At 27-years-old, Brenden ‘Butterbean’ Queen is supposed to be too old to make his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut based on the standards of this century but those standards have also shifted over the past half decade or so.
Queen was content to be a short track lifer, earning most of his accolades in the CARS Late Model Stock Tour but circumstances have allowed him to begin earnestly pursuing a NASCAR national touring career.
If this sounds familiar, it’s because Josh Berry paved a similar path earlier not that long ago, running his first full-time Xfinity Series season at 29-years-old and only after accomplishing practically all of his goals in Late Model Stock competition.
“You know, Josh Berry getting his opportunity really helped people like me,” Queen said on Friday during a press conference at Bristol on Friday in advance of his debut with Kaulig Racing. “FloRacing did a lot to help me showcase my brand, me as a person, and now being in ARCA and on FS1, showing everyone who I am beyond a race car driver.”
That person, by the way, is an affable and authentic child-at-heart with a tenacious competitive streak, a cool nickname and a devout fan base. Put the package together, and it has Queen on the verge of an ARCA Racing Series championship and a similar breakthrough as Berry.
“I think all of that has helped a lot, but Josh making it when he did, shows the timing just has to work for everyone in this sport. And for me, everything just opened up at the right time. I’ve tried to make the most of every opportunity because you never know what is next.”
For Queen, it was befriending local dirt racer John Staton, and just wanting to hang out with him on weekends he wasn’t racing himself. Staton put Queen in his dirt Late Model, where they immediately started winning races at Dixie Speedway, convincing the Virginia business owner to sponsor Queen in the CARS Tour as well.
The extra funding led Queen to joining Lee Pulliam Performance, where they captured the CARS Tour championship last season. Queen also scored a top-five in his Truck Series debut at North Wilkesboro for Tricon Garage, which raised his stock all the higher.
As Berry and Kaden Honeycutt have proven, winning in the CARS Tour creates an expectation of contending at any level, and that’s why Queen expects to fare well at Bristol on Friday night.
“The entire CARS Tour field is separated by a tenth, and if you’re on the wrong side of that tenth, you’re 20th,” Queen said. “So I’ve experienced competition. Obviously, racing the Truck Series has prepared me for this. The ARCA helps just getting used to tracks I’ve never been to before.
“It’s not going to be easy because nothing in racing comes easy but I have followed the Xfinity Series for a long time, and I have raced quite a bit with the drivers in this series now, so I’m excited to see where we stack up.”
As for his long-term future, industry chatter has Queen set to join Kaulig in the Truck Series factory RAM program next season, but the driver himself say not so fast.
“I never rule out anything and obviously, what Kaulig Racing is doing is very impressive,” Queen said. “It’s definitely in my considerations, but we’re working on everything and I don’t have anything to announced as of now, but we’ll keep working at it.”
In this article
Be the first to know and subscribe for real-time news email updates on these topics
