ROBERSONVILLE, NC – Tyler Matthews capped off a strong weekend with a win at East Carolina Motor Speedway on Sunday afternoon.
The win was Matthews’ fifth win of the season at a third different track and came less than 24 hours after winning a race at Southern National Motorsports Park. The wins at the two tracks also keep Matthews alive in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series North Carolina state championship race.
However, Matthews, who appears destined to win the track championship at Southern National Motorsports Park, credits a different track for his recent success.
“It’s been a great weekend,” Matthews said. “We’ve really been clicking as of late. It seems like those trips down to Carteret always seem to help us out. We went down in the middle of the season, hit a little slump, picked up the win and rattled off some good finishes. Got in a little slump again, got to Carteret, ran good and, as of late, we’ve been clicking them off.
“We continue a hot streak into the offseason and put together some nice runs in some big races at the end of the year.”
Last season, Matthews scored only one win, which came at East Carolina in the early summer months. This season, with the help of Wes Burton and Doug Barefoot, Matthews has become an elite force to be reckoned with in Eastern North Carolina.
“We’ve just been real consistent and have good notes,” Matthews explained. “Wes Burton has come down three or four weekends in a row and got us tuned up. We’ve got a good setup and know we can go win races. Without him, we couldn’t be where we’re at right now. We’ve got Doug Barefoot in the pits calling the shots.
“It really helps when you have someone like that who can help you out and stay consistent every week.”
Knowing he can race with racers such as Matt Bowling has now given Matthews another goal to shoot for.
In a little more than a month, Late Model Stock Car racing’s biggest race, the Valley Star Credit Union 300, will commence at Martinsville Speedway. The Richlands, North Carolina driver plans to be there and hopes to have a shot at the win.
“That’s the plan right now, to go to Martinsville, as long as the car lasts,” Matthews said. “We’ve got one car right now and put everything into it every week. As long as it lasts, that’s the plan right now. If we can run up front with the people who run up front at Martinsville, maybe we can get a win there.”
Matthews will turn his attention to the Ronnie Barnette Memorial at East Carolina Motor Speedway next Saturday and then head to Southern National Motorsports Park to clinch the track championship on September 24th.