Langley Speedway’s midsummer highlight takes center stage on Saturday night with a stacked entry list, consisting of national champions, CARS Tour winners, and a host of local competitors hoping to shine under the track’s LED lights.
The Hampton Heat 200, which has been a staple on Langley Speedway’s schedule since 2008, has become one of the most prestigious races in Late Model Stock Car racing. The Hampton Heat is also the second leg in the Virginia Triple Crown and has been part of the Virginia Triple Crown since 2012 – with the exception of 2016 and 2020, when the Virginia Triple Crown was not held.
Here are five things you need to know ahead of the 18th renewal of the Hampton Heat 200-lap Late Model Stock Car race at Langley Speedway.
Race Schedule and Format
Saturday night’s midsummer classic is a 200-lap, 79.4-mile race around the 0.396-mile oval. Langley is one of the flattest tracks in the region, with just six degrees (6°) of banking in the corners and two degrees (2°) of banking on the straightaways.
Caution laps will not count in the feature race.
The Hampton Heat is a six-tire race. Teams will be permitted to change two tires at the halfway break, which will fall at or around lap 100.
The starting lineup for the Hampton Heat will be determined solely by qualifying times. Qualifying, which commences at 3:45pm on Saturday, will be single car qualifying. Every car that attempts to qualify will start in the feature race.
Schedule
11:00am – Pit gates open/Main parking lot opens
12:00pm – Practice (Late Models practice from 12:00pm-12:35pm, 12:40pm-1:15pm)
2:30pm – Late Model Stock Car drivers meeting
3:45pm – Late Model Stock Car qualifying
5:00pm – PBR Hampton Roads Fan Fest, featuring a live performance from The Dan Nichols Band
7:00pm – Late Model Stock Car driver introductions
7:20pm – Pre-race ceremonies
7:35pm – U-CAR feature race
8:30pm – Hampton Heat 200 Late Model Stock Car feature race
Event Purse
Langley Speedway increased the purse for the 2026 running of the Hampton Heat, with the race now boasting a record $43,745 in posted awards, with the race winner taking home $10,000 and paying $885 to start.
The complete purse breakdown:
1st – $10,000
2nd – $2,200
3rd – $1,350
4th – $1,250
5th – $1,100
6th – $1,050
7th – $1,000
8th – #950
9th – $925
10th – $910
11th – $885
12-36th – $885
Other Posted Awards:
Pole Award: $500
Halfway bonus: $250
The 10th place finisher and the 20th place finisher will each be awarded two new Hoosier F-45 tires.
Sunoco will award $500 in gas cards, with $100 to the pole winner, $100 to the race winner, and $100 to the fifth place, 10th place, and 15th place finishers.
The Hampton Heat is the second leg of the $50,000 Virginia Triple Crown, presented by NASCAR and FloRacing. At the conclusion of the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 in September, the $20,000 Virginia Triple Crown championship prize will be awarded to the driver with the best average finish between the South Boston 200, won by Kaden Honeycutt in June, Saturday’s Hampton Heat, and the Martinsville fall classic.
Entry List: A stacked field
The entry list for the 18th Hampton Heat 200 includes some of the biggest names in pavement late model racing.
Among those chasing victory in the Hampton Heat are defending ValleyStar Credit Union 300 winner Landon Pembelton, four-time NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Local Racing Series national champion Lee Pulliam, three-time zMAX CARS Tour champion Bobby McCarty in the Hedgecock house car, two-time national champion Connor Hall, and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series competitor Brenden “Butterbean” Queen – who will compete Friday night’s NCTS race at Indianapolis Raceway Park before making the trek to his hometown track in pursuit of his third Hampton Heat triumph.
Local standout Ryley Music, who has multiple wins at Langley Speedway through his career, will be racing for Nelson Motorsports on Saturday night instead of in his own no. 47 car. Defending Hampton Heat winner Matt Waltz is also among the 33 drivers who will compete on Saturday.
Entry List
#0 – Landon Pembelton
#00 – Chase Burrow
#03 – Brenden “Butterbean” Queen
#08 – Cody Bryant
#09 – Michael Rogers
#1 – Jamie York
#2 – Matt Waltz
#6 – Brandon Lopez
#8 – Lee Pulliam
#8 – Conner Weddell
#9 – Ayden Millette
#10 – Trey Crews
#20 – Carson Loftin
#21 – Greg Edwards
#22 – Chase Burgeson
#22 – Ryley Music
#25 – Craig Eastep
#26 – Peyton Sellers
#29 – Casey Wyatt
#31 – Wesley Slimp
#41 – Bobby McCarty
#41 – Woody Howard
#42 – Chris Horton, Jr.
#51 – Michael Bumgarner
#51 – Ryan Matthews
#55 – Mark Wertz
#57 – Chase Johnson
#77 – Blake Stallings
#77 – Connor Hall
#77 – Trevor Ward
#78 – Atley Wiese
#88 – Caden Kvapil
#95 – Sam Yarbrough
History and Prestige: Past winners
What initially started out as a marquee local race, the prestige of the race grew during Langley Speedway’s renaissance in the late-2000s and early-2010s. By 2013, when Peyton Sellers won the race, the Hampton Heat had firmly established itself as one of Late Model Stock Car racing’s most prestigious events.
In 17 prior renewals of the midsummer classic, names such as Peyton Sellers, Philip Morris, Lee Pulliam, Bobby McCarty, and Josh Berry have all won the Hampton Heat.
Ever since Langley Speedway’s resurgence, the track has groomed some of Late Model Stock Car racing’s top talents, and a few of those drivers have scored multiple wins in the Hampton Heat, including C.E. Falk, III, Brenden Queen, and Connor Hall.
Previous Winners
2008 – Nick Smith
2009 – Woody Howard
2010 – C.E. Falk, III
2011 – C.E. Falk, III
2012 – Matt Bowling
2013 – Peyton Sellers
2014 – C.E. Falk, III
2015 – Lee Pulliam
2017 – Bobby McCarty
2018 – Philip Morris
2019 – Connor Hall
2020 – Brenden Queen
2021 – Josh Berry
2022 – Jared Fryar
2023 – Brenden Queen
2024 – Brenden Queen
2025 – Matt Waltz
Langley Speedway was closed in 2016 due to a land ownership dispute, which was settled in 2017 when Bill Mullis completed the purchase of the properties the speedway was located on.
How to Watch
The 18th Hampton Heat 200-lap Late Model Stock Car race is being broadcast by FloRacing and is available to stream at no cost on FloRacing’s YouTube channel as well as on Amazon.
Short Track Scene’s Matt Weaver and Corey Latham will be on location, providing complete, comprehensive coverage of the 18th Hampton Heat.
Marquis comes from St. Charles, Maryland and has a widespread background in journalism, having covered politics in Washington and Maryland as well as nearly every form of auto racing, including NASCAR, IndyCar, AMA Motocross and IHRA Drag Racing. Now living near Emerald Isle, North Carolina, Marquis covers Late Model Stock Cars and Super Late Models in the Carolinas and Virginia.
