NASHVILLE — A new track for the zMAX CARS Late Model Stock Car Tour did nothing to deter Caden Kvapil’s momentum.
In his first competitive laps around Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway, Kvapil put together a quietly efficient night to add another victory to his growing resumé. Kvapil stayed inside the top five all evening but capitalized on a restart with 10 laps remaining to pass the dominant car of the evening in Parker Eatmon for the win.
Kvapil has now found his way to Cook Out Victory Lane in three of the last four CARS LMSC Tour events he has entered, with his other two triumphs occurring at North Wilkesboro Speedway and Southern National Motorsports Park. In all those races, Kvapil did not take the lead until inside of 25 laps remaining.
Joining Kvapil as a winner in the inaugural Tootsie’s Music City Showdown at Nashville Fairgrounds was full-time NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series competitor Dawson Sutton. Sutton’s triumph came in his 10th start with the CARS PLM Tour.
Were it not for Landon Huffman’s spin to bring out the final caution of the evening, Caden Kvapil would have been content with settling for a top five finish.
Passing proved to be at a premium in Saturday evening’s Tootsie’s Music City Showdown, which is why Kvapil knew he needed to execute the ensuing restart perfectly against Parker Eatmon. A slight but crucial mistake from Eatmon was all Kvapil needed to pull ahead of him in turn one and cruise to a hard-fought victory.
“We were really good at the end of the first half or so, but I don’t think we made a big enough of an adjustment,” Kvapil said. “I was trying to keep pace with [Eatmon], but I started getting really loose and ran out of tire. The yellow allowed us to cool it down and I had really good grip on the restart to be able to get out in front and have clean air.
“When you’re in traffic, there’s nothing you could do. Dirty air was really bad.”
Three races into 2026 and Kvapil has established himself as the early favorite for the LMSC Tour title. Should he maintain his recent string of success throughout the year, Kvapil could join Jared Fryar and his older brother Carson Kvapil as the only other drivers to win championships across two different CARS Tour divisions.
With Nashville Fairgrounds being one of two new venues on the LMSC Tour schedule this year, Kvapil envisioned there would be some hurdles to conquer on Saturday evening. Kvapil obtained strong track position with a third-place qualifying effort, he just needed to keep his No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolet out of trouble and stay within striking distance of the lead.
With his triumph, Kvapil carried on a proud family tradition of success when it comes to racing in Nashville. Running a Late Model Stock at Nashville Fairgrounds seemed like a far-fetched idea to Kvapil last year, now he gets to proudly display the guitar he received for winning the Tootsie’s Music City Showdown.
“I’ve been talking about wanting to get a guitar,” Kvapil said. “My brother got one, my dad [Travis] got one and it’s really cool I final got one. I told them on the way here that if I win, I’m going to be playing that thing all the way home. It’s so cool and this place is so historic. For my first time here, I’m so glad we were able to get the win.”
Parker Eatmon settles for second after stellar evening
One caution was all that separated Parker Eatmon from earning his breakthrough CARS LMSC Tour checkered flag.
Eatmon’s near-perfect outing in the Tootsie’s Music City Showdown evaporated after Caden Kvapil overtook him in the outside line on the last restart. The outcome was heartbreaking for Eatmon, but he took responsibility for his mistake and is determined to build on the positives from Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway.
“I just needed to get a better restart,” Eatmon said. “I don’t know if I spun the tires a little bit, but I got a bad restart and [Kvapil] timed it perfectly. He took the lead from me straight-up, so I’ve got to get better for the next one.”
It was an impressive weekend for Dawson Sutton across two of Tennessee’s most historic short tracks.
After finishing seventh in Friday’s NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series event at Bristol Motor Speedway, Sutton travelled back to Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway on Saturday and scored a victory in the CARS PLM Tour feature. Despite balancing out a busy schedule, Sutton never once doubted his No. 62 Rackley W.A.R. Chevrolet would be one of the strongest in the field.
“[The car] has been really fast all weekend,” Sutton said. “I’m so thankful to my guys for bringing me a great car. Every time we come to [Nashville Fairgrounds], we have a really good piece. [The win] wasn’t as easy as it looked, but I’m super thankful.”
Although Saturday served as Sutton’s maiden PLM Tour victory, he was already familiar with Nashville Fairgrounds’ historic victory lane. His most notable triumph at the facility came last November during the prestigious All American 400, which saw Sutton lead 202 of 300 laps to secure a dominant win.
The finish:
Caden Kvapil, Parker Eatmon, Dylan Fetcho, Conner Jones, Landen Lewis, Treyten Lapcevich, Carson Brown, London McKenzie, Chase Burrow, Chad McCumbee, Landon Pembelton, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Sam Butler, Carson Loftin, Mason Diaz, Brandon Lopez, Landon Huffman, Doug Barnes Jr., Donovan Strauss, Matt Craig, Jake Bollman, Mason Bailey, Aiden King, Jeard Fryar, Brandon Pierce, Ronnie Bassett Jr., Riley Gentry, Kade Brown, Landon S. Huffman, Thomas Beane, Jace Hale.
