MARTINSVILLE, VA – Two-time Ace Speedway champion Dustin Rumley turned heads with his top-10 qualifying run at Martinsville Speedway on Friday, locking him into the main event for Saturday’s ValleyStar Credit Union 300.
With a new car and a new engine, Rumley, 30, from McLeansville, North Carolina, qualified sixth on Friday night with a lap time of 20.079. After the qualifying session, Rumley was all smiles as he looks ahead to Saturday night.
“We worked really hard the past four weeks,” Rumley told Race22 after qualifying. “This is a new car, we built it. This is the first race on it. A lot of hard work so far has paid off. We were pretty decent in the test. Made a few changes and it really came alive, helped it a lot. We worked on it and it kept getting better and better. We’re real close. I think we’re going to have a real good piece for the race.”
Dustin Rumley spent a few years away from his sport to focus on his business, but fellow Ace Speedway racer Brad Kurth brought him back into the sport. This weekend, he’ll be driving a Sellers Racing car with Tyler Hughes as his crew chief.
“We stepped away for a few years because we were really focusing on our business,” Rumley said. “Brad called me wanting me to drive. It’s really been a blessing. I can’t thank him enough. Sellers Racing for the hard work. Tyler Hughes is my crew chief for the weekend. Me and him have clicked it off and work very well together so big thanks to him too.”
Over the years, Rumley has been a front-runner at Ace Speedway. However, when he returned to the sport in 2017, his performances were out of character as he struggled with his car. Ultimately, that adversity is what prompted him to get a new car ahead of the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 as well as the Rodney Cook Classic, which will be held at Ace Speedway later this month.
“The car we had, we couldn’t quite figure it out,” Rumley explained. “Not saying it was a bad car, not saying it was a good car. We just couldn’t quite figure it out. Got this car and, so far, it’s night and day difference. You’re only as good as your equipment. You’ve got to have good stuff, good motors, and you’ve got to be able to drive it too. If you don’t have one of the three, you can forget it. We finally got the combination right so I think we’re going to be real good. I hate that I wasted all year at Ace with the other car, but we’ll go back for the Rodney Cook Classic and hopefully kick butt.”
The potent combination of Tyler Hughes as his crew chief, a Sellers Racing car, and a Charlie Long motor could make Rumley a front-runner in Saturday night’s feature race. Rumley, however, knows it takes more than just a fast car to win at Martinsville.
“You know how it goes. This race, it’s a lot of luck and you’ve got to keep your nose clean. We’ve got to be there at the end to even know what we’ve got. Fast cars crash out, don’t even get to show. We’ve just got to be smart, be patient, be there at the end.”
Rumley has made the field for the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 in four of seven previous attempts. His best finish at Martinsville was a 32nd place result back in 2013.
The feature race for the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 will commence at 7pm. Race22 will have coverage all day with Solid Rock Carriers RACEDAY Live presented by PRW Chassis. The race will also be broadcast live on MRN Radio and streamed on FansChoice.tv.
