Twin Late Model races in South Boston points finale set to crown track champion, impact national title chase
SOUTH BOSTON, Va. — The stakes are high. The drama will be higher.
One final night of racing remains in South Boston Speedway‘s 2022 points season. Twin races are on the schedule. A three-way battle looms for the South Boston Speedway NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series Late Model Stock Car Division championship between Layne Riggs, Peyton Sellers and Jacob Borst. A tight battle for the NASCAR national championship between Riggs and Sellers that grew closer this past weekend adds to the pressure.
Saturday night, Sept. 3, will be one of the most impactful nights of the season as South Boston Speedway hosts the Halifax County Farm Bureau Championship Night event.
WATCH: South Boston championship night live on FloRacing
Riggs, of Bahama, North Carolina, is the current South Boston Speedway and NASCAR national points leader. Sellers, a Danville, Virginia resident, is the defending South Boston Speedway and NASCAR national champion. He trails Riggs by 20 points in the track point standings entering the twin 65-lap NASCAR Late Model Stock Car Division races that will headline the seven-race Halifax County Farm Bureau Championship Night event.
Borst, of Elon, North Carolina, last season‘s South Boston Speedway points runner-up, sits in third place in the track point standings, two points behind Sellers and 22 points behind Riggs.
In the NASCAR national points chase, Riggs‘ lead over Sellers had shrunk to 16 points entering last weekend‘s action. That margin is likely to drop into single digits, as Sellers won the twin races at Dominion Raceway last weekend while Riggs had finishes of eighth and second.
While there is a true sense of urgency among Riggs, Sellers and Borst, none are admitting they are facing a lot of pressure heading into the twin 65-lap NASCAR Late Model Stock Car races Saturday night at South Boston Speedway.
Riggs says he does not pay attention to points.
“That‘s something as a driver I don‘t pay attention to,” he remarked. “I just pay attention to my car, my strategy and keeping my focus and my head about me. We‘re going to keep doing what we‘ve always been doing. I‘m keeping my head down, being smart behind the wheel, and just trying to chip away and get a win everywhere we go.”
Sellers, who has six career South Boston Speedway NASCAR track championships under his belt, says the path to a record-tying seventh career South Boston Speedway title is a tough one, and he is not going to change his approach for the Sept. 3 twinbill.
“We can‘t change what we‘re doing,” Sellers pointed out. “We‘re just going to try to win races, try to get our car the best we can, and the pieces will have to fall in place. He (Riggs) will have to have bad luck.”
Borst said he is going to give it his best shot in Saturday night‘s twinbill. While he can possibly win the championship, he may have a better shot at second place in points, the spot where he finished last season.
“I‘d love to win the championship, but Layne has a pretty good lead, and it‘s going to be very hard to catch up to him,” Borst noted. “We‘re going to go out there and try to do our best. If luck plays into our favor great, if it doesn‘t, it‘s just a part of racing. We‘re going to go out there like nobody has any points and try to get the wins. We‘ll take it like we do every weekend and just worry about ourselves and run our race.”
A seven-race card will fill the Sept. 3 Halifax County Farm Bureau Championship Night event. In addition to the twin 65-lap NASCAR Late Model Stock Car Division races, there will be twin 30-lap races for the Budweiser Limited Sportsman Division, a 25-lap race for the Southside Disposal Pure Stock Division, a 20-lap race for the Virginia State Police HEAT Hornets Division and a 20-lap race for the Mills Family Practice Champ Karts.
Track championships will be riding on the outcome of the Budweiser Limited Sportsman Division twinbill as well as on the outcome of the Southside Disposal Pure Stock Division and the Virginia State Police HEAT Hornets Division races.
Kyle Barnes of Draper, Virginia holds a 30-point lead over Jason Myers of Hurt, Virginia in the chase for the Budweiser Limited Sportsman Division title, with Myers still having a shot at the title with the division‘s twin races.
Four drivers are in the hunt for the Southside Disposal Pure Stock Division title. Scott Phillips of Halifax, Virginia holds an eight-point lead over Johnny Layne of Halifax, Virginia entering the race. Jimmy Wade of Halifax, Virginia, who is having the best season of his career in the division, is only 23 points out of the lead, and B.J. Reaves of South Boston, Virginia is only 26 points out of the top spot.
In the Virginia State Police HEAT Hornets Division, Jason DeCarlo of Chase City, Virginia holds a seven-point lead over former division champion Kevin Currin of Chase City, Virginia. Dillon Davis of Nathalie, Virginia, the winner on August 20, is in third place, just 13 points out of the lead.
The Sept. 3 Halifax County Farm Bureau Championship Night race-day schedule has practice starting at 3:30 p.m ET. Grandstand gates will open at 5:30 p.m. ET, qualifying begins at 6 p.m. ET, and the first race of the night will get the green flag at 7 p.m. ET.
Advance adult general admission tickets are priced at $10 each and may be purchased online on South Boston Speedway‘s website through Friday night, Sept. 2. Advance tickets may also be purchased by calling the speedway office at 434-572-4947 or toll free at 1-877-440-1540 during regular business hours.
Tickets at the gate on race night will be $15 each. Seniors ages 65 and older, military, healthcare workers and students (with ID) can purchase tickets for $10 each at the gate on race night.
Fans and competitors can find the latest updates and news on the speedway‘s website, southbostonspeedway.com, and through the track‘s social media channels. Information may also be obtained by phoning the speedway at 434-572-4947 or toll free at 1-877-440-1540 during regular business hours.
