Honeycutt Seeking Three-Peat in Krush 250 at South Boston Speedway

Kaden Honeycutt has been the dominant force in the two previous editions of the Krush 250 presented by Rogers Heating & Cooling benefitting the Ward Burton Wildlife Foundation, winning the inaugural event in 2024 and backing it up with a win in last year’s event.

Can he keep the streak alive with a third straight win?

That is the big question looming ahead of the Krush 250 presented by Rogers Heating & Cooling benefitting the Ward Burton Wildlife Foundation on Saturday afternoon, November 14 at South Boston Speedway.

The Texas native, and current NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series points leader, successfully fended off challenges from the best-of-the-best Late Model Stock Car Division drivers and teams to win the Krush 250 each of the last two years. It is also notable that he has won three of the last four Late Model Stock Car races he has entered at South Boston Speedway – the 2026 Thunder Road Harley Davidson 200, the Krush 250 last November, and the 2025 zMAX CARS Late Model Stock Car Tour feature.

Honeycutt is excited about the opportunity to attempt to extend his Krush 250 streak in this year’s $12,000-to-win feature.

“I’m looking forward to coming back for the Krush 250,” Honeycutt remarked. “I was talking to Ward (Burton) recently and he was joking we had stolen all of their money the last couple of years. Hopefully we can steal some more money this year.”

While Honeycutt is excited about the prospect of putting the Tom Usry Racing Team in Victory Lane once again, he knows it will be a tough task to win the race for the third straight year.

“That would be super hard,” he admitted. “It would be really difficult, but I think it’s very doable.”

Last year’s Krush 250 saw Honeycutt survive a pair of late-race restarts and a stout challenge from former CARS Tour champion Bobby McCarty. He edged McCarty by a half second at the finish.

“When we put tires on, I thought the car fired off pretty well,” Honeycutt said, “and then, I went through a really weird phase on a heat cycle for some reason. We couldn't figure out what it was, but the car ended up being on the tight side, which we hadn't experienced the whole race.
“I was just doing what I could to hold them off, and that didn't really work out very well,” he added.

“We had a caution, and we took off on the heat cycle on the next one. and the car drove perfectly fine. That was a really crazy last 30 or 50 laps for sure.”

Honeycutt noted he enjoyed battling McCarty for the win and would like to see that battle repeated in this year’s race.

“We raced each other extremely well and never even put a door mark on either of our cars, and just raced really hard for the win,” he pointed out. “Hopefully, we can do something like that again. That would be really cool.”

According to Honeycutt, the key to success in the 250-lap race is taking care of your equipment.

“You can go hard from the beginning, but it's really not worth anything to do that until you're about halfway through,” Honeycutt explained. “I try to take pressure off the brakes and keep all of the heat out of the rear end and all that as much as I can. I think that's what could shape you up for the end, saving your equipment, saving your body and just being able to give it your all when it's time to go.”

The Krush 250 presented by Rogers Heating & Cooling benefitting the Ward Burton Wildlife Foundation has become an event that Honeycutt and his team have come to look forward to and enjoy.

“The last two times have been the best experiences we've had all season throughout any race that we've been at,” Honeycutt said. “It's one of the most organized races I think we've gone to the past two times. You walk through the gate, you run through practice and the schedule is organized. The race pays extremely well and they treat everybody really, really well. Everyone as far as Buck, Jeb, Ward, all the sponsors, everybody on that side as far as organization, the autograph session for the fans, the payout, and the treatment that everyone gets, and all of that part of it is great.

“The car count is really good,” he continued. “They always have good competition, and they always come around and say, thanks for coming. We hope to see you back again. Those little things they do, is, I think, what takes it a long way.”

Event ticket sales will benefit the Ward Burton Wildlife Foundation, a 501(c)3 non-profit conservation and outreach organization founded by South Boston, Virginia native and 2002 Daytona 500 champion Ward Burton.

Advance adult general admission tickets are $20 each. Adult general admission tickets on race day will be $25 each. Seniors, military/veterans, first responders, and students with ID may purchase general admission tickets for $20 each on race day. This event will also be included in South Boston Speedway’s season-long Trackside Parking events.

Advance tickets can be purchased at www.southbostonspeedway.com/krush250. They may also be purchased by calling the South Boston Speedway office at 434-572-4947 or toll free at 1-877-440-1540, or by visiting the South Boston Speedway office during regular business hours.

An all-star field of drivers that includes NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series competitor Jeb Burton of Halifax, Virginia, fellow NOAPS driver and former CARS Tour champion Caden Kvapil, McCarty who, this year, will drive the No. 22 Nelson Motorsports entry, Jared Fryar who will wheel the No. 12 Nelson Motorsports car, South Boston Speedway champion Trevor Ward, Deac McCaskill, Californian Chase Burgeson who drives for Lee Pulliam Performance, and 2026 Caraway Speedway champion Dylan Ward will battle it out in the 250-lap race.

A large pot of money is on the line for the all-star field of drivers that will be competing in the event. In addition to the winner’s prize of $12,000 the race will pay $1,000 to start, have a $1,200 prize on the line for the pole winner, and the leader at the end of Stages 1 and 2 will earn $500 apiece.

Three stages will make up the race. The first stage will end at or near lap 105 with a 10-minute break to follow. The second stage will end at or around lap 175, with a 10-minute break following. The third stage will consist of the remaining laps of the race.

Along with the Krush 250 fans will see the competitors of the Southern Ground Pounders Vintage Racing Club in a 25-lap race that will kick off the afternoon’s racing action.

The Saturday, November 14 race day schedule has frontstretch grandstand gates opening at 9:30 a.m. Practice for Late Model Stock Car competitors will run from 9:30 a.m. until 10:30 a.m. Practice for the Southern Ground Pounders Vintage Racing Club is slated from 10:30 a.m. until 10:55 a.m.

Turn 4 and backstretch trackside parking gates will open at 10:30 a.m. Single-car qualifying is slated for 11 a.m. An on-track driver autograph session is scheduled from noon to 1 p.m. Pre-race ceremonies and driver introductions are set for 1:30 p.m. A 25-lap race for the Southern Ground Pounders Vintage Racing Club will get the green flag at 2 p.m. with the Krush 250 Late Model Stock Car race to follow.

The latest news and updates about the November 14 Krush 250 presented by Rogers Heating & Cooling benefitting the Ward Burton Wildlife Foundation event and all South Boston Speedway events can be found on the speedway’s website, www.southbostonspeedway.com, by calling the speedway office at 434-572-4947 or toll free at 1-877-440-1540 during regular business hours, and through the track’s social media channels.

To learn more about the event ticket sales non-profit organization beneficiary, The Ward Burton Wildlife Foundation, please visit www.twbwf.org.

-Story by: Joe Chandler/South Boston Speedway
-Photo Courtesy: Joe Chandler/South Boston Speedway