Trent Barnes spent most of the season running at Hickory Motor Speedway. Entering the Southeast Limited Late Model Series race at Myrtle Beach Speedway, not many people knew who the kid was. At the end of the race, they certainly did. Barnes qualified on the pole and led the race wire-to-wire, fending off multiple challenges, to score the victory in dramatic fashion. Barnes is one driver we’ll be watching in the year ahead.
Trent Barnes didn’t make many new friends on his way to his first career victory in the SELLM Challenger race at Myrtle Beach Speedway. One driver who probably didn’t send Barnes a Christmas card was Adam Resnick. Resnick actually raced his way up to second after being forced to start the race at the rear of the field. Resnick eventually got around Barnes to take the lead but ended up being turned off Barnes’ front bumper. Under caution, Resnick spun Barnes, prompting track officials to park him for the remainder of the event. Resnick didn’t lie when asked if it was retaliation, saying that 14-year-olds that can’t make good decisions shouldn’t be racing with adults.
5. Resnick and the New Kids on the Block
Best of 2014 : Best of Limited Late Model Rivalries - trent was # 5
COPPER HILL, VA :: We continue our look back at the 2014 racing season with a look at the best Limited Late Model rookie drivers of the season.
The 2014 Limited Late Model rookie class consists of race winners and track championships. Here’s our list of the top-five:
COPPER HILL, VA :: Limited Late Model racing had its fair share of rivalries during the course of the 2014 season. Some of those rivalries simmered all season long while others boiled. We take a look at the 10 hottest rivalries during the season.
MYRTLE BEACH, SC :: Emotions got sour between Trent Barnes and Adam Resnick in Saturday night’s Southeast Limited Late Model (SELLM) Challenger feature at Myrtle Beach Speedway. It was Barnes who would go on to win the race after Resnick was parked for an on-track altercation between the two.
Barnes, 14, qualified on the pole and led the race wire-to-wire leading up to the on-track altercation with Resnick. On a restart with eight laps to go, Resnick got a jump while Barnes did not get going. That resulted in a pileup behind Barnes and Resnick. Resnick was warned about jumping the restart. On the ensuing restart, Resnick rocketed to the lead on the outside but the two made contact, relegating Resnick to third and allowing Barnes to hold the lead as the caution came out.
Under the caution, Resnick turned Barnes in turn one. Track officials immediately parked Resnick, who had come all the way from the rear of the field after failing post-qualifying technical inspection, for his actions. With his main competition sidelined, Barnes was able to cruise to his first career Limited Late Model victory.
“That was a little bit unnecessary,” Barnes said of the incident with Resnick. “I had my line and he cut down on me a little bit so, didn’t mean to do it if it was my fault. It was good hard racing.”
Resnick said he had the car to beat and felt he would’ve won the race if not for the contact with Barnes.
“When you don’t have the car that can win, sometimes you have to do stuff and he wanted to wreck me and see if he could win. If 14-year-olds can’t make good decisions, that’s why they shouldn’t be racing with the adults. That’s what go-karts are for.”
Resnick also said the contact with Barnes under the lap 41 caution was intentional.
“The flat tire, you know what, I hit him on purpose, I ain’t going to lie,” Resnick remarked. “Everybody wants to lie about it. I hit the kid and I’m telling you, it’s one of those things. It ain’t a big deal.”
In spite of leading wire-to-wire, Barnes said he saved his tires up until the closing laps when he ran away from the rest of the field to score the win.
“It was a bunch of everything. Had to save the tires, make sure we didn’t spin them too much and ride around for the first 30 laps and get going on the last 20… It’s my first career win so it’s more special at Myrtle Beach Speedway here.”
Chris Phipps went on to finish in the second position while Bryant Barnhill finished third and Allen Huffman finished fourth.
A late race battle for the fifth position also generated hurt feelings. Dillon Houser passed Marcus Lambert for the fifth position but had to fend off a challenge from a hard charging Taylor Nesbitt. Nesbitt ended up getting around Houser on the last lap, leaving Houser upset with her driving style.
“Some of these monkeys out here, they forget they got to race again tomorrow,” Houser commented. “It’s just not worth battling for $100 there at the end and getting pushed all around, it’s not worth it. I want to come back and race again tomorrow. I mean, we can play that game all day long but I want to come back and race.”
Nesbitt had started the race in the 15th position, three spots behind Houser, and mounted a late race charge – working her way from 13th to fifth in the final eight laps.
“We’re really excited to come back and finished fifth in a 25 car field,” Nesbitt said. “I figured out my line pretty well.”
Marcus Lambert went on to finish seventh while Adam Congrove, Justin Fontaine and Andrew Cordell rounded out the top-10.
Unofficial Results
1. #1 Trent Barnes
2. #37 Chris Phipps
3. #5B Bryant Barnhll
4. #25H Allen Huffman
5. #92N Taylor Nesbitt
6. #11 Dillon Houser
7. #5L Marcus Lambert
8. #19 Adam Congrove
9. #60 Justin Fontaine
10. #33C Andrew Cordell
11. #11W Ed Williams
12. #97 Sean Gartner
13. #22M Dan Moore
14. #44K Michael Kitchen
15. #63 Chris Throckmorton
16. #24 Jackie Ward
17. #22B Greg Bohanon
18. #07H Hayan Humphrey
19. #78 Ricky Gillespie
20. #88H Alex Hicks
21. #76 Ian Isringhauser
22. #77 Garrett Marchant
23. #4R Adam Resnick
24. #22T Jason Tutterow
25. #33J JJ June
4. Trent Barnes
Tempers Flare as Trent Barnes Wins Challenger Thriller
Best of 2014: Limited Late Model Rookies -
Trent was # 4
· By Andy Marquis
Updated: January 14, 2015
· By Andy Marquis
Updated: December 31, 2014
trent
barnes
By Andy Marquis
Updated: November 15, 2014
Tracey Barnes ©