CARS Tour Caraway preview and entry list

For the first time since North Wilkesboro Speedway, both zMAX CARS Tour divisions will share the track as part of the festivities for the Firecracker 265 at Caraway Speedway, the lone midweek race of the year.

Nestled in the foothills of Asheboro, North Carolina, Caraway originated as a dirt track in 1966 before it was paved six years later. Over six decades of operation, Caraway has hosted events for numerous sanctioning bodies, with the facility having served as the site for the CARS Tour’s Independence Day event since 2023.

The most recent Firecracker 265 at Caraway featured one of the most thrilling conclusions not only in CARS Tour history, but also the track’s. A four-way battle emerged between Brent Crews, Connor Hall, Carson Kvapil and William Byron during the closing laps, with Crews prevailing after a last-lap bump-and-run on Hall.

Plenty of fireworks are in store for both competitors and fans on Wednesday as the CARS Tour’s Late Model Stock and Pro Late Model classes descend upon Caraway. The Firecracker 265 is the first race of a busy two-week stretch for the PLM Tour, while the LMSC Tour gets a one-month break after the checkered flag waves.

Track Facts:

Track: Caraway Speedway
Location: Asheboro, North Carolina
Length: .455 mile
Laps: 125 (LMSC) / 100 (PLM)
CARS LMSC Tour races: 6
CARS PLM Tour races: 5
Caraway LMSC winners: Jared Fryar (2), Justin Johnson (1), Carson Kvapil (1), Brenden Queen (1), Brent Crews (1)
Caraway PLM winners: Caden Kvapil (2), Austin MacDonald (1), Kaden Honeycutt (1), Tristan McKee (1)

LMSC Entry List (25 cars): #00 Chase Burrow, #03 Lanie Buice, #04 Ronnie Bassett Jr., #1 Andrew Grady, #2 Ryan Wilson, #2P Brandon Pierce, #4 Donovan Strauss, #4B Kade Brown, #7 Tristan McKee, #7W Dylan Ward, #12 Brandon Ward, #12W Trevor Ward, #14 Jared Fryar, #15 Grant Davidson, #16 Chad McCumbee, #17 Kaden Honeycutt, #18 Max Reaves, #22 Carson Loftin, #29 Landen Lewis, #44 Conner Jones, #57 Landon Huffman, #71 Parker Eatmon, #81 Mini Tyrrell, #88 Connor Hall, #88B Doug Barnes Jr.

PLM Entry List (15 cars): #4 Trey Burke, #6 Ben Maier, #6L Brandon Lopez, #7 Tristan McKee, #15 Rodney Dowless, #25 Isaac Kitzmiller, #44 Conner Jones, #47 Tyler Reif, #51 Cody Ware, #54 Seth Christensen, #61 Mason Walters, #62 Keelan Harvick, #77 Darren Krantz Jr., #97 Dylan Garner, #97K Jason Kitzmiller

LMSC Standings:

1. Connor Hall
2. Landen Lewis -6
3. Kade Brown -26
4. Mini Tyrrell -35
5. Landon Huffman -38
6. Ronnie Bassett Jr. -50
7. Donovan Strauss -60
8. Doug Barnes Jr. -61
9. Conner Jones -62
10. Buddy Isles Jr. -71

PLM Standings:

1. Ben Maier
2. Dylan Garner -9
3. Keelan Harvick -13
4. Brody Monahan -16
5. Brandon Lopez -19
6. Rodney Dowless -21
7. Isaac Kitzmiller -31
8. Tristan McKee -47
9. Jade Avedisian -62
10. T.J. DeCaire -78

Lewis Seeks Rebound

Two disappointing finishes across the Virginia races at Langley Speedway and Dominion Raceway have left Landen Lewis with a small points deficit to Connor Hall.

Despite the recent frustrations, Lewis sees Wednesday’s Firecracker 265 at Caraway Speedway as the perfect opportunity to re-establish his early-season momentum. Lewis’ success in Legends at Caraway, combined with Kevin Harvick Inc.’s victory there last year, have given him plenty of confidence about securing his third win of 2025.

“I honestly feel really good about everything,” Lewis said. “We have a really good track record at Caraway, and it’s nice to go back knowing [Kevin Harvick Inc.] won the last race there. We should have really good speed and hopefully we can keep having good runs like we’ve been having.”

Lewis was poised to potentially earn his third consecutive victory of the year at Langley until he suffered a mechanical failure with 39 laps remaining. After losing track position early at Dominion, Lewis battled his way back into the top five until his car sustained damage from contact with Conner Jones, relegating him to 10^th.

With the Virginia races now in the past, Lewis is turning his attention towards Caraway, a track he believes perfectly suits his driving style. The high speeds and tight corners of Caraway require drivers to be delicate and precise behind the wheel, qualities Lewis believes will still be pertinent even with the recent removal of the curbs in the corners.

Points are not a paramount concern for Lewis right now, as he knows his deficit to Hall can be resolved by accumulating victories. The path to the LMSC Tour championship is not a sprint for Lewis, who intends to use every resource available, including the guidance of Rodney Childers, to put together a strong second half to 2025.

“We’ve had good speed across the board everywhere we show up,” Lewis said. “Sometimes, things don’t work out the way they should, but that’s racing. You can’t win every single race. Anytime you can win a race, it’s special. We’re worried about making the car go faster, so we’re going to try and do that.”

McCumbee has momentum

The two-race stretch in the Commonwealth of Virginia was generous to Chad McCumbee, who earned finishes of fifth and third at Langley Speedway and Dominion Raceway, respectively.

Having not won a CARS LMSC Tour race since 2022, McCumbee feels he and Robert Elliott are making tremendous strides with their program amidst an increasingly competitive environment. McCumbee enters Wednesday’s Firecracker 265 at Caraway Speedway optimistic he can translate his recent efficiency into a long-overdue victory.

“Momentum is such a real thing in our sport,” McCumbee said. “Obviously, we’ve worked really hard, partnered with TORP Chassis and ran a new car the past couple of events. To get two straight top fives, lead some laps at Dominion and fight for a win, I think that we’re certainly on our best roll during the past 12-18 months.”

Langley and Dominion have always been two of McCumbee’s favorite venues on the LMSC Tour schedule. With Langley’s surface being older and flat compared to Dominion’s high-speed, modern layout, McCumbee said his speed at those two facilities highlights the versatility of his Late Model Stock operation.

McCumbee also views Caraway favorably, but has not accumulated consistently strong results at the track. Of his five Caraway starts, only one of them ended with a top 10 performance, while the other four saw McCumbee end his day behind the wall either due to an accident or a mechanical failure.

Eager to turn his fortunes around at Caraway, McCumbee is confident his car will perform well there since he sees the facility as a combination of Langley and Dominion. The recent renovations at Caraway will require McCumbee to slightly adjust his plan of attack, but his confidence in the speed of his car remains strong ahead of Wednesday night.

“I certainly think [no curbs] is going to change things quite a bit,” McCumbee said. “That really limited you to exactly where you needed to be on the track, so it’ll probably be a racier event, but none of us are going to know until we get there. We’re certainly happy to get two top fives in a row, but one more step and we’re there.”

McKee joins LowCountry in Pros

Tristan McKee will make his fourth CARS PLM Tour start of 2025 on Wednesday at Caraway Speedway in his familiar No. 7, but with a different organization.

LowCountry Motorsports, an endurance racing program co-owned by A.J. Frank and Mikey Kile, is set to debut in the Firecracker 265 with McKee behind the wheel of their Pro Late Model. McKee is well familiar with LowCountry’s culture and believes combining their resources with his team will translate into a strong outing.

“It’s going to be like driving my own car pretty much,” McKee said. “I’ll still have my crew chief and some of my guys there, so I’ll be super comfortable with all of it. There’s nothing really new and I’ve already raced with [LowCountry] on the road course side. They’re a great bunch of guys and I’m super thankful to race with them.”

McKee recently competed with LowCountry in a 14-hour endurance event at Daytona International Speedway alongside Ben Maier and two-time CARS LMSC Tour champion Carson Kvapil. When McKee’s team found out LowCountry was buying a Pro Late Model, the two sides ended up forging an alliance for the rest of 2025.

Since Frank and Kile both possess plenty of short track experience, McKee is confident LowCountry will have minimal issues transitioning into the PLM Tour. He added Caraway is an ideal track for their partnership to commence, as McKee led all 100 laps from the pole during last year’s Pro Late Model feature in the Firecracker 265.

A victory for McKee on Wednesday would be his second of the year after he previously prevailed at Cordele Motor Speedway back in April. Bringing home a checkered flag at Caraway would carry extra significance for McKee, who is eager to start LowCountry’s PLM Tour journey on a positive note.

“Giving any team their first win or a win in general is cool,” McKee said. “I’m really fortunate to have driven for so many good teams, including the Setzers last year, Matt Piercy this year and even my own car the past few years. If we can get a win [for LowCountry], it’ll show them all the hard work they put into it is going towards a great thing.”

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Joining the zMAX CARS Tour for Wednesday’s schedule will be Caraway Speedway’s Bandolero and Legends classes. The CARS PLM Tour feature is set to follow the local features and will go green at 8:10 p.m. ET, with the 125-lap Late Model Stock race taking place right after.

FloRacing is providing live coverage of all the on-track action.

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.