ValleyStar Credit Union 300

Last updated
ValleyStar Credit Union 300
Martinsville Speedway track map.png
Venue Martinsville Speedway
Corporate sponsor ValleyStar Credit Union
First race1970 (Late Model Sportsman)
1985 (current Late Model format)
Distance105.2 miles (169.27 km)
Laps200
Stages 1/2: 65 each
Final stage: 70
Previous namesMartinsville DuPont Credit Union 300
Virginia is for Racing Lovers 300
Bailey's 300
Taco Bell 300
Advance Auto 500
Winston Classic
Winn-Dixie 500
Cardinal 500

The ValleyStar Credit Union 300 is a late model race held at Martinsville Speedway in the early fall each year since 1985. [1]

Contents

History

In 1970, Martinsville Speedway added 250-lap twin features for the Late Model Sportsman and Modified classes annually. At the time, neither division used a touring format. The doubleheader took a drastic change from 1982 until 1985 when NASCAR began turning lower divisions of racing into a touring format to reduce costs by racing one single tour. The Late Model Sportsman race was changed to what is now the NASCAR Xfinity Series in 1982, and the Modified race was adopted into the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour in 1985. As the touring formats were adopted fully for the 1985 season, Martinsville Speedway cut the two races from 250 laps to 200 laps in 1985, and returned the local Late Models to the schedule in 1985, adding a 100-lap Late Model feature to the race weekend. After the Modifieds were dropped in 1993, the race expanded to its present 200-lap feature race. After what is now the Xfinity Series was dropped after the 1994 season, the current Late Model format was adopted in 1995. The spring race was dropped after the 1997 season.

The race is 300 laps in total length, consisting of three 25 lap heat races, a 25 lap last chance qualifier and a 200 lap feature race. Qualifying takes place the Friday before the race and sets the field for the heat races. The top two drivers in qualifying advance to the feature, and do not race in the heat races. The top ten finishers in each of three heat races advance to the feature, while other drivers race in the last chance race. The top ten finishers in the last chance race advance to the feature. [2] The race format was changed in 2012 and tweaked in 2013 and again in 2014. The original race format called for traditional time trial qualifying on Saturday to set the top 22 positions while the remaining 20 positions were determined by four heat races.

The finishes to the 2013 and 2014 editions were marred by officiating decisions regarding the leader's ability to choose when to restart the field. [3]

After numerous incidents in recent years with darkness, the track added lights for the 2017 race, being held in late September, which prior to 2000 was the NASCAR Cup date, which now is on the traditional final weekend of October that the Late Model race was held for many years. The prize for the race winner is $25,000 and the track's traditional grandfather clock trophy. For the 2019 edition, cars will be allowed to use duplicate numbers after not being able to do so in the past as the track's scoreboard and timing and scoring system allows them to have alphanumeric numbers (12P, 5P, for example, car numbers carry the first letter of the driver's surname). [4] Also, the qualifying format changed to setting the Top 20 cars on Friday and then two 50-lap heat races. The top ten drivers in each heat advance. The feature race will have safety car periods at Lap 75 and 150, but if a Safety Car is called for an incident beforehand, that becomes the pre-planned safety car break. Also there is no limit to the number of attempts to finish a race under a green flag.

In 2019, Josh Berry claimed his first 300 win, leading all 200 laps in his JR Motorsports entry. [5] COVID-19, however, forced the cancellation of the event, with race tracks in Virginia still under quarantine restrictions. With restrictions eased in 2021, the race returned, with 16-year old Landon Pembelton surprising the field to claim the checkered flag. [6]

Cars and drivers

Drivers must hold a NASCAR License for the Whelen All-American Series. Cars must conform to the NASCAR Late Model Stock Car rule book and race on 10 inch wide Hoosier racing slicks.

These cars use a Perimeter Chassis, where the frame rails follow the outer perimeter of the body, being symmetrical from the centerline of the frame. This chassis is generally used in limited late model and spec late model competition. Late Model Stock Cars (LMSC) are distinctly different from Super Late Models (SLM), where the passenger side is considerably higher than the driver side (also called an Offset Chassis) using what is called an "Approved Body Configuration" body, such as the Snowball Derby, Winchester 400, and other similar races. LMSC are raced mostly in the South East region of the United States, including Virginia, Tennessee, and the Carolinas, and the CARS Late Model Stock Tour being events that use this type of car.

Winners

Winners
YearDriverCar #
2023Trevor Ward77
2022 Peyton Sellers 26
2021 Landon Pembelton [6] 0
2020Not held (COVID) [7]
2019 Josh Berry [8] 88
2018 C. E. Falk III [9] 02
2017 Timothy Peters 12
2016Mike Looney87
2015Tommy Lemons, Jr.27
2014 Lee Pulliam 5
2013Tommy Lemons, Jr.27
2012 Philip Morris 26
2011 Lee Pulliam 1
2010 Philip Morris 26
2009 Jake Crum 1
2008Jason York18
2007 Dennis Setzer 22
2006 Alex Yontz 55
2005 Timothy Peters 77
2004Tony McGuire4
2003Jamey Caudill2
2002Frank Deiny Jr.4
2001Phil Warren16
2000 Philip Morris 01
1999 Robert Powell 56
1998 Dexter Canipe
1997Billy Hogan
1996 B. A. Wilson
1995Tony McGuire22
1994 Barry Beggarly 82
1993 Mike Skinner
1992Joe Gaita
1991 Curtis Markham 4
1990Wayne Patterson
1989 Curtis Markham 4
1988Phil Warren47
1987 Mark Martin 2
1986Ed Johnson57
1985 Barry Beggarly 82

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bobby Labonte</span> American racing driver

Robert Allen Labonte is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver and current analyst for NASCAR on Fox. He also currently competes full-time in the Superstar Racing Experience, driving the No. 18 car. Labonte is the 2000 NASCAR Cup Series champion. He and his older brother, Terry Labonte, are one of only two pairs of brothers to have both won the Cup championships. He is also the uncle of former Xfinity Series race winner Justin Labonte.

Dirt track racing is a form of motorsport held on clay or dirt surfaced oval race tracks often used for thoroughbred horse racing. Dirt track racing started in the United States before World War I and became widespread during the 1920s and 1930s using both automobiles and motorcycles. Two different types of race cars dominate — open wheel racers in the Northeast and West and stock cars in the Midwest and South. While open wheel race cars are purpose-built racing vehicles, stock cars can be either purpose-built race cars or street vehicles that have been modified to varying degrees. There are hundreds of local and regional racetracks throughout the nation. The sport is also popular in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa and the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richie Evans</span> American racing driver

Richard Ernest Evans, was an American racing driver who won nine NASCAR National Modified Championships, including eight in a row from 1978 to 1985. The International Motorsports Hall of Fame lists this achievement as "one of the supreme accomplishments in motorsports". Evans won virtually every major race for asphalt modifieds, most of them more than once, including winning the Race of Champions three times. Evans was elected to the NASCAR Hall of Fame on June 14, 2011. As one of the Class of 2012, Evans was one of the Hall's first 15 inductees, and was the first Hall of Famer from outside the now NASCAR Cup Series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martinsville Speedway</span> Motorsport track in the United States

Martinsville Speedway is a stock car racing short track in Ridgeway, Virginia, just south of Martinsville. The track was also one of the first paved oval tracks in stock car racing, being built in 1947 by partners H. Clay Earles, Henry Lawrence, and Sam Rice, nearly a year before NASCAR was officially formed. It is also the only race track that has been on the NASCAR circuit from its beginning in 1948. Along with this, Martinsville is the only oval track on the NASCAR circuit to have asphalt surfaces on the straightaways and concrete to cover the turns. At 0.526 miles (847 m) in length, it is the shortest track in the NASCAR Cup Series. It is owned by NASCAR.

Domenick "Donny" Lia is an American stock car racing driver. He won the 2007 and 2009 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championships. He also won the Race of Champions Modified Tour races in 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2007. He has raced on the national level in the ARCA Re/Max Series, Camping World Truck Series, and the Nationwide Series.

Ray Hendrick was an American race car driver. He was known as "Mr. Modified" during his 36-year career in motorsports, mainly in the modified stock car racing class.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour</span> American auto racing series

The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour (NWMT) is a modified stock car racing series owned and operated by NASCAR in the Modified Division. The Modified Division is NASCAR's oldest division, and is the only open-wheeled division that NASCAR sanctions. NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour events are mainly held in the northeastern United States, but the 2007 and 2008 tours expanded to the Midwest with the addition of a race in Mansfield, Ohio. The tour races primarily on short oval paved tracks, but the NWMT also has made appearances at larger ovals and road courses.

Wall Stadium is a 1/4-mile, high banked paved oval track in Wall Township, New Jersey, United States. The track opened to the public in the spring of 1950 and has operated for at least a part of every year since. The track was an early home to racing stars Ray Evernham, Jr. and the Truex family of Martin Sr., Martin Jr. and Ryan Truex. Also, it hosted a NASCAR Convertible Series race in 1956 and a NASCAR Grand National Series event in 1958. The more prominent drivers over the years have included Gil Hearne, Tommie Elliott and Charlie Kremer, Jr., John Blewett III, Jimmy Blewett, Jimmy Spencer, Tony Siscone, Richie Evans, and Charlie Jarzombek. Wall Stadium is also known for hosting Round 4: The Gauntlet of the Formula DRIFT Pro Championship.

The NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour (WSMT) was a stock car racing series owned by NASCAR and operated in the Southeastern United States as part of its Modified Division. The series began in 1989 as the Southern Modified Auto Racing Teams (S.M.A.R.T.) before NASCAR took over the series in 2005. The Whelen Southern Modified Tour used nearly identical rules as its northeastern-based counterpart the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seekonk Speedway</span> Racetrack

Seekonk Speedway is a family entertainment venue that features racing of all kinds on a semi-banked 1/3 mile asphalt-paved oval, located on U.S. Route 6 in Seekonk, Massachusetts.

The Sunrise Ford All-Star Showdown is a Super Late Model championship event at Irwindale Speedway, originally held from 2006-10 seasons as a non-championship NASCAR event for lower-level series, and since the 2020 motorsport season, revived by the circuit was a Super Late Model event for the SRL Southwest Tour.

Robert Santos III is an American professional racing driver from Franklin, Massachusetts. He graduated in 2004 from Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School. Santos, nicknamed "Bobby New England", is the grandson of Bobby Santos, a former modified racer. His sister, Erica Santos, is also a racecar driver. He is the cousin of former University of New Hampshire quarterback Ricky Santos.

A late model car is a car which has been recently designed or manufactured, often the latest model.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NASCAR Xfinity Series at Martinsville</span> Second-tier stock car races held at Martinsville Speedway

Stock car racing events in the NASCAR Xfinity Series have been held at Martinsville Speedway, in Martinsville, Virginia during numerous seasons and times of year since the series’ inception in 1982. Races were first held from 1982 to 1994, and a one-off race occurred in July 2006. In October 2020, the series returned after a 14-year absence, adding a second date in 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Musket 250</span>

The Musket 250 is a NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. The Whelen Modified Series has been racing since September 2, 1990. This race was originally 125 laps, but in 1997 was reduced to 100 laps. This race was held during the ISM Connect 300 race weekend until 2017 when Las Vegas replaced Loudon in the NASCAR playoffs. As a result, starting in 2018, the September race at Loudon now features the Modifieds as the feature division, with a 250 lap, 264.5 mile event, the all-time record of distance of Whelen Modified Tour in the touring format. In 1969 and 1970, Martinsville Speedway ran the NASCAR Modified Division with 263-mile races. The ARCA Menards Series East will continue to be part of the schedule, but the NASCAR Pinty's Series from Canada replaces the Cup Series on that weekend.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">UNOH Battle at the Beach</span> NASCAR race

The University of Northwestern Ohio Battle at the Beach was a nonpoints, all-star race that brought together the top drivers in NASCAR's lower-level series and club racing. A successor to the Toyota All-Star Showdown, held from 2003 to 2011 at Irwindale Speedway in California, the inaugural event was held at a newly built short track at Daytona International Speedway on February 18–19, 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ryan Preece</span> American racing driver

Ryan Jeffrey Preece is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 41 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 NASCAR Xfinity Series</span> 35th season of second-tier NASCAR Xfinity Series

The 2016 NASCAR Xfinity Series was the 35th season of the NASCAR Xfinity Series, the second-tier professional stock car racing series sanctioned by NASCAR in the United States. The season started at Daytona International Speedway on February 20 and ended at Homestead-Miami Speedway on November 19. Daniel Suárez of Joe Gibbs Racing won the championship, becoming the first non-American to win a title in NASCAR's top 3 divisions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bubba Pollard</span> American racing driver

Andrew "Bubba" Pollard is an American stock car racing driver. He currently competes in super late model racing, driving the No. 26 Ford for his own team, and part-time in the ARCA Menards Series East, driving the No. 17 Ford for DGR-Crosley. He is noted as one of the most successful active super late model drivers, winning the All American 400, Rattler 250, World Crown 300 and the 2014 Southern Super Series championship.

Frank Douglas Coby III is an American professional racing driver who competes full-time in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, driving the No. 7 Chevrolet for Tommy Baldwin Racing, he has also competed part-time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, driving the No. 24 Chevrolet Silverado for GMS Racing. He is a six-time champion of the Whelen Modified Tour, winning titles in 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2019.

References

  1. ↑ "Daily Press: Hampton Roads News, Virginia News & Videos".
  2. ↑ "Home".
  3. ↑ Quievryn, Tim (October 5, 2014). "Pulliam Wins Martinsville 300 Amid Controversy". Speed51. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
  4. ↑ Weaver, Matt. "Martinsville Speedway to allow duplicate numbers in the VSCU 300". Short Track Scene. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
  5. ↑ Weaver, Matt (October 6, 2019). "Josh Berry breaks through in big way with Martinsville 300 win". Short Track Scene. Retrieved July 31, 2020.
  6. 1 2 Walls, Dave (2021-09-26). "16 year old Pembelton surprises field, wins Valleystar 300 at Martinsville Speedway". WSET. Retrieved 2022-08-16.
  7. ↑ Marquis, Andy (August 21, 2020). "ValleyStar Credit Union 300 canceled". Short Track Scene. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
  8. ↑ Walls, Dave (October 6, 2019). "Josh Berry dominates field, leads wire-to-wire in Valleystar 300 win at Martinsville".
  9. ↑ Carter, Dennis (2018-09-30). "C.E. Falk wins Valleystar Credit Union 300 at Martinsville". WSET. Retrieved 2022-08-16.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.