JACKSONVILLE, NC – Five drivers find themselves with a shot to clinch the Champ Kart division championship in Saturday night’s double points finale at Goodyear All American Speedway.
Trey Massengill, Matt Broughton, Aaron Layden, Josh Eubanks, and Jacob Tingen are all separated by 26 points heading into Saturday night’s championship showdown at the 4/10-mile track at Goodyear All American Speedway. The top-three drivers are separated by five points and the top four by 10 points, which sets up the possibility of a winner-take-all shootout on a Saturday night.
“Looking at the numbers, it is coming down to the final race,” Broughton said. “What a race it will be, I am sure.”
Broughton comes into Saturday night’s championship finale trailing Trey Massengill by just three points. He picked up two wins to start the season back in March but has not been back to victory lane since. For him, like his fellow Champ Kart competitors, it’s not about the points, but about racing with friends, friends that are almost like an extended family.
“Stressing over points will drive you mad,” Broughton remarked. “I have not paid it much mind all year and I’m not going to start now. I am going to enjoy it all and race hard. We’re all family so we all win at the end of the night.”
Broughton’s sense of family is shared by his competitors. In the Champ Kart congregation in the pits at Goodyear All American Speedway, the drivers help each other, swap parts, and when the races are over, they all celebrate in victory lane together as if the winner of their race was their own brother.
“Racing in the Champ Buggy at Goodyear All American Speedway has always been a blessing to me and I couldn’t ask for better people to be racing against,” Massengill, who has a narrow lead in the championship standings, said. “We are all family. I’m just blessed to call Goodyear All American Speedway my superspeedway home track and blessed to be racing against my family.”
Massengill picked up his most recent win on July 30, the last time the Champ Karts have raced at Goodyear All American Speedway. While he holds a slim lead in the championship standings, he could find himself in a must win situation if Broughton and Layden are among the frontrunners in the draft.
“Winning a championship would be a great achievement for any of us,” Layden, who scored his first career win at the Summer Classic on July 16, stated. “We’re a racing family so, to have the top-five in points either way is awesome in itself. We help each other on and off the track and Goodyear All American Speedway gives us the best possible place to race.”
Eubanks, who has also raced in Mini Stock at Goodyear All American Speedway, sits fourth in points, 10 points behind Massengill. In order to win the championship, he will have to win the race and need a little bit of help.
However, Eubanks would be content just to get back in the cockpit of his Champ Kart.
“Winning the championship would be pretty cool, but I’m just ready to get back in the seat at Goodyear All American Speedway,” Eubanks explained. “I love racing in this class with these people. We all try to help each other out when someone needs it and all of us that have a chance to win the championship this year are all basically family. It’s shaping up to be an awesome last race, should be a great race to watch and the fans won’t want to miss this one. Thankful for everyone that helps out and the whole Woooooooo Crew.”
Fifth place points runner Jacob Tingen is, among this group of elite drivers, the longshot to win the championship. He trails the points lead by 26 points and would have to win and get a lot of help to clinch the championship. But, like the rest of the Goodyear All American Speedway Champ Kart family, Tingen’s just ready to have fun and do racecar things with his racecar friends.
“It would be a blast to win the championship,” Tingen stated. “Although, it’s not about the fame and glory of being the champion, but to have a racing family like we have. The atmosphere of Goodyear All American Speedway is like no other.”
The Champ Kart division will be the last race on the expanded card for Championship Saturday at Goodyear All American Speedway. The feature racing program, which will see champions crowned in all nine regular season speedway divisions, will get underway at 6pm. Tickets are available at the gate, which opens at 4pm, for $15 for adults, $5 for kids ages 6-12, and kids five (5) and under get in free.
Goodyear All American Speedway is Jacksonville’s Action Attraction featuring racing and other events. For more information about Goodyear All American Speedway, check out the speedway’s website, like/follow “Goodyear All American Speedway” on Facebook, or follow the track on Instagram.
