Throwback weekend delivered again.
Hickory Motor Speedway hosted its annual CARS Tour Throwback weekend this past Saturday, an event filled with drama and chaos.
Lost in the chaos was the race’s original draw – paying homage to the past with throwback paint schemes. As usual, we saw some incredible retro looks for drivers in both the Late Model Stock car and Pro Late Model divisions.
Everything from legendary NASCAR paint schemes to Late Model Stock royalty was on display Saturday night. There was truly something for everyone to enjoy.
This isn’t a competition. We don’t want to rank them, but we want to highlight 10 of the best schemes in case you missed some of the classic rides in the field Saturday night.
Here’s are 10 paint schemes that we feel stood out the most under the Catawba County night sky.
Landon Huffman
Throwback to Robert Huffman
It’s hard not to start with the guy who won the FloRacing contest for best throwback of 2024. He also happens to be part of the story that stole the Throwback spotlight on Saturday night.
Huffman’s throwback to his father’s final Late Model Stock win was spot on perfect. The blue wrapped up the side of a modern day Late Model Stock car body looked perfect and red accents made the No. 37 pop.
To top it all off, the sponsor on the hood, Sig’s Tire Center, is the original sponsor from his father’s 1993 ride. The Huffmans even had the store’s original ownership in attendance. 10/10.
Buddy Isles Jr.
Throwback to Dale Earnhardt
Let’s be honest- Who doesn’t love a good Dale Earnhardt throwback?
Not only did Isles knock it out of the park with this Intimidator throwback, but he did so with a deep cut. Earnhardt’s Olympic scheme from 1996 is one of the few from his Cup career that hasn’t been repetitively used in the NASCAR world.
What makes the scheme even more fitting is that it ran during the current Summer Olympics, which are currently taking place in Paris, France.
The red, white and blue made for a perfect replica on Isles’ Late Model Stock car. Bonus points for the team going all in and changing from its typical No. 11 to sport the No. 3, truly pulling this throwback together.
Brenden Queen
Throwback to Lee Pulliam
‘Butterbean’ Queen and the Lee Pulliam Performance group went with a throwback to the man whose name is on the building.
Queen surprised four-time NASCAR National champion Lee Pulliam with a throwback to one of his championship winning rides – the iconic blue No. 5 that became synonymous with victories all throughout the southeast.
It’s been quite some time since the No. 5 has been on the side of an LPP car. Queen put pressure on himself to perform in the car and rightfully so.
Pulliam will return to the driver’s seat this September for the Valley Star Credit Union 300 at Martinsville Speedway. His iconic paint scheme ended the night with a top-five finish at Hickory.
Connor Hall
Throwback to Timothy Peters
Much like Lee Pulliam Performance above, Hall and Nelson Motorsports decided to pay homage to the team’s beginnings.
The scheme honors the very first win for the Nelson Motorsports late Model team after owner Barry Nelson founded it in 2013. Peters was the driver behind the wheel who delivered the victory on that day.
At the time, Peters was full time in the Craftsman Truck Series with the now-defunct Red Horse Racing, a team known for box numbers on the side of its trucks.
All the Nelson cars originally sported the number font as well, so Hall and co. broke out the iconic box No. 17 one more time at Hickory.
Connor Zilisch
Throwback to Cale Yarborough
This one is another NASCAR classic. Zilisch and Pinnacle Racing Group (PRG) broke out the iconic orange-and-white Hardee’s colors Yarborough made famous back in the 1970s and 1980s.
The Pinnacle team had a specific tie to the scheme that led them to it being the group’s choice for 2024 throwback weekend. Zilisch’s spotter, Lorin Ranier, is the son of Harry Ranier, who spotted for Yarborough on the historic No. 28 back in the day.
This wasn’t a flashy choice. The scheme looks a bit simple and empty aboard a Late Model Stock car. But to give PRG credit, the team didn’t add in any extra details to fill the space. It left the car’s design similar to the original, changing the number font to match as well.
Isabella Robusto
Throwback to Le Mans Porsche 911
This one definitely wins the award for the most creative throwback of the weekend. Lee Pulliam Performance and Robusto probably put the first ever Porsche paint scheme on a Late Model Stock car.
It was an inspired choice and the result turned out well. The scheme honors Porsche’s overall win at Le Mans from 1998, when the team was sporting Mobil 1 colors for the event.
With Mobil 1 being a regular sponsor for Robusto, the company served as inspiration behind the unique scheme. The No. 55 being placed where it would be on the endurance car is a nice touch on a car that definitely stood out from the rest.
Treyten Lapcevich
Throwback to Junior Hanley
The car matches Hanley’s old late model – a simple red scheme that found much success in the Northeast and Canada.
A native Canadian himself, Lapcevich told the story of how he and Hanley met on X and described what the racing legend has meant to his career.
The red scheme was hard to miss at Hickory, with blue accents that resembled Hanley’s scheme from the 1980s.
George Phillips
Throwback to Jeff Gordon
The first Pro Late Model to be mentioned comes from Phillips and Fat Head Racing. The 15-year old Phillips showed up to Hickory sporting some of the most iconic colors in all of motorsports: Gordon’s Dupont flames.
This one is pretty much self-explanatory. The dayglow flames with neon yellow numbers are synonymous with early 2000s Gordon and Hendrick Motorsports.
Phillips won the 2023 Carolina Pro Late Model Series championship and is one of the up-and-coming young drivers in the late model world.
Ashton Higgins
Throwback to Robert Pressley
The throwback made a full circle moment for Higgins, who played a part in NASCAR’s throwback weekend at Darlington Raceway in May. While Jeremy Clements ran a similar throwback to Pressley that day, Higgins was in attendance to drive Pressley’s original racecar for a few laps pre-race.
To top this off, Higgins’ regular sponsor remained on the car and played along with the bit. It’s always good to see sponsors who are willing to help honor the sport’s past.
Hudson Bulger
Throwback to David Ragan
Teenage competitor Bulger threw it back to former Roush Fenway Racing driver Ragan, sporting a scheme that ran from 2007-2009 during the Georgian’s time in what was then the NASCAR Nationwide Series.
Ragan picked up wins at both Talladega Superspeedway and Bristol Motor Speedway in those same colors.
The correlation for Bulger and his team comes from his crew chief Brett Ragan, David’s cousin. The 15 year old just missed out on a top-10 finish in the feature, coming home 11th in the Ragan colors.
About the author
Chase began working with Frontstretch in the spring of 2023 as a news writer, while also helping fill in for other columns as needed. Chase is now the main writer and reporter for Frontstretch.com's CARS Tour coverage, a role which began late in 2023. Aside from racing, some of Chase's other hobbies include time in the outdoors hunting and fishing, and keeping up with all things Philadelphia sports related.
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