Mike Looney Suffers Another CARS Tour Disappointment

Another CARS Tour race, another disappointing outcome for Mike Looney.

Shortly after taking the lead from Connor Hall in Saturday’s AutosByNelson.com 225 at Franklin County Speedway following 95 hard-fought laps between the two, Looney was turned sideways by Hall in front of the field, ending his hopes for that elusive first CARS Late Model Stock Car Tour win.

Ultimately, the entire ordeal resulted in Carson Kvapil winning from fourth as the incident also collected Kaden Honeycutt.

“From my perspective, I got wrecked,” Looney said. “I followed [Hall] for 95 laps and was trying to run a clean race. We had the best car, and I was trying to play it smart so we could put on a great show for the fans. I guess he couldn’t wait that long.”

Looney gave his home crowd plenty to cheer for early by putting his No. 87 Harrison’s Workwear Chevrolet on the pole. Although he was quickly passed by Hall, Looney consistently matched his lap times all evening while simultaneously preparing to make a move that would give him the lead.

Instead of celebrating a win, Looney ended up failing to finish his fifth consecutive CARS Late Model Stock Car Tour event after choosing to park his car after the crash. Hall rebounded from the minor damage he sustained to come home in fourth.

Hall took responsibility for the circumstances that ultimately prevented him and Looney from winning the race.

“I fully intended on trying to move [Looney] up the race track a little bit,” Hall said. “He was [bumping] me going into Turn 1. I don’t think of him any differently for doing that because it’s just racing. It sucks because we’ve never had an issue with Mike before. That was 100 percent my fault.”

Looney was not impressed by the move Hall made on him during their battle for the win, adding that he is not going to forget the conclusion of Franklin County when the two meet on track once again later this year.

“We still can’t finish one of these races,” Looney said. “I guess I’m going to have to drive like the rest of these dummies do and knock the hell out of whoever’s in the way. That seems to work out for the rest of them, but I’m just really dejected. We can’t catch a break.”