PASS Sets 2017 Dates To Crown Super Late Model's National Champion
- 44th Annual Oxford 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway to pay PASS Super Late Model winner $25,000, plus $25,000 in guaranteed lap leader money
- Easter Bunny 150 at Hickory Continues Tradition as Spring's Premier Super Late Model Event
- Dillon, Orange County, Thompson, And Beech Ridge Fill Out Remainder Of Championship Schedule
NAPLES, ME (November 29) – Pro All Stars Series (PASS) officials have released the six dates and locations that will make up the 10th Annual PASS National Championship Series. The schedule is comprised of six premier Super Late Model events in both PASS North and PASS South that will determine an overall PASS National Champion. The PASS National Championship Series will see the champion crowned for the first time ever at the prestigious 44th Annual Oxford 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway in August. And, the PASS National Championship Series will return to North Carolina's Orange County Speedway next March for the first time since 2014.
Since 2008, some of the best short track racers in North America have captured the PASS National Championship including Cassius Clark, Ben Rowe, Preston Peltier, Jay Fogleman, and Joey Doiron. While awards are currently still being finalized, the champion will once again receive a one-of-a-kind championship trophy featuring the American Bald Eagle. Additional awards will be announced at a later date.
"Ten years ago, with our presence across the Eastern Seaboard and Canada, we felt the time was right to crown Super Late Model racing's true National champion," said PASS President Tom Mayberry. "We're very happy to be able to announce the PASS National Championship schedule for 2017 at such an early date. These events exemplify what's great about short track racing and we feel each of them will attract the best Super Late Model drivers from across the continent. We're also very happy to crown the 2017 PASS National Champion at the 44th Annual Oxford 250 for the first time in history. It's just another layer added to make this great race even better."
The PASS National Championship Series, along with the 2017 PASS South championship season, gets underway in just over two months with the Winter Meltdown at the South Carolina Clash at Dillon Motor Speedway in South Carolina on February 4. Fittingly on Super Bowl weekend, fans will get to see drivers from across the spectrum of short track racing as the PASS Super Late Models will race for 200 laps and $6,000 to win, plus a major event for the Dillon Motor Speedway Late Models as part of the Winter Meltdown at the South Carolina Clash.
From Dillon Motor Speedway in February, it is back to one of the most traditional stops in the south as PASS returns to Orange County Speedway in Rougemont, NC for the first time since 2014. The 10th Running of the Orange Blossom Special on March 25 will see the PASS tour tackle the high banks for 150 laps. Orange County Speedway has been made famous for featuring three wide racing on its ultra-high banks.
Race three of the 2017 PASS National Championship Series will be the first of the year in New England and will be contested at one of the fastest tracks in the country. The PASS Super Late Models will compete for 75 laps at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park in Connecticut as part of the annual Icebreaker weekend April 1-2, along with the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour. PASS made a success return to Thompson Speedway last year in an event won by Garrett Hall. The Icebreaker will also once again double as the PASS North Super Late Model championship season opener.
The PASS National Championship Series will then head back south to the legendary Hickory Motor Speedway in North Carolina onApril 15. The 12th Annual Easter Bunny 150 will continue in 2017 as one of short track racing's biggest events of the Spring. Since veteran Mike Rowe won the first Easter Bunny 150 back in 2006 to Ben Rowe winning the most recent edition last year, Hickory Motor Speedway's hallowed victory lane has been cherished by every Super Late Model driver that has followed in his their tire tracks.
Next up, the PASS National Championship Series will conclude a busy month of April at the Beech Ridge Motor Speedway in Scarborough, ME. The Beech Ridge 300 on April 29 is always a favorite for both fans and competitors and this year's contest will be no different.
The final race on the 2017 PASS National Championship Series will be at perhaps the most legendary of all short track races. The 44th Annual Oxford 250 at Maine's Oxford Plains Speedway on August 27 will continue a tradition that started in 1974 and has seen such winners as Butch Lindley, Geoff Bodine, Junior Hanley, Ricky Craven, Kevin Harvick, and Kyle Busch. And, with one of the richest purses in all of Super Late Model racing, the Oxford 250 should once again attract North America's best drivers, all competing for the $25,000 winner's share. This year winner, Pelham, NH's Wayne Helliwell, Jr., bested over 60 other drivers to claim nearly $30,000 for his first win in the prestigious race.
The 2017 PASS North Super Late Model schedule will be announced in the next 7-10 days awaiting the confirmation of dates from two tracks. The final date for the PASS South Super Late Model schedule will also be announced in the coming days.
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 PASS South's Easter Bunny 150 at the historic Hickory Motor Speedway and the legendary Oxford 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway. For technical information on the PASS National Championship Series please contact Charlie Rockwell after 5 PM at 802-754-2822. For media or marketing questions, please contact Alan Dietz at 704-231-2039 or alandietzpass@live.com. Please visit ProAllStarsSeries.com for more information and don't forget to "Like" the Pro All Stars Series on Facebook or follow us on Twitter at @PASSSLM14 to keep up with breaking news as it happens.
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