CHARLOTTE, NC (January 20) – Officials from the Pro All Stars Series (PASS) announced today a major adjustment to the 2017 racing schedule. The PASS Super Late Models will stage a 300 green flag lap event on Saturday, November 18th at the legendary Hickory Motor Speedway. The Mason-Dixon MegaMeltdown will be highlighted by live pit stops and will feature a nearly $70,000 total purse. The race will pay $15,000 to the winner and $1,000 to start, plus there will be an additional $25 per lap awarded to the race leader, which could push the winner’s total to $22,500. The event will now be the final race of the PASS National Championship Series, joining other national races at Dillon Motor Speedway, Orange County Speedway, the Easter Bunny 150 at Hickory, Thompson Speedway, Beech Ridge Motor Speedway, and the 44th Annual Oxford 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway.
The Mason-Dixon MegaMeltdown will be the Mid-Atlantic region’s highest paying Super Late Model race and richest since PASS staged a 300 lapper at North Wilkesboro Speedway in 2011. Additionally, the PASS event scheduled for September 23rd at Hickory will now be eliminated due to the recent announcement of Martinsville Speedway’s Late Model Stock race being scheduled for that weekend.
“For quite some time, we have thought there was a place for an Oxford 250-style event in the South, and that time is now,” said PASS President Tom Mayberry after a teleconference with potential sponsors today. “Hickory has a history that is second to none in short track racing and we believe the Mason-Dixon MegaMeltdown will build on that legacy for years to come. Hickory is similar in length to Oxford Plains and we believe this race has the potential to join short track racing’s crown jewels starting this year.”
From its early days in the 1950’s as a dirt track to today, Hickory Motor Speedway has seen some of stock car racing’s most legendary drivers including Junior Johnson, Ned and Dale Jarrett, Harry Gant, and three generations of Earnhardts. In 2006, PASS became the South’s original Super Late Model tour when the green flag dropped for the inaugural Easter Bunny 150. Since then, PASS has become the nation’s most successful Super Late Model sanctioning body and the Easter Bunny 150 has grown to become the Spring’s biggest short track event.
“When you look at the great drivers that race in PASS North from New England like Johnny Clark, Ben Rowe, Travis Benjamin and so many others and the great group of young PASS South drivers like Tate Fogleman, Matt Craig, Kodie Conner and those guys, this is the type of event that they want to win and be a part of for a long time,” said Mayberry. “You take those competitors, along with all the other great Super Late Model drivers from the Midwest, West Coast, Quebec and the Canadian Maritimes…this is gonna be one heck of a show come November.”
At 300 green flag laps, the Mason-Dixon MegaMeltdown will feature true, live pit stops and strategy throughout the race. The event will be a “10 tire race,” meaning competitors will have the four tires they start the race on and will have the option, but are not required, to change six tires during the course of the race. Since caution laps do not count, teams would not lose laps during a pit stop under caution.
The field will be set by qualifying, with the top 20 qualifiers being locked in, three each will come from the three last chance races, and additional starters will be determined from the last chance consolation race. There will be six provisional spots available for PASS National, PASS South, PASS North, and a promoter’s option for licensed drivers that pre-register. Sponsors and fans are encouraged to purchase laps for just $25. They will be mentioned several times during the course of the weekend and will have the honor of knowing that they are a part of this historic event.
Although a full schedule has not been posted, teams will have the opportunity to practice on Thursday, November, 16th, qualifying and last chance races will take place following practice at 6 PM on Friday, November 17th, and the Mason-Dixon Meltdown will go green on Saturday afternoon, November 18th at 1:30 PM.
The 2017 PASS South Super Late Model season will kick off its 11 race schedule on Saturday, February 4th with the PASS Winter Meltdown at Dillon Motor Speedway. For more information and schedules on any PASS division please visit the website at ProAllStarsSeries.com
Entry forms, the complete weekend schedule, and a lap board for the Mason-Dixon MegaMeltdown at Hickory Motor Speedway will be posted soon 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.
The Pro All Stars Series is recognized as North America’s premier sanctioning body for asphalt Super Late Models and boasts such marquee events as the Easter Bunny 150 at Hickory Motor Speedway and the legendary Oxford 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway. For media or marketing questions, please contact Alan Dietz at 704-231-2039 or alandietzpass@live.com. Please visit ProAllStarsSeries.com for more information and don’t forget to “Like” the Pro All Stars Series on Facebook or follow us on Twitter at @PASSSLM14 to keep up with breaking news as it happens.
