CARS Tour championships roll into SoBo

Both zMAX CARS Tour divisions will make their final trip into the Commonwealth of Virginia this season with Saturday’s Autos By Nelson Race Night at South Boston Speedway.

A long-time staple of Virginia’s pavement short track racing culture, many talented drivers, including those on the CARS Tour platform, have honed their skill at South Boston over the years. The list of South Boston track champions includes Ray Hendrick, Geoff Bodine, Jack Ingram, Philip Morris, Lee Pulliam and Peyton Sellers, among others.

The CARS Tour has competed at South Boston since 2017 except for the 2020 season, with that weekend being cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. South Boston’s fast layout has provided both Late Model Stock and Pro Late Model competitors plenty of challenges in their pursuit to gain and maintain track position.

For Late Model Stock drivers, the Autos By Nelson Race Night is their last big event before heading to Martinsville Speedway on Sept. 27 for the prestigious Valley Star Credit Union 300. A win at South Boston could deliver a jolt of momentum ahead of not only the crown jewel race, but the remaining two CARS Tour events on the 2025 schedule.

Track Facts:

Track: South Boston Speedway
Location: South Boston, Virginia
Length: .400 mile
Laps: 125 (LMSC) / 100 (PLM)
CARS LMSC Tour races: 7
CARS PLM Tour races: 3
South Boston LMSC winners: Deac McCaskill (2), Carson Kvapil (2), Craig Moore (1), Josh Berry (1), Bobby McCarty (1)
South Boston PLM winners: William Sawalich (1), Nick Loden (1), Spencer Davis (1)

LMSC Entry List (28 cars): #00 Chase Burrow, #03 Lanie Buice, #04 Ronnie Bassett Jr., #05 Mason Bailey, #08 Deac McCaskill, #2 Brandon Pierce, #2W Ryan Wilson, #4 Kade Brown, #4S Donovan Strauss, #4D Kyle Dudley, #6 Brandon Lopez, #7 Tristan McKee, #12 Hudson Bulger, #12W Trevor Ward, #15 Ryan Millington, #16 Chad McCumbee, #17 Kaden Honeycutt, #22 Carson Loftin, #28 Landon S. Huffman, #29 Landen Lewis, #41 Mason Diaz, #44 Conner Jones, #57 Landon Huffman, #71 Parker Eatmon, #81 Mini Tyrrell, #88 Connor Hall, #88B Doug Barnes Jr., #97 Isaac Kitzmiller

PLM Entry List (13 cars): #2NY Colton Ingerick, #4 Trey Burke, #6 Ben Maier, #6L Brandon Lopez, #7 Tristan McKee, #25 Isaac Kitzmiller, #40 Mia Lovell, #44 Conner Jones, #47 Tyler Reif, #51 Harrison Burton, #61 Mason Walters, #62 Keelan Harvick, #62 Rodney Dowless

LMSC Standings:

1. Landen Lewis
2. Connor Hall -1
3. Kade Brown -25
4. Mini Tyrrell -45
5. Landon Huffman -47
6. Ronnie Bassett Jr. -65
7. Donovan Strauss -74
8. Conner Jones -77
9. Doug Barnes Jr. -79
10. Carson Loftin -99

PLM Standings:

1. Ben Maier
2. Brandon Lopez -30
3. Keelan Harvick -42
4. Dylan Garner -43
5. Rodney Dowless -56
6. Isaac Kitzmiller -80
7. Tristan McKee -135
8. Jade Avedisian -136
9. Tyler Reif -152
10. Luke Baldwin -183

Battle Tested Ward set for Tour return

A hard-fought battle Trevor Ward waged for the South Boston Speedway Late Model Stock championship ended with him finishing runner-up to Peyton Sellers.

Ward entered the South Boston finale tied with Sellers for the points lead but was unable to prevent the seasoned veteran from earning a record-breaking eighth title at the track. Eager to shake off the disappointment from Sunday, Ward is teaming back up with Nelson Motorsports this weekend with the goal of earning his maiden CARS LMSC Tour win.

“I’m kind of relieved, actually,” Ward said. “The pressure is off after this big points battle. I’m glad that Nelson Motorsports believes in me to do a good job for them. The only thing we can do to heal these wounds we got is to go out and capitalize this weekend.”

Chasing a South Boston title was a refreshing experience for Ward, who had never attempted a similar feat prior to 2025. The copious laps Ward logged around South Boston all year enabled him to curate his own unique line around the facility, something he believes will give him an advantage on Saturday.

The efficiency Ward displayed in South Boston’s weekly class was a factor behind Barry Nelson contacting him about a part-time Late Model Stock schedule. Ward has competed for Nelson Motorsports on the LMSC Tour twice in 2025, but neither outing ended with a finish inside the top 20 despite Ward showing plenty of speed.

Now that South Boston’s season is over, Ward is putting a concerted effort into delivering three strong performances for Nelson in the LMSC Tour to close out the year. Ward has made plenty of trips to South Boston’s victory lane this year, so he possesses plenty of confidence about replicating that feat on the CARS Tour platform.

“I had two things on my bucket list [this year],” Ward said. “The first thing was to win just one race at South Boston, but to be able to back that up with six was very, very cool. The other thing on my bucket list was to win a CARS Tour race. To be able to knock two of those things out would be bittersweet for sure.”

Pierce aims for home cooking

Statistically, the 2025 CARS LMSC Tour season has not gone the way Brandon Pierce had envisioned.

Along with failing to qualify for the Throwback Classic at Hickory Motor Speedway, Pierce’s only top 10 of the year came at Wake County Speedway all the way back in March. Despite this, Pierce said the results are not indicative of the improvements made with Carroll Speedshop and hopes to properly display his car’s speed at South Boston Speedway.

“It’s been an up and down year,” Pierce said. “There’s at least four top 10s we’ve been robbed of. Missing Hickory was a major disappointment and that’s the first time that’s happened in my career for a CARS Tour race. We’ve had way more speed than we did last year, but we need to take care of the controllables on our end.”

South Boston is a track that has long been special for Pierce, as it was where he formally broke into Late Model Stock competition nearly a decade ago. The facility was also the site of Pierce’s first LMSC Tour start, which saw him bring home a respectable finish of 12^th on the lead lap.

Since that day, Pierce has become a staple on the LMSC Tour grid by boasting over 100 starts to his name. Pierce’s commitment to the series has rewarded him with 10 career top fives, two poles and a lone victory that occurred at Southern National Motorsports Park back in 2019 when he overtook Josh Berry on the last lap.

The eighth place performance Pierce tallied in South Boston’s prestigious Thunder Road Harley-Davidson 200 back in June has given him confidence about returning to Cook Out Victory Lane this weekend. Doing so will require Pierce to put together a great qualifying run and hold his own with the drivers who have multiple victories this season.

“I feel like I can still do this,” Pierce said. “The CARS Tour is the toughest level of competition for Late Model Stock racing that there is with more competitive teams now than ever. The guys that are winning races are having mistake free nights and are staying at the top of their game all weekend long. That’s what it takes.”

Mia Lovell makes PLM debut

Throughout her formative years, Mia Lovell has tackled a variety of sports that include motocross and professional skateboarding alongside auto racing.

On Saturday evening, Lovell will take another step forward in her motorsports journey when she makes her CARS PLM Tour debut at South Boston piloting the No. 40 for Sigma Performance Services. Lovell expects a learning curve around South Boston’s fast layout but is optimistic about being competitive through all 100 laps

“I’m really excited for my [debut],” Lovell said. “I’m definitely new to ovals and the Late Model scene, but I had a good race out in Colorado a couple weeks ago with Sigma Performance Services and finished fifth. I’m excited to take [that momentum] out east now.”

Born in China before being adopted at seven months old, Lovell credits her father Mike as the primary catalyst behind her passion for sports. After getting acclimated to racing through several club events, Lovell joined the Toyota Gazoo Racing GR Cup North America division for its inaugural season in 2023.

The following year, Lovell found her comfort zone with competitive road racing by amassing six top 10 finishes in the Toyota GR Cup. She moved into the Trans Am TA2 Series for 2025, all while gradually breaking into oval racing out on the West Coast with two appearances in the CARS Tour West Pro Late Model Series to date.

Lovell knew she was at a disadvantage compared to other young drivers by starting her motorsports career so late, but she is proud of the progress made across both road and oval racing. From Lovell’s perspective, South Boston is another vital opportunity to study her competition and build more confidence on ovals moving forward.

“There’s a lot of talent out here [on the East Coast], but that’s how you have to learn,” Lovell said. “You need to learn from the best. There’s going to be challenges along the way as I race in these [CARS PLM Tour] races, but I’m looking forward to the challenge. My goal is to do the best that I can [on Saturday] and have fun with it.”

Burton returns with Ware

Once the opening race of the 2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs at Bristol Motor Speedway concludes on Friday, Harrison Burton will make a short trip over to South Boston Speedway to compete in the CARS PLM Tour feature.

While the Autos By Nelson Race Night will serve as Burton’s PLM Tour debut, he is no stranger to the CARS Tour platform. The second-generation competitor made 10 starts in the CARS Tour’s defunct Super Late Model division, earning his lone victory at Concord Speedway back in 2017.

Burton is also familiar with the team he will be driving for on Saturday evening, as he previously drove a Rick Ware Racing car in the All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway earlier this year. Ware’s team has been one of the strongest on the PLM Tour in 2025, having visited Cook Out Victory Lane three times between Luke Baldwin and Carson Ware.

With an Xfinity Series victory among the accomplishments his father Jeff has secured at South Boston during his own career, Burton hopes to write his own history at the facility by prevailing in his first PLM Tour appearance.

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