SOUTH BOSTON, VA. — Peyton Sellers had talked last week about how much he was looking forward to getting back to racing at South Boston Speedway, his home track, for the 2021 NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series season.
His return to South Boston Speedway for Saturday‘s season-opening Back On Track Twin 75s Late Model Stock Car Division event was a stellar one.
The Danville, Virginia, resident swept the two 75-lap Late Model Stock Car Division races, giving him a good start toward defending his 2019 South Boston Speedway title and the 2020 NASCAR Virginia state championship.
“It just feels good to be back at South Boston Speedway,” Sellers remarked after completing the sweep.
“To come here and start the season off with two wins is a big feather in our cap. These season-openers are hard to win because everybody works so hard all winter long to build their cars fast. For us to be able to come out here and get two wins was really special for our team.”
Sellers scored a flag-to-flag win in the opening 75-lap race, edging rookie Landon Pembelton of Amelia, Virginia by just under a second. Rookie Jacob Borst of Elon, North Carolina finished third with Chris Denny of Timberlake, North Carolina and Stuart Crews of Long Island, Virginia completing the top five finishers.
The nightcap was much more difficult. Sellers started ninth by virtue of an inverted start among the top finishers of the opening race and was involved in a mishap with another car that resulted in a caution flag being thrown on lap 18.
After restarting 11th Sellers began picking his way through traffic, taking advantage of three caution periods that followed to put himself in a position to work his way back to the lead. Sellers passed Pembelton for the lead on the 46th circuit and held the lead over the final 29 to earn the win and complete the sweep.
Josh Oakley, the seventh-place finisher in the opening race, took the runner-up spot, finishing .875 second behind Sellers. Pembelton finished third, Mark Wertz of Chesapeake, Virginia took the fourth spot and Crews rounded out the top-five finishers.
There were three lead changes among four drivers in the nightcap, with rookie Zach Lightfoot, Oakley, Pembelton and Sellers all taking turns leading the race.
Moss, Winslow Split Limited Sportsman Division Twinbill
Daniel Moss of Danville, Virginia and Eric Winslow of Pelham, North Carolina split wins in Saturday‘s twin 25-lap races for the Limited Sportsman Division competitors.
Moss led 23 laps of the opening 25-lap race and pulled away to a 3.404-second win over Ryan Joyner. Joyner was later disqualified following a post-race inspection of his car by track NASCAR officials, elevating J.D. Eversole of North Chesterfield, Virginia to second place. Winslow was awarded third place with Drew Dawson of Nathalie, Virginia and Danny Willis Jr, of South Boston, Virginia rounding out the top five finishers.
Winslow started on the pole in the second race and scored a flag-to-flag win, with Moss taking the runner-up spot. Dawson finished third with Brent Younger of South Boston, Virginia and Penn Crim Jr, completing the top five.
Crews Captures 30-Lap Budweiser Pure Stock Division Race
Nathan Crews of Long Island, Virginia got a leg up in his quest for a second South Boston Speedway Budweiser Pure Stock Division title by winning Saturday‘s 30-lap race.
Crews cruised across the finish line 5.971 seconds ahead of Johnny Layne of Halifax, Virginia. Bruce Mayo of Halifax, Virginia finished third, Randy Hupp of Halifax, Virginia finished fourth and Josh Paynter finished fifth.
Dawson Takes Win In Budweiser Hornets Division
Josh Dawson of Halifax, Virginia started his 2021 season in a big way with a win in the 15-lap Budweiser Hornets Division.
Jared Dawson of Nathalie, Virginia was the runner-up with Jason DeCarlo of Chase City, Virginia, Kevin Currin of Chase City, Virginia and Andrea Ruotolo rounding out the top five finishers.
Next Race At South Boston Speedway
Racing action returns to South Boston Speedway on Saturday, April 3 with the 2 p.m. running the of the NASCAR Late Model 100 racing program.
The four-race card will be headlined by a 100-lap race for the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series Late Model Stock Car Division.
The latest news and updates about South Boston Speedway and its racing events can be found on the new South Boston Speedway website at www.southbostonspeedway.com and on the speedway‘s social media channels. Fans can also subscribe for e-mail updates on the speedway‘s website.
