Less than a year after earning NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series Rookie of the Year honors in the West region, Andrew Chapman is set to take a major step forward in his burgeoning racing career.
A development driver for High Point Racing since 2023, he’ll get his first chance to drive one of the team’s ARCA Menards Series West cars on Saturday. Andrew will pilot a second Ford for High Point Racing at Kevin Harvick’s Kern Raceway, a track that is is operated by High Point Racing owners Tim and Lisa Huddleston.
Andrew is eager to showcase his talent against the West Series regulars on what is essentially High Point Racing’s home turf. He expects a learning curve with the heavier West Series chassis, but Andrew is remaining optimistic about putting together a solid debut outing.
“This is what I’ve been working towards for the past three to four years,” Andrew said. “I’m expecting a [more] power and the car to be a lot heavier [compared to Late Models]. You have to slow everything down, slower hands, slower on the gas and you’ll have to take care of the tires more.
“It’s amazing to see all this come together.”
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Andrew’s journey towards his West Series debut started when he was 12 years old when he began competing in go-kart events around the United States.
With every race he took part in, Andrew’s love for motorsports blossomed, which eventually convinced him to pursue a career in racing. He approached his father Bruce, a former road racer, about what options were available for him to achieve his dream, with the two eventually deciding on finding a route into NASCAR.
There are numerous aspects about oval racing Bruce is still trying to comprehend, but he is grateful to see Andrew earn an opportunity to compete on a big platform like the West Series. Although he can only pass down so much knowledge to Andrew due to the difference between disciplines, Bruce is doing everything possible to ensure his son is successful.
“One of the things we’ve worked on a lot is being calm and relaxed in the car,” Bruce said. “As soon as you feel like you need to win right now, then you start to make mistakes. He’s gotten much better at hanging back, saving his tires and strategically positioning himself. I’ve tried to help him with that a little bit.”
The track where Andrew learned how to perfect his race craft was the now-defunct Irwindale Speedway. Starting out in Irwindale’s Spec Late Model class in 2023, Andrew advanced into the Pro Late Model division the following year and was among the drivers who participated in the facility’s final event on Dec. 21.
Irwindale gave Andrew a chance to familiarize himself with seasoned West Series competitors like Trevor Huddleston, who will be his teammate on Saturday. The track’s unique design also taught Andrew how to set up passes and utilize every inch of the racing surface.
“Irwindale [was] a special track driving-wise,” Andrew said. “You go three, sometimes four-wide, so it’s not like any other track. It teaches you how to get around people and how to hold your position, because it was super easy to pass there.”
The closure of Irwindale required Andrew to branch out if he wanted to stay fresh behind the wheel. Along with competing in Legend cars at the Bullring at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Andrew has also acclimated himself to Kern by participating in the track’s Limited Pro Late Model, Spec Late Model and Spec Racer classes.
Andrew is still adjusting to Kern’s narrower layout relative to what he was familiar with at Irwindale. Despite this, Andrew feels like he has a baseline understanding of how to approach Kern and plans to work with everyone at High Point Racing to devise an optimal game plan for his West Series debut there.
“Irwindale had three or four grooves you could run, Kern has one all the way down on the bottom,” Andrew said. “That’s a lot more challenging when it comes to setting up passes.”
Bruce said everything Andrew has learned from the past two years of oval track competition has prepared him for his maiden West Series outing. He still remembers how overly aggressive Andrew was when he first started, but added his son’s patience and maturity are now on full display with each race.
Bruce sees Saturday’s race at Kern as an opportunity for Andrew to learn more about himself and the ARCA platform. While he hopes for the best showing possible, Bruce wants Andrew to be methodical and finish the race with an intact car.
“It comes down to taking things one step at a time,” Bruce said. “There’s not a lot of practice, so he shouldn’t expect too much from the first race and he’ll probably actually do better if he goes in not expecting too much. This is a big step with a much heavier, more powerful car than he’s run, so he needs to be patient and let the race come to him.”
Andrew is determined to excel in what is currently his only planned West Series start with High Point Racing this season. With High Point Racing only a few months removed from their season-opening victory with Trevor at Kern, Andrew believes he has all the resources necessary to enjoy a strong weekend at the track.
Andrew does not expect to win in his debut, but he does want to carefully study the West Series car and learn how to improve it. Any knowledge Andrew can obtain from Kern is something he knows will help him ahead of his next West Series start, whenever that may be.
“I want to get a good finish, maybe a top five,” Andrew said. “I’m really looking forward to learning a new car. Every time you learn a new car, whether it’s a Late Model or a Legend, it builds you up as a driver. You can drive more things and you can just go faster.”
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