PASS South Title Fight Going Down to the Wire at Hickory’s Mason-Dixon Meltdown
CHARLOTTE, NC (November 13) – As a long 2015 season for the Pro All Stars Series (PASS) South Super Late Models gets set to come to an end next weekend at Hickory Motor Speedway, race fans will be focused on a thrilling championship battle. Four drivers will come to Hickory with a shot at the South’s most prestigious Super Late Model championship at the completion of 200 green flag laps in the 10th Annual Mason-Dixon Meltdown. Since 2006, the Meltdown has seen some of the biggest names in Super Late Model racing go to victory lane including Cassius Clark, Ben Rowe, Johnny Clark, Justin Wakefield, and Preston Peltier.
The top four drivers in the PASS South Super Late Model points, Tate Fogleman, Zane Smith, Matt Craig, and Jody Measamer, are only separated by 23 points heading into the Mason-Dixon Meltdown. Young Tate Fogleman finds himself in an enviable position as the PASS South points leader. But at the same time, the third-generation racer will face the difficult decision of whether or not he should race hard or be conservative when gets to Hickory Motor Speedway next Saturday.
“Hickory is as good as anywhere for us to try and win a championship,” says Fogleman, driver of the family-owned Bull City Race Cars Ford #8. “We are going to have to find a balance between taking risks and staying safe. We definitely won’t be able to ride around because of the tight points battle, but we also don’t need to take a lot of chances and end up in an accident, completely ending our championship hopes.”
After struggling early in the year, with a best finish of only fifth at Anderson Motor Speedway in March to show for his efforts, Fogleman and his team rebounded in the second half. Fogleman has six top 10’s, including a strong third place finish at South Boston Speedway in August. More importantly for his championship drive, Fogleman’s eighth place finish at Concord Speedway last weekend allowed him to stretch his advantage over Zane Smith to 18 points going into the Mason-Dixon Meltdown at Hickory.
“What we have to do is just limit the mistakes because we have finally found speed,” says Fogleman. “We just need to capitalize on the speed we’ve found. The team and I feel very confident that we can go to Hickory and come out with the PASS South championship.”
Entries continue to come in for next Saturday afternoon’s Mason-Dixon Meltdown at Hickory Motor Speedway, highlighted by the four PASS South championship contenders, Tate Fogleman, Zane Smith, Matt Craig, and Jody Measamer. Trevor Sanborn will be back in the Woodman Racing entry and will be joined by fellow New Englanders, Kyle Dsouza and John-Michael Shenette. Former Hickory Motor Speedway regular Brandon Setzer will be seeking his first Super Late Model win at his home track. Texas driver Derek Scott, Jr. returns to PASS after setting the fast time at Hickory for the Easter Bunny 150 in April. Veterans Jeff Batten and Jimmy Doyle, along with Northwest racing legend Garrett Evans and rookie contender Vinnie Miller will be looking to end the season with a win.
Action begins on Friday, November 20 at Hickory Motor Speedway with open practice for all divisions from 2-5 PM. On Saturday, November 21, practice will begin at 11 AM with qualifying starting at 1:30 PM for the PASS South Super Late Models, PASS Pro Late Models, USAC Eastern Midgets, and Legends Cars, and feature racing at 3 PM.
PASS South Super Late Model and PASS Pro Late Model entry forms and the complete weekend schedule for the 10th Annual Mason-Dixon Meltdown 200 at Hickory Motor Speedway can be found at ProAllStarsSeries.com.
The Pro All Stars Series is recognized as North America’s premier sanctioning body for asphalt Super Late Models and boasts such marquee events as the legendary Oxford 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway and PASS South’s Easter Bunny 150 at the historic Hickory Motor Speedway. For technical information concerning all PASS divisions please send questions to passracing@roadrunner.com. For media or marketing questions, please contact Alan Dietz at 704-231-2039 or alandietzpass@live.com. And, don’t forget to “Like” the Pro All Stars Series on Facebook or follow us on Twitter @PASSSLM14 to keep up with breaking news as it happens.
Sources: Alan Dietz/PASS PR