Ace Speedway Recap: Heim Charges to 5th, Loftin Hit Early and Finishes 22nd

Bassett, VA - May 11th, 2026

The CARS Tour event at Ace Speedway delivered two very different nights for the team. One car patiently moved forward and left with a top five finish. The other had speed early, but its race changed almost before it had a chance to begin.

Corey Heim drove the 3M #12 Toyota Camry from an eighth place starting spot to a p5 finish, turning a solid qualifying effort into a strong result. Carson Loftin, in the NAPA Network #22, qualified 10th and looked to have a car with capable balance before contact at the start sent his night in the wrong direction. He finished 28th after a parts failure that stemmed from the early incident.

Heim Turns Eighth into a Top Five at Ace Speedway

Heim’s night was the clean, steady kind of run that matters in a CARS Tour field. Starting eighth meant the 3M #12 Toyota Camry had work to do, but it also put Corey Heim in position to stay close to the front group without having to force the issue too early.

From there, the goal was clear: manage the car, stay out of trouble, and take advantage when the race came back toward him. That approach paid off with a fifth-place finish.

On a tight short track like Ace Speedway, moving from eighth to fifth is not just about raw pace. It takes patience in traffic, clean restarts, and a car that can keep its balance over a run. Heim’s result showed that the #12 had enough speed to gain ground and hold it when the laps counted down.

The finish also gave the team a strong return on a night when track position was going to matter. Qualifying inside the top 10 helped set the tone, but the fifth-place result showed execution across the full race distance.

Loftin’s Race Changed in the Opening Laps

Loftin qualified 10th in the NAPA Network #22, starting close enough to the front to have a real opportunity. Based on his early feel in the car, the balance seemed promising. The problem was that he never got much of a chance to show it.

The incident came at the beginning of the race as the field stacked up entering turn 1. Loftin was caught in the chain reaction and spun after contact to his left rear.

“I felt like our balance I guess for the two laps I had was solid. They stacked up into [turn] 1 and the guy on my inside got hit and overcorrected and drove into my left rear which spun us out,” said Carson about the incident.

That kind of contact is especially costly when an impact like that hits right on the wheel. Even if the car keeps rolling, damage can show up later in ways that are difficult to manage. For Loftin, the early hit led to a parts failure, ending any realistic chance of recovering the finish the NAPA Network #22 appeared capable of chasing.

He was credited with a 28th-place finish.

The Tell of Two Very Different Stories

For Heim, it was a productive run. He gained three spots from his starting position and left with a top five result against a competitive CARS Tour field.

For Loftin, the finish was more about circumstances than pace. Qualifying 10th put him in the mix, and his comments after the race pointed to a car that felt stable before the incident. The early contact changed the balance of the night, and the later parts failure sealed the result.

Looking Ahead to Langley Speedway

The next race for Nelson Motorsports is scheduled for May 30th, 2026, at Langley Speedway. This will be an opportunity to bounce back from the unfortunate weekend at Ace. Joining Carson will be Connor Hall with support of Nelson motorsports in his personal race car.