The Closer, Part II becomes the Youngest Snowflake 125 Winner in History
For a brief moment, Keelan Harvick thought he let a victory slip away in his debut Snowflake 125 appearance at Five Flags Speedway early Sunday morning.
A bad restart with 45 laps remaining stymied a valiant charge the young Harvick had made from the 15th starting position, which forced him to play catch up against Tristan McKee and reigning Snowball Derby winner Kaden Honeycutt. Possessing the same poise as his father Kevin, Harvick did not waste the limited time at his disposal.
“I thought I was in third gear, but I was in second gear,” Harvick said. “I just made a mistake, but I knew I had to fight back. [It would have been] a pretty embarrassing way to lose the Snowflake [125] after I had just got the lead.
However, not even 20 laps passed before Harvick found himself on McKee’s rear bumper to re-take the top spot. Harvick easily dispatched McKee and held him off in the closing laps to become the youngest Snowflake 125 winner at 13, surpassing the record previously established by a 14-year-old Hunter Robbins in 2005.
π―ππππππ πͺπππππ π»ππ πΊππππππππ - At 13 years old @KeelanHarvick became the youngest winner of the #Snowflake125 at the end of a very late night at @5FlagsSpeedway.
— FloRacing (@FloRacing) December 7, 2025
He caught up with our @RobBlount to explain how scored the biggest win of his life π pic.twitter.com/qcequVXJsP
Battling his way to a Snowflake 125 victory was a mentally taxing experience for Harvick, who climbed out of his No. 62 Hunt Brothers Pizza Ford shortly before 4 a.m. CT. Yet he still made time to appreciate and reflect upon the journey that led him to prevailing on the Pro Late Model discipline’s premier stage.
“It’s just really cool,” he said. “[I’m thankful for] everything that everybody has sacrificed for me to get to this point. My dad took me to Italy when I was 10 to get the experience with all the other kids who are so much better. That helped me understand the value of racing and helped me get to this point.”
“We typically try to find the hardest races because you learn the most,” Kevin said. “This race is no different. Not going to find the best competition you can is detrimental to the kids. [Keelan] has done a great job, but Rackley [W.A.R.] has done a great job of preparing the cars all year and getting him used to driving the [Pro Late Models].”
Getting the sneaking suspicion this golf thing is going to be put on the back burner… ππ₯° #itried pic.twitter.com/kOMnvAnyPH
— DeLana Harvick (@DeLanaHarvick) December 7, 2025




