A long offseason delivered plenty of changes for zMAX CARS Tour competitors, including a different season-opening venue.

New River All American Speedway in Jacksonville, North Carolina is the sixth different track to kick off a CARS Tour season since the series’ inception back in 2015. Despite being one of the newer facilities in North Carolina, New River boasts a proud history of racing that includes the CARS Tour’s predecessor; the USAR Pro Cup Series.

In 2022, New River formally became a staple on the CARS Tour schedule with the series’ first Late Model Stock event at the track, which was won by Connor Hall. For New River’s fourth CARS Tour weekend, Late Model Stock competitors are being joined by the Pro Late Model Tour in their inaugural venture to Jacksonville.

Both divisions have plenty of new and familiar faces permeating their respective entry lists, but the mindset remains the same for everyone heading to New River, win. A victory on Saturday could provide competitors crucial momentum towards being in the championship hunt when October arrives.

Track Facts:

Track: New River All American Speedway

Location: Jacksonville, North Carolina

Length: .400 mile

Laps: 125 (LMSC) / 100 (PLM)

CARS LMSC Tour races: 3

New River LMSC winners: Connor Hall (1), Brenden Queen (1), Bobby McCarty (1)

Caden Kvapil Ready To Carry On Brother’s Success In JR Motorsports No. 8

Just like the past three CARS LMSC Tour season-openers, the JR Motorsports No. 8 Chevrolet will have a Kvapil behind the wheel.

This time around, Caden Kvapil is driving the car his older brother Carson piloted to two LMSC Tour championships in 2022 and 2023. With Carson now full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, Caden believes he can carve out his own success in the No. 8 this year starting at New River All American Speedway.

“It’s really special to run this car,” Caden said. “We did good at Florence [Motor Speedway] for the Icebreaker and ended up finishing second. My brother has run New River a couple of times with the same car I’m driving. We have a good notebook and I’m really looking forward to it.”

Caden had the opportunity to drive for JR Motorsports twice in 2024 while Carson was occupied with Xfinity Series commitments. His first outing with the team resulted in a strong third place showing at Ace Speedway, but Caden’s other start at Wake County Speedway was hindered by mechanical issues.

Late Model Stock competition proved to be eye-opening for Caden in many regards. Having Carson as a mentor in his limited starts made the transition into the discipline much easier for Caden, but he still had to acclimate to how close and grueling Late Model Stock fields were in every race he entered.

Even though Carson is not going to be around for many Late Model Stock events this year, Caden still intends to use him as a lifeline when needed. Caden is grateful for all the advice Carson has provided so far, which he intends to keep applying while tackling a part-time but busy slate of Late Model Stock events this season.

“I want to learn as much as I can,” Caden said. “My dad has been around Late Model Stocks, but he hasn’t worked on them like he’s going to this year as my crew chief. Hopefully we can build off each other and what my brother knows so we can find success like every other driver wants to do.”

Lanie Buice Takes Over No. 03 For Lee Pulliam

When Lanie Buice visited Daytona International Speedway earlier in February, she witnessed Brenden ‘Butterbean’ Queen prevail in the ARCA Menards Series race.

Now Buice is driving the same car that Queen won a CARS LMSC Tour championship with in 2024, the No. 03 for Lee Pulliam Performance. Buice understands the expectations placed upon her, but she feels the competitive, winning culture within Pulliam’s shop will put her in an optimal position to excel behind the wheel.

“I’m super excited,” Buice said. “The Lee Pulliam Performance group is definitely one of the best of the best. Seeing some of their past drivers have great finishes at Daytona is really inspiring and makes me more eager to start the 2025 season with them.”

Buice enters the upcoming year with a handful of CARS Tour starts in Late Model Stocks and Pro Late Models already to her name. Across both divisions, her best performance came during the LMSC Tour season finale at Caraway Speedway in 2023, where she placed seventh after starting 21st.

With Pulliam as both her car owner and crew chief for 2025, Buice is confident she can immediately be a contender. The Icebreaker at Florence Motor Speedway served as an ideal starting point for the combination, as Buice came home in third despite sustaining damage in an earlier incident.

Abrasive tracks like Florence have always suited Buice’s driving style, though New River’s rough surface presents its own unique challenges. She expects many of the same tire conservation principles to apply on Saturday but also plans to lean on Pulliam’s New River expertise to position herself for a breakthrough LMSC Tour victory.

“[New River] is a different track,” Buice said. “Brenden has a great record there and has won quite a few races. It’s cool getting to go there with the same crew chief that did it with him before. I’ve been taught well on how to save tires and be ready for the end of the race, so this is an opportunity to learn a ton and continue to develop.”

Keelan Harvick All Set For CARS PLM Tour Debut

Saturday’s National Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram 225 at New River All American Speedway will see the next generation of the Harvick family make their official CARS PLM Tour debut.

Keelan Harvick, the son of series co-owner and 2014 NASCAR Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick, has leaned heavily on his father while preparing for the season-opener. With many other young prospects in the field, Keelan wants to absorb all the knowledge he can to put together a strong, efficient outing.

“I’m trying to get prepared with my dad,” Keelan said. “The Rackley W.A.R. guys are on the data and stuff, but I’m definitely excited to try this new thing. The CARS Tour guys are very competitive and I’m excited to see how I can do.”

One advantage on Keelan’s side for the weekend is experience at New River, as he previously competed there in both a Legend car and a Street Stock. He said the facility possessed many unorthodox characteristics compared to other tracks, particularly with how much room there was on the frontstretch.

To prepare for a Pro Late Model race at New River, Keelan has competed in a handful of full-bodied stock car events over the past few months. This included the Limited Late Model feature for the Icebreaker at Florence Motor Speedway, where Keelan excelled by leading every lap from the pole.

Keelan anticipates a much tougher path to Cook Out Victory Lane on Saturday, but has full confidence in the guidance provided by Kevin and Rackley W.A.R. By applying that advice and using what he already knows about tire conservation from Florence, Keelan believes his first weekend with the PLM Tour will be a great one.

“They’ve been telling me [New River] is going to be a lot like Florence because the asphalt is pretty much the same,” Keelan said. “I just have to save my tires and be smooth. My expectations are to make all the laps and do the best I can do.”

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Accompanying the CARS LMSC and PLM Tour for Saturday’s National Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram 225 at New River All American Speedway are four of the track’s local divisions. Juice Box, Bandolero, Legend and Bomber features encompass a busy night of racing to open up the 2025 season for the CARS Tour.

The green flag for the 100-lap PLM Tour feature is set to wave at 7:30 p.m. ET, followed by the 125-lap LMSC Tour event at approximately 8:30 p.m. ET. FloRacing will have 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.

Late Model Stock Car Entry List

Pro Late Model Entry List