TIMMONSVILLE, S.C. — The fight for the zMAX CARS Late Model Stock Car Tour championship will likely come down between Landen Lewis and Connor Hall.
Entering Friday’s Cook Out 225 at Florence Motor Speedway, the two were only separated by four points, with Hall holding the advantage.
Both championship contenders were at the front for most of the 125-lap Late Model Stock feature, neither one willing to surrender any ground to the other.
Lewis gained the upper hand, overtaking Hall on a late-race restart to secure his fourth CARS LMSC Tour win of 2025 and gaining crucial momentum in the title fight.
With only four races remaining, Lewis knew every race would be pivotal in his pursuit for a CARS LMSC Tour championship.
The triumph at Anderson Motor Speedway a couple of weeks ago instilled confidence in Lewis ahead of Friday’s race at Florence Motor Speedway. A clean, methodical drive around Florence’s abrasive surface translated into a second consecutive victory for Lewis, which further solidified his status as an LMSC Tour title favorite.
“We all needed this win as a group,” Lewis said. “[Anderson] was a good rebound from the weeks before that we had. We went back to the shop that next Monday morning and started working on it again. These guys don’t quit and I’m getting pretty emotional about it because I know how much this means to them and how much effort this takes.”
After earning back-to-back victories in May, Lewis has worked diligently to re-establish that consistency but has been met with frustration along the way. Two accidents at Caraway Speedway and Hickory Motor Speedway were disconcerting for Lewis, but they only fueled his motivation to get back to Cook Out Victory Lane with Kevin Harvick Inc.
Lewis admitted he was initially unsure about prevailing at Florence, as he believed he was being too aggressive with his tires and that Connor Hall possessed a better car. The final competition caution of the evening gave Lewis an opportunity to move his car to the highest lane on track, enabling him to get past Hall for the win.
With Florence being his home track, Lewis was determined to fend off Hall by any means necessary to secure a sentimental victory that also had significant title implications. Recalling the issues Kevin Harvick faced in his PLM Tour start at Florence last year, Lewis was grateful his car could run any line once it obtained clean air.
“When Kevin [Harvick] raced here, he went to the top, but once he went up there, he made his bed and couldn’t get back down,” Lewis said. “I got back down as soon as possible to not make my bed and still had some room to run wherever I needed to. When [Hall] went to the top, we went up there and maintained to try and control the race.”
On any other evening, a second place showing would be a disappointing but serviceable outcome for Connor Hall.
Doing so to Landen Lewis at Florence Motor Speedway could prove detrimental to Hall in a championship fight in which the two are only separated by single digits. Hall believed he had an opportunity to take the lead back from Lewis late, but a mistake in turn two with nine laps remaining prevented him from mounting a serious charge.
“I just overdrove trying to run the top,” Hall said. “The higher I went, the faster I was going, so I just kept moving up, moving up, moving up, and I got to the point where if I overdrove it a foot or two. I was probably going to go over the top.”
Hall’s most recent LMSC Tour victory occurred back in April during the series’ inaugural visit to Cordele Motor Speedway. Inconsistency has hindered Hall since that triumph, but two top fives at Dominion Raceway and Anderson Motor Speedway helped him maintain a narrow points advantage.
Friday further showcased the speed that has been prevalent with JR Motorsports’ Late Model Stock program all year long despite mixed results. Hall easily maintained track position inside the top five from the opening green flag and had built a comfortable lead over Lewis prior to the second competition yellow.
Instead of a victory, Hall now must manage the consequences of losing the Cook Out 225 to Lewis by just one position. Misjudging turn two further likely would have been more costly for Hall, so he plans to move forward from Florence and focus on what he expects will be a intense title bout with Lewis.
“It was either risk going over the top, or slow down enough to where I wouldn’t go over the top,” Hall said. “I conceded at that point, got my stuff back together, moved back down to the bottom and was a touch faster than [Lewis]. I tried running there the rest of the race, but [turn two] was an error on my part.”
Keelan Harvick rebounds from poor start to win second PLM Tour race
The first lap of Friday’s CARS PLM Tour feature at Florence Motor Speedway is one Keelan Harvick would have loved to repeat.
A missed shift forced Harvick to relinquish the pole position he accumulated earlier in the day and settle into the middle of the field. The young prospect did not let the mishap deter him, as Harvick gradually worked his way back towards front before making the race-winning pass on Conner Jones shortly after the halfway point.
“I just completely messed up,” Harvick said. “I knew I just had to get right back in it, but yeah, that was a really big mistake on my part.”
Florence was the rebound Harvick needed following a disappointing outing in his most recent PLM Tour appearance in the Throwback Classic at Hickory Motor Speedway, where he finished a lap behind winner Spencer Davis in 17th.
The summer has been busy but productive for Harvick. He scored his first PLM Tour victory at Hickory a month before the Throwback Classic before besting his father in 2014 NASCAR Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick in a CARS Tour West Pro Late Model Series event at Colorado National Speedway back on Aug. 16.
Having won at Florence in a Limited Late Model during the track’s season-opening Icebreaker, Harvick had a baseline to utilize in the 100-lap Pro Late Model feature. The missed shift was an inauspicious beginning, but Harvick stayed composed and conserved enough tire to successfully pull away from the rest of the field.
“I knew I had to trust [my spotter] Robert [Arch],” Harvick said. “I knew I couldn’t burn all my stuff right away. I definitely wanted that clean air, but this wouldn’t be possible without Rackley W.A.R. They bring me a really fast car every time, so thank you to them.”
The finish:
Landen Lewis, Connor Hall, Casey Kelley, Cody Kelley, Ryan Glenski, Conner Jones, Carson Loftin, Kade Brown, Matt Cox, Parker Eatmon, Brandon Pierce, Donovan Strauss, Lanie Buice, Landon Huffman, Helio Meza, Ronnie Bassett Jr., Mini Tyrrell, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jacob Heafner, Chase Burrow, Tyler Reif, Ryan Wilson, Matt Waltz, Chad McCumbee, Doug Barnes Jr., Tyler Matthews, Isaac Kitzmiller.
