It was a long trip, but it was worth it.
Senoia, Georgia’s Bubba Pollard made the trip to Michigan’s Birch Run Speedway pay off to the tune of $10,000 with a win in Friday night’s JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour Masters of the Pro’s 200 Pro Late Model feature.
The 200 lap event saw five different leaders with six lead changes, but Pollard had the fastest car when it counted at the end of the race.
“Man, this car was good tonight,” said Pollard. “I knew if I could get track position and get out front that it would be tough for them to pass me. It feels good to come in here, a place I’ve never been, against VanDoorn and Campbell and all of these guys right here and get the win. That’s awesome. It makes me feel good.”
Pole sitter Johnny VanDoorn grabbed the lead at the drop of the green flag over Carson Hocevar. VanDoorn kept the lead over several restarts over the first part of the race before a caution at lap 89 brought most of the field to the pits for their first pit stop shuffling up the front runners.
Dan Leeck stayed out to get the lead under yellow, and kept the top spot on the restart, but Pollard – who had pitted under an earlier caution – worked his way to second.
Pollard passed Leeck for the race lead on lap 94 and kept that lead until VanDoorn, on fresher tires, was able to retake the point on lap 110. But another caution came out at lap 115, which again brought most of the field to pit road.
Kyle Hayden did not pit and picked up the lead. Hayden had much older tires than all the other racers behind him, but he was able to hold the lead until Florida racer Steve Dorer, also on older tires, moved past on lap 130.
Pollard was quickly on the move, working his way back to the front. He made the pass for the lead on lap 134, but still had challenges over the last portion of the race including having to fight off VanDoorn on a couple of restarts.
Pollard was up to the challenge, as he cruised to the victory. He joins fellow Georgia natives Chase Elliott and Anderson Bowen, as well as John Hunter Nemechek and Cole Williams, as a winner of the Masters of the Pros.
VanDoorn finished in second, with Jack Dossey III in third, Jeff Choquette in fourth and Dorer in fifth.
Hayden, Hocevar, Chris Davidson, Brian Campbell and Leeck rounded out the top ten.
The next event for the JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour will be the Midwest 100 at Indiana’s Salem Speedway on Saturday, June 16. Visit CRA-Racing.com for more information.
JEGS CRA All Stars Tour
Birch Run Speedway – Birch Run, MI
Masters of the Pros 200 – June 8, 2018
Unofficial Race Results
1. 26P Bubba Pollard
2. 71 Johnny VanDoorn
3. 20 Jack Dossey III
4. 9 Jeff Choquette
5. 10 Steve Dorer
6. 14H Kyle Hayden
7. 14 Carson Hocevar
8. 14D Chris Davidson
9. 47 Brian Campbell
10. 12 Dan Leeck
11. 7 Kyle Crump
12. 01R Jeff Roethlisberger
13. 33 Wes Griffith, Jr.
14. 7x Robbie Pyle
15. 61 Brandon Varney
16. 23 Mandy Chick
17. 41J Hunter Jack
18. 5H Tyler Hufford
19. 96 Nathan Bertino
20. 88 Trever McCoy
21. 5 Michael Clancy, Jr.
22. 01 James Krueger
23. 2 Kyle Jones
24. 71F Harold Fair, Jr.
25. 23K Chris Koslek
26. 114 Sterling Marlin
27. 29 Mason Keller
28. 41 Hayden Sprague
29. 10s Garrett Schwartz
