Bud’s Speedway Season Opener This Sunday May 31, 2024 Regional SYDNEY, NS – The 2024 season at Bud’s Speedway in Sydney, Nova Scotia gets the green flag this Sunday afternoon, June 2nd. This event was initially scheduled to run on Saturday, June 1st but was pushed back 24 hours due to staffing conflicts within the Bud’s Speedway Race Operations team. The racing season will kick off with five divisions of racing, anchored by a 75-lap Street Stock Shootout with a potential payout of $1000 to win plus additional prizes. Racing begins at the Grand Lake Road bullring at 2pm on Sunday, June 2nd. The Street Stock Shootout will see blasts from the pasts as Willard MacKay and Bob Hutchings make their returns to the track. At 73 years young, MacKay makes his return to racing for the first time in 27 years. Hutchings, who makes the trip from Central Newfoundland, has made a home on iRacing in recent years but this is the first time in a dozen years that he will see the real track. Hutchings will compete part-time this season with the Heart of a Champion Hot Rod Classics powered by KimCo. The Hot Rods will compete in Sydney on Saturday, October 19th. They will be joined by V6 Thunder Champion Brennan MacInnis, Colton Beaver, Glen Cooke, Jason Russell, JJ Cusack and rookie Dyllan Farrell as expected entries so far for the 75-lap Street Stock Shootout feature. More entries could be added to the list as race day draws closer. Based on a field of 10 cars, the winner will receive $1,000, two new Hoosier tires and a guaranteed top five starting position in the Street Stock race at Scotia Speedworld on September 21st. Fans will be treated to plenty of action and excitement in the 50-lap Saf-way Auto Parts Mini Stock feature along with the edge-of-your-seat entertainment in the V6 Thunder and Mallard Electric Hobby Stock divisions. Entries in these three divisions are typically strong and drivers will want to strike early should they want a shot at the 2024 championship. The GWL Trucking and Landscaping Bandoleros, featuring drivers ranging from eight to 16 years of age, will kick off the card on Sunday afternoon. Several local drivers have seen early success off Island already this season. Former Saf-way Auto Parts Mini Stock champion Kody Quinn was a winner at Petty International Raceway in River Glade, New Brunswick on their opening weekend. The reigning Mini Stock champion at Bud’s Speedway in Chris Drover was the winner at Scotia Speedworld outside of Halifax on May 19th. Last week, Jake Campbell scored his first off-Island podium finish in his Bandolero at Scotia Speedworld in the Beginner division. The trio will bring their already sharpened skills back to Sydney this weekend to kick off the 2024 season at Bud’s Speedway. Adult grandstand admission price for the Street Stock Shootout Season Opener on Sunday, June 2nd is $20 (aged 19 and up), Youth 8 to 18 years of age are $10 each with children aged seven and under admitted to the grandstands free of charge. Pit admission is $30 and is restricted to those 18 years of age and older. Pit gates open at 10am, grandstand gates open at 12pm with racing beginning at 2pm. An e-waiver is required to be electronically signed prior to gaining access to the pit area. This e-waiver can be found by heading to BudsSpeedway.com. For more information on events at Bud’s Speedway, please check out BudsSpeedway.com. About Bud’s Speedway:Opened in 1975, Bud’s Speedway has built a racing tradition on Cape Breton Island over the past four decades. The track is home to a number of stock car racing divisions and is a destination for local touring series and motorsports events. For more information on Bud’s Speedway, find them online on various social media platforms at @BudsSpeedway or visit their website at BudsSpeedway.com.
