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Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s efforts in the grassroots NASCAR scene have started to pay dividends as drivers and teams can be seen racing for all they are worth in the CARS Tour Asphalt Late Model Series.
Perhaps with the rising level of competition and the approaching championship battle between the drivers, things got a little too exciting as the series raced at Tri-County Speedway last weekend.
Saturday evening saw drivers Caden Kapvil and Katie Hettinger get into a disagreement on the track during the event.
The two drivers seemed to have a disagreement as they fought for the lead at the venue, with Hettinger getting the short end of the stick and spinning out, collecting several other cars.
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The young 16-year-old went on to take matters into her own hands and retaliated on the ensuing restart, hooking Kapvil in the right-rear quarter panel.
Despite not having the cleanest of races, Carson Kapvil went on to finish in P10 in what was a chaos-filled race.
CARS Tour as the sanctioning series decided to penalize drivers for their behaviors post-race as Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s racing series handed out penalties to Katie Hettinger for intentional wrecking of a competitor.
In a separate incident involving drivers Ashton Higgins and Gavan Boschele, both drivers were also on the receiving end of reprimands for unauthorized confrontation and rough driving, respectively.
Higgins has been put on probation for the rest of the season with a $500 fine, whereas Boschele received only probation for the rest of the year.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. reacts to CARS Tour controversy
Co-owner of the series and a die-hard racer at heart, former Cup Series driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. reacted to tempers flaring at Tri-County Speedway during short-track racing in the CARS Tour event.
Speaking with an old crew chief of his from his Cup Series days, Dale Earnhardt Jr. elaborated on the incident on his popular podcast, The Dale Jr. Download, and said:
"So I’ll be honest with you man, straight up the pro race was embarrassing. I want things to be sensational, I want there to be some controversy. I am okay with drivers going over that line and maybe being a bit aggressive. But a lot of what I saw was egregious and just too much."
The CARS Tour Asphalt Late Model Series will crown its 2023 season champion at Carson Speedway in North Carolina in the upcoming championship finale on November 4, 2023.
