Carter Nilson, the 15-year-old phenom car racer from Rockford, closed out his 2025 season at the Madison (Wisconsin) International Speedway with a bang, finishing fifth in the All-Star Late Model Race last Friday, Aug. 22.
Nilson qualified fourth and powered through some long runs of the all-green-flag 30-lap feature, racing like a veteran. His best finish is still his third-place effort on July 18, while his best finish last year at the same track was ninth.
He wound up finishing in eighth place in the final Late Model standings at the Madison Speedway.
“The car was definitely stronger the longer we went,” Nilson said about the finale in an e-mail. “We just missed the setup a little with the sun on the track, but overall, it was a solid run. Finishing in the top five against this field is a good way to end our season here at Madison.”
Nilson is now talking about adding a couple of races at Dell Raceway Park (Wisconsin) in September. Those dates will be announced soon.
These days, he is racing Late Model cars against drivers twice his age, and at a new track, because when the quarter-mile Rockford Speedway track closed its doors following the 2023 season, Nilson picked up and moved his efforts to the half-mile oval at the Madison (Wisconsin) International Speedway.
This has been his second full season, and he shined brightly. He finished in the top 10 for the first time in his career, while Winnebago’s Jacob Gille placed fourth in the final Late Model standings at the Madison Speedway. Machesney Park’s Brody Beyer came in 15th.
Jay Taft is a Rockford Register Star sports reporter. Email him at jtaft@rrstar.com and sign up for the Rockford High School Sports Newsletter here at rrstar.com. Jay has covered a variety of sports, from the Chicago Bears and Blackhawks to local youth sports, since the turn of the century at the Register Star.
This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: Rockford racing phenom Carter Nilson finishes season strong at Madison Speedway
Reporting by Jay Taft, Rockford Register Star / Rockford Register Star
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