TIMMONSVILLE, S.C.- With just four races to go in 2025, the zMAX CARS Tour made its annual stop in the Pee Dee region this past Friday (Aug. 29) at Florence Motor Speedway.
CHAMPIONSHIP MOMENTUM!@landenlewis99 keeps @connorhallweb in the mirror to win in the @CARSTour Late Model Stocks at @FmSpeedway2025!#CARSTour pic.twitter.com/EF38B7zMO3
— FloRacing (@FloRacing) August 30, 2025
The Tour entered Florence with a five-man fight for the title, but that number has now essentially been cut down to two. While other contenders struggles, championship frontrunners Landen Lewis and Connor Hall had a slugfest at the front that saw Lewis pick up his fourth win of the season.
Behind the two title hopefuls, the locals showed out in full force. Dale Earnhardt Jr. struggled in his return to Florence, but still had lots to say about the future of the Tour post-race.
Here are three takeaways from the 2025 Cook Out 225.
The Title Fight Comes Down To Two
Five drivers showed up to Florence Motor Speedway Friday morning considering themselves part of the title fight. But by the time the checkered flag fell Friday evening, only two remained.
Those two are the pair everyone expected: Lewis and Hall.
It was a tough night for Kade Brown, Landon Huffman and Mini Tyrrell, who finished eighth, 14th and 17th, respectively.
LEAD CHANGE! Landen Lewis takes over with 30 laps to go for the #CARSTour Late Model Stocks at Florence. pic.twitter.com/USSH8gEIKp
— FloRacing (@FloRacing) August 30, 2025
While they struggled, Hall and Lewis traded blows for the lead all night long. On a night where Hall seemed to have the upper hand, Lewis got the better of the JR Motorsports driver on the final restart to swing the championship in his favor.
The two have been the best drivers in the series all season long. They drive for the powerhouses in JR Motorsports and Kevin Harvick Inc. With Friday’s result, the duo are going to enter South Boston Speedway essentially tied in points. This championship battle is going to come down to the wire and they’re both well aware.
“When they’re right there in front of you, it’s very easy to make a mistake and give it up,” Lewis told Frontstretch. “You’ve just got to stay focused and not screw it up. (Hall) had a really good night tonight, we had a good night tonight, so it makes the points racing a little tougher when it’s in that situation. When they’re having a good night like that you don’t want to screw it up.”
The task at hand for Lewis is simple: outrun the No. 88 car. But as a driver who’s never been in the position before, racing familiar title contender who has in Hall, the task is as challenging as it’ll ever be in this moment.
“This is my first full-time year in the Late Model Stock car,” Lewis said. “Last year I ran a partial schedule – I think I ran nine races total. So this year is my first full year, to be able to contend for a championship, no matter what, if we finish second or win, It’s just special to be a part of it.
“I told someone this earlier. It’s good when we’re having this conversation, (but) it can be bad when we’re having this conversation. The last two weeks we gained a total of 13 points. That’s a big thing (knowing) that it can go south really quickly, and you can lose those points that you gained. I think we added it up and we’re two points to the good now. Not enough, we don’t have a points cushion to lean on.”
Behind Lewis, Hall was left frustrated despite the solid run on Friday night. Those that know Hall know he’s passionate as a competitor. The Virginian isn’t about the glitz and glamour. He only cares about one thing: winning.
That’s the mindset he’ll need to secure the title over the final three rounds.
“I came into this weekend thinking it’s just another race,” Hall said. “I’ve got 15 CARS Tour races this year, (which means) I’ve got 15 chances to win a race. Every race to me is just a chance to win a race, I try not to think about the points. … I’d be ignorant to say it’s not there, but when I’m here at the racetrack I’m not points racing. I think everybody saw that when I about put it over the top of the track with like eight [laps] to go.
“It sucks, because every time I’m on that racetrack, that’s my chance to fight for my job for the next year. Fight for an opportunity, put myself in position to run good in front of sponsors, whatever it be. Hell, even just win for my guys. Win for me. Win for JR Motorsports, … everybody that puts into this program. It makes it painful.”
Just three tracks separate one of these drivers and a CARS Tour championship, with South Boston up next on the horizon. Which one it’ll be is anyone’s guess.
Shoutout to The Florence Folks
Aside from the Goliaths at the top, the local crowd showed out in a big way on Saturday night. Florence regulars were scattered throughout the top-10. Leading the pack were the Kelley twins Casey and Cody, who finished third and fourth ahead of Ryan Glenski in fifth.
Matt Cox ran up front throughout the night before falling down to ninth. And while not a regular anymore at the track, Chad McCumbee ran top-five for a majority of the race before a late mechanical issue took him out of contention.
Casey Kelley picked up a podium on the night and was happy to race up front with the top dogs.
“Yeah, it’s awesome,” Casey told Frontstretch. “They all raced with respect tonight and I appreciate that, I got to race around the local guys a lot like my brother, he came up there throughout the end of the race. Matt [Cox].
“It was good racing with them, whenever I was around the local guys I felt comfortable. It was a good race, good for the local guys to show the speed against the CARS Tour. When they come to town, it’s tough to run with them. So to do that tonight is a good accomplishment.”
Casey’s brother, Cody Kelley, finally put together a full race weekend at one of Florence’s big events – something he’s struggled with in the past.
“Man it felt really good,” Cody told Frontstretch. “I’ve been racing here for the past three or four years now, and all these big races I’ve just really struggled. I could seem to qualify good most of the time, but I (would) just struggle in the race. That was the first time I’ve had something from the start of the race all the way to the very end, and it felt really good.”
Rounding out the top-five was Glenski, who ran the high line to march through the field late in the going. There’s no better feeling for a small family team like Glenski has than running top-five with the best in the country.
“It means everything,” Glenski told Frontstretch. “I probably won’t go to sleep for a couple days. Seeing all these haulers here, and the teams they have, to see what me, my mom, my dad and my cousin, come together and work as a team. … That little team goes a long way to finish top five in the CARS Tour.”
For all the talk about tracks like South Boston and Langley Speedway drawing good local crowds, the Florence regulars put up maybe the best fight we’ve seen this year.
What Did Dale Say About the Future of CARS and Florence?
It’s no secret, Earnhardt loves Florence Motor Speedway. The two-time Daytona 500 winner has competed at the track far more than any other since his return to Late Model Stock car racing in 2022. After a dream performance in the South Carolina 400 was cut short last November, many expected the No. 8 to be bad fast on Friday.
Unfortunately, that never came to fruition. Earnhardt struggled for much of the night, finishing down in 18th after 125 laps. Rather than talking about his night, Earnhardt was eager to dish about the future of the Tour, specifically as it related to Florence.
“I think it’d be cool to start the year sooner,” Earnhardt said. “Maybe even see if Steve [Zacharias] here at Florence was interested in turning the IceBreaker into a CARS Tour event. That would start the season in February. We would then be able to (move) a race out of the summer.
“What I want to do is race less in the summer, give our teams the opportunity to be with their families, go on vacation, whatever they want to do.”
Earnhardt went on to discuss other aspects like race lengths, purses, payouts and even the number of races on the schedule. But the prospect of an IceBreaker CARS Tour event is intriguing.
Would the Tour then not return for Labor Day weekend in conjunction with NASCAR and the Southern 500? Likely not, since the series seems happy with one race per track (which should be the same for North Wilkesboro Speedway). The weather in the Pee Dee is typically nice in February, albeit a bit chilly, but a CARS Tour IceBreaker combo is certainly one that could work in the future.
What’s Next
The Tour now takes a week off before both Late Model Stock cars and Pro Late Models head north for the third and final stop in the Virginia Commonwealth at South Boston Speedway.
All the action at SoBo is set to take place Saturday, September 13, live on FloRacing.
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.