JACKSONVILLE, NC – Landen Lewis is hoping to rebound in Saturday’s National Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram 250 at New River All American Speedway as he looks to finish what was started last Saturday night.
Lewis, 18, from Supply, North Carolina, qualified on the pole for last weekend’s zMAX CARS Tour race at Hickory Motor Speedway before ultimately finishing 13th. Heading into Saturday night’s headliner at New River, Lewis believes he can run up front if he can minimize the mistakes he felt cost him a shot at Hickory.
“I’m really confident in my car and in Kevin Harvick, Inc.,” Lewis said. “They’re going to bring me a good car. I just got to do a better job, clean up some mistakes, and learn. These guys in the CARS Tour are unbelievably good so I just have to do a good job and be consistent. The biggest thing is learning from the mistakes last weekend, clean those up, and put the race together.”
Lewis comes to Jacksonville with some previous experience. Last summer, he competed in a Legends race, finishing second to Carson Haislip. He expects tire management to be the key in Saturday’s 125-lap race on New River’s abrasive track surface which maximizes tire wear.
“There are obviously going to be two cautions,” Lewis stated, referring to CARS Tour’s competition cautions which are displayed after 40 consecutive green flag laps. “The biggest thing is you have to pace yourself as much as possible before those cautions come out to give yourself the best opportunity at the end of the race. Those guys have been doing it for a long time and are very experienced when it comes to tire saving. Hickory was my first Late Model Stock Car race, so I’m trying to learn as much as possible.”
Lewis is competing for the Late Model Stock Car team operated by 2014 NASCAR Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick. Before joining Harvick’s program, he had competed on the Legend Car circuit across the country and has learned a lot from another NASCAR icon, Ron Hornaday, Jr.
“To be able to drive for Kevin Harvick and his team is a dream come true,” Lewis explained. “They had a Truck Series and Xfinity team that were very successful and now have a Late Model superteam that’s successful. I’ve been super fast and the guys at the shop have been working really hard to get better that these longer races and I think we’ll have a win coming this year. We’re going to do our best to get a win. Ron [Hornaday] will be there as well. He was at Hickory and helped out a ton.”
Lewis believes his experience in a Legend Car helps him as a driver since the Legend Cars have less grip.
“These tires don’t have a lot of grip at the end of the races,” Lewis commented. “The Legend Cars have a little tire with a lot of power and don’t have much grip. That car control [from Legends] transfers over to a Late Model in these long races. It helps to have car control at the end of the races and know how to maintenance the throttle the keep the tires under it as much as possible.”
While Lewis’ main focus is now on the Late Model side, he will still compete in the Legend Cars. Along with his success in Legends, Lewis has also scored three wins in ARCA competition – two in the West Series (Bakersfield, California in 2022 and Portland, Oregon in 2023) and a national ARCA Menards Series victory on the one-mile dirt track at the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds in 2021.
Lewis is one of two drivers from Supply, North Carolina competing in Saturday’s race. Chad McCumbee, who has one CARS Tour win at Hickory (2022) and started on the front row alongside Lewis last week, will also compete in the CARS Tour.
Saturday’s National Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram 250 at New River All American Speedway, which also features the Grand National Super Series, Legend Cars, and Bandoleros, will commence at 7:00 pm. More information, including times, tickets, and more can be found at newriverspeedway.com/carstour.
New River All-American Speedway is Jacksonville’s Action Attraction featuring racing and other events. For more information about New River All-American Speedway, check out the speedway’s website, like/follow “New River Speedway” on Facebook and/or follow @newriverswy on X (formerly known as Twitter).
