COPPER HILL, VA :: Several drivers had breakthrough years in 2013 with performances where they shattered barriers, flipping the script on the proverbial favorites and stealing the spotlight. We continue our look back at the best of 2013 by looking at the best 13 breakthrough drivers.
13. Jeremy Sorel
Jeremy Sorel was fast everywhere he went. He qualified on the pole for the Bobby Isaac Memorial at Hickory and won in his first ever start at Greenville-Pickens Speedway. Sorel burst on to the scene in 2013 and certainly has potential to win a lot more in 2014.
12. Jake Keaton
Jake Keaton’s two Late Model victories came at two different tracks. Keaton started off the season at Southern National Motorsports Park. From there, he traveled to Hickory and raced at Ona as well as on dirt. His first Late Model win came at Lonesome Pine Raceway in his first visit to the track located in Virginia’s coal country on July 20th. On September 28th, Keaton traveled out to Franklin County Speedway in the mountains of Virginia and was victorious once again in his first visit to a new track. Both race wins were victories in twin races which were accompanied by a second place finish in the other respective twin race feature. Watch for Keaton to continue to improve in 2014.
11. Justin Sorrow
Justin Sorrow isn’t a newcomer to Late Model racing. He spent much of 2012 competing in the South East Super Truck Series and has won races at Anderson Motor Speedway in the past. He won two races on this season but it was his consistency was enough for him to win the track championship at Anderson. Sorrow also made the field for the Myrtle Beach 400 in November, finishing 17th. Sorrow’s wins came at Greenville-Pickens Speedway and Anderson Motor Speedway.
10. Adam Gray
Rookie driver Adam Gray swept Late Model features on July 13th at Lonesome Pine Racewayfor his first and second career Late Model Stock Car victories. Gray competed at Lonesome Pin in all but one race and was consistent all season, finishing third in points in the track’s Late Model division standings. Gray will have confidence on his side and will be a driver to watch in 2014 wherever he races.
9. Shane Lee
Shane Lee also competed as a rookie driver in the Late Model Stock Car ranks at Hickory Motor Speedway. He scored two victories on the season and finished second in points at Hickory. Along with his Late Model success, he also competed in the Limited Late Model division where he won five races as he successfully defended his track championship in that division.
8. Trey Marcham
Trey Marcham was contending for the win in the 2012 Myrtle Beach 400 before being taken out in an accident not of his doing. Marcham continued competing on a semi-regular basis at Myrtle Beach Speedway and scored his breakthrough victory on the Fourth of July. Marcham swept twin Late Model features at Myrtle Beach Speedway for his first and second career Late Model victories. Marcham finished the season with a seventh place finish in the Myrtle Beach 400.
7. Brandon Setzer
Brandon Setzer’s rookie season in Late Model competition resulted in three wins at the newly re-opened Wake County Speedway in Raleigh including a win in the season finale event. Setzer’s victories put him on the map and he will certainly be a contender moving forward in the years ahead in Late Model competition. Brandon Setzer is the son of former NASCAR Camping World Truck Series competitor and 2007 Virginia is for Racing Lovers 300 winner Dennis Setzer.
6. Brodie Kostecki
Brodie Kostecki stole the spotlight a few times in 2013. Entering the season, not many people knew of the driver from Queensland. Kostecki scored two victories in 2013 with one of those victories coming in the UARA-STARS race at Rockingham Speedway. Kostecki also scored a victory at Hickory Motor Speedway in September. Kostecki also scored a second place finish in the UARA race at Hickory.
5. Myatt Snider
Myatt Snider had started only one Late Model race before competing at Daytona in February. He ran races at Southern National Motorsports Park, Caraway Speedway and South Boston Speedway. Snider scored his first career win on October 13th in the Mid Atlantic Shootout at Caraway Speedway. Snider also came close to scoring a victory at South Boston, falling short to CE Falk after a late race restart. He will continue to race in 2014 at Caraway, South Boston and Southern National.
4. Kaz Grala
Kaz Grala was one of the more exciting storylines in 2013. Complete with his own #HollaForGrala Twitter hashtag, Grala came to the sport prepared in every way for success. He found success in the UARA-STARS tour where he scored a victory at Hickory Motor Speedway and contended for the win at Myrtle Beach. His impressive effort at Myrtle Beach was capped off with an improbable second place finish. Grala will be one driver to keep an eye on moving forward.
3. Ben Rhodes
Ben Rhodes deserved to win either Daytona or Myrtle Beach. Depending on how you feel about last lap racing, Rhodes was robbed out of a win in one of those two races. He deserved to win a race and it was destined to happen. It took a while but that win finally came on August 9th at Kingsport Speedway and was followed by a win the very next night at Hickory, another win the following weekend at Kingsport and two wins the following weekend at Greenville-Pickens Speedway. He scored his sixth win of the year at Hickory in the Fall Brawl. When Rhodes finally had his breakout win, he was unstoppable.
2. Matt Waltz
Matt Waltz had a textbook breakthrough season. He visited victory lane for the first time in a Late Model when he swept twin races at Langley Speedway on May 4th. He scored another victory on July 13th. The performance that really turned heads was at Martinsville when he led several laps late in the race, fended off several challenges from Lee Pulliam and proved his wins at Langley were no fluke. Waltz fell out of contention when a tire went down but his performance in that race was as inspiring as any underdog story can be. No doubt Waltz will be back in 2014 and contending for races all season.
1. David Garbo, Jr.
David Garbo, Jr. scored four victories at Hickory Motor Speedway in his breakout 2013 season. One of those four wins came in the biggest race of the year at Hickory, the Bobby Isaac Memorial. Garbo was a threat to win every race he entered. No matter where he goes, Garbo does not lack in confidence which was a perfect fit when racing for Jamie Yelton at Fat Heat Racing. There’s no doubt Garbo has a bright future ahead in racing.
That’s a wrap on our look back on the list of top breakthrough drivers in 2013. We will continue to look back at the best of 2013 and look ahead to 2014 over the coming days and weeks on RACE22.com.
