Previewing the CARS Tour's Return to North Wilkesboro

After Mother Nature prevented the zMAX CARS Tour from participating in NASCAR’s All-Star Race week at North Wilkesboro Speedway, both the Late Model Stock Car and Pro Late Model Tour will return to the historic facility this weekend.

The CARS Tour played an instrumental role in revitalizing North Wilkesboro after over two decades with little to no on-track action. In 2022, the CARS LMSC Tour wrapped up the month-long Racetrack Revival event that brought several different disciplines to North Wilkesboro, proving that the track still had plenty of life in it.

Nearly two years have passed since that day and North Wilkesboro is now a staple of both the NASCAR and short track industry. Along with being the site of the All-Star Race, North Wilkesboro has also undergone several renovations, including a fresh surface CARS Tour competitors will race on for the first time.

A hectic Throwback 276 at Hickory Motor Speedway has created plenty of tension and storylines for drivers in both CARS Tour divisions, all of whom are seeking to add their name to a prestigious list of North Wilkesboro winners on Saturday.

Track Facts:

Track: North Wilkesboro Speedway
Location: North Wilkesboro, North Carolina
Length: .625 mile
Laps: 125 (LMSC), 100 (PLM)
CARS LMSC Tour races: 2
CARS PLM Tour races: 1
North Wilkesboro LMSC winners: Carson Kvapil (1), Brenden Queen (1)
North Wilkesboro PLM winners: Augie Grill (1)

North Wilkesboro Speedway schedule

LMSC Entry List (42 cars): #00 Chase Burrow, #00R Layne Riggs, #03 Brenden Queen, #04 Ronnie Bassett Jr., #0 Landon Pembelton, #2 Brandon Pierce, #4 Dylon Wilson, #4B Josh Berry, #5 Dexter Canipe Jr., #7 Dylan Ward, #7M Tristan McKee, #8 Carson Kvapil, #9 Brandon Jones, #11 Buddy Isles Jr., #15 Ryan Millington, #16 Chad McCumbee, #17 Kaden Honeycutt, #21 Tyler Tomassi, #22 Connor Hall, #22R Gio Ruggiero, #23 Kade Brown, #26 Peyton Sellers, #28 Connor Mosack, #29 Brent Crews, #44 Conner Jones, #45 Mason Diaz, #51 Stephen Nasse, #55 Isabella Robusto, #57 Landon Huffman, #61 Justin Hicks, #62 Kevin Harvick, #67 Cameron Bolin, #71 Katie Hettinger, #71W Daniel Wilk, #77 Treyten Lapcevich, #77G Tyler Gregory, #77W Trevor Ward, #81 Mini Tyrrell, #82 Connor Zilisch, #87 Tate Fogleman, #88 Sammy Smith, #95 Jacob Heafner

PLM Entry List (34 cars): #00 Jimmy Renfrew Jr., #03 Kyle Campbell, #6 Tristan McKee, #6L Brandon Lopez, #7 Justin Crider, #7T Tyler Church, #7NY Luke Baldwin, #9 Ashton Higgins, #15 Jonathan Shafer, #17 Hudson Bulger, #17R Blaise Rutherford, #20 Corey Heim, #24 Jake Bollman, #24J Austin Jones, #26 Dawson Sutton, #27 Jeb Burton, #29 Spencer Davis, #35 Caden Kvapil, #43 Nick Loden, #43H Joshua Horniman, #44 Conner Jones, #45 Seth Christensen, #47 Dustin Bryson, #51 Kaden Honeycutt, #51N Stephen Nasse, #54 Matt Craig, #54G Clayton Green, #55 George Phillips, #72 Cody Coughlin, #77 Logan Jones, #81 Carson Brown, #89 Dylan Fetcho, #96 T.J. DeCaire, #97 Dylan Garner

LMSC Point Standings:

1. Connor Hall
2. Brent Crews -28
3. Brenden Queen -29
4. Treyten Lapcevich -37
5. Carson Kvapil -45
6. Ryan Millington -48
7. Mini Tyrrell -51
8. Bobby McCarty -59
9. Jacob Heafner -98
10. Chad McCumbee -102

PLM Point Standings:

1. Kaden Honeycutt
2. Spencer Davis -1
3. Jimmy Renfrew Jr. -8
4. Caden Kvapil -10
5. T.J. DeCaire -15
6. Jake Bollman -29
7. Kyle Campbell -35
8. Tristan McKee -38
9. Conner Jones -46
10. Nick Loden -67

Fresh off Hickory win, Ronnie Bassett Jr. has eyes on North Wilkesboro trophy

Ronnie Bassett Jr. still finds himself in disbelief over the fact that he is now a winner in the CARS LMSC Tour.

The victory came to Bassett after Ryan Millington was penalized for spinning Connor Hall on the last lap of the Throwback 276, moving Bassett from third to first in the running order. While Bassett would have preferred a more orthodox ending to his first win, he was ecstatic to see so much strenuous effort pay off with a checkered flag.

“We’ve been working hard this past year and a half since we got back to Late Model [Stock] racing,” Bassett said. “It’s nice to put a night together where we had good speed and were in contention to be in that position all night long.”

Expectations were high for Bassett in 2024 following a seventh place points finish in his rookie season. The results prior to Hickory Motor Speedway were less than optimal, as he only had two top 10s and even failed to qualify at Dominion Raceway following a clutch failure.

Not deterred by the slow start, Bassett has made many changes to his program that he believes will result in a positive trajectory over the rest of the year. One of his actions was to hire Chad Haney, a veteran Late Model Stock crew chief who had recently departed Kevin Harvick Inc.’s program a few weeks before Hickory.

Those changes, combined with a successful outing at Tri-County Motor Speedway on Independence Day weekend, have Bassett optimistic about his chances at the freshly paved North Wilkesboro Speedway. Even if a win does not materialize Saturday, Bassett believes he will have a top 10 car nearly every week to close out 2024.

“It was cool to pick up our first win at Hickory, but it’d be nice to go to [North] Wilkesboro and be able to cross the finish line first,” Bassett said. “Being consistent week in and week out is what matters, whether that’s a top five or something else. We just need to be there.”

Cameron Bolin feeling confident ahead of CARS LMSC Tour return

The 2024 CARS LMSC Tour campaign has featured less of Cameron Bolin compared to the previous season.

Finances have limited Bolin to just three appearances in his family-owned No. 67 Chevrolet. Now back with the LMSC Tour for the first time since Tri-County Motor Speedway at the end of May, Bolin finds himself motivated to put together a career-best run on Saturday evening at North Wilkesboro Speedway.

“I hate that I have to spend so much time away,” Bolin said. “This is just what the pocketbook provided this year, but North Wilkesboro has historically been a great track for me. We had a lot better race car compared to where we finished last year, but we were fast during the test and practice [in May], so we’re looking to see what we can do with them.”

Despite not racing as much this year in Late Model Stocks or Legends, Bolin has managed to keep himself occupied. He has served as a driver coach during the Cook Out Summer Shootout at Charlotte Motor Speedway and also assisted Conner Jones in both CARS Tour events at Caraway Speedway in July.

Bolin understands the challenge of having North Wilkesboro as his first LMSC Tour race in two months. There are plenty of unknowns stemming from the track’s recent repave, but Bolin expects dynamic conditions, theorizing the preferred groove could migrate from the top to the bottom like Tri-County.

Having speed is not a concern for Bolin, but he stressed how paramount survival is going to be through all 125 laps. Weeks of preparation have led Bolin and his small operation to North Wilkesboro this weekend, now his goal is to showcase those improvements by avoiding trouble and staying inside the top 10.

“We’ve spent a lot of time making our program better and have made this race our pride and joy,” Bolin said. “It’s a go for broke effort out of me. My grandfather has busted his tail to get us ready and now the ball is in my court. [If I won], the party wouldn’t be over until we come back to North Wilkesboro in October.”

Kaden Honeycutt looks to claim LMSC win, extend PLM points lead

Occupying himself with a busy slate of events has become part of the normal routine for Kaden Honeycutt.

As he continues his pursuit of a CARS PLM Tour title, Honeycutt will climb back into Tom Usry Racing’s No. 17 Late Model Stock for the Window World 125. Confidence is high for Honeycutt ahead of both races, but he knows finding success in each requires two separate mindsets given the respective circumstances.

“I feel pretty confident in both our cars,” Honeycutt said. “I’ve got to approach the [PLM Tour] race a little differently. We want to win for sure, but we have to remember that we’re points racing and to not put ourselves in a bad position. With the Late Model Stock, we are going to [North Wilkesboro] full-bore trying to win.”

Honeycutt initially believed he would have a much higher deficit to Spencer Davis in the PLM Tour standings after enduring a bad night at Hickory Motor Speedway. Misfortune for Davis in the closing stages enabled Honeycutt to finish ahead of him, leaving the two on more even terms heading into North Wilkesboro.

The gained ground at Hickory was pivotal for Honeycutt, who believes track position might be key for PLM Tour competitors on North Wilkesboro’s repaved surface. Honeycutt would love to see the groove widen out for both divisions, but he said showcasing plenty of speed in each respective practice session will set him up ideally for his two races.

Although he is unsure of exactly what to expect at North Wilkesboro, Honeycutt plans to run at his own pace on Saturday. He has yet to win a Late Model Stock event for Usry’s operation and would love to take them and Mavrick Page Motorsports on North Wilkesboro’s famous elevator ride to victory lane.

“[Two rides up the elevator] would be unreal,” Honeycutt said. “I’m very grateful to even do both. I think we’ll need to learn throughout the first couple of laps in both races to see how things will play out. No matter what, it’s going to be a crazy [night] and there won’t be any shortage of action like we’ve had the past couple of months in this series.”

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On-track action at North Wilkesboro Speedway will only consist of one day. The Reverend 100 kicks off the racing at 8:30 p.m. ET on Saturday evening, followed immediately by the Window World 125. FloRacing goes live with their coverage at 4:45 p.m. ET starting with CARS LMSC Tour qualifying.

For more information on the zMAX CARS Late Model Stock Tour and the zMAX CARS Pro Late Model Tour, visit www.carsracingtour.com. Be sure to stay active and social with the tour by liking “CARS Tour” on Facebook, following @CARSTour on X (formerly known as Twitter) and scrolling through photos on Instagram cars_tour.

Additional series information can be obtained by calling the CARS Tour series office, located in Mooresville, NC, at 704-662-9212.

-CARS Racing Press Release
-Photo credit: Will Bellamy, Racing America