CALLAWAY, Va. — Inclement weather, track repairs, hard racing and numerous other factors dragged Saturday’s AutosByNelson.com 225 into the early hours of Sunday morning at Franklin County Speedway.
By the time everyone had finally departed, Carson Kvapil had claimed his second career CARS Late Model Stock Car Tour victory and bolstered his already sturdy advantage in the point standings, while veteran Ryan Moore outdueled Luke Fenhaus in the closing laps to claim the Pro Late Model feature.
The events were broadcast by SPEED SPORT affiliate CARSTour.tv.
Kvapil was not expecting to celebrate his 19th birthday in the early hours of Sunday morning at Franklin County Speedway.
A solid night for the 2021 CARS Super Late Model Tour turned into his second career victory in the Late Model Stock Tour division after he avoided an accident with 30 laps remaining that involved the top three cars of Mike Looney, Connor Hall and Kaden Honeycutt.
“I knew those guys were going to race very hard,” Kvapil said. “They were racing hard 100 laps before [the incident] and I thought that would have helped us out at the end even if they didn’t wreck out. I saved a little bit compared to them and even though [Looney and Hall] were really good, we could have driven back up through there.”
Despite entering the AutosByNelson.com 225 with a comfortable 17-point advantage in the CARS Late Model Stock Car Tour standings, Kvapil’s finishes had declined by one position each race since bagging $30,000 in the season-opening Old North State Nationals at Caraway Speedway.
Kvapil was determined to break that trend and establish more efficiency with JR Motorsports starting at Franklin County, yet he found himself facing heavy pressure from local regular Kyle Dudley, who was looking to finally breakthrough for his first CARS Tour win in front of the home crowd.
Even though Dudley’s experience at Franklin County far outweighed his, Kvapil maintained his composure during the final 20 laps and made Dudley use up his equipment, allowing him to enjoy an early birthday celebration with his team.
“[Dudley] is a local here and he knows all the little things about this track,” Kvapil said. “The first time he got into me, I knew we were going to be racing hard. I was trying to hold him down and he was trying to bring me up. We were a little bit better at the end and we drove away.”
Another CARS Tour race, another disappointing outcome for Mike Looney.
Shortly after taking the lead after a hard-fought battle with Connor Hall, Looney was turned sideways by Hall in front of the field, ending his hopes for that elusive first CARS Late Model Stock Car Tour win.
“From my perspective, I got wrecked,” Looney said. “I followed [Hall] for 95 laps and was trying to run a clean race. We had the best car, and I was trying to play it smart so we could put on a great show for the fans. I guess he couldn’t wait that long.”
Looney gave his home crowd plenty to cheer for early by putting his No. 87 Harrison’s Workwear Chevrolet on the pole.
Instead of celebrating a win, Looney ended up failing to finish his fifth consecutive CARS Late Model Stock Car Tour event.
Hall took responsibility for the accident.
“I fully intended on trying to move [Looney] up the race track a little bit,” Hall said. “He was [bumping] me going into turn one. I don’t think of him any differently for doing that because it’s just racing. It sucks because we’ve never had an issue with Mike before. That was 100 percent my fault.”
Kyle Dudley finished second, with Jacob Heafner, Hall and Mason Diaz filling the top five.
For most of the 100-lap CARS Pro Late Model Tour feature at Franklin County Speedway, Luke Fenhaus seemed destined to finally break through for his first victory in the series.
The 2021 Slinger Nationals champion saw those hopes evaporate on the final restart, as a problem with the rear end enabled Ryan Moore to chase down Fenhaus and edge him in a thrilling conclusion that saw the two muscle each other into the wall coming to the checkered flag.
Once the final caution for Caden Kvapil’s blown engine was displayed, Moore was determined to do everything possible to get his first career CARS Tour victory.
“This is why they say don’t give up,” Moore said. “We knew we didn’t necessarily have the fastest car at the beginning of the race, so we played it smart. These short track races come down to restarts at the end, and even though I hate to get physical, I come to win.”
The finish:
Carson Kvapil, Kyle Dudley, Jacob Heafner, Connor Hall, Mason Diaz, Zack Miracle, Connor Mosack, Kaden Honeycutt, Chad McCumbee, Deac McCaskill, Brandon Pierce, Janson Marchbanks, Hayden Swank, Andrew Grady, Daryn Cockram, Carter Langley, Tony Housman, Mike Looney, Trevor Ward, Jimmy Mullins, Jason York, Braden Rogers, Chase Burrow, Conner Jones, Bobby McCarty, Bobby Gillespie, Dylan Ward.