Brenden ‘Butterbean’ Queen holds off Corey Heim to win ARCA race at Michigan

This was not an easy win for Butterbean Queen by any means. He had two full-time Truck Series drivers in the field with great equipment. Not only did he manage to beat Corey Heim, but he also went toe-to-toe with Gio Ruggiero and took him down as well. Gio led over 30 laps, but late in the race, after some contact with Queen, his car fell back to fourth and stayed there.

In the first 35 laps, before the competition caution, Butterbean had almost lapped every car from 10th place on back. The leaders eventually did lap 10th-place, and only the first nine cars on the track were on the lead lap.

What can’t Butterbean Queen do?

There are more wins on the way this season. The fact that Butterbean Queen has three big track wins, and should have had the win at Phoenix, too, shows how quickly he has learned. Those short tracks like Berlin, Elko, Dover, IRP, Madison, Bristol, Salem, and Toledo will be his for the taking.

As I look at the rest of the ARCA schedule, I do believe he will be the favorite to win the championship and to win all of the short track races. To further show off his versatility, I’d like to see him win or contend for the win at Lime Rock Park on the road course. That will likely be his biggest challenge of the 2025 season, and one that NASCAR team owners will watch closely as well.

Of course, the ARCA Menards Series has two dirt races on the schedule as well. Du Quion and the Illinois State Fairgrounds. If he can get a dirt win on top of his already stellar season, that would be even cooler. The sky is truly the limit for Butterbean in ARCA this year.

Coming from the CARS Tour and being a track champion at Langley Speedway, Butterbean is the quintessential stock car driver. He is the heart and soul of grassroots racing, folks. This is a guy who has won the Hampton Heat race three times, the South Carolina 400 once, and a host of other short track accolades.

Butterbean Queen is once again a winner in the ARCA Menards Series. He wins tonight from the pole, holds off two Truck Series regulars, and takes the points lead back after a rough couple of races. This is now his championship to lose. Will he see it out to the end?