Three NASCAR national champions were in the field for Saturday afternoon’s Danville Toyota NASCAR Whelen Late Model Twin 100s at South Boston Speedway and two of them, former national champion Lee Pulliam of Alton, Virginia and defending national champion Philip Morris of Ruckersville, Virginia, split wins in the pair of 100-lap Late Model Stock Car races that opened the track’s 62nd season.
The other former NASCAR national champion in the field, defending South Boston Speedway champion Peyton Sellers of Danville, Virginia, also had a good afternoon, emerging with a pair of runner-up finishes after having set a new track record in qualifying.
Pulliam won the first of the day’s pair of 100-lap races, taking the lead from Sellers with 57 laps to go and driving away to a 2-second win over Sellers.
Morris finished third, Mike Looney of Catawba, Virginia and Austin Thaxton of Clarksville, Virginia rounded out the top five finishers.
Morris started fifth in the second race, which had an inverted start among the top finishers of the first race, with Sellers starting sixth and Pulliam lining up in seventh place.
The defending NASCAR national champion took the lead from pole starter Thomas Scott on the 13th lap and led the rest of the way, edging Sellers by 1.896 seconds to take the win.
Scott, of Efland, North Carolina, finished third, with Thaxton and Jason Barnes of Stony Creek, Virginia rounding out the top five finishers.
Pulliam was sidelined early in the second race. His car slid up into the wall while battling Scott for position in the top four, and finished 13th after being sidelined after 38 laps of the race.
Willis Wins Limited Sportsman Division Race
Danny Willis Jr. of Cluster Springs, Virginia opted to take a step back from the Late Model Stock Car Division to compete in the NASCAR Limited Sportsman Division, and it paid off.
Willis won Saturday’s 50-lap race, surviving a hotly contested battle with Washington state native Jessica Dana and Daniel Moss of Danville, Virginia to post his first win since the 2015 season.
Moss finished second, .480-second behind Willis with Dana finishing third, less than three tenths of a second behind Moss. Jason Myers of Hurt, Virginia and Drew Dawson of Nathalie, Virginia rounded out the top five finishers.
There were four lead changes among three drivers, with Willis leading twice for a total of 21 laps.
Crews Takes Budweiser Pure Stock Division Win
Nathan Crews of Long Island, Virginia started on the front row, took the lead on the opening lap and sped to victory in the 30-lap race for the Budweiser Pure Stock Division.
Jarrett Milam of Keeling, Virginia finished second, .353-second behind Crews, with Bruce Mayo of Halifax, Virginia finishing third. Matthew Epps of Halifax, Virginia finished fourth and Scott Phillips of Halifax, Virginia rounded out the top five finishers.
Layne Earns Victory In Budweiser Hornets Division Opener
Steven Layne of Nathalie, Virginia, competing in only his fourth career race, won Saturday’s 15-lap Budweiser Hornets Division race.
Layne took the lead from pole starter Aaron Cash of South Boston, Virginia on the second lap and led the rest of the way in scoring his first career win.
Kevin Currin of Chase City, Virginia finished second with Jared Dawson of Nathalie, Virginia, Tyler Stanley of South Boston, Virginia and Josh Dawson of Nathalir, Virginia rounding out the top five finishers.
NEXT RACE AT SOUTH BOSTON SPEEDWAY
Racing returns to South Boston Speedway on Saturday, March 30 with one of the track’s premier events of the season, the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour 150. The stars and cars of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour will visit South Boston Speedway for the first time since 2001, and will be featured in a 150-lap race.
In addition, the region’s top NASCAR Whelen All American Series Late Model Stock Car Division drivers and teams will be featured in twin 75-lap races.
The day’s event schedule will have practice from 9 a.m. until 11 a.m. Grandstand gates will open at 11:30 a.m. and qualifying will start at 12 noon. An autograph session will be held trackside from 1 p.m. until 1:45 p.m. Pre-race activities will start at 1:50 p.m. and the first race of the day will get the green flag at 2 p.m.
Advance adult general admission tickets are priced at $10 each and will be available until 5 p.m. on Friday, March 29. Adult general admission tickets on race day will be $15 each. Youth ages 12 and under are admitted free with a paying adult.
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