JACKSONVILLE, N.C- The zMAX CARS Tour Late Model Stock field took a beach trip this past Saturday (April 13) night, as the series held its third race at New River All-American Speedway – a track not far from the coast of North Carolina.
The track’s 25-year-old surface didn’t disappoint.
Saturday’s event was originally scheduled as the second race on the CARS Tour schedule, but a dreary forecast pushed the race from March 23 to April 13. While the rain out was certainly unfortunate, it led to an All-Star edition of what is already a stacked Late Model Stock Car field.
Series co-owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. made his highly anticipated return to the driver’s seat, making his first start at New River and his first appearance anywhere outside of North Wilkesboro Speedway in the CARS Tour.
But while all eyes were on Earnhardt entering the weekend, in the end it was Bobby McCarty that stole the spotlight with his first win of 2024.
Here are three takeaways from the CARS race at New River All-American.
Beers With Bobby Meets Victory Lane
From no sponsorship to victory lane, McCarty is back on top in the CARS Tour. Over the offseason McCarty struggled looking for sponsorship, even posting on social media, saying “desperate times call for desperate measures.”
Without any new deals, McCarty wouldn’t have been able to race this season. But the three-time series champion thankfully secured sponsorship from Black Acid Apparel.
Three races into the season, he’s put the brand and R&S Race Cars in victory lane.
McCarty started the afternoon strong, qualifying fourth for the 125-lap feature. But a strong starting spot at New River All-American means less than any other track due to the necessity of tire management, so the most important part was yet to come.
McCarty worked his way forward early on, eventually taking the lead away from Brent Crews on lap 15. He held the top spot 12 laps before giving it up to the No. 23 of Kade Brown.
From that point, McCarty seemed to fall into tire conservation mode, fading back to eighth by lap 34. However, McCarty never fell outside the top ten, sitting seventh when the first competition caution flew on lap 45.
On the restart, McCarty was in no hurry to hustle the No. 6 back to the front. He was methodical moving forward, never cracking back into the top three until lap 72. But from that point on, McCarty never fell outside a podium…
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