On Sunday, the top asphalt Super Late Model racers in the country will all be in pursuit of one of the most coveted trophies in short track stock car racing.
Five Flags Speedway in Pensacola, Florida will host the 53rd annual Snowball Derby, with the Tom Dawson Trophy and a page in racing history on the line.
A pair of NASCAR Cup Series champions tops the entry list for Sunday’s 300-lap feature at the high banked half-mile speedway. Dawsonville, Georgia’s Chase Elliott, fresh off of winning the 2020 NCS title, will be looking for his third career Snowball Derby, having won in 2011 and again in 2015.
Joining Elliott in looking for a third win is two-time NCS champion Kyle Busch, who scored Snowball victories in 2009 and 2017.
As of November 27, 54 drivers in total had entered the event. Among those is perennial favorite Bubba Pollard of Senoia, Georgia. Pollard has scored wins all over the country, but the Snowball Derby has eluded him so far. He comes to Pensacola fresh off a win in the Florida Governor’s Cup at New Smyrna Speedway.
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver Grant Enfinger will also be looking to add the Tom Dawson Trophy to his mantle, along with Truck series drivers Chandler Smith of Jasper, Georgia and Ty Majeski.
The Peach State is well represented among the entrants. Joining Elliott, Pollard and Smith is Jake Garcia of Monroe, Georgia, Hudson Halder of Cumming, Georgia, Kyle McCallum of Macon, Georgia, Kyle Plott and Kason Plott, both of Marietta, Georgia, Kyle Sieg of Tucker, Georgia, and Casey Roderick of Lawrenceville, Georgia.
Also looking to contend for the win will be Stephen Nasse, who was flagged the winner in the 2019 race only to see the victory stripped away after failing in post-race tech. That moved Travis Braden to the win, one that he hopes to back up with a second straight victory on Sunday.
Two-time winner Augie Grill is also entered, as is California contender Derek Thorn and veteran racer Donnie Wilson.
On Saturday, the Pro Late Model pilots will take center stage for the 100-lap Snowflake 100. As of November 27, 40 entries had been filed for the event, including Pollard, Kyle Plott, Thorn, and Nasse, who will be pulling double duty.
Other entrants include Justin Bonnett, Matt Craig, Chris Davidson, Mark Day, Johanna Long-Robbins, Justin Marks and Dakota Stroup.
In all, six feature races will be contested over the race week. Wednesday marks the opening day, with rig parking and the draw for qualifying order. Thursday will see racing for the Pro Trucks, Sportsmen and Pure Stock divisions, along with practice for the Pro and Super Late Models.
Action continues on Friday with qualifying for the Snowball Derby, along with racing from the Modifieds of Mayhem. Saturday will see the last chance qualifying race for the Snowball Derby, a 50-lap Outlaws feature and the Snowflake 100.
That all leads up to the 53rd annual Snowball Derby on Sunday, with the green flag scheduled to fall at 2 pm CST.
For more information, visit 5FlagsSpeedway.com.
