Steven Wilson returns to eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series victory lane at Kansas for fourth win of 2025

Steven Wilson, as well as the rest of the field, has watched Tucker Minter score three wins in the last four races, swaying all the momentum in the #97 William Byron eSports team’s favor entering the final race of the second segment at Kansas Speedway. On Tuesday night, the 2023 eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series champion responded, overcoming Minter in eNASCAR Overtime for his fourth victory of the 2025 season, claiming the Segment #2 title, earning an additional five points towards this year’s playoffs.

Returning to the schedule for the first time since 2022, Kansas did not disappoint. Three-wide, even four-wide racing set the tone for the night, with drivers like Spire Motorsports’ Wilson able to overcome track position deficits to be at the front late in the going. As the race wound down, it was Wilson and Minter throwing sliders on one another, each one getting more and more dicey. A caution just before the white flag set up for a final trip down pit road and at least one restart in eNASCAR Overtime.

With JR Motorsports’ Briar LaPradd opting to stay out, the race off pit road that Minter won became a detriment, as that lined Wilson up right behind the leader on the restart. Before Turn 1, Wilson managed to follow LaPradd past Minter. In Turn 1, LaPradd’s lack of fresher tires took him out of the conversation once more as Wilson held the advantage over Minter with a lap-and-a-half to go. Minter tried everything he had left, but Wilson held on to get back to eNASCAR Victory Lane for the first time since Richmond, five races ago.

THE 2023 CHAMP IS BACK ON TOP!@swilson3_ makes his return to eNASCAR Victory Lane in the series’ return to Kansas Speedway in eNASCAR Overtime, holding off Tucker Minter for the win, his FOURTH of the season!

Post Race -> https://t.co/tOOewu4MBi@ENASCARGG | @CocaColaRacing pic.twitter.com/30r4wuX1fh

— iRacing (@iRacing) June 4, 2025

“That was really fun,” Wilson said post-race. “All of those lines were working, and I was just driving really hard there, that whole second run, pretty much. After I got to Tucker’s outside, we were just brawling. That was a lot of fun. A clean battle, as well, which is always good. This is a racetrack that suited me. I recommended that we add it to the schedule last year, when we were talking about it. I’m glad they added it. I love racing here. I’ve always loved racing here. It’s just a racetrack that I think provides great racing, and I think we saw middle, bottom, and top all feasible tonight, which is really awesome.”

ERA eSports’ Bobby Zalenski entered the evening with the Segment 2 points lead, but after an early mishap, wasn’t able to get back into the conversation. This allowed for Wilson and Minter to go for it heads up, both tied for second entering. With Wilson taking the victory over Minter, Wilson also wins the Segment by five points over Minter, collecting another five Playoff Points, bringing his total to 25 with still five more opportunities to build upon that. Minter, with his three wins, has 15 additional points to aid him in the Playoffs.

Kansas marks Wilson’s 13th career victory in 81 career starts, moving him up to a tie for sixth all-time with the 2021 series champion, Keegan Leahy. Wilson led only 18 laps in the show, the most laps led belonging to polesitter Parker White (Atlassian Williams) at 48. The race saw four caution for 12 laps, two of those cautions resulting in the single-file restart clause to be enacted. While Wilson gained 21 spots to claim the win, the biggest mover on the day was Kollin Keister (Jim Beaver eSports), who started 38th and finished 12th.

THE EVENT

The start to the 2025 Kansas event was slightly abysmal as chaos reigned early in the going, almost wiping out two of the three main players for the Segment 2 title right away. As the field took the green flag behind Parker White, the car behind him in line, starting third, was BS+COMPETITION’s Jordy Lopez, and he did not go. This caused a stack that affected the next seven cars in line behind.

RFK Racing’s Collin Bowden, Channel 199 Sim Racing’s Zack Novak and Dylan Duval, and Apex Racing Team’s Cody Byus all potentially received nose damage from the stack. Bobby Zalenski was slightly off center from the line, so when he got into the back of Byus, and stacked back into Letarte Esports’ Connor Yeroschak, the momentum forced the #22 Chevrolet into the ballfield, sending the Segment 2 leader to last from the get go.

This opening lap stack would prove to be costly as the cars with the dented noses were unable to get the speed and grip they needed to succeed. This came to a head a lap later, out of Turn 4, as Duval lost the nose in a three-wide situation underneath Bowden and Vegas Inferno’s Michael Guest. The check was large enough to cause eRacr’s Logan Clampitt to come together with Duval, sending the most recent eNASCAR College iRacing Series champion up the banking and into Steven Wilson. Somehow, Wilson escaped with no damage, but the pileup with Clampitt, Kevin Harvick Inc.’s Matt Bussa, and Kollin Keister brought the yellow out immediately, setting up for the night’s first single-file restart.

White continued the lead following the resumption, but Wilson was not about to throw away his extra life. By the 33rd lap, Wilson made his way up from the 22nd starting spot to the top-five, just getting around Casey Kirwan (Kansas City Pioneers) for the spot. Also returning to the front of the field after starting fourth was none other than Tucker Minter. As green flag pit stops loomed, the battle up front became a six-car race. In the lead was White, and behind him were Wilson, Kirwan, Minter, Lopez, and Guest.

The shuffling began on Lap 47, as Wilson shipped it deep into Turn 1, sliding up in front of White for the top spot off the corner. White countered with a crossover and his own send into Turn 3, but his exit wasn’t nearly as good as he hoped. This allowed Minter to nearly take White and Wilson three-wide as they crossed the line to start Lap 48. Minter pushed Wilson back ahead, but entering Turn 1, they did go three-wide, with Minter taking control.

This likely could have continued up until green flag stops, but a caution as the field entered Turn 3 neutralized any potential differing strategies. The entire field came down pit road for four fresh tires and enough virtual fuel to make it to the end, setting up for a chess match to the checkers.

Another caution on the restart meant another single-file restart with 45 laps to go. This time, however, the field got split up as Quami Scott (Letarte Esports) suffered connection issues as the field was about to take the green flag. The top-17 managed to get a huge gap over the rest of the field, ultimately ensuring that if it came down to Wilson versus Minter for the win, that would also be for the Segment as Zalenski was trapped in the second pack.

Kirwan took control at the start of the run, but Minter fought back for the top spot. Wilson and White also came back into the conversation, with ERA eSports’ Michael Cosey Jr also inserting himself into the battles up front. As the laps wound down, it was Wilson and Minter side-by-side for the lead, but one last caution as the field came to three-to-go set up for one more trip down pit road as well as one more restart to settle the score.

Initially, it seemed that Wilson had won the race off of pit road, but with a slanted timing line, Minter being more left in the lane allowed for him to take a potential advantage. That advantage was short lived, as Briar LaPradd opted to stay out and lead the field back to green. Minter couldn’t time the restart right, and this allowed Wilson to follow LaPradd through and past Minter before they even got to Turn 1. Minter fought back, the two trading jabs one last time, but Wilson stayed on top to claim the win.

eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series results from Race #7 at Charlotte were as follows:

eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series Playoff Standings after Race #9 at Kansas are as follows:

1. #77 Steven Wilson | Spire Motorsports, 4 WINS
2. #97 Tucker Minter | William Byron eSports, 3 WINS
3. #22 Bobby Zalenski | ERA eSports, 1 WIN
4. #15 Kollin Keister | Jim Beaver eSports, 1 WIN
5. #2 Zack Novak | Channel 199 Sim Racing, +68
6. #95 Parker White | Atlassian Williams, +64
7. #24 Casey Kirwan | Kansas City Pioneers, +35
8. #11 Vicente Salas | Kanaan Esports, +14
9. #4 Donovan Strauss | Atlassian Williams, +12
10. #1 Malik Ray | Vegas Inferno, +8
    ———————————————————-
11. #34 Michael Cosey Jr | ERA eSports, -8
12. #7 Femi Olatunbosun | Spire Motorsports, -11
13. #47 Dylan Ault | HYAK Motorsports, -13
14. #199 Dylan Duval | Channel 199 Sim Racing, -15
15. #21 Michael Guest | Vegas Inferno, -21

eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series SEGMENT 2 Final Standings after Race #4 of 4 at Kansas are as follows:

1. #77 Steven Wilson | Spire Motorsports, 131 points (+5 Playoff Points)
2. #97 Tucker Minter | William Byron eSports, -5
3. #22 Bobby Zalenski | ERA eSports, -14
4. #24 Casey Kirwan | Kansas City Pioneers, -16
5. #95 Parker White | Atlassian Williams, -22
6. #4 Donovan Strauss | Atlassian Williams, -28
7. #12 Ryan Luza | fgrAccel, -38
8. #14 Seth DeMerchant | fgrAccel, -39
9. #34 Michael Cosey Jr | ERA eSports, -41
10. #21 Michael Guest | Vegas Inferno, -47
    * Zack Novak won Segment 1 and also has 5 Playoff Points

eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series Team Standings after Race #9 at Kansas are as follows:

1. Spire Motorsports (#7/#77), 465 points
2. Atlassian Williams (#4/#95), -19
3. Channel 199 Sim Racing (#2/#199), -34
4. William Byron eSports (#25, #97), -54
5. ERA eSports (#22, #34) -65

eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series Rookie Standings after Race #9 at Kansas are as follows:

1. #3 Blaze Crawford | Team Dillon Esports, 167 points
2. #40 Connor Yeroschak | LETARTE eSports, -13
3. #50 Quentin Warman | HYAK Motorsports, -33
4. #96 Christopher M. Hill | Apex Racing Team, -43
5. #8 Blake McCandless | JR Motorsports, -53
6. #19 Eddie Kerner | Six Karma, -80
7. #66 Alexander L Russell | Kanaan Esports, -83
8. #5 Nate Stewart | Jim Beaver eSports, -85

With Wilson grabbing a fourth win, Minter having three, and only Zalenski and Keister having wins otherwise, with only five more races to score a win in the 2025 Regular Season, that means at least one driver will enter the 2025 Playoffs based on points. Zack Novak leads the drivers without a win, but only by four points over the defending series champion, White. Casey Kirwan, Vicente Salas (Kanaan Esports), Donovan Strauss (Atlassian Williams), and Malik Ray (Vegas Inferno) currently round out the Playoff grid as of the Kansas results.

As previously mentioned, Wilson took the Segment 2 title by five points over Minter, with Zalenski falling back to finish third after a dreadful Kansas return. Wilson has 25 additional points, while Minter maintains at 15. Zalenski, Keister, and Novak all have five points to work with as it stands, Novak earning his from claiming the opening Segment victory.

After a rough day for both Novak and his teammate, Dylan Duval, the Channel 199 Sim Racing outfit falls from first to third in the Team Championship, with Spire reclaiming the top spot following Wilson’s win and Femi Olatunbosun’s 14th place effort. Atlassian Williams Sim Racing also jumps Channel 199, moving to second after White scored a fourth and Strauss brought it home in 18th.

Eddie Kerner (Six Karma) was able to claim the Rookie of the Race with his best finish of the season in 11th. Blaze Crawford (Team Dillon Esports) finished 17th, one spot behind Connor Yeroschak in 16th. Crawford continues to lead the Rookie of the Year battle by 13 points over Yeroschak entering the off-week.

After three-straight races, the series takes a break on June 10th for the implementation of the 2025 iRacing Season 3 build update. Changes are expected for the NASCAR Gen 7 vehicles, and many of the NASCAR tracks on the service will also be receiving updates during this patch. The next round on the calendar takes the series back to Iowa Speedway on June 17th. Last season, Steven Wilson was able to defeat Graham Bowlin and Parker White for the hometown victory.

The 10th round on the calendar is scheduled for Tuesday, June 17th. Tune in at 7:30 p.m. ET for the Countdown to Green. Race coverage begins at 8 p.m. ET at eNASCAR.com/live and across iRacing social media channels.

For more information on the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series, visit eNASCAR.com or iRacing.com/eNASCAR.
For more information on iRacing and for special offers, visit iRacing.com.­­

You may also like...

Recommended

This Week in iRacing | June 17-June 23, 2025

Recommended

eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series | Power Rankings | Race 10 at Iowa Speedway

Recommended

iRacing Weekly Tune-in | eSports & Community Events | June 12th-18th

Recommended

iRacing 2025 Season 3 is HERE!