SOUTH BOSTON, Va. — It is doubtful there is any competitor more excited about returning to South Boston Speedway for the third annual Pace-O-Matic King of the Modifieds powered by Dominion Energy race on March 21 than Luke Baldwin.
The 19-year-old Mooresville, North Carolina resident has compiled a solid record in the King of the Modifieds event, having won the inaugural event in 2024 and finishing third last year after a tough battle with eventual winner Matt Hirschman.
“I’m always excited to head to South Boston Speedway, whether I’m racing or as a race fan,” Baldwin remarked. “To get to compete there is special, especially for the King of the Modifieds. We won the first King of the Modifieds race and finished third last year. I’m hoping we can get another win.”
Baldwin, who is seeking an unprecedented third straight SMART Modified Tour championship with Sadler-Stanley Racing, holds his victory in the 2024 SMART Modified Tour King of the Modifieds event at South Boston Speedway in a special place in his heart.
“I can’t even begin to describe it,” Baldwin replied when asked how special that win was. “It was my third career tour-type Modified race, and my first tour-type Modified win. It’s still the biggest win of my career to date.”
Baldwin pointed out this year’s Pace-O-Matic King of the Modifieds powered by Dominion Energy race will be special because he will be teaming with former NASCAR Cup Series standout and former South Boston Speedway champion Elliott Sadler.
“It’s going to be really cool,” said Baldwin. “My dad (Tommy Baldwin, Jr.) and Elliott worked together on the Cup Series in years past so it’s another full-circle moment that I’m coming across at this part of my career. Elliott has so much history at South Boston Speedway and so does the Sadler family. Working alongside with him will be cool.”
Baldwin sees South Boston Speedway as a track that is a great fit for his driving style. That, perhaps is part of why the talented young racer has enjoyed the success he has enjoyed at the four-tenths-mile oval.
“It’s just an enjoyable racetrack to get around,” Baldwin explained about his fondness for South Boston Speedway. “I like high-grip racetracks. I like being able to hustle a racecar pretty much the whole race. It’s being pretty much being able to get after it every lap that fits my style. It’s racy. You can race side-by-side, generate runs, and create passes. It’s a great racetrack, a super-nice facility, and has a lot of fun racing going on.”
Baldwin noted that the King of the Modifieds event is a special event.
“Having a marquee event down south again is the biggest thing,” Baldwin said. “It’s about having a high-paying race at a racetrack most everybody loves and an opportunity for the southern guys to have a high-paying race and mix it up with everybody in Modified racing. The SMART Modified Tour and South Boston Speedway together do a great job of promoting it and making it what it is and Pace-O-Matic putting it on is huge.”
Baldwin feels the Pace-O-Matic King of the Modifieds powered by Dominion Energy, a 125-lap race that pays $20,000 to win, is one of the biggest races of the season for tour-type Modified competitors.
“I think it’s going to be one of the highest car counts and one of the biggest Modified races of the year,” he said. “A lot of good drivers will be coming. There will probably be 15 or 20 cars that could win the race. There are some guys from the northern tour that will be coming down that will be pretty tough to beat. You can’t overlook guys like Danny Bohn and Brandon Ward who have fired off really well this year, along with my brother, Jack Baldwin. Those guys from the SMART Modified Tour are going to be hard to beat along with Burt Myers and Ryan Newman. There’s a good group of southern guys that will be tough to beat.”
