Perhaps one of the most bizarre and largest dominoes to fall in what has been a relatively quiet NASCAR Silly Season came from the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series when Niece Motorsports announced it was releasing its rising rookie star Kaden Honeycutt on Aug. 4.
Honeycutt, who had nine top 10s and was sitting in position to make the playoffs at the time, didn’t have to wait long to continue his championship aspirations by virtue of an unfortunate circumstance. Halmar Friesen Racing’s co-owner and driver Stewart Friesen suffered multiple injuries in a horrifying crash during a Super DIRTcar Series race at Autodrome Drummond in Quebec, Canada.
The accident left the recovering Friesen out for the rest of the season, and though it was through near-tragedy that the ride became open, it was perfect timing for Honeycutt. HFR gave the 22-year-old the call, and Honeycutt will finish the season out in the team’s No. 52 Toyota.
Further adding to the opportunity is the fact that the freshman driver will pursue his first Truck title after making the playoffs on points. Frontstretch sat down with Honeycutt at the regular season finale at Richmond Raceway on Aug. 15 to discuss his transition, mindset in his playoffs debut and similarities to Friesen.
Luken Glover, Frontstretch: You obviously are stepping in for Stewart Friesen and Halmar-Friesen [Racing] in the No. 52 in pursuit of a driver’s championship. What is your focus as you move into the rest of this season with this new team?
Kaden Honeycutt: I’m going to take tonight (Author’s Note: Honeycutt finished 10th at Richmond) as a learning perspective for all us, try to learn the team as well as they learn me. I think we’ll be just fine. I’m not new when it comes to having to adapt and change things in my life.
Glover: The elephant in the room is that transition from Niece Motorsports over to Halmar Friesen. Can you break down how that went over at Niece and how you landed this ride at Halmar Friesen?
Honeycutt: Yeah, it was pretty much a mutual agreement on both sides. They needed to do what they needed to, and so did I. So yeah, that’s pretty much how that went.
Glover: You’re getting ready to chase your first opportunity at a championship. How does that dynamic change for you as you step into a new ride?
Honeycutt: It definitely doesn’t change the fact that I want to win races. I think that we as a team focus on trying to win every race and running good in the stages. I don’t think that will hurt us in any aspect. So pretty much our mindset, nothing changes on our end, especially on my end. I’m going to take the night for a learning experience and for us as a team so that we can go to Darlington [Raceway] and hit the ground running.
Glover: When you look at the playoffs coming up, are there any tracks that you have circled that you feel kind of fit your forte as well as fits this [No.] 52 team?
Honeycutt: Well, they ran really good at Watkins [Glen International], so I would think the [Charlotte Motor Speedway] ROVAL, but I’ve never really been to the ROVAL. I would say the tracks that are good for me are Phoenix [Raceway], Martinsville [Speedway]. Darlington is one of my favorite mile-and-a-halves, probably ever.
So yeah, there are some really good races on our schedule for the rest of the year that I feel like we can run really good at and try to run for this title at the end of the year at Phoenix. Not just for myself, but for Stewart and his team at Halmar Friesen, try to win an owner’s title as well. We’ve got things to keep in the back of our mind, but right now it’s focusing on winning races and going as far as we can.
Glover: Have you been able to have many conversations with Stewart in this transition, and what have those been like if so?
Honeycutt: Yeah, we’ve talked a lot. Man, he’s an amazing guy, and I wish him a speedy recovery. I just hope he’s back in this truck as soon as possible. I just appreciate him and Mrs. Friesen for even thinking about me to finish the rest of the year for him and have a chance to run for the title, for the owner’s and driver’s.
Glover: There’s a similarity and a difference between you and Stewart in the sense that he races grassroots at the dirt track level and you race grassroots at the late model. Is there really a parallel you can draw that really helps this dynamic out?
Honeycutt: Yeah, Stewart is a racer just like I am. He wants to race everything that touches the ground and has tires on it, but I’m the same way. It’s been really good. I think me and him are pretty similar in that aspect, he just races dirt a lot more. I just haven’t been able to. I think we have a really good relationship since this has started and really hope he has a speedy recovery and gets back to the truck as soon as possible. I just want to thank them again for giving me the chance to finish the year for them.
Glover: How does that mindset kind of shift as you go into the playoffs from regular season mode?
Honeycutt: Well, I try to keep the playoff mind through the regular season, so just focus on winning and everything fixes itself. So we’re going to focus on that. Nothing really changes mentality-wise or how we set up or what we have a plan for. We just set up and try to win, and that’s all we can really do to set ourselves up for a good spot in Phoenix.
Glover: Obviously now with this position over at Halmar Friesen, it brings up the questions of 2026, and there have been reports about your future plans. Are you any closer to being able to make that announcement?
Honeycutt: I’m not really sure. I’m kind of leaving it up to those guys to do what they want. My people most certainly will do what we need to do that. We’re all working together. We’ll have it out. I don’t know when, but it will be in the next couple of months, probably.
Entering his fifth year with Frontstretch, Luken Glover is the author of The Underdog House, shedding light on the motivation and performance of NASCAR's dark horse teams as they strive to fight to the top. Additionally, Glover reports for the site at various events, and he contributes in the video editing department.
A 2023 graduate of the University of the Cumberlands, Glover is a middle school math and PE teacher, as well as a basketball coach. He is passionate about serving in his church, playing/coaching a wide variety of sports, and researching motorsports history.