LUCAMA, N.C.- A stout field of Late Model Stock cars competed in the 2024 edition of the Thanksgiving Classic, the 250-lap marquee event for Southern National Motorsports Park.
But in the end, it was hometown hero Parker Eatmon that stole the show.
The 18-year-old pulled off an upset win in an event that traditionally serves as the bookend to the Late Model Stock season. Eatmon topped a field of 27 cars for the $15,000 win, including CARS Tour champion Brenden Queen and other CARS regulars including Andrew Grady and Kade Brown.
Eatmon spent a good portion of the race towards the back of the field, running outside of the top-15 until Lap 156. But the young star began to charge forward in the final 75 laps, storming through the field in the late stages with some aggressive moves along the way.
Eatmon passed Dylan Newsome for the lead with ease in the closing stages, taking the top spot with just 10-laps to go. He survived a few late race restarts in the final handful of laps to score the biggest win of his career to date.
“It’s amazing,” Eatmon told Fronstretch. “It’s the biggest win of my career for sure.”
Southern National Motorsports Park is the home track for Eatmon. The 18-year old grew up in Wilson, Nc., just 12 miles northeast of the racetrack. Eatmon felt the victory was a full-circle moment for his racing career.
“It definitely is,” Eatmon said “I mean, if there was one race, one crown jewel race I wanted to win, it was this one. I’m 10 minutes down the road, so (it’s) just so special to have so many of my people here out here. To get this win is huge.”
Behind Eatmon was Jake Bollman and Doug Barnes Jr., who rounded out the night’s podium with battered racecars. Both endured issues en route to their strong results. Bollman drove the final 10 laps with the hood pushed up on his car, while Barnes had been caught in an earlier incident and was missing the right front of his No. 88.
“I couldn’t see anything at all,” Bollman said. “Absolutely nothing, I couldn’t see the outside wall, kind of was just guessing. The only thing I could look at was the small window on the left. I was just trying to wrap the line with my eyes, just follow it the best I could.”
The runner-up later confirmed his plans for 2025, which will include a full slate of CARS Tour…
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