PENSACOLA, FL :: Following time trials for the Snowball Derby on Friday night, one thing became abundantly clear — big names will have to race their way into the field and many of them will ultimately fail to do so.
Qualifying only locked-in 30 of the 37 starting positions but provisionals were also earned by three other drivers — Anderson Bowen, David Rogers and Clay Rogers.
Several high-profile teams will have to race their way into the Snowball Derby through the grueling and intense 50-lap last chance qualifier on Saturday afternoon. Headlining the starting lineup is ARCA\CRA Super Series champion Travis Braden, ARCA\Midwest Tour champion Ty Majeski, Battle at Berlin winner Johnny VanDoorn, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver Mason Mingus and second-generation driver Harrison Burton.
Braden had never stepped foot on Five Flags Speedway until this week and was surprised at how quickly he had adapted to the oddly-shaped, abrasive oval. Unfortunately for him, the entire field was separated by two-tenths on Friday and Braden was ultimately the first one on the outside looking in.
On the bright side, he will start on pole for the LCQ — a race often marred by attrition and wrecking for the final transfer spots at the end of the race. So Braden will want to stay far ahead of anyone that could do him harm.
“We had a low 30s but I just didn’t get it all out of the car,” Braden said.
Majeski also had never attended a race at Five Flags until this weekend and will start 11th in the Last Chance Race after spinning out in Turn 1 during his first timed lap. He miraculously kept his Super Late Model off the wall in one of the most impressive saves in the history of the speedway but will have to hope that his luck will carry over into the LCQ.
His disappointment was short and succinct on Twitter after the session.
“I just flat ran out of talent,” he said.
Burton competed in the Snowflake 100 last season and ran a full slate of Southern Super Series races at the speedway in 2013 but it was not enough to get him into the show. He will start eighth on Saturday and maintained the confidence he shown throughout the weekend.
“I feel really confident in our race day set-up,” Burton said. “I feel like my guys will help me get it done. I was just a little too free in qualifying. Experience helps and I just don’t have a lot of it right now.”
Burton says he plans to be aggressive to get to a transfer spot early and hold it.
“I think third and above is the safest place to be,” Burton said. “Third is the ideal place to be. You don’t want to be on that bubble spot on those last few laps. Anything could happen and there are a lot of great cars in that race.”
Mingus was the fastest car during the Snowball Derby open test in November but just didn’t have the speed needed to crack the top-30 in time trials. He immediately rushed to his hauler after the session on Friday night and declared that he wasn’t going to run the Last Chance Race. A few hours later, on Twitter, he and his team appeared to have had a change of heart.
“I feel bad for everyone on this team,” Mingus tweeted. “They never stopped fighting. I’m sorry I couldn’t get it done. … We are going to see what we have in practice tomorrow and possibly run the last chance race.”
And a few hours later…
“We are finally done for the night. Should have a completely different car tomorrow. Made a lot of changes.”
Here is the starting lineup for the Snowball Derby Last Chance Race. (Subject to change withdrawals)
- Travis Braden
- Cole Timm
- Garrett Jones
- Clay Jones
- Daniel Webster
- Dwayne Buggay
- Jacob Gomes
- Austin Theriault
- Harrison Burton
- Gus Dean
- Jeremy Pate
- Ty Majeski
- Johnny VanDoorn
- Paul Shafer
- Spencer Davis
- Kyle Plott
- Bayley Currey
- Mason Mingus
- Kyle Bryant
- J.J. Haley
- Dennis Schoenfeld
- Jerry Artuso
- Josh Bragg
- Roger Reuse
- Will Gallaher
- Tim Martin
- Garrett Campbell
- Chris Fontaine
- Jordan Sims
