The 13th Annual
SO. CAROLINA CLASH 200
Sat., February 24th
DEREK GRIFFITH - #12g
ROWE - GRIFFITH - CHRISTIAN
Griffith Outlasts Competition For
PASS National Championship Win
At Dillon Motor Speedway
DILLON, SC (February 24) - Derek Griffith bested a strong field of Pro All Stars Series (PASS) Super Late Models to win the 13th Annual South Carolina Clash 200 Saturday afternoon at Dillon Motor Speedway. While Griffith has found victory lane on the PASS North circuit in the past, Saturday's opening day win was his first in the south in PASS National Championship competition.

"We knew we had to do better here than we did last year and we were able to put it all together today to get the win," said Griffith in victory lane. "The track was hot and slick, but this win is big because we need to get all we can to compete with Ben [Rowe] for the national championship."

In qualifying, Tate Fogleman claimed his second career quick qualifying time with a lap of 87.998 miles per hour around the tough 4/10 mile, egg-shaped speedway. After the top 10 qualifiers redraw, two-time defending PASS South champion, Matt Craig, would move to the pole, while Fogleman would slot into the sixth starting position.

At the drop of the green flag, Craig quickly jumped into the lead, but would be quickly overtaken by rookie Matt Thomas for the top spot. Thomas would lead until lap 21 when he was passed by Chad McCumbee and Fogleman.

After starting 11th, Griffith would break in to the top five on lap 33, passing Ben Rowe for fifth. Another car on the move in the early going was the machine driven by Connecticut's Ray Christian, III, moving from the 14th starting position and into the top five by lap 59.

Following the first caution flag of the day for a spin by Charles Barnes on lap 69, Fogleman was able to take the lead from McCumbee on the restart. Likewise, after a caution eight laps later for Jody Measamer's mechanical problems, Griffth would move by Fogleman for the lead on the ensuing restart.

Action began to really pick up even after a spin by Jimmy Renfrew, Jr. on lap 100. On the restart, both Griffith and Fogleman appeared to spin their tires, slamming together as they raced down the frontstretch. Fogleman's car broke loose entering turn 1, collecting the wall and ending his promising day.

The biggest incident of the day would occur on lap 116 when the machine driven by Matt Thomas was pinched into the front straightaway wall after contact with Kevin Floars. Thomas' car rode up the wall, sliding down the track on its left side between Floars' car and the outside wall. After a few tense moments and a very brief fire, both drivers emerged from their racers unscathed.

Following a competition caution to change two tires, Ray Christian III emerged as a contender, leading the field back to green. Christian and Griffith would wage a 20 lap war for the lead, with Griffith finally able to take advantage in lapped traffic. Christian would continue to ride in second until being passed by Ben Rowe with nine laps to go. Griffith took the checkered flag to claim the South Carolina Clash win over Rowe, Christian, Kodie Conner, and McCumbee. Rounding out the top 10 were Jeff Batten, scoring his best career finish, Craig, Jared Irvan, JP Josiasse, and Sammy Gooden.

The PASS South Super Late Models will be in action once again for the RGS Products 125 on Sunday, March 11th at Caraway Speedway, along with the season opener for the SMRS Tour Modifieds.

Be sure to "Like" the Pro All Stars Series on Facebook or follow us on Twitter at @PASSSLM14.
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Photos by Ed Aldridge - www.edaldridge.com
PASS SOUTH/NATL. SLMs at DILLON
OFFICIAL RACE RESULTS - 2-24-18
1) 12g - Derek Griffith - 200 Laps
2) 4n - Ben Rowe - 200
3) 93 - Ray Christian III - 200
4) 45 - Kodie Conner - 200
5) 16 - Chad McCumbee - 200
6) 49 - Jeff Batten - 200
7) 54 - Matt Craig 200
8) 21 - Jared Irvan - 198
9) 24j - JP Josiasse - 197
10) 01 - Sammy Godden - 186
11) 15 - Roy Hayes - 122
12) 19 - Kevin Floars - 116
13) 87 - Matt Thomas - 116
14) 00 - Jimmy Renfrew, Jr. - 116
15) 8f - Tate Fogleman - 100
16) 22 - Tim Hollis - 77
17) 98 - Jody Measamer - 76
18) 80 - Trevor Sanborn - 35
19) 37 - Charles Barnes - 32
20) 71 - Jimmy Doyle - DNS
Entry List - Dillon - 2/24/18
PASS National Championship
Kicks Off On Saturday At Dillon
CHARLOTTE, NC (February 20) - Following a three-month offseason, Pro All Stars Series (PASS) Super Late Model racers will kick off the 2018 National Championship season this Saturday afternoon at Dillon Motor Speedway in South Carolina. The 13th Annual South Carolina Clash 200 will see the best short track racers from across North America converge on the tough egg-shaped oval for the $6000 top prize. While Turner, ME's Ben Rowe will be on quest for his sixth PASS National title, Kannapolis, NC's Matt Craig will be going for an unprecedented third straight PASS South Super Late Model championship beginning at Dillon.

One driver hoping to end Rowe's run of national championship success will be Hudson, NH's Derek Griffith. In his first go at Super Late Model racing's only national championship last year, Griffith finished third in points behind Rowe and Dave Farrington, Jr., nearly winning at Orange County Speedway last March.

"It's going to be pretty important to get going on the right foot this season," says Griffith, driver of the LCM Motorsports #12 Chevrolet. "We are looking to run real strong all year."

After scoring two wins in 2017 on the PASS North Super Late Model tour, Griffith is primed to show what he can do south of the Mason-Dixon line this year. In his first start at Dillon last year, Griffith finished eighth and hopes to improve on that this weekend.

"Last year was our first time racing down in the Carolinas," says Griffith. "Now that we've been down there [Dillon] once, I'm looking forward to making my return this weekend."

Joining Griffith among the pre-entries will be PASS South title contenders Matt Craig, Kodie Conner, Tate Fogleman, Roy Hayes, and Jody Measamer. Trevor Sanborn heads the list of New Englanders, along with newcomers Jimmy Renfrew, Jr., Sammy Gooden, and Ray Christian, III, while Charles Barnes will be attempting his second PASS South start.

This weekend, action gets under way with rotating practice for all divisions from 2 - 5 PM on Friday. Then, on Saturday, practice will begin at 10 AM, followed by qualifying at 12:30 PM, and racing for the PASS Super Late Models, SuperTrucks, and UCARS beginning at 2 PM.

Entry forms for the next PASS South Super Late Model race at Caraway Speedway are currently posted at ProAllStarsSeries.com. The next PASS National Championship race will be at Thompson Speedway in Connecticut on April 8.

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. And for the first time ever, PASS will compete at Richmond Raceway in Virginia as part of the inaugural Commonwealth Classic in October.

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.
KODIE CONNER - #45
PASS Super Late Model Racers
Prepare To Kick Off 2018 Season
At Dillon Motor Speedway
CHARLOTTE, NC (February 8) - Racers from across the country are busy counting down the days as the 2018 Pro All Stars Series (PASS) Super Late Model season opener at Dillon Motor Speedway draws closer. The 13th Annual South Carolina Clash 200 at Dillon on Saturday, February 24 will not only mark the beginning of the PASS National Championship Series, but it will also be the first race of the PASS South Super Late Model schedule.

Ever since the first South Carolina Clash was held at nearby Florence Motor Speedway in 2006, the event has been one of the featured races annually on the PASS schedule. Since that first Clash won by the late Charlie Bradberry, a stellar list of drivers have gone to victory lane including two-time Clash winner, Ryan Blaney, as well as Justin Wakefield, Ben Rowe, Preston Peltier, Austin Theriault, Daniel Hemric, and Tyler Church. In last year's race, Jared Irvan took advantage of a late-race restart to beat Christian Eckes to the checkered flag at the conclusion of 200 laps at Dillon.

Newly turned 17-year-old driver Kodie Conner from Kannapolis, NC is excited to return to Dillon for the 200 lapper which will begin the South's oldest Super Late Model championship. After a second place finish at Dillon in 2016, Conner was involved in an accident last year that he believes played a part in costing him the series championship.

"After last year and falling out of the race at Dillon to begin the year, it actually changed the end of the season for Team KCR," says Conner, who owns his team now following the passing of his grandfather, Jerry, in 2017. "I felt I was not able to catch up to Matt [Craig] after that. We've ran good at Dillon in the past, and as an owner-driver now, I feel we will run good there in a couple of weeks."

A former PASS Pro Late Model champion, Conner has competed the last two seasons in the Super Late Model ranks, finishing second to Matt Craig in the final standings both years. With plenty of seat time behind him and additional sponsorship support in 2018, Conner hopes not to only make a run at the PASS South title, but to compete for the PASS National Championship as well.

"This season is my year," says Conner. "I and my father, Shannon, have worked extremely hard and we believe we can continue to compete with teams that have a bigger budget than we do. I'm definitely excited about this upcoming season with the PASS series."

All the action gets under way on Friday, February 23 at Dillon Motor Speedway with open practice for all competing divisions from 2 - 5 PM. On Saturday, February 24, practice will begin at 10 AM with qualifying starting at 12:30 PM for the PASS Super Late Models, SuperTrucks, and U-Cars/FWD, followed by main events starting at approximately 2 PM.

PASS Super Late Model entry forms for the events at Dillon, Caraway, and the 45th Annual Oxford 250 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, PASS South's Easter Bunny 150 at the historic Hickory Motor Speedway, and the inaugural Commonwealth Classic at Richmond Raceway.

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.

 

Series Contact:  Tommy Mayberry - (207) 693-6497

email: passracing@roadrunner.com

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