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Ebeling Sweeps in Attrition and Event-Filled Quantum Leap Kingsport Twin Races in Remembrance of Mike Potter

Kingsport, Tennessee (April 21, 2025) – The Super Cup Stock Car Series kicked off its 2025 campaign on Friday night with a return to Kingsport Speedway for the first time in nearly six years.  It turned out to be a rollercoaster of emotions for many with a familiar face remaining undefeated at the “Concrete Jungle” in the end.

The event’s festivities overall, sponsored by Quantum Leap Trampoline Sports Park in downtown Johnson City, honored and remembered past SCSCS racer Mike Potter, who passed away in October 2022.  The restored Chevrolet Lumina he once drove on the high-banks at Daytona International Speedway was on hand thanks to series official Mike Blevins, and past Late Model Stock Car team owner of Potter’s, Paul Thorne, drove the ride during opening ceremonies and pace laps.

The start of the day was good news for those new to the series as local favorite Lexi Arnold paced both official practice sessions and then captured the Pole Award in her debut, eclipsing the SCSCS track record previously set by Potter in 2018 by three-thousandths of a second.  The evening’s attrition woes began early on with 2024 rookie of the year, Yellow Spring, West Virginia’s Larry Frame, having the front brake locking up immediately before going out to qualify, ultimately ending his night before it really even started.

With the decision to start the field straight up from qualifying, it was a front row and further on back mixing past and present together.  2021 series champion Ben Ebeling started to the outside of the car in which he won twice at Kingsport in 2018 at that time driving for Potter Racing.  Also introduced prior to the weekend was an option for used Hoosier F45 scuffs to be utilized in addition to the existing American Racer EC-82 compound, all of which will continue to be evaluated as needed.

The intensity began almost right away, resulting in another SCSCS first-timer that had shown immense speed throughout the day, Mitch Gibson, around in turn two.  Following the initial conflict, the next 27 circuits went caution free with Ebeling accelerating into the lead.  Arnold kept up with the Hickory, North Carolina driver though and at times peeked the nose of her No. 05 Surplus Brokers LLC / Burns Management Group LLC Ford under the veteran racer’s machine.

Things changed suddenly for Arnold with 13 laps to go as her ride snapped around without much warning and then came to the pits.  When the race resumed, Ebeling had a new driver to contend with in the form of Gibson, who rallied his way back up to the runner-up spot.  Ebeling was able to hold the driver, who was in his first V8-powered Kingsport start, off in the closing stages for his 26th career SCSCS victory and the opportunity to talk about a dear friend.

“Jon (Kerley) and Mike Potter are the whole reason I’m in Super Cup, so to be able to come here and win the races that were dedicated to that man makes me very happy,” the driver of the No. 44 Good Frames, LLC Ford indicated.

Following Gibson to the line were defending series champion Brent Nelson in third and “ShoTime” Mike as the last car on the lead lap.

Arnold, despite having to pull off the track early, was still credited with fifth and shared thoughts about her first SCSCS appearance between races.

“The car drove amazing tonight,” the Johnson City, Tennessee driver commented.  “We had some issues with the engine overheating, so that’s why we had to pit it.  The first race we did great.  We kept up with (Ebeling), he’s a great driver, but I had no brakes so when I went into turn two, it spun, then the engine overheated, and that was it.”

For the second race, the lead lap finishers were inverted; however, “ShoTime” Mike elected to start the No. 2 Chevrolet at the rear of the field.  That put Nelson on the inside and Gibson on the outside in the starting order.  Once more, another night concluded before the green could fly when nearby Abingdon, Virginia’s Jeff Roark had issues with the No. 57 Micro-Armor Grease / Velocita-USA / Ashton Racing Chevrolet coming up to power.

The first corners proved to create near calamity right from the get-go when contact ensued and both front row starters were in the spin cycle at the exit of turn two.  Ebeling inherited the lead and, despite some challenges from Gibson’s No. 35 during the first half of the race, checked out the remainder of the way to sweep the night and remain undefeated in his pursuits at Kingsport.  Nevertheless, he knew the entire time that these were no easy victories.

“(Arnold), (Gibson), and then Brent (Nelson) is always good,” Ebeling remarked.  “Brent unfortunately got tangled up in that first lap incident, but a lot of good cars and a lot of good competition.”

Nelson recovered to finish second while a one-time past winner making his first start in the series since 2021, “ShoTime” Mike, rounded out the podium.

“I want to thank Eric Barber Enterprises for letting me drive this car,” “ShoTime” Mike mentioned.  “We are going to work on it and get this car set up to do some great things in the coming races.”

Lexi Arnold’s father, Scott, took the wheel of the No. 05 for the second race and brought it home in fourth.  Eric Barber made the five-hour tow from Parkersburg, West Virginia, finishing a best sixth on the night battling fuel pickup concerns.

It was Gibson that likely had the most up and down chain of events, showing leading potential, but ultimately having to park his ride with a fifth place finish in the final results.

“Got wrecked by (Nelson) again in turn two, just that time he hammers me in the door,” the Weyers Cave, Virginia resident explained shortly after being evaluated by Kingsport Speedway safety crews.  “Don’t know what’s up, overdriving his car or doesn’t realize it’s the first lap of the race.  After that I started getting exhaust fumes into the car and got to where I couldn’t breathe.  I got to coughing really bad, so it was like it isn’t worth getting killed out here of course.  It really sucks when you are out front twice and get wrecked by the same car.  I try to race clean.  I know me and (Ebeling), we got together a couple times, did not wreck him, but seems like the guy that was not leading was the one that wrecked me.  Just one of those nights, but I want to thank Moyer Brothers Company, LDW Technologies, Jeffrey Salyers Realty, 3000channels.com, and all those guys that came on the car.”

Nelson shared his view of the initial lap skirmish as well.

“I had a handful tonight,” the driver of the No. 80 Precision Auto Collision / JEBCO / QH Design / Nelson Motorsports Chevrolet admitted.  “It was obvious you could see it on the track.  The incident that occurred in the second race, there are two lanes, two grooves, on the racetrack.  That was the start of the race.  I could not go any lower.  If I would have went any lower I would have hit the (inside) wall.  I truly think (Gibson) came down across my nose.  It’s a racing incident.  Was I trying to take him out?  Absolutely not.  I don’t race like that and anybody that has raced with me for years knows that, but it was a racing incident and I truly think he was just trying to get low and I was there.  There was no other real estate I could go to.”

Friday night’s happenings surely will set up for some interesting stories to continue at Lonesome Pine Motorsports Park on Saturday, May 3rd, as competitors look to catch Ebeling in the season-long points race.  That includes Gibson, in which the 3/8-mile oval is his hometown track where he grew up.

“We will rebound at Coeburn and we’ve got a lot of work to do on the car,” Gibson concluded.  “We’ll get it back together, get it fixed, and we will go to Lonesome Pine and hopefully win us a couple races, but just glad everybody got out of here safe tonight.  That’s the big thing.”

Nelson won last time out at the Southwest Virginia facility in October 2024, but at Kingsport had a different ride in which he had been working on and experimented.

“The car is not bad, as far as any cosmetic damage, but I’ve got a lot of work to do on this car to make it competitive like the other car that I am used to driving,” Nelson recapped.  “Probably at Lonesome Pine at our next race, old faithful is coming back out because this one here is going to need a lot more testing, changes made that will get it to the caliber of what I’ve been used to driving.”

More information can be found on the Super Cup Stock Car Series official website supercupstockcarseries.com, on Facebook (search Super Cup Stock Car Series), Twitter (@SCSCSRacing), Instagram (SCSCS_Racing), and https://www.youtube.com/SCSCSRacing.

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