80 Seasons of Speed @ Seekonk Speedway - 2020's

YOUTH MOVEMENT GROWTH POINTS THE WAY FOR THE FUTURE: 2020-2025)

As Seekonk Speedway prepares to celebrate 80 years as a short-track in Massachusetts during the 2025 season, the action over the last five years has been intense on the track.

This decade started with something no one would have expected: COVID-19. 

When COVID first hit, everyone thought it would be just a few weeks, and racing would be back underway. However, what happened was exactly the opposite. COVID hit, no fans were allowed into the grandstands, and the Action Track of the East went silent for all but 10 events during the campaign. All of them were on Fast Friday, and all of them included no fans, just competitors and their team members.

This year was highlighted by five drivers - some veterans - and some who found their way to the front of the pack. Doug Benoit captured the Pure Stock title, his second in three years. It was Jake Johnson returning to Legends Cars racing, winning the championship in the shortened season. Johnson, who cut his teeth at Seekonk, has run Legends, Pro Stocks, Late Models and now Touring Modifieds at Seekonk. He’s been successful in all of them. Sport 4 champion Mikey LeFort added his second of what is now three crowns, while Isaiah Newcomb and Ethan Dion were on top in the Bandolero divisions. Showcasing Seekonk’s youngest crowd, the Bandolero class finished off their fourth season since their Seekonk inception.

As the 2021 season hit, the fans were slowly allowed back into the grandstands, and the words “social distancing” and “6 feet” became just as familiar as the names of their friends to their left and right weekly. 

The season showcased some more incredible competition on the track, including domination and some familiar faces back on top in the championship and race winner battles. David Darling added his eighth championship in the Pro Stocks - becoming the first driver to capture eight driver titles. To do it, he only had to finish 8th in the season-finale. A few years before his rise to the Pro Stock division in 2024, Vinnie Arrenegado won his first of two Late Model championships in 2021, after years of trying. He was joined at the head table by Chad Baxter, who dominated the Sportsman division, taking his machine to the top of the field more often than not. With the title, Baxter was also honored as the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Racing Series Division III National Champion, besting all others in his division in the country. In the Sport Trucks, it was Barry Shaw who captured top honors for the NASCAR Division IV class. 

Fast Friday saw the continued rise of the youth movement, with one of the champions during this season eventually moving and winning a title in the Legends Cars. It was Richie Helger Jr capturing the Bandolero Outlaw title, while newcomer Darren Krantz Jr stormed onto the scene in the Bandits, winning many races and the championship gold. In the Sport 4’s, it was Lefort scoring another crown, going back-to-back, while Luke Lebrun absolutely dominated the Legends Cars division, winning what felt like all of the races to win the championship.

Outside of champions, the 2021 season also included one of the more iconic nights in the history of Seekonk Speedway - when Rick Martin captured his 100th career track win in the Pro Stocks, edging Tom Scully Jr. in a thrilling finish. It was surely a night to remember.

In 2022, seemingly life back to normal, Seekonk introduced a major change to the points format: the Sunoco Drive For The Cup. Instead of the season-long points determining the champion, the new playoff system cut the field down to just eight competitors in each division at the end of the regular season, eliminated cars weekly in the playoffs, and left the championship 4 to determine the title in all divisions. It was winner (out of the four of them) take all on the final night. 

One of the craziest nights in the history of the track happened on NASCAR Saturday championship night, when Mark Jenison pulled off the unthinkable - winning TWO track titles in the same night. He won the Pro Stock championship quietly, but in the Late Models, Jenison rode the wall off turn four outside of Chase Belcher and ended up upside down. While he didn’t cross the line first, Jension was awarded the title by race control. It was just one of many thrilling moments the playoffs have produced and created quite the photo of Jenison celebrating the title with his car upside down behind him.

In the Sportsman, Craig Pianka, “Captain Fun”, used a late move on the final night to win the crown, while Radical Rick Martin returned to his dominance in the Sport Trucks, capturing his first championship since 2010. On Fast Friday, Devin Deshaies dominated in the same car Luke Lebrun had one year prior, but went into the final lap of the season-finale not in position to win the title. When the dust settled, Deshaies came out on top after others wrecked down the stretch run. Crystal Murray became the first female champion (in a non-youth division) in the 77-year history of the track in the Sport 4 class, a run that started a stretch of two straight. It was Bradley Strickland and Sam Macedo winning titles in the Bandolero divisions.

The playoffs returned for 2023, with a few tweaks. It was still Jension on top in Seekonk’s top division, scoring a second straight Pro Stock crown on the final night. Vinnie Arrenegado outlasted all challengers to win his second Late Model title, while Steve Axon, who had only planned on running part-time, scored his second career Sportsman title. Rick Martin also won his second in a row in the Sport Trucks. The NASCAR Saturday championship night, delayed one week due to weather, still had a heavy threat of rain throughout the night, but the event went off, and all champions were determined on the track. Fast Friday’s playoff battle gave Jared Cordeira the chance of a lifetime - and he took advantage. He won the Pure Stock title, while Jacob “Rowdy” Burns kept the Legends Cars championship under the Nick Lascuola Racing banner. It was Murray winning another in the Sport 4’s, while the Bandolero champions included Parker Davis and Collin Vanasse. 

The 2024 season came right down to the wire, with the newest playoff tweaks cutting the field from eight to six competitors in each class. On the final night, Seekonk’s youth names that had come through the ranks shined above. Dylan Estrella won his first Pro Stock title, going along with his two Late Models championships and one in Seekonk’s Youth Racing Association. In the Late Models, Luke Lebrun, who had also won a title in Seekonk’s youth racing and the Legends Cars before, won the championship. Although he didn’t have the fastest car during the summer, Lebrun played all the cards right to come out on top. Adam Pettey, one year after dominating the Sportsman division and coming up just short of the crown, finally was the champion in 2024. He was joined by Martin, who won his third straight in the Sport Trucks, capping off a run of success with another title trophy. 

On Fast Friday, Richie Helger Jr., who had moved up from the Bandolero class after winning a title there, was champion in the Legends Cars. Justin Leduc dominated the second half of the Sport 4 season en route to the title. And in the Bandolero divisions, Bryson Robidoux and David Bernier ended on top. Another Robidoux also won a crown - this time Brent - in the Pure Stocks. The 2024 campaign marked the first time in Seekonk's history that two brothers won on the same night in during the season (to our knowledge), with Brent and Bryson both winning on two different nights, including championship night.

Overall, the first half of the 2020 decade showcased a few different things.

The continued dominance of veteran names like Martin and Darling 

The introduction of the playoff system, with tweaks along the way and championship nights keeping fans on the edge of their seats down to the final laps

And, the continued youth growth at Seekonk Speedway. Many champions and race winners on NASCAR Saturday cut their teeth on Fast Friday - whether it be in the Bandolero divisions, Sport 4s or Pure Stocks. As we look ahead to the 80th year, and the future as a whole, take a look at some of the young, rising stars of Fast Friday. It’s likely you will see them on NASCAR Saturday before long.