Carson Kvapil CPLMS inaugural winner
The Carolina Pro Late Model Series held its anticipated debut Saturday at Dillon Motor Speedway (SC). Carson Kvapil will go down as the series’ inaugural winner, dominating the maiden event.
Kvapil is a former winner in a variety of race cars, from Outlaw Karts to Super Late Models. However, the son of former NASCAR Cup Series competitor Travis Kvapil had not raced a Pro Late Model before Saturday.
“I knew we’d do good,” Kvapil told Speed51. “I had just never run a Pro race before. I didn’t know how much we’d need to save. I didn’t really know what I was doing, but I guess I saved enough and used enough.”
Nonetheless, Kvapil unloaded with speed. He had tested at Dillon one week ago, and knew the car would be a contender as soon as he arrived at the track.
“We started off really good in practice. I tested here probably a week back, and I got it to where I didn’t really know what else we could do. We kept consistently running fast times, top three at least.”
Kvapil started on the pole, and quickly assumed the top spot. He would lead the entirety of the race, relying on feedback from his crew to manage the gap to his closest competition, such as North Carolina’s Nick Loden and Connecticut’s Devin O’Connell.
“They were giving me lap times, me and the guy behind me. Telling me how many car lengths back he was, just to keep me under control and not burning the tires off.”
For Kvapil, the best part of the race was simply being back at the track. After several months away from Late Model racing during the COVID-19 pandemic, Kvapil was excited to get the season back underway.
“It’s awesome. I missed it. We work on the race cars all week. We’re always thrashing hard to get them ready and we never get to race them, so it’s nice to come out here and get a win.”
The Carolina Pro Late Model Series will continue its season on June 13 at Orange County Speedway (NC) with a 75-lap event.
-Story by: Zach Evans, Speed51 Content Supervisor