway, Langley Speedway and Martinsville Speedway. Any driver who competes in all three events and scores the highest average finish among the regular competitors is awarded the series championship, and receives a bonus of $10,000 in the process.
As the Virginia Late Model Triple Crown Series prepares to close out its 2017 season with the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 at Martinsville, 14 drivers remain eligible for the series championship. Among them is Chesapeake, Virginia native Brenden Queen, who is coming off a second place finish to Bobby McCarty in the Hampton Heat at Langley, and is looking to carry that momentum over into a victory at Martinsville.
“This race has so much prestige, and it’s one of the hardest races to make,” Queen said. “Anyone who has anything in Late Model racing shows up here, so if you can come to Martinsville and have a respectable finish, it means a lot on your resume.”
Known as “Butterbean” by his friends and competitors, Brenden Queen continued the racing tradition started by his father Mike Queen when he began racing in Sportsman divisions in 2008. After two consecutive 10-win seasons in 2008 and 2009, Queen moved up to Arena Racing in 2010, where he finished third in points and claimed Rookie of the Year honors.
Queen spent the 2011 and 2012 seasons racing INEX Legends cars at Old Dominion Speedway, Southside Speedway and Langley Speedway, accumulating over 15 wins across the three speedways, and becoming the youngest track champion in Southside history in 2012. Shortly after winning the championship, Queen’s family-owned team purchased a Late Model from E.F. Motorsports, and began competing for track championships at Langley, earning Rookie of the Year honors in 2013.
Since his rookie year, Queen has made a name for himself in Late Model racing along the east coast, winning four races at Southern National Motorsports Park, and a track championship at East Carolina Speedway in 2016. Queen has also been a regular in the Virginia Late Model Triple Crown Series since 2013, where he has recorded six career Top 10 finishes. Queen is within striking distance of the Series championship, and hopes to join C.E. Falk III, Peyton Sellers and Lee Pulliam as champions of the Triple Crown.
“The first time I had hear of the Triple Crown was during my rookie year,” Queen said. “I didn’t know that much about it until I got a check for $5,000, despite missing the race at South Boston. It was really cool getting that unexpected money, and ever since then we’ve been running all three races, trying to make that effort to put ourselves in the best position. It would mean a lot to win it. We’re definitely in a better spot than a lot of other people, but we just have to keep the fenders on it, know who we are racing, and just be smart.”
Like many of his fellow competitors, Queen took his first laps around Martinsville under the lights during the annual ValleyStar Credit Union 300 test session on Thursday. Although many drivers still do not know what to expect out of Martinsville Speedway at night, Queen is not concerned. He believes that it will not take long for the drivers to adapt to the nighttime conditions, and that racing under the lights will make the event more competitive than it was in the past.
“We come from running Saturday night races all year, so it’s going to be fun racing at Martinsville with the lights on now,” Queen said. “Everyone knows that when the sun goes down, the track gains grip. We always come here during the day, and the outside line has worked really well, especially since the bottom gets so stacked up. I’m looking forward to seeing how much grip both lanes get.”
Queen currently sits third in the Virginia Late Model Triple Crown standings going into Martinsville with an average finish of fifth in the first two races. Queen does not have a huge deficit to overcome if he wants to catch points leaders Bobby McCarty and Nick Smith, but he will have to hold off experienced veterans including Philip Morris and Timothy Peters, who are former Martinsville winners, if he wants a shot at claiming both a $10,000 bonus and a grandfather clock.
The ValleyStar Credit Union 300 is NASCAR’s biggest, richest and most prestigious Late Model Stock Car race. The day starts with three 25-lap heat races to set the field, followed by a 25-lap “last chance” heat. Tickets for the September 23rd event are on sale now and can be purchased by calling 1-877-RACE-TIX or online at www.martinsvillespeedway.com.
