Defending Champ Pollard Among Early SpeedFest Entries
(Cordele, GA) While we await the ASA STARS National Tour to kick off the 2024 season in a month, two of the three ASA Branded Regional Tours will take to the track in just two weeks and many of the STARS National Tour drivers will be in action.
Two-time and defending “Protect Your Melon – Buckle Up SpeedFest” race winner Bubba Pollard headlines the early entry list for the 2024 version of the early season special for Super Late Models at Crisp Motorsports Park in Cordele, GA.
The ASA Southern Super Series Presented by Sunoco and ASA/CRA Super Series Powered by JEGS will sanction the 150-lap Super Late Model race and for the first time, SpeedFest will be a point race for the Southern Super Series.
Pollard, perhaps the best Super Late Model driver over the past two decades, has filed his entry in an effort to defend the race titles he won at Watermelon Capital Speedway in 2022 and 2023. The Georgia racer will once again be piloting the familiar #26 Pollard Motorsports / Phoenix Racing Ford in search of his 3rd consecutive win in the season opening event.
Pollard’s career accolades rival any other drivers in short track racing. He’s won the Oxford 250, All American 400, Rattler 250, Slinger Nationals, and many other marquee races across the United States and into Canada.
Since 2004, he was won 156 races and has finished in the top-ten in an astonishing 70% of his 564 recorded starts. The Georgia driver earned one ASA STARS National Tour win last season, coming at North Wilkesboro Speedway back in May.
Joining Pollard as early entries for the “Protect Your Melon – Buckle Up Speedfest” event are Florida racers Michael Hinde, Tony Elrod, and Michael Goddard, as well as Indiana’s Billy Van Meter and Alabama’s Dustin Smith.
Hinde and Van Meter competed in the ASA STARS National Tour in 2023, in addition to running several other series events. Hinde finished 12th in the final ASA STARS National Tour driver point standings and 4th in ASA Southern Super Series points.
Van Meter placed 6th in final ASA STARS points and 8th Southern Super Series. The second-generation Indianapolis racer also finished 4th in ASA/CRA Super Series points in 2023.
Elrod, who hails from Lecanto, FL, is also a regular on the ASA Southern Super Series tour, finishing 8th in points in 2023.
SpeedFest began in 2005 at the now defunct USA International Speedway in Lakeland, FL before moving to Georgia’s Lanier National Speedway in 2009. SpeedFest then found its home at Cordele Georgia’s Watermelon Capital Speedway at Crisp Motorsports Park in 2012 and has been held there ever since. Some of the biggest names in motorsports have won SpeedFest including Kyle Busch, Chase Elliott, Harrison Burton, Chandler Smith, and Corey Heim. Bubba Pollard has won the last two SpeedFest events at the track.
There will be an open practice on that Thursday from 1 to 5pm. Friday’s schedule will consist of practice and qualifying, with all features being run on Saturday afternoon at 1:00 PM ET. Advance sale discounted tickets can be purchased at https://bit.ly/SpeedFestTix
The driver / team entry forms for Speedfest are available at https://trackenterprises.wufoo.com/forms/entry-blank-speedfest-100. Additional track and event information as well as event camping opportunities can be found at www.trackenterprises.com and www.crispmotorsportspark.com. For track rental prior to the event, interested parties can contact Ben Sumner at 229-938-8814.
ASA Branded Tours
ASA Branded Tours encompasses four (4) pavement Super Late Model racing series operating under the Track Enterprises banner and under the ASA Brand via a licensing agreement for logo and IP Rights. ASA Branded Tours include the ASA STARS National Tour, the ASA/CRA Super Series, the ASA Midwest Tour, and the ASA Southern Super Series.
Additional information on the ASA/CRA Series can be found at www.cra-racing.com. Information on the ASA Southern Super Series can be found at www.southersuperseries.com (Bruce Nuttleman Photo)