CHARLOTTE, N.C. — On a black-tie and ballgown evening in downtown Charlotte on Friday evening, NASCAR honored its best from the gritty grassroots to the sport‘s burgeoning stars — drivers, their teams and owners walking the red carpet in the Charlotte Convention Center.
As the evening‘s co-host Alex Alexander said before the first trophies were bestowed, “the soul of NASCAR is alive and well.”
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The evening started by recognizing the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series champions from across the country, including Brendon Fries — a three-time champion who won the West Region, Idaho State and Meridian Speedway titles.
The Wendell Scott Trailblazer Award, named for the late NASCAR Hall of Famer who became the first black driver to win a premier-series race, was given to two-time All-American Speedway champion and California state champion Kenna Mitchell, who accepted the prestigious trophy saying, “I hope to inspire the next generation of racers.”
Minnesota‘s Jacob Goede, a 10-race winner this season, won his second NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series national championship and was presented the trophy by NASCAR Cup Series driver John Hunter Nemechek and then received the champion‘s ring from Ben Kennedy, NASCAR‘s Executive Vice President and Chief Venue and Racing Innovations Officer.
RELATED: NASCAR Regional Power Rankings | Inside Goede’s journey
One of the highlights of the night included recognizing the standouts from NASCAR‘s hugely popular international series, which included two-time Formula One championship runner-up and 11-race winner Rubens Barrichello, who at the age of 53 claimed the NASCAR Brasil Series title.
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“Of course it‘s always hard to win, but to reconfirm is even harder,” said Italian Vittorio Ghirelli, who claimed his second consecutive NASCAR Euro Series championship.
“We delivered when it counted and very happy for the result and grateful to be with this team. … it‘s a long travel, but it is an honor to come here to Charlotte.”
One of the night‘s highlights was honoring 22-year-old Pennsylvanian Austin Beers, who became the youngest champion in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour edging four-time series champion Justin Bonsignore in a title race decided in the season finale.
“To have it all come down to Martinsville (Va.) Speedway, one last race against Justin Bonsignore, someone of that caliber and to come out on top was pretty incredible,” Beers said. “We were very consistent all year. Every race we finished top 10 and 12 of 16 we were top five, so just very consistent and smart with strategy.”
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One of Beers’ inspirations — RFK Racing NASCAR Cup Series driver Ryan Preece joined NASCAR President Steve O‘Donnell in presenting the young driver with his trophy on stage. “It’s fun coming here, but a lot more fun when you are the champion,” Beers said.
The evening finished with presentations to the ARCA Menards regional and national series standouts. Trevor Huddleston won the ARCA Menards Series West title with Robbie Kennealy claiming the ARCA Menards Series West Bounty Rookie of the Year trophy.
Austin Vaughn was the ARCA Menards Series East Bounty Rookie of the Year with 16-year-old Isaac Kitzmiller taking the East Series title after a season he earned top-10 finishes in every single race.
“This is awesome and really shows all the hard work I‘ve put into my career, all the running, training and studying, everything like that,” said Kitzmiller, an 11th-grade high school student from West Virginia.
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Before honoring the ARCA Menards Series champions, NASCAR recognized Bill Venturini and Venturini Motorsports for their contributions to the series, wishing them well on their retirement.
MORE: Venturini’s driver-roster legacy
The room gave a strong round of applause to the ARCA Menards Series 2025 Bounty Rookie of the Year Isabella Robusto, who earned nine top-five and 14 top-10 finishes on the 20-race season with a best showing of third-place at both Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway and the Dover (Del.) Motor Speedway one-miler.
“We definitely had our ups and downs this year so to come out of it with Rookie of the Year means a lot, just missed out on third in the championship, but we definitely had our good races,” Robusto said.
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“I‘m super excited and we‘ll be announcing [2026 plans] in a couple weeks,” the 21-year-old South Carolinian added with a smile. “At the end of the day I‘m just trying to be the best driver that I can and you always want to be there for the championship, but rookie of the year still means a lot and shows we can run up front and finish races and do what we needed to do. It means a lot but at the end of the day in the back of your mind, you want to be the champion and be first.”
The night concluded with recognition — and a hearty round of applause — for a huge fan favorite, ARCA Menards Series champion Brenden Queen, who not only celebrated his first major series title Friday night but also his 28th birthday. He claimed a series-best eight victories and scored an amazing 17 top-five finishes in the 20-race season.
That success certainly paid off this season, earning Queen five NASCAR Xfinity Series starts and a pair of NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race opportunities. Next year he will drive a RAM truck for Kaulig Racing fulltime in the Craftsman Truck Series.
“It‘s crazy. I‘m just a late model guy that was a backyard racer,” Queen said while posing with his series championship trophy. “To know that my name has gotten to that part of the sport is pretty special really, just a lot to be thankful for.
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“I‘ve tried really hard to soak in the moment. This week I‘ve been trying really hard to just enjoy the moment. Tonight goes by so fast and then we‘re going to Daytona.
“The racer in me is already focused on ‘the next one,’ but you have to balance it and have the offseason and be healthy, don‘t let it consume you. I‘m excited about the future but nice to have a night to reflect on the memories made with these guys,” Queen said of his team. “Pretty cool. Been through so many ups and downs and it makes you appreciate these moments.”
