Forbes wins season’s richest South Boston Speedway race
Published 5:00 pm Thursday, August 24, 2023
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Kenny Forbes won South Boston Speedway’s longest and richest Budweiser Limited Sportsman Division race of the season Saturday night, a 75-lap race that paid $1,500 to win. It was the second straight win at South Boston Speedway for the Bullock, North Carolina resident.
Jason Myers of Hurt finished second in the race that was featured as part of Saturday night’s race at South Boston Speedway. Myers’ second-place finish coupled with a seventh-place finish by Carter Russo of Rougemont, North Carolina gives Myers a 21-point lead over Russo in the chase for the division championship with one points race remaining in the 2023 season.
Myers started on the pole and led the first 38 laps of the 75-lap race. Forbes took the lead from Myers on lap 39 on the restart that followed the race’s only caution period and led the final 37 laps. He fought off several strong challenges from Myers and edged Myers by .291-second at the finish. Myers had won the pole for the race and led the first 38 circuits of the .4-mile oval.
“This is really special,” Forbes said of his win. “I’m glad to bring home (winner’s) trophies two races in a row. I haven’t raced a lot over the last 10 or 12 years, and to come back up here and be competitive is good. I’m really happy to come back and have a good showing after winning the last race here.”
Forbes pointed out that Myers had opened up a healthy lead while leading the first 38 laps of the race.
“I didn’t know if we were going to have anything for Jason Myers tonight,” Forbes remarked. “We had an opportunity after the break. The car was pretty good on the high side, and I was fortunate enough to get in front of him. He battled hard the rest of the race, and I was able to hold him off.”
Myers said he gave the race his best effort.
“I gave it everything I had and came up one spot short,” Myers explained. “On the restart our car was way too free pinched down on the inside. I should have taken the outside and that was the winning move for Kenny. I could get back to his door, but I wasn’t going to push the issue and wreck us both.”
While Myers did not win the race, he did something more important – stretch his lead in the battle with Russo for the division championship.
“My dad (Billy Myers), who was my spotter, told me Russo was pretty far back, and it was going to be a really good points night if we finished where we were. I was fortunate to do that.”
Nathan Crews of Long Island, Virginia, former South Boston Speedway division champion Kyle Barnes of Draper and Drew Dawson of Nathalie rounded out the top five finishers in the race.
LATE MODEL RESULTS UNDER REVIEW
Six-time South Boston Speedway champion Peyton Sellers of Danville will have to wait a few days to find out whether or not his apparent flag-to-flag victory in the 100-lap race for the Late Model Stock Car Division that highlighted Saturday night’s race at South Boston Speedway will stand.
Track officials said the results of Saturday night’s event are unofficial pending further review.
The official results will have a big impact on the battle between Sellers and Carter Langley of Zebulon, North Carolina for the track championship.
Langley held a five-point lead over Sellers entering Saturday night’s race. He unofficially finished second, .558-second behind Sellers in the race. If that result stands, Langley will have a three-point lead entering the season’s final points race, a 150-lap race on Sept. 2 paying $5,000 to win. If the results do not hold, circumstances will change.
Jacob Borst of Elon, North Carolina, Josh Oakley of Rougemont, North Carolina and Davey Callihan rounded out the top five finishers.
WHAT’S NEXT?
NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series racing returns to South Boston Speedway on Saturday night, September 2 with the Halifax Farm Bureau Championship Night Race.
Championships in all four of the track’s NASCAR-sanctioned racing divisions will be decided in the four-race event that will be headlined by a 150-lap race for the Sentara Health Late Model Stock Car Division that will pay $5,000 to win.
Also scheduled are a 50-lap race for the Budweiser Limited Sportsman Division, a 25-lap race for the Southside Disposal Pure Stock Division, and a 20-lap race for the Virginia State Police HEAT Hornets Division.
A fireworks show sponsored by Italian Delight Family Restaurant will follow the last race of the night.