Redemption: Trevor Huddleston finally prevails at Kevin Harvick’s Kern Raceway

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. — History nearly repeated itself in unfortunate fashion for Trevor Huddleston during Saturday’s ARCA Menards Series West season-opening West Coast Stock Car Motorsports Hall of Fame 150 at Kevin Harvick’s Kern Raceway.

The first of two West Series events at Kern last year saw a potential victory fade away from Huddleston after Kole Raz edged him in a photo finish. This year, the same scenario was playing out for Huddleston, who was tasked with fending off a hard-charging Kyle Keller for the victory after dominating the entire race.

RELATED: Complete race results from Kern

Not ready to relinquish the lead, Huddleston did everything possible to keep Keller in his rearview mirror as the laps dwindled. As Keller pulled alongside at the white flag, Huddleston successfully used the slower car of David Smith as a pick to finally notch a victory at Kern on his resume.

Huddleston was elated to celebrate in Victory Lane with his dad and Kern County track operator Tim Huddleston being the one to interview him. He also commended Keller for engaging in a fair-but-clean battle until the checkered flag.

“That’s how you race a race,” Trevor Huddleston said. “[Keller] ran it perfect and didn’t use me up at all. He was going for that win, but he got unlucky with [Smith] there. I saw that out my windshield, and I had to do what I had to do.”

Any triumph Huddleston obtains in the West Series is a moment worth celebrating. Winning at one of his family’s tracks carries additional prestige.

When the Huddlestons operated Irwindale Speedway, Trevor earned his maiden West Series triumph there in 2018, which came by fending off Tanner Gray in a thrilling finish. He earned one more triumph at Irwindale in 2023 before the facility ceased operations at the end of last year.

Prevailing at Kern County was something Trevor Huddleston had long desired to accomplish. The idea of celebrating with his family only made the bitter defeat to Raz from last year sting even more, but it also served as a point of motivation for each subsequent visit to Kern.

No opposition stood in Huddleston’s way for most of Saturday’s feature until Keller and 2021 NASCAR Xfinity Series champion Daniel Hemric gradually chipped away at his lead in the closing stages. A flat tire for Hemric eliminated him from him contention, leaving Keller as the only obstacle inhibiting Huddleston’s path to victory.

Keller entered Saturday’s race having not yet won in the West Series. While he wished the lapped car of Smith had not been in the bottom line on the white flag, Keller had no intention of being over-aggressive with Huddleston in pursuit of his first checkered flag.

“It was wreck Trevor or race him clean,” Keller said. “We had a good photo finish there, then I got behind the lapped car and thought I had to take a right. I tried to put it in the middle, but it was either stuff him in the fence or dog it until the end.

“I’m never going to race Trevor dirty, and we’re going to race good all year against each other.”

Trevor Huddleston & Kyle Keller
Kyle Keller battled Trevor Huddleston vigorously until the checkered flag but had to settle for second. (Photo: David Dennis/ARCA Racing)

Keller knew it would be inadvisable to make an enemy in the first race of the 2025 West Series season. With Jan Qualkenbush’s No. 71 Ford showcasing plenty of speed in their first outing together, Keller departed Kern Raceway confident he can carry the consistency through the year.

Huddleston’s victory, his sixth in the West Series, established himself as the early favorite for the 2025 title over Keller and the rest of the full-time competitors. The past two seasons have seen Huddleston inch closer to that career milestone with consecutive third-place finishes in the West Series point standings.

The only thing on Huddleston’s mind in Victory Lane on Saturday was enjoying the moment with his father and his High Point Racing team. He was unsure if he would be denied at Kern once again, but he credited his crew for keeping him composed as Keller closed in on the top spot.

“I’m pretty sure my crew chief Jeff Schrader was a little mad at me,” Huddleston said. “He thought I was pushing it a little too hard, but he kept me calm. It was all [my team]. They made it happen today.”

Parlaying the Kern triumph into a West Series championship will require minimal mistakes from Huddleston over the remaining 11 races, something he knows is possible with the winning culture already established within his family-owned team.

Tanner Reif placed third Saturday in his first race with Central Coast Racing. Keller’s teammate Robbie Kennealy came home fourth, with Eric Johnson Jr. completing the top five.

The ARCA Menards Series West does not hit the track again until March 7 at Phoenix Raceway, which serves as a combination event with the national ARCA Menards Series. FS1 has live coverage of the event starting at 8 p.m. ET.