At Nashville’s Fairgrounds Speedway, the 19-year-old rising star Dawson Sutton won the All-American 400, a 300-lap Super Late Model showdown that’s tested drivers for 40 years. It was a hometown victory for Sutton, who lives just 20 minutes from the track in his Tennessee home. The win carried extra weight after a near miss last season. “It’s awesome! You know, this is the one that I always wanted to win the All American 400. So it’s super cool,” the young driver said with hometown pride.

Yet the grid felt incomplete without Cup Series driver Chase Elliott, who couldn’t participate because of a schedule mix-up and Jake Garcia’s prior commitment to complete the event. But Elliott’s absence gave the opportunity to the young NASCAR phenom to shine with the signature guitar trophy, something that’s always been on his bucket list.

Sutton steals the show at home

In a Frontstretch post-race interview fresh off the track, 19-year-old Dawson Sutton was very happy celebrating his dream win, which felt like redemption after last year’s near miss. “Yeah, it feels great. I feel like, like you said, we were really close last year. Just to get this one really just means a lot. I’ve always wanted this one, especially since it’s my home track and, you know, I live 20 minutes from here,” Sutton said, his voice steady amid the celebrations.

.@dawsonsutton_ talks about winning the 2025 ASA STARS All American 400 at his home track in Nashville with @UTKnoxville sponsorship. pic.twitter.com/LcXqIyQWwK

— Frontstretch (@Frontstretch) November 10, 2025

This victory, his second ASA STARS win of 2025 after the Glass City 200, shows his rise from 2024 Truck Series rookie to full-time driver for the Rackley W.A.R. team. This season in Trucks, he finished 18th in points with a career-best fourth at Talladega.

The win also meant a lot for Dawson team owner Willie Allen, as he said, “It’s so big…We’ve tried for so long. We’ve got the pole, led the most laps, had something break. It’s huge. We’ve been trying since, I don’t even know, the mid-2000s or something. It means so much.” Dawson had had 11 starts here in the past, but with no wins. This one finally adds the long-awaited guitar trophy to the shelf.

Sutton’s win came because of his strategy and grit, as he battled Cole Butcher before gaining momentum on lap 209. “Yeah, I feel like we were pretty, pretty equal. He was definitely really solid, especially exiting off the corner. He had loads of drive off, but overall, I feel like we were pretty, pretty similar. He just beat me with track position, and it’s really hard to pass, especially here,” he explained, crediting his crew’s setup for 93 laps led and a 1.179-second win margin over Carson Brown.

Butcher, despite fading to 14th position due to handling problems, dominated early stages and led 202 laps in the race. Sutton’s win here is a nod to his late-model roots, where he won the Fairgrounds Pro Late Model title in 2024.

Earlier rumors suggested Elliott would race for Ricky Turner’s team. But his absence from the event was because of a misunderstanding about the calendar confusion. “We had talked about the All-American at a couple different points, but I think it was after you mentioned it to me, actually, because I had no idea. But anyways, I inquired about it. I had interest. I love The Fairgrounds. Jake was pretty committed to doing it and wanted to do it. He had kind of got there first. That was totally fine,” the Hendrick star told Steven Taranto.

In 2014, past winners like Elliott brought Cup experience to the event, but his step-back this season allowed Sutton, who was also mentored by Kevin Harvick, to claim the limelight unchallenged. This win was not only a bucket list for Sutton, but it will also fuel his Truck Series growth and Snowball Derby bid, signaling a racer ready for bigger stages.

While Sutton celebrated under Nashville lights, another young gun navigated the same asphalt for the first time.

Keelan Harvick’s take on Nashville’s pro late model debut

At 13, Keelan Harvick, Kevin Harvick’s son, dove into the nasty turns of Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway for the Pro Late Model All-American 100. This was his latest step on his racing journey. Keelan has been driving in Limited and Super Late Model races since 2024, often with Rackley W.A.R.

The half-mile flat track, known for being hard on tires but with extra banking, tested his instincts early. He spun on a restart, which dropped him to an eighth-place finish, but the experience of running here sharpened his edge for upcoming dad-son races at Kern County.

Harvick owned the learning curve, praising his team’s prep amid the chaos. “You know, Rackley WAR brought me a pretty fast car. Just had to tweak several things on my driving part. I kind of got lifted up on that restart. That kind of put me back. I really had nowhere to go through the wreck. Just unfortunate,” he told Steven Taranto, his tone mixing frustration with resolve.

That pile-up, which is common on restarts here, cost him laps but highlighted the track’s unforgiving nature. Keelan’s top ten finish, despite those wrecks, built on his 2025 junior stock car wins, showing confidence beyond his years in a field of vets.

The debut left Harvick hooked on new venues, eyeing growth from every spin. “Just like Florence, it’s abrasive, but it has more banking than Florence. It’s really cool to just come out and try these new tracks,” he added, grinning at the challenge. With Kevin’s lessons in the mix, Keelan’s wreck-to-resilience story points to bolder 2026 pushes, blending family legacy with fresh Fairgrounds fire.