Loose Wheel Upends Carson Kvapil’s Bid for Bristol Win

BRISTOL, Tenn. — Carson Kvapil was well on his way to his third career NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series win in the past six races on Friday night (Sept. 18) at Bristol Motor Speedway.

But in a matter of seconds, a loose wheel ruined what would have been a statement win for the JR Motorsports driver that would have also vaulted him into the championship lead.

Oh, what could have been for Kvapil, who led 156 of the 305 laps Friday night. After a dominant stage two performance, it seemed no one had anything for the second-generation NASCAR national series driver well into the final stage.

“First things first, this car was amazing,” Kvapil said. “I mean, these guys on this Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet, they did such a good job. They brought a really fast racecar.

“I didn’t think our practice stuff was that amazing. I was hoping to qualify. We had a two-poles-in-a-row streak, so we were hoping to get a third, but that got rained out. And still had a good starting position at fourth, and our first stage was OK. Felt like we needed a little adjustment, and the guys hit it right on the hammer and gave us a really good car for stage two and stage three. I felt like we were honestly just trying to pace ourselves and not make mistakes.”

But late in the race, the blown tire still came, flipping the race on its head when Kvapil started slowing. He lost the lead to JRM teammate Justin Allgaier on lap 249 and immediately slid back through the field. The 23-year-old continued to lose track time as a vibration began to plague the No. 1 Chevrolet.

“I don’t know why it wasn’t a problem right away, but deep into the run, the right rear wheels started to have vibration,” Kvapil said. “I didn’t think it was a loose wheel at first. I just thought the bottom was rubbering up so much with how long the run was going. But after another lap or two, I was really starting to move around with the back of the car, and it was dancing around a bunch and we were losing speed. And then obviously, once the No. 7 [Allgaier] and the No. 54 [Taylor Gray] and the No. 2 [Jesse Love] passed us, it was just hanging on, trying to make it to the end.”

From there, the problems for Kvapil only increased.

“Unfortunately, with all that vibration and all that stuff moving around back there, the right-rear bleeder in the brake caliber either just backed itself off and fell out or broke off — one of the two,” he added.

Just 10 laps after losing the lead, Kvapil brought his car to pit road for repairs. He ultimately lost four laps, finishing 24th.

“Just super unfortunate,” he said afterward. “I mean, we led a ton of laps today, got 19 stage points, and I think we were the car to beat. Before that wheel, I thought we were driving away still. All you can ask for is to have really fast racecars week in and week out.”

Had Kvapil held on for the win, it would’ve been the first time his father, 2003 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion Travis, had been in attendance for one of his NOAPS wins. The elder Kvapil was not at the track for Carson’s victories at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Iowa Speedway, leading him to joke afterward that he may be his son’s bad-luck charm.

“I hate to [stay away so he wins],” Travis Kvapil told Frontstretch. “I mean, I wanna be here for one of these wins, and I thought tonight was gonna be the one. I don’t know how much you believe in that stuff, but it seems to be working out that way.

“We’ll be going to Martinsville [Speedway] with Caden [Kvapil, his other son] next week, and then I think with [the next NOAPS race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway], we’re probably racing somewhere with Caden, so maybe he’ll get one in Vegas, and I won’t be there. That’s all right as long as he keeps collecting wins and I’m not there. We’ll celebrate when he gets home.”

Travis Kvapil did say he told Carson after the race that he’s had winning cars for all three Chase races so far.

“Just keep executing, keep your chin up and it’ll turn around,” Travis added as he tried to keep his son’s confidence high.

Despite the result, thanks to the 19 stage points scored, Carson Kvapil leaves Bristol only 37 points out of the lead. He entered the event nine points back; that said, Kvapil has looked the fastest he’s looked all year over the past month and a half and remains optimistic about his title chances.

“We’re just hitting our stride right now, and we’re fast,” Kvapil said. “I know it’s a little bump in the road, but I think with the quality of our cars, the consistency we’ve had and everything we’re doing right now, I feel — not like it’s OK. By no means is it OK, but it just is what it is. We’re not gonna get too spun out about it.

“I feel like our cars are fast enough we can make up for it on the track. I mean, all it takes is a win, and I feel like we’re right there in the mix again. So today [Friday] was probably supposed to be a win, or it would have been a really good finish at the worst. So, it is what it is. Part of racing. Not every road’s gonna be smooth. But had a fast car all day, led a bunch of laps and just had an issue there.”