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By Chuck Corder
5flagsspeedway.com reporter
Stephen Nasse body slammed the 1,000-pound gorilla.
Nasse had been snakebitten throughout his 13 years of coming down to Five Flags Speedway and competing during Snowball Derby week. In both the Snowflake 100 and the Derby itself, the decorated Late Model driver had always experienced some type of heartbreak.
Not on Saturday night at the 57th annual Snowball Derby presented by FloSports. Nasse drove his patented long-run style to perfection and captured his first career Allen Turner Hyundai Snowflake 100.
The central Florida native delivered a series of fist pumps and had a giant smile plastered across his face as he came to a stop in Victory Lane.
“They’re not taking this one away from me,” Nasse joked. “I’m glad to come home with a win for this team. I’m so proud of my dad and everybody that puts a hand on this race car. I’ve got so many good people who work with me. I’m speechless.”
The group has been right by their driver’s side at Pensacola’s high banks when the chips didn’t fall his way. Nasse endured the pain of losing out on a Derby victory in 2019 when he was disqualified for a equipment infraction. The next year, an apparent Snowflake 100 win was stripped from him for “avoidable contact” with Bubba Pollard as the pair raced for the checkered flag with the white flag out.
All those (and other) disappointments made Saturday night’s feat feel sweeter. Dad Jeff Nasse’s left leg was bouncing with enough nervous energy like pistons in an engine as the final laps ticked off and Nasse continued to lead. What made the victory even more special is that Nasse started 24th in the 36-car field.
“I love to put on a show,” Nasse said. “This car is super-fast everywhere we go, but we especially love this car here.”
Matt Craig started second and finished there, but not before spending almost 50 laps as the leader during the first half of the 100-lapper.
“We were really good firing off,” Craig said. “Maybe I pushed the right front too soon. But you’ve gotta do all you can do to win this race.”
Among a slew of heavy hitters, teenager Seth Christensen impressed with a third-place finish.
“This was so much fun,” an elated Christensen said. “The guys in front of me have won more races than I’ve been in. It’s just been a dream to be a part of this.”
It was the most competitive Snowflake 100 in Derby history with six lead changes. Aggressive driving to reach Pro Late Model’s mountaintop caused a bevy of cautions. There were eight total yellows. Two of those were reds, one of which included patching up a hole on the entrance of Turn 3. A chunk of the track jostled free from the famed half-mile asphalt oval.
Nasse finally pulled ahead of Craig for good on Lap 64 after the pair had a two-lap tussle for the lead. He quickly opened it up and built a nearly 1.5-second lead in the final 10 laps.
Faith Chapel Outlaws
A scene all too familiar during Snowball Derby week, but one that never gets old, happened once again.
Augie Grill, the legend himself, standing in Victory Lane sharing high-fives with his team and hugs and kisses for wife Courtney and their kids. Grill captured his first career Faith Chapel Outlaws Derby 50 on Saturday of the 57th annual Snowball Derby presented by FloSports.
It marks his ninth overall win across four classes. Grill has two Derby wins, three Snowflake 100s and three Modifieds.
“When you win a race on this weekend, it’s cool,” he said. “No one else can say they have nine wins. That’s a pretty good accomplishment.”
A caution-plagued race saw Grill finally get his first sustained lead at Lap 45. The veteran was able to get around Carter Taylor, a high schooler, on a restart when Taylor spun the tires.
Pensacola’s Logan Boyet finished runner-up and Cantonment’s Buba Winslow rounded out the podium.
“We weren’t good at the start,” Grill said. “We fell back and were just chugging along until the end. Our last run was our best run all race.”
Article Credit: David Kranak Photos
