“A phenomenal opportunity”: Kevin Harvick’s 18-year-old Super Late Model teammate secures ‘dream’ full-time seat in NASCAR

The Las Vegas Motor Speedway is ready for an action-packed weekend with NASCAR legend Kevin Harvick returning to the track and his 18-year-old teammate Dawson Sutton securing a full-time seat in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series for the next season.

On October 17, 2024, the Rackley W.A.R. team announced at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway that Sutton would be the full-time diver of truck number 26 for the 2025 season. The Tennessean has held to the number 26 since the start of his career in US Legends to his Super Late Model series.

The 18-year-old driver expressed his excitement about racing alongside Kevin Harvick at the CARS Tour West Super Late Model scheduled on Friday, October 18, 2024, at The Bullring circuit on the Las Vegar Motor Speedway and said:

"I’m here racing with Kevin Harvick as my teammate in our Super Late Models this weekend at Las Vegas [The Bullring], so it’s been really cool working with him as well. I’m stoked to be back in the truck for the Homestead-Miami race in a couple of weeks then on to Martinsville and Phoenix."

Sutton shared his thoughts about securing a spot in the next season of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and stated:

"This is really a phenomenal opportunity. I’ve dreamed for this day to come, and my goal is to make it to NASCAR’s Cup Series that represents the best of the best. It’s all a little hard to believe right now, but I know a have a big job to do and that’s exactly how I look at it," stated Dawson Sutton. (via Jayski's silly season site)

Dawson made his debut in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at North Wilkesboro's All-Star weekend on May 18, 2024, followed by the Nashville Superspeedway race and the August Bristol race on September 19, 2024. He scored a top-five finish, securing fifth place, making it his career-best finish in the NCTS, and the next race is scheduled for October 26, 2024.

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Kevin Harvick's top four predictions ahead of the round of eight

Former NASCAR driver Kevin Harvick recently shared his prediction for the top four drivers in the championship. He left Chase Elliott out of his top four along with the defending champion, Ryan Blaney, and was in a dilemma when it came to Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin.

On his podcast Happy Hour, Harvick mentioned that Kyle Larson, William Byron, Christopher Bell, and Tyler Reddick are his top four choices for this year's showdown, leaving out big names like Hamlin, Elliott, Blaney, and Joey Logano.

Kevin Harvick explained:

"I think Reddick is going to be able to get it done on one of these two race tracks. I don't see [Joey] Logano and [Ryan] Blaney having the speed. Chase Elliott has been very consistent and had quality good finishes. But I just haven't seen that dominant performance out of those three guys. And Denny Hamlin, I think he is the wild card."

Before the playoffs began, the driver of #11 Toyota, Denny Hamlin, made it to the 2014 Cup Series champion's list. However, after the playoff races, he switched his decision to Tyler Reddick. The round of eight is scheduled for October 20, 2024, at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.