NORTH WILKESBORO, N.C.: Brendan “Butterbean” Queen was just 25 when he beat Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kevin Harvick and Brad Keselowski in the CARS Tour All-Star Race last year at North Wilkesboro Speedway.
While he was unable to defend his Cars Tour win this week, because the race was postponed due to rain, Queen was fastest in practice (17.911seconds) driving the No. 1 TRICON Garage Toyota Tundra in anticipation of his Craftsman Truck Series debut on Friday at the 0.625-mile track.
Unfortunately, Mother Nature foiled Queen once again on Saturday. Morning rains forced NASCAR to cancel qualifying and set the field according to owner points. The affable 26-year-old Chesapeake, Va., native started 26th in the Wright Brand 250.
“I thought we were going to have a shot at the pole,” Queen told SiriusXM NASCAR Radio on Saturday morning. “Nowhere to go but forward. I know the truck is fast enough. We just have to be smart and stay out of trouble.”
At the end of the first stage, Queen was running 15th. By Lap 81, he had cruised up to 12th before NASCAR red-flagged the race for weather.
“We did everything we needed to do there—not in a big hurry, pick them off one-by-one—and just keep the fenders on it,” Queen said. “And all four are still on. I’m learning a lot. A lot of dirty air trying to get from the back to the front.
“I asked my team owner (David Gilliland), ‘Am I on par for where I should have been? Did I pass enough? I wasn’t leaving anything out there?’ And he thought I did everything great.
“We were just putting ourselves in a good position. When we got free, we were fast enough to be in the top five. We just got to get there.”
Despite the difference between the Late Models and trucks, Queen made the transition appear easy.
“The truck is heavier, the Goodyears are different than the Hoosier (tires) and the braking is a lot different,” Queen said. “The track is the same. The line is kind of the same. But they definitely don’t drive the same.
“The truck has a lot slower slide than the late model and it took me a little bit to get used to.”
After scoring four wins, 13 top fives and 15 top 10s en route to a second-place finish in the 2023 CARS Tour point standings, Queen was firmly on the radar of Toyota Racing, which signed the driver earlier this year. The North Wilkesboro victory, along with topping Josh Berry and Kaden Honeycutt in the Thanksgiving Classic at Southern National Motorsports Park, established Queen as one to watch.
“Toyota called me and said they’d like to do something with TRICON for Wilkesboro, since I had won here last year,” Queen said. “And everything worked out. We were able to put the deal together.
“Just excited to make the most of this opportunity. I never knew if I’d get it and finally got a shot.”
Follow Lee Spencer on Twitter @CandiceSpencer or email her at: [email protected].
