SOUTH BOSTON, Va. — Two of the biggest names in Late Model Stock Car Division racing face one final race – one final night – competing against each other and a star-studded field to decide the 2026 South Boston Speedway championship.
The Hitachi Energy Late Model Stock Car Division champion will be determined in the 100-lap Hitachi Energy Late Model Stock Car Division race that headlines the season’s final points event, the Halifax County Farm Bureau Championship Night, on Saturday night, September 12.
Trevor Ward of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, a former Virginia Late Model Triple Crown champion and former winner of the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 at Martinsville, leads eight-time South Boston Speedway champion and two-time NASCAR national champion Peyton Sellers of Danville, Virginia by 11 points entering the season finale.
At stake is a $20,000 payout from the speedway’s Championship Loyalty Bonus Program powered by Hitachi Energy and EMPOWER Broadband to the top eligible driver.
Ward enters Saturday night’s 100-lap race coming off fifth-place and third-place finishes in twin 75-lap races on August 29. Those finishes allowed him to extend a streak in which he has not finished outside of the top five this season.
That streak bodes well for Ward who is seeking to turn the tables on last season when he finished second behind Sellers in the season’s final race and lost the championship to Sellers by a slim two-point margin.
“I feel like we have a pretty decent buffer going into the last race,” said Ward who has four wins and seven second-place finishes in his 19 starts at South Boston Speedway this season.
“I feel a lot better knowing we had another pair of top-five finishes coming out of the last event. I haven’t finished outside of the top five all year. That’s a big testament to this team. I thank all of my sponsors and all of the guys that have been involved in this effort. It wouldn’t be possible without these guys.”
Ward expressed no nervousness entering Saturday’s season finale.
“It doesn’t make me nervous,” he remarked. “I feel like we’ve got enough cushion to learn some stuff and throw some stuff at the car to make it a lot better. We’ve been fighting with the car just not handling right the last couple of events. We’re going to do some significant work going into the last race, and we’re looking forward to Championship Night.”
For Sellers, a five-time Virginia Late Model Triple Crown Champion and former winner of the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 at Martinsville Speedway, the past couple of events at South Boston Speedway have been about chasing trophies as much as chasing a possible ninth career South Boston Speedway title.
He won both races of the twin-race event on August 29 and enters Saturday’s 100-lap race having won his last three starts. Sellers has strung together five Top-2 finishes in his last six starts, making him the driver with the hot hand in the division.
Sellers pointed out after the August 29 event that while he is a longshot in the championship chase, he is focused on preserving his second-place standing in the points chase. He holds a 12-point edge over third-place Landon Pembelton of Amelia, Virginia who is a two-time winner of the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 at Martinsville Speedway, and a former Dominion Raceway track champion.
A $15,000 payout from the Championship Loyalty Bonus Program will go to the second eligible driver and a $10,000 payout will go to the third eligible driver – a difference of $5,000.
“I think with Trevor having a good night the last event, pretty much clinched the championship,” Sellers noted “We had a good night. We’re not going to change too much. We’ll come back on September 12 and try to do it again. Landon is right on our heels. One slip the next race, and he gets into second place. There is a big money difference there.”
The 2026 season has featured some of the best drivers and greatest competition in the history of the Late Model Stock Car Division at South Boston Speedway. While Ward, Sellers and Pembelton are at the top of the standings, they have had to overcome challenges from the likes of 16-year Conner “C-Weed” Weddell who has logged four second-place finishes in his last five starts and has posted seven runner-up finishes and six third-place finishes in his 19 starts.
More greats of the Late Model Stock Car realm that have been in the mix at South Boston Speedway this season include two-time Thunder Road Harley-Davidson 200 winner, former Virginia Late Model Triple Crown champion and three-time zMAX CARS Tour Late Model Stock Car Champion Bobby McCarty, two-time Ace Speedway champion Blake Stallings, Deac McCaskill, a two-time Thunder Road Harley-Davidson 200 winner, a former zMAX CARS Tour champion and two-time Southern National Motorsports Park champion, and former zMAX CARS Tour competitor Andrew Grady.
Who will prevail as champion in the season finale? Who will find themselves taking the checkered flag for the race win?
The answer comes Saturday.
