The Throwback Classic Returns toHickory Motor Speedway: A Preview

By:TSN's Brogan Whitworth

The zMAX CARS Tour returns to the track this Saturday, August 8th, for their

annual throwback classic at the historic Hickory Motor Speedway, known as “The

Birthplace of NASCAR Stars.” With famous stars such as Ned Jarrett, Ralph Earnhardt,

and Harry Gant starting their careers on this 0.363-mile oval, the historic track will

collide with some of the rising stars in stock car racing.

The Late Model Stock Class will be fielded by 30 drivers in a 125-lap feature,

including big names both at the local and national levels. The biggest of these names is

Corey Heim, who is coming off two wins in the NASCAR Cup Series, coming at San

Diego and Indianapolis. Another notable name is Kaden Honeycutt, who has not only

shown success on the tour but is a current driver in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck

Series, where he sits 2nd in points. They will likely be fighting alongside another

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series regular, Mini Tyrell, who not only competes full-time in

the Truck Series but is the most recent winner of this race in 2025.

The Pro Late Model class will field 23 drivers in a 100-lap feature, holding some

more notable names such as Kaden Honeycutt, who will be pulling double duty racing in

both classes. Joining him will be Keelan Harvick, son of NASCAR Legend Kevin

Harvick, who signed a developmental deal with Toyota Racing Development earlier this

year. They look to fight for the win with the current points leader, Mason Walters, who

has proven to have success at the track with multiple wins and strong finishes at the

track in the Local Racing Series. Last year’s winner in the PLM class, Spencer Davis,

will not be entering this race, leaving last year’s runner-up, Luke Baldwin, a potential

favorite for the win.

Home Sweet Home

This track is not only home to all sorts of short track history, but a homecoming

for many teams and drivers on the tour today. The LMSC race will feature Hickory Track

Champions Landon Huffman, Michael Bumgarner, Kade Brown, and Ryan Millington.

Some other notable drivers with connections to the track are Landon S. Huffman in

LMSC and Nick Loden in PLM, both of whose families have connections to the

Speedway, with both of their fathers each earning their own respective track

championships. These drivers hope to capitalize on the home-field advantage and find

themselves in Victory Lane on Saturday.

With that being said, many of the local stars came out a week early to Hickory

Motor Speedway for the Jack Ingram Memorial Night, where we got a little preview of

the racing to come.

The main event of the night was the 111-lap Late Model feature, including many

of the drivers who will be racing this weekend. The race started strong with Landon S.

Huffman taking a demanding lead over Parker Eatmon, Landon Huffman, Michael

Bumgarner, and more, as cautions led to many cars being taken out early. Landon

Huffman would end his night early with a mechanical failure, setting up a late-race battle

between Landon S. Huffman and Parker Eatmon.

The two would bang doors and fight tooth and nail before one push too many

sent both around with Huffman suffering a hard hit into the pit wall attenuator. Both

drivers walked or drove away from the incident, which led to heated conversations

directly after the incident. After the cleanup ended, fans were treated to a tight battle

between track champions Michal Bumgarner and Ryan Millington. Both drivers fought

side by side for multiple laps, eventually culminating in a photo finish in favor of

Bumgarner.

Big names, home-field advantages, and 100% chance of racing action are set to

make this year's zMAX CARS Tour Throwback Classic at Hickory Motor Speedway

quite possibly one of the most entertaining and pivotal races of the year.