Hampton Heat winner chasing another $10k at Carteret

Connor Hall scored the biggest win of his career just a few weeks ago in the Hampton Heat 200 at Langley (Va.) Speedway and now Hall is hoping for another $10,000 payday at Bobby Watson’s Carteret County Speedway on Saturday night.

Hall, 22, from Hampton, Virginia is one of 14 drivers who have already pre-entered for Saturday night’s race and is no stranger to Carteret County Speedway.  Hall has two career wins at Carteret and comes into Saturday’s race fresh off a win in the prestigious Hampton Heat 200.  Now, he is hoping for another milestone win on what has been a strong 2019 season.

“My expectations for myself and the team coming into this weekend are the same that I uphold for every race,” Hall said.  “That is to unload with a racecar prepared to the best of our ability and focus on the task at hand.  If we are fortunate enough to be in position to win, then that is a plus.  We, as a team, looking forward to coming back to Carteret County Speedway.  The facility is first class.”

The victory at the Hampton Heat 200 legitimized Hall’s presence as one of the upper-tier drivers in Late Model Stock Car racing, and it gave his team a boost in confidence.

“The Hampton heat 200 was huge,” Hall remarked.  “I believe it helped validate our team slightly more to show everyone that we can contend in the bigger races as well as the weekly shows.”

Since the track’s inaugural season in 2016, drivers who race regularly at Langley Speedway have proven to be competitive at Carteret County as well – mainly due to the two tracks’ similarities.  Both tracks are flat and feature wide corners and short straightaways.

“Both tracks are similar, yet each have their own character,” Hall explained.  “We are preparing for this race like each we run and that is to focus on every detail and never cut a corner.  Everyone in our shop holds the next guy to a very high standard.  I stress doing it right or not doing it at all.  Luckily for me, my guys are the exact same, if not worse about it.”

The 2019 season has been a career high for Hall.  In addition to his win in the Hampton Heat 200, Hall has two other wins and sits second in points in the Virginia track’s championship standings.  Points are not a concern to Hall on Saturday night in Carteret County’s biggest Limited Late Model race, winning is.

“Winning this event would mean a lot to myself and the team,” Hall stated.  “We like to believe that we are competitive no matter what area we travel to and running well in this race will verify that.”

Hall is one of two drivers from Virginia to have entered the Solid Rock Carriers 150, joining South Boston Virginia’s Stacy Puryear.

Qualifying for Saturday’s Solid Rock Carriers 150 will commence at 5 p.m., pre-race festivities will get underway around 6 p.m., and the green flag will fly at 7:30 p.m.

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Connor Hall on track at Carteret County Speedway. (Andy Marquis photo)