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Kyle Dudley has high expectations at Martinsville

Andy Marquis | STS

MARTINSVILLE, VA – Kyle Dudley always comes to the track with swagger.

After winning the track championship at Motor Mile Speedway, he has plenty of it heading into Saturday’s ValleyStar Credit Union 300 – a race he has finished in the top-10 in twice in his career.  This year, the 30-year-old from Roanoke, Virginia, plans to win.

“To come win this motherfucker, that’s what my expectations are, man,” Dudley enthusiastically told Short Track Scene.  “We don’t go anywhere we don’t think we can win.  We’ve really got our stuff on point, been working hard in the shop, had really good cars and people helping me, so I think we got as good a shot as anybody.”

Dudley finished ninth in the 2014 ValleyStar Credit Union 300 and backed that up in 2019 with an eighth-place effort.  Past experience at Martinsville Speedway, under a plethora of different formats, gives him the knowledge of how to approach the weekend.

“You know, you got to be good, fast and have some luck here so we’ll just see,” Dudley said.  “Hopefully we can get a good qualifying spot, starting spot in the race, make the race first.  If we get a good spot there, we’ll see what we can do.  I think we can have something for them at the end.”

On top of his Motor Mile Speedway championship, Dudley has won multiple titles at Franklin County Speedway, the nostalgic 3/8-mile bullring nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains just a short drive from Martinsville.  Races at Franklin County tend to be full-contact and never lacking in excitement, much like the heat races on Saturday, and Dudley feels the heat races fit his driving style.

“Short races, get up after it, get up on the wheel,” Dudley stated.  “I don’t like riding around a lot and you don’t get to in those things.  I think it’ll be good, I think we’ll be good, so we’ll see what happens and see if I can’t take home a grandfather clock.”

Dudley is the son of former racer Mike Dudley.  As a kid, he watched the fall classic with dreams of one day competing in it.  Now, he’s dreaming of winning the $32,000 check and the grandfather clock.

“It would be unbelievable, man,” Dudley explained.  “You win this race and you’re a legend.  I grew up coming here, watching this race.  I never imagined even making this race, not to mention winning it.  We’d party all night if we win this thing man.”

Another dream Dudley had when he was younger was to win the track championship at Motor Mile Speedway in Fairlawn, Virginia.  That dream came true last weekend.

“That was pretty cool to get that deal.  I’m not big into points racing but to bring home a championship at a place so prestigious is a cool deal.”

Kyle Dudley was well inside the top-40 in Friday practice.

Kyle Dudley, on track at Martinsville Speedway during practice in 2022. (Andy Marquis photo)

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.

1 Comment

1 Comment

  1. Anonymous

    September 23, 2022 at 10:19 pm

    Hope he wins

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