Gant scored big wins on local tracks

Harry Gant was best known as driver of the No. 33 Skoal Bandit in the NASCAR Cup Series for actor Burt Reynolds and stuntman Hal Needham. The recent NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee still holds record as oldest Cup Series winner at 52 years old. He had an even bigger impact locally in the Busch Series (now O'Reilly Series) and its forerunner with the Late Model Sportsman Series. In the days before he was known as "The Skoal Bandit," Gant was among a group of top North Carolina racers who often competed at local tracks in the Late Model Sportsman Series. Driving the orange No. 77 with yellow numbers, Gant won national Late Model races at Kingsport Speedway on May 27, 1977 and Lonesome Pine Raceway a week later on June 4. He beat the best short track racers in the business with Bob Pressley and Butch Lindley second and third at Kingsport. Jimmy Hensley and Kingsport's own Gene Glover were second and third at Lonesome Pine. He won again at Kingsport in July with the rest of the top six consisting of Glover, dirt track legend Buck Simmons making an appearance on asphalt, future seven-time Cup champion Dale Earnhardt and local legends Brad Teague and John A. Utsman. Gant won over 300 races in the Late Model Sportsman Series and was runner-up in the series three times. He won 18 times in the Cup Series in 424 starts and was runner-up to Terry Labonte for the 1984 championship. The following year, Gant won the prestigious International Race of Champions title which pitted drivers from NASCAR, Indy Car and Formula One in equally-prepared Camaros. He famously won four races in a row at his advanced age, earning the nickname "Mr. September." During that time, he also won three times in the Busch Series, driving the No. 7 Buick for Bristol car owner Ed Whitaker. It made his win streak seven straight races before his brakes faded late and he was passed five laps from the finish by Earnhardt in the Cup race at North Wilkesboro. Chris Carrier, most recently with the Henderson Motorsports Truck Series team, was the team's crew chief. Charlie McKay from Carter County was a longtime crewman for the Skoal Bandit team in the Cup Series. Gant won 21 times in the Busch Series overall, including a win in the 1992 Budweiser 250 at Bristol. During this time, the No. 7 team operated out of Whitaker's backyard garage and frequently outran cars prepared in Cup Series owner Jack Roush's shops. At the Cup level, Gant's best efforts at Bristol were three fourth-place finishes. He won three pole positions at the "Last Great Colosseum" including his BMS start at the 1994 Night Race where he finished ninth. Outside of racing, Gant was famous for staying in shape by working as a roofer. He also owned a steakhouse in Taylorsville for years, which is now the site of an Asian restaurant. His son-in-law Larry Pollard raced in the Busch Series from 1985-90. Gant's grandson, Chase Pollard, still races, including a Late Model race at Newport Speedway in November. We will look at fellow 2026 Hall of Famer Kurt Busch, a six-time Cup Series winner at BMS, at a later date. Ray Hendrick, also a 2026 inductee, wasn't a frequent visitor to our local tracks. He won over 700 races in the Modified and Late Model Sportsman ranks, racing mainly up and down the East Coast. ETSU HALL OF FAMER Deb Williams, a veteran reporter and trailblazer in the NASCAR media, was honored with the Squier-Hall Award. The ETSU graduate is the 14th winner of the award. One of the first women to regularly cover the sport, she worked for United Press International, USA Today and was editor of NASCAR Winston Cup Scene for 18 years. The award which is voted on by a panel of NASCAR Hall of Fame executives, active and retired media members, is named for legendary broadcasters Ken Squier and Barney Hall. YOUNG TALENT East Tennessee and Southwest Virginia has become a hotbed of talent for the Junior Dragster ranks. Hunter Sanders won the Junior Dragster title at Cherokee Race Park this past season and competed in the WDRA World Finals in Alabama. Other East Tennessee racers have found success at the national level including Aubrey Loy, the 2022 IHRA World Champion representing Knoxville Dragway. Kadin Harrill won the 2019 IHRA Junior Dragster World Title. Elk Creek Dragway in Virginia has produced 2025 IHRA World Champion Ryan Bell and 2024 runner-up Will Willard. Bristol Dragway featured Junior Street champion Troy Barton (Jr. Street) and Junior Dragster champs Nolan Griffith (Division 1), Landon Bailey (Division 2) and Brenden Nuttall (Division 3) in 2025. Those are only some of the terrific young racers making a big mark in the sport.