GAME CHANGER – Tom Usry Racing Sends Another Shot Across The Bow At South Boston

South Boston Speedway’s crown jewel, the 2026 Thunder Road Harley-Davidson 200, is a wrap and the message that was sent from this event was loud and clear!

Coming into this year’s inaugural Virginia Triple Crown event, the excitement was off the charts. The entry list was nothing short of amazing. Storylines such as Lee Pulliam running the iconic JR Motorsports number 8 decked out in NASCAR Channel colors dominated the media pages leading up to this event, which happens to be in the middle of a hotly contested Late Model Stock championship battle with national championship implications on the line. There was a lot to talk about here. The 2026 short track racing season has been heating up in the summer months in what’s turning out to be an extremely competitive season all around the country. It’s in that type of scenario where the best of the best thrive. So going in, gauging the talent slated to compete in this event, all types of outcomes ran through my mind. Would Peyton Sellers and Lee Pulliam end up in a battle for the win that took guys like me to victory lane? Who would play the best strategy in the local championship battle? It was clear this race was going to have a huge impact on that alone. But for me it all came down to the powerhouse Late Model Stock teams lined up side by side with one another in a massive display of Late Model Stock power.

And this is what those teams prepare for. The big races that indicate where they stand on the work they’ve done all year. For some a chance to showcase the development of their young stars and why they belong at the highest echelons of the sport. For others, a chance to showcase why they are the team that the best of the young talent need to thrive. And for the up and comers? A chance to show they belong competing against the best. And teaming up in 2024, one driver-team combo is doing that as good as anyone has ever done it. And during the South Boston Speedway Thunder Road Harley-Davidson 200, while all the other teams battled in the tight confines of South Boston in a determined fight to see who would be the ones to emerge to challenge for the win, Kaden Honeycutt in the Tom Usry Racing #17 took to the point and never looked back in a shot across the bow to every team in attendance at South Boston Speedway and indeed the entire Late Model Stock world. Thing is, if you would have told a Late Model Stock fan this would happen just a few years ago, they would have looked at you as if you had no clue what you were talking about. I know because I was that guy.

From the very beginning of Short Track Report, me and my partner Joshua Weatherman have paid some special attention to the driver development program. There are many reasons for why and we’ve learned a lot. And as I’ve been teasing, it’s almost time to reveal what we’ve learned. Beyond the propaganda, beyond the prepared press releases, and beyond what you’ve heard, is the truth of what is driving the sport into the future. But also in the midst of that is the stories that come from the machinery itself, often against the odds. Tom Usry Racing is one of those stories.

You’ll hear a lot of opinions on the state of the Late Model Stock world, but I want to remind you that as a lifetime short track racing fan, an older one at that, I’ve seen a few racing eras. From the near beginning to now, I’ve seen a lot of changes. But one thing I saw was the near demise of the Late Model Stock genre all together. Not many want to remember that, but I do. So believe me when I say that despite all that’s come against it, including the financial aspect and the thoughts of promotors competing for Late Model Stock talent in the region to compete in their local Late Model Stock divisions, Late Models as a group are thriving like they never have before. To the point that a successful Late Model Stock driver can move to the higher echelons of the sport and into the big three NASCAR premier series and have immediate success. That’s a testament to the teams and drivers they race against in the Late Model world that has prepared them to race against the very best in the business. You’ve seen the proof over the last few years, and one of those drivers proving the point is Kaden Honeycutt. A driver that was nearly looked over in the Late Model world because he didn’t bring big money or big sponsors initially to the portfolio. What he brought was a drive and the talent to win. And he raced everything he could get into to prove he’s become one of the nations top stock car prospects. He did it by making the teams that gave him a shot better for it.

In 2021 in our first year of coverage, we watched him drive Justin Johnson’s second team to a runner up position in the CARS Tour Late Model Series championship run in his first full season on the tour. He finished runner up to Nelson Motorsports’ primary car with 3 time CARS Tour champ Bobby McCarty at the wheel. He gave Rick Ware a CARS Tour Pro Late Model win as they were in the opening stages of their development program. He worked with Brandon Lopez and helped earn them a CARS Tour Pro Late Model championship after just a few years in the series. When Niece Motorsports looked to expand on their success with Ross Chastain and later Carson Hocevar, they eventually turned to Kaden Honeycutt to recapture the momentum. And now with TRICON Garage, Kaden looks to write another chapter of his racing history chasing championships at NASCAR’s highest levels.

But, smartly, he has chosen to continue to race whenever he can, and determined to give every team that allows him that opportunity a chance to chase wins. That makes him a perfect candidate for Tom Usry Racing as Kaden Honeycutt fits their agenda. The team founded by Kenneth Packer, stepson of Tom Usry, is racing in it’s namesakes honor. A driver known for his driving diversity and his mentorship of young talent, Tom Usry was a man who knew how to do more with less and thrive when it all came together. Nearly killed in a crash so significant that it tried to define him, Tom rose above even that and returned to racing against the odds. That’s who he was. He refused to give in in the face of overwhelming odds. And now, Kenneth Packer and his right hand man Josh Yeoman are doing the same with the same mentality. And with Kaden Honeycutt at the wheel, they’ve sent an amazing message to the rest of the Late Model Stock contingent across the country as well as their fans. It’s a message that should be well received. Yes, you need money to compete with the best in stock car racing. That’s a given. But it’s no guarantee of success. Money gets you there, but it’s the passion for the sport at it’s core and a developing talent that takes you where you want to go. That’s what will define you. Blue collar teams often start at a disadvantage. In the end, no matter the worth initially, it’s the work you put in that puts you over the top. What drives you? Until next time, we’ll See You At The Track!