We are now a little more than a week away from the start of the Deep South Cranes Blizzard Series season at Five Flags Speedway (FL) with the Rowdy Energy Twin 100s. The doubleheader weekend will bring many of the top Super Late Model teams, chasing big money on the line for both Friday and Saturday, June 26-27.
As a result of rescheduled events following the hiatus from racing due to COVID-19 restrictions, there will be 100-lap Super Late Model features on both Friday and Saturday night at the Pensacola half-mile. Thanks to several programs and sponsorships, it will be possible for one team to collect $35,000 on the weekend.
It's the kind of lucrative weekend that has Bubba Pollard excited for the Super Late Models' return to Five Flags.
"It's huge. I think you're going to see a packed house at Five Flags," said Pollard during an interview on "The Bullring" on Speed51 Monday. "I think you'll see a lot of cars you don't normally see there until later in the year getting ready for the Derby. I think everyone is anxious to get down there and get racing. You're going to see a lot of guys come down there for the money. I think that's what short tracks need.
"I'm glad to see Tim Bryant, Rowdy, all of these people step up. Hopefully, we're one of those guys. There's nothing I'd love more than to take some more of Rowdy's money, so we'll see if we can make it happen."
The Southern Super Series’ “Double Down at the Next Town” program promises $10,000 to win any Southern Super Series event in 2020, as long as the winning driver started the previous series race.
All drivers who competed in the season-opening Rattler 250 are eligible for that $10,000 prize in Friday night's #Forever11 100, and those who compete on the opening night of the doubleheader are eligible for Saturday’s $10,000 payday. Thus, a driver who competed at the Rattler 250 would win $20,000.
There is also the #GetRowdy $10,000 Challenge on the line, powered by Rowdy Energy. If a driver can sweep both races in the doubleheader weekend, that driver will get a $10,000 bonus on top of their winnings.
James Finch, owner of Phoenix Construction, has added the $5,000 Phoenix Construction Best Average Finish bonus to the weekend. This award will go to the driver who achieves the best average finish between the pair of 100-lap Super Late Model features during the doubleheader weekend.
With all three of those bonus opportunities, that means a team that did not compete at The Rattler can win $30,000 with a weekend sweep, while a team who did compete at The Rattler could win $35,000.
In short:
If a driver competed in The Rattler and wins Friday night’s #Forever11 100, they will win $10,000 as a result of the Double Down at the Next Town bonus.
If a driver competes Friday night and wins Saturday night’s race, they will win $10,000 as a result of the Double Down at the Next Town bonus.
If a driver competed in The Rattler and sweeps the weekend, they will win $35,000 as a result of the Double Down at the Next Town bonus, #GetRowdy Challenge and Phoenix Construction Best Average Finish bonus.
If a driver who didn’t compete in the Rattler sweeps the weekend, they will win $30,000 as a result of the #GetRowdy Challenge, Phoenix Construction Best Average Finish bonus and the Double Down at the Next Town bonus for Saturday's win.
With so much money on the line, it should be an action-packed weekend with many top teams making the trip to Pensacola for their first shot in 2020 to prepare for the 53rd Annual Snowball Derby. The biggest race in Super Late Model racing is currently scheduled for December 2-6.
The Rowdy Energy Twin 100s will be the second and third races for the Southern Super Series in 2020, as well as the first two rounds of the Deep South Cranes Blizzard Series. The Blizzard Series provides four opportunities each season for Super Late Model teams to compete at Five Flags in anticipation of the biggest race of the year, the Snowball Derby.
For more information, visit www.5flagsspeedway.com or www.southernsuperseries.com.
-Story by: Zach Evans, Speed51 Content Supervisor - Twitter: @ztevans
-Photo credit: Speed51 Photo
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