Sixteen-year-old Carson Loftin and 18-year-old Luke Baldwin are close friends off the track but they will be fierce competitors on the track when the SMART Modified Tour powered by Pace-O-Matic championship playoffs begin with the 99-lap SMART Modified Tour race that headlines the Hitachi Energy Power Up Race Day event on Saturday afternoon, October 12 at South Boston Speedway.
Loftin, who won five of the tour’s first seven races, is the regular-season champion and the top seed in the playoffs. Baldwin, who has two wins including a victory in the King of the Modifieds race at South Boston Speedway in March, is the number two seed and trails Loftin by 20 points entering Saturday’s race at South Boston Speedway.
The two teenagers think it’s great that they are racing each other for the tour championship.
“I met Luke on the iRacing game,” Loftin explained. “Luke is one of my best friends. I think it’s really cool that we’re best friends off the track and fierce competitors on the track. Luke and I race hard as it is, no matter whether it’s for fifth or first. I think it will be a really good battle, and hopefully we can put on a good show for the fans.”
“Three years ago, Carson and I were running onto the backstretch at Caraway (Speedway) to grab American Flags out of our dads’ car windows,” Baldwin noted. “Now we’re competing for a championship. It’s really cool.”
While the two teenagers sit at the top of the standings there are three other drivers in contention for the SMART Modified Tour championship. Danny Bohn is in third place eight points behind Baldwin and 28 points out of the lead. Former NASCAR Cup Series star Ryan Newman sits fourth in the standings 30 points behind Baldwin and 58 points out of the lead, and Burt Myers occupies the fifth spot, 44 points behind Baldwin and 64 points out of first place.
Each of the top five drivers have a shot at the tour championship heading into Saturday’s 99-lap race at South Boston Speedway. The two playoff drivers with the least number of points after Saturday’s race will be eliminated, with the top three drivers in points, known as the SMART 3, advancing to compete for the tour championship in the October 19 season finale at North Wilkesboro (NC) Speedway.
However, if one of the two drivers with the least number of points wins the race, that driver will become one of the SMART 3, and the next lowest driver in points will be eliminated.
Both Loftin and Baldwin have a similar approach in mind for Saturday’s race.
“We go into every race trying to win,” Loftin pointed out, “and I want to try to win the race. We’ll just do our best and whatever happens will happen.”
“I obviously want to go out there and win, and if we can, we will,” Baldwin remarked. “We just have to be smart, not beat ourselves and not make any dumb mistakes. We’ve got to stay focused and do what we know how to do.”
Along with the five drivers competing for the tour title, drivers on the entry list for Saturday afternoon’s 99-lap race include Landon Huffman, Jimmy Blewett, Jonathan Cash, Brandon Ward, Joey Coulter, Jason Myers, and Slate Myers, the teenage son of veteran racer Burt Myers.
Saturday’s Hitachi Energy Power Up Race Day event will provide fans with a variety of racing action. Along with the 99-lap race for the 600-horsepower open-wheel modifieds of the SMART Modified Tour powered by Pace-O-Matic, fans will witness the speedway’s first-ever race for the STAR Super Stock Tour, a 50-lap race paying $1,000 to win.
The STAR Super Stock Tour features classic racecars of yesteryear such as the 1978 Chevrolet Camaros, 1984 Chevrolet Monte Carlo, and Ford Mustangs. To keep costs low, the cars use a crate engine and competitors race on used Hoosier scuff tires.
Fans will also see some of the best in vintage racing as the regional touring Southern Ground Pounders Vintage Racing Club, which features classic Modified and Late Model Sportsman cars, will be on hand for a 25-lap race.
Advance tickets for the Saturday afternoon, October 12 Hitachi Energy Power Up Race Day event are priced at $17 each. Advance tickets may be purchased online on South Boston Speedway’s website, www.southbostonspeedway.com or 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 day will be $20 each. Seniors ages 65 and older, military, healthcare workers, and students (with ID) can purchase tickets for $17 each at the gate on race day.
Saturday’s event schedule has registration and pit gates opening at 7 a.m. and frontstretch spectator gates opening at 9 a.m. Practice will go from 9 a.m. until 10:55 a.m. Backstretch and Turn 4 gates will open at 11 a.m. Qualifying will start at 11:15 a.m. An autograph session will be held on the frontstretch from noon until 12:50 p.m. Pre-race ceremonies will begin at 1:30 p.m. and the first race will get the green flag at 2 p.m.
Information about the Hitachi Energy Power Up Race Day event at South Boston Speedway and all of the speedway’s events can be found on the speedway’s website, www.southbostonspeedway.com, by calling the speedway office at 434-572-4947 or toll free at 1-877-440-1540 during regular business hours, and through the track’s social media channels.
South Boston Speedway PR
