CHARLOTTE, NC (February 2) – While New England and Canada’s best dig out of the snow to make their way South, Pro All Stars Series (PASS) Super Late Model racers from across the Southeast prepare to greet them for this weekend’s 4th Winter Meltdown at Dillon Motor Speedway. While Dillon has hosted PASS as part of the South Carolina Clash event since 2008, this year’s 200 lap Meltdown will be held there for the first time. The Winter Meltdown has been dominated by New Englanders with Brad Leighton taking the checkered flag at New Smyrna in 2010 and Maine’s Joey Doiron claiming the last two versions with wins at Auburndale and Greenville.
On Saturday afternoon, the Winter Meltdown and South Carolina Clash combine for a mega-event, which will feature over 300 laps of racing for the PASS Super Late Models, DMS Late Models, and Pro 4 Cylinders. The South Carolina Clash at the Winter Meltdown will be 200 green flag laps and will double as the first race of the PASS National Championship Series and PASS South Super Late Model season.
Ever since the first South Carolina Clash was held at nearby Florence Motor Speedway in 2006, the event has been one of the featured races annually on the PASS South schedule. In that race 11 years ago, the late Charlie Bradberry held off short track legends Mike Rowe and Freddie Query in a frantic battle to the checkered flag.
In 2008, the South Carolina Clash moved to the tough, egg-shaped Dillon Motor Speedway and has seen quite the list of winners. Ryan Blaney leads all drivers with two victories, while Justin Wakefield, Ben Rowe, Preston Peltier, Austin Theriault, Daniel Hemric, Tyler Church, and Brandon Setzer have all visited victory lane there in the past. Peltier looked to join Blaney as a two-time winner at Dillon, but was edged out by Theriault in 2013 for the closest finish in PASS South history.
This year’s South Carolina Clash at the Winter Meltdown gets under way Saturday at 2 PM as Tyler Church looks to repeat his emotional victory there from a two years ago. But, he will be joined by the strongest field of cars in Meltdown history including 4-time PASS National Champion, Ben Rowe, and fellow PASS South champions, Matt Craig and Tate Fogleman. Championship contenders Jared Irvan, Kodie Conner, and Jimmy Doyle will be joined by fellow North Carolina drivers Chad McCumbee, Bradley McCaskill, and Mike Speeney. Sarah Cornett-Ching and JP Josiasse will be making the long haul from Canada, along with New England drivers, Bryan Kruczek, Dave Farrington, Jr., Derek Griffth, and Joey Polewarczyk. Transplanted New Englander Kyle Desouza will be chasing the PASS South title and will be joined by local favorites Hayes Goodson and Gus Dean. USAC National Midget Champion, Tanner Thorson, will be making his first start in a stock car and will share company with Derby champ, Christian Eckes, and Late Model Stock title holder, Josh Berry.
The afternoon of racing will be filled out by the DMS Late Models racing for 75 laps with $1500 going to the winner and the Pro 4-Cylinders competing in a 40 lapper paying $600 to win.
From Dillon, the series returns to Southern National Motorsports Park on Saturday, March 4 and the beginning of a new tradition with the birth of the Dogwood 300. The PASS South Super Late Models will compete for 150 laps and will be joined by the NASCAR Late Model Stock cars in another 150 lapper at Kenly.
Just three weeks later, one of the most anticipated short track events of the Spring will go green on Saturday, March 25 as the Orange Blossom Special and PASS return to Orange County Speedway in Race 2 of the PASS National Championship Series. The trip to Orange County will be the first race on “The Road To The Oxford 250,” with the winner receiving a guaranteed starting spot for the $25,000 to win race in August. And if the return of the “Original” Orange Blossom was not already big enough, the Southern Modified Racing Series returns the excitement of Tour Mods to the high banks.
Action gets underway at Dillon Motor Speedway Speedway on Friday, February 3 with gates opening at 12:30 PM and rotating practice for the PASS Super Late Models, Late Models, and Pro 4s from 2 – 5 PM. On Saturday, February 4, gates will open at 8 AM, with rotating practice from 10 AM – Noon, qualifying at 12:30 PM, and feature events, led off by the PASS Super Late Models, set to go green at 2 PM.
Entry forms for the PASS Winter Meltdown at Dillon Motor Speedway, along with the 44th Annual Oxford 250, can be found at ProAllStarsSeries.com. The 2017 license forms for the PASS Super Late Models are also available at ProAllStarsSeries.com. Drivers purchasing licenses for the 2017 season will receive bonus points for each race they are pre-registered for and will also save money towards any events that they enter early.
