One day, Kaden Honeycutt will get over the proverbial hump preventing him from reaching the hallowed ground that is victory lane in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.
Make no mistake about it: It’s incredibly difficult to win a race in NASCAR’s third-tier series, and harder still to win multiple races and be in contention for a championship.
Honeycutt would know. He’s coming off of a race on March 20 at Darlington Raceway, arguably the most difficult track to drive on the NASCAR circuit, in which he led the most laps (59) and won stage two.
As it was many times with Corey Heim in the three seasons previous, Honeycutt’s No. 11 TRICON Garage Toyota Tundra was the pick of the litter last Friday evening.
But with 20 laps to go, Honeycutt saw his dreams of victory dashed when he was run up the track in turns 1 and 2 by Carson Hocevar and hit the wall. The damage to his truck wasn’t severe, but it hindered Honeycutt enough to where he didn’t challenge for the win for the rest of the race. He finished fourth — a great result that shot him from sixth to second in the series standings, but far from what it could’ve been.
Honeycutt was understandably frustrated after the contact with Hocevar. Honeycutt’s teammate, Heim, went on to pass Ross Chastain on the final lap after a blinding restart to win the race.
Tracking the Trucks: Corey Heim Surprises With Darlington Win
“What the hell do they care about, right?” Honeycutt said post-race, referencing his frustration with Hocevar and other Cup Series drivers. “I understand we’re racing for a win, but they knew I was the best truck so they did what they had to do to take me out of it, so it just sucks.”
Honeycutt didn’t get the win he wanted at Darlington, but he put together one of the best drives of his NASCAR career and battled tooth and nail with both Hocevar and Chastain for the lead before the eventual contact with the latter spelled the end for his quest for victory.
Honeycutt’s Darlington performance made it clear that he will soon be in victory lane and confirmed what everyone believed to be true going into the 2026 season: He’s a bona fide title threat and a talented prospect who’s now in the Toyota pipeline.
Honeycutt was impressive in his part-time action in 2022, 2023 and 2024, but 2025 proved to be his breakout season. After suddenly being released by Niece Motorsports for the heinous crime of signing with a Toyota team for 2026, he filled in for an injured Stewart Friesen and took the No. 52 Halmar-Friesen Racing Toyota to the Championship 4.
He’s already collected three top 10s in four races so far this season and is second in the standings, making it more difficult to see a world where at least one victory, if not multiple, come his way soon.
It may start pouring when the sky eventually opens up and it begins to rain confetti on the 22-year-old driver.
Let me repeat what I said in fragments earlier: Honeycutt raced toe-to-toe with a pair of Cup Series drivers for the win at NASCAR’s toughest racetrack, led the most laps, won a stage and likely would’ve been in contention for a win or at least a podium effort had Hocevar run just a little lower on a restart with 20 laps to go.
That kind of performance is one not many Truck Series regulars even pull off on a weekly basis. Assuming TRICON doesn’t decide to axe Honeycutt mid-season for glancing at a Chevrolet Silverado, it’s an indicator of the great things both parties can expect moving forward.
Is Honeycutt as talented as the former resident of his seat? Not at the moment, but then again, who is? Heim has earned his spot on the mantle as a top prospect in NASCAR, and I’d argue he’s the best driver in the sport currently without a full-time Cup Series ride.
Honeycutt has the best resources and people around him that he’s had so far in his young career, and he’s putting them to good use. The spotlight is not yet too bright for the Willow Park, Texas, native, and Darlington seems to be an indicator that it won’t be.
Keep in mind that a Honeycutt win is not a guarantee. He’s racing in an incredibly competitive era of the Truck Series where such talents as Chandler Smith, Layne Riggs, Ty Majeski, Ben Rhodes, Daniel Hemric, Jake Garcia, Justin Haley, Brenden Queen, Christian Eckes and Gio Ruggiero, among others, all call the Truck Series their full-time home. Heim, as well as Cup drivers who are now permitted to run two extra races (seven up from five in 2025) are also joining the regular Truckers on occasion.
So where does that first victory of 2026 and Honeycutt’s NCTS career come?
Rockingham Speedway is the next race on the Truck Series calendar on April 3, but it’s Charlotte Motor Speedway where Honeycutt’s eyes should light up. In two starts at the track, he has finishes of seventh and third, respectively, and he led 10 laps a season ago.
The No. 11 won the 2025 Truck Series race at the Charlotte oval and dominated it in 2024 before Heim was ultimately DQ’ed. Heim also led 49 laps in the 2023 running before finishing second.
So long as he doesn’t get into the fence on a late restart, it’s safe to say Honeycutt will probably be in contention for a win at Charlotte. He may finally get one at what is essentially the home track for the entire NASCAR industry.
But even if he doesn’t win at Charlotte, Rockingham or Bristol, you can bet that he’ll be up front in all three of those races and that a win is in the near future for a driver who has wasted little time making sure the Truck Series knows his name.
