Caden Kvapil will continue a family tradition with his ARCA Menards Series debut at Toledo Speedway

The ARCA Menards Series has played a small-but-vital role in the history of the Kvapil family.

Travis Kvapil, the 2003 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion, won in his ARCA Menards Series debut at Pocono Raceway in 2005. Almost two decades later, Travis’ oldest son Carson Kvapil started competing in the platform’s national division, earning top fives in all three of his starts to date.

Now Caden Kvapil, Carson’s younger brother, is set to continue the family tradition by making his first ARCA Menards Series start at Toledo Speedway on Saturday (7 p.m. ET on FS1), when he will drive the No. 24 Chevrolet for SPS Racing. It will only be the sixth combined appearance between all three Kvapils in ARCA’s national series.

Despite this, Caden understands how important this weekend’s race will be on his journey to one day reach NASCAR like Travis and Carson. Those two set a high standard for Caden to follow in their limited starts, but he feels he can at least match their results with a trouble-free outing at Toledo.

“It’s really special,” Caden said. “ARCA I feel like is a really good learning series for making your step to Trucks or the [NASCAR] O’Reilly [Auto Parts] Series. They’re a little similar to Late Model Stocks, but they’re a lot heavier and bigger. Getting laps under your belt in that series is really good.”

“[Travis and Carson] have both done it before, and they’ve had pretty good careers so far.”

Like his father and brother, Caden brings a plethora of short track experience to the ARCA Menards Series platform.

At 16, Caden earned a title in the CARS Pro Late Model Tour, a series in which he has seven total victories. Caden is continuing that success with JR Motorsports, the same team with which Carson won two titles and 12 races in the CARS Late Model Stock Car Tour, along with a ValleyStar Credit Union 300 victory at Martinsville Speedway in 2024.

Since last October, Caden has secured four Late Model Stock victories with JR Motorsports. That efficiency currently has him atop the CARS LMSC Tour standings after five events.

Caden studied Carson carefully during his formative years and constantly leaned on him for advice on how to excel in racing. Watching Carson visit Victory Lane so many times across Late Model Stocks and Super Late Models made Caden understand how important it was for him to acquire as much track time as he could.

By becoming a versatile driver in his own regard, Caden feels he is more prepared for his ARCA Menards Series debut this weekend than he would have been without that hands-on experience across short track disciplines.

“[It was] the same thing with my brother; he was like this, too,” Caden said. “He ran a lot of short track stuff, and once he got into the ARCA car for the first time, he was pretty good and right up to speed. Hopefully all of that helps going into a short track. If I went to a mile-a-half or a bigger track like that, I wouldn’t be too sure what to do.”

Another factor aiding Caden before Saturday’s Owens Corning 200 is his previous experience at Toledo. Caden took part in Toledo’s Glass City 200 as part of the ASA STARS National Tour last September, scoring a lead-lap finish of eighth after starting 18^th.

There were many qualities about Toledo that surprised Caden during his maiden visit to the complex. Placing inside the top 10 for the Glass City 200 was an achievement in its own regard, but he is hoping for an even better outcome Saturday evening now that he has notes about Toledo.

“[Toledo] is definitely really quick; that’s the first thing I thought when I went out there in a Super,” Caden said. “Obviously Super Late Models are really fast, but that track feels like you’re getting around there really quick. It kind of [has] two completely different corners in my opinion. We couldn’t really get our car tight enough for the corners [last year].

“It’s not an easy place, so going there this weekend with some laps already under my belt I think is going to be really beneficial.”

With all the differences between the ARCA Menards Series and Super Late Model chassis to account for, Caden knows he will need to adjust his strategy for the Owens Corning 200. If he can find a cadence in practice and lay down a solid qualifying time, Caden believes he can be among those contending for the win.

The team behind Caden’s debut, SPS Racing, has found success on the ARCA Menards Series platform since being established in 2023. Originally an ARCA Menards Series West team, SPS Racing won with Sam Mayer at Sonoma Raceway in 2024 and has since fielded cars for drivers like Tyler Reif, Connor Hall and the late Greg Biffle.

Caden would love to win in his ARCA Menards Series debut just like his father did more than 20 years ago, but such a milestone is not going to be easy. With Saturday’s field being the largest for the ARCA Menards Series at Toledo since 2016, Caden intends to balance and precision to ensure his No. 24 Chevrolet stays at the front.

“I want to go there and try to compete for the win,” Caden said. “We should be able to come out of there with a top five. The ultimate goal is getting the win, but if I have to settle for a top three even, that’s going to be a good day for me. I want to be out there and compete as well as I can. I’m just going to put all efforts into it this weekend and try to get another big win.”

In the limited time the family has spent on the ARCA Menards Series platform, the Kvapils have used it to showcase their talent behind the wheel. With how much success Travis and Carson have subsequently found in NASCAR, Caden is determined to start his time in the ARCA Menards Series on a similarly high note.

For all the experience he looks to obtain Saturday, there is something else motivating Caden to go for a win: bragging rights over Carson.

“I don’t think my brother has an ARCA win yet,” Caden said. “It’d be really awesome. ARCA is a good series and a good path to make the next step. If I go out there and hopefully get a win, that’d be really important for me in my career.

“Obviously my dad has one. Me and him could have one and Carson couldn’t, so we’d just be laughing at him.”

Performing well Saturday is a key step toward Caden maintaining that sibling rivalry with Carson into NASCAR’s top three series. Travis is a step ahead of his sons with his Truck Series title, but Caden and Carson’s success on short tracks have given them everything necessary to one day win NASCAR championships of their own.