SOUTH BOSTON, VA. — One of the most dominant drivers in recent history of the zMAX CARS Late Model Stock Car Tour found his way back to Cook Out victory lane in Saturday’s AutosByNelson.com 280 at South Boston Speedway.
Displaying the same patience and maturity that won him two consecutive CARS LMSC Tour championships, Carson Kvapil gradually climbed towards the front of the field before making the race-winning pass on Ryan Millington during the final restart of the night. Kvapil’s drive earned his third victory of 2024 and 12th overall on the LMSC Tour.
Joining Kvapil in Cook Out victory lane at South Boston was Spencer Davis, who took home his second consecutive CARS PLM Tour checkered flag. Davis’ triumph also extended his cushion over Kaden Honeycutt in a tight battle for the PLM Tour title.
Carson Kvapil showcases winning form once again
Victories have been slightly harder to come by for Carson Kvapil over what has turned into a part-time campaign with the CARS LMSC Tour.
Despite this, Kvapil showed his fellow competition on Saturday he and JR Motorsports still represented a gold standard of efficiency every time they showed up to the track. Returning to Cook Out victory lane did not initially seem possible for Kvapil, but he bided his time and waited for the right opportunity to pounce on Ryan Millington for the lead.
“I thought we had a pretty good car all race long,” Kvapil said. “We fell back to eighth or ninth right at the beginning of the race. Once the race started winding down, we were able to pick them off and figured out the line we needed to run in this car. We had a better car, managed it a little better and were there at the end.”
Although he had planned to pursue a third LMSC Tour title at the start of 2024, Kvapil has instead devoted more time to his debut NASCAR Xfinity Series season, where he has amassed three top fives and led 63 laps across eight starts.
Kvapil’s dominance in JR Motorsports’ No. 8 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet for two years with the LMSC Tour paved the way for him to earn those Xfinity Series starts. Being in one of NASCAR’s top divisions has provided Kvapil some fresh perspectives on racing but have also reminded him of how influential the CARS Tour has been on his life.
Names like Millington, Bobby McCarty, Brenden Queen, Connor Hall and others have tested Kvapil in nearly every aspect, particularly when it comes to balancing out patience with aggression. Kvapil put those lessons to good use on Saturday evening and intends to keep doing so regardless of what his 2025 plans look like.
“I have a lot of appreciation for this series honestly,” Kvapil said. “This series is so tough and prepares you so well for moving up and moving on. These guys are no joke. We are all here for one reason and that is to win. It’s really good to be back in victory lane, but I feel like it’s been a little too long.”
Treyten Lapcevich continues strong year with runner-up finish
With every passing week on the CARS LMSC Tour, defending NASCAR Canada Series champion Treyten Lapcevich continues to improve.
A second victory on the 2024 season was within Lapcevich’s grasp in Saturday’s AutosByNelson.com 280 at South Boston Speedway, but he ended up settling for a strong second place finish. Lapcevich felt he could have been the one celebrating in Cook Out victory lane had he found the necessary momentum to assume the lead early in the race.
“We really just made a lot of adjustments on the car and got it to where it needed to be,” Lapcevich said. “Everyone on this car was really good tonight, but I needed to get by [Millington] a little earlier.”
Lapcevich found himself in a heated battle with Millington and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series competitor Layne Riggs for the lead most of the night. With Millington staying in the preferred top groove, Lapcevich tried everything to get a run around him on the bottom line to no avail.
With Lapcevich settling into second behind the eventual race-winner in Carson Kvapil, he has now recorded three finishes inside the top two over his last five races. One of those starts saw him obtain his maiden LMSC Tour victory at North Wilkesboro Speedway despite a post-race technical infraction that stripped him of any points or winnings from that event.
The recent streak of success has Lapcevich confident he can earn another checkered flag at either Tri-County Motor Speedway or North Wilkesboro to close out 2024. Although he was unable to keep Kvapil behind him on Saturday, Lapcevich said the experience gained at South Boston this weekend puts him in a better position to one day prevail at the facility.
“I knew if [Kvapil] got out in front, it was going to be tough to get back to him,” Lapcevich said. “I had a great time for my first time at South Boston. Hopefully we can come back next year.”
Spencer Davis bolsters points lead with second straight victory
Everything went according to plan for Spencer Davis to depart South Boston Speedway with a slightly more comfortable advantage over Kaden Honeycutt in the CARS PLM Tour standings.
After earning his first pole of the 2024 season, Davis utilized years of experience across several different racing disciplines to stay at the front of the field. A valiant charge from Tristan McKee in the closing stages was not enough to deter Davis’ composure as he held on for his second consecutive victory.
“You can’t settle for ordinary,” Davis said. “We’ve settled for ordinary so long in my career. I’m here to win and that’s the only there is to do. We won every practice, sat on pole and won the race. It wasn’t smooth sailing, but determination is what gets these wins.”
Although it took until the Cook Out 225 at Florence Motor Speedway on Aug. 30 for Davis to finally visit victory lane, consistency is what has kept him in contention for the PLM Tour title all year.
Entering the AutosByNelson.com 280, Davis had seven top fives on his resume and had completed every possible lap across the 10 races to date. His worst finish on the season, a 12th at Hickory Motor Speedway, occurred after Davis was shuffled to the rear later following a strong start that saw him lead 31 laps.
Davis knew simply accumulating strong runs alone would not be enough to keep Honeycutt in his rearview mirror. Earning two consecutive victories has been an enthralling experience for Davis, but he emphasized the importance of obtaining two more to close out 2024, especially since his gap over Honeycutt remains at single digits.
“I’ve been in situations where you do everything perfectly, but it gets taken from you,” Davis said. “That seems like the story of my career, so I love soaking this up. You never know when your last [win] is. Kaden [Honeycutt] have said this all year, if you win, everything takes care of itself.”
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Only two races remain before the 2024 zMAX CARS Tour season concludes. Tri-County Motor Speedway will decide the next chapter in the two respective championship battles, which will take place on Oct. 12 at 7 p.m. ET. FloRacing will have live coverage of 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.
Unofficial LMSC Results:
- 8 Carson Kvapil
- 77 Treyten Lapcevich
- 15 Ryan Millington
- 00R Layne Riggs
- 03 Brenden Queen
- 81 Mini Tyrrell
- 22 Connor Hall
- 26 Peyton Sellers
- 11V Buddy Isles Jr.
- 6 Bobby McCarty
- 28 Landon S. Huffman
- 23 Kade Brown
- 71 Aaron Donnelly
- 1 Andrew Grady
- 29 Brent Crews
- 62L Landen Lewis
- 08H Carson Haislip
- 2 Brandon Pierce
- 44 Conner Jones
- 04 Ronnie Bassett Jr.
- 45 Parker Eatmon
- 28R Landon Rapp -2
- 55 Isabella Robusto – OUT
- 24 Cody Dempster – OUT
- 00B Chase Burrow – OUT
Unofficial PLM Results:
- 29D Spencer Davis
- 6M Tristan McKee
- 35 Caden Kvapil
- 47 Kaden Honeycutt
- 15 T.J. DeCaire
- 51B Travis Braden
- 6B Brandon Lopez
- 00J Jimmy Renfrew Jr.
- 24 Jake Bollman
- 43H Joshua Horniman
- 67 Cameron Bolin – OUT
- 2 Amber Lynn -1
- 03C Kyle Campbell – OUT
- 97 Dylan Garner – OUT
- 43 Nick Loden – OUT
- 77 Logan Jones – OUT