Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series News Release:  Contact – ROBY HELM – (865) 207-4157

October 8, 2014

CHEVY SUPER SERIES DRAMA AT DEGA 100 SEASON FINALE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

                CARTERSVILLE, GA – There will be a lot to see and a lot to decide when America’s first “Factory Backed and Factory Built” super late model series, the Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series, rolls into the Talladega Short Track in Eastaboga, AL this Saturday night for the 2014 season finale with the $6,000-to-win 2nd Annual Dega 100 Presented By Chevrolet of Boaz.

                In addition to hosting a rare 100-lap Super Late Model race that will be the highest paying event this season for the Chevy Super Series, race fans at Talladega Short Track will get to see who wins the $10,000 Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series National Championship, and who takes the 2014 Chevy Super Series Rookie of the Year honors.

                Coming into the Dega 100, the top three drivers in the Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series point standings are separated by just 34 points.  The top two drivers in the Chevy Super Series Rookie of the Year point standings are separated by 12 points.

                National Dirt Late Model Hall of Fame Inductee Ronnie Johnson of Chattanooga, TN is the Chevy Super Series point leader coming into the Dega 100 with a 20-point lead over second-generation driver Jake Knowles of Tyrone, GA.  Tyler Crowder of Lamont, FL holds down the third spot, just 14 points behind Knowles and 34 points behind Johnson.

In the first eight races of the 2014 season, Johnson has 744 points after three wins, three second-place finishes and one third-place effort.  Knowles has 724 points after one win and seven top five finishes in eight races.  Crowder has 710 points and is the only driver in the Chevy Super Series to finish in the top ten of all eight races held so far this season along with four top five finishes.

If Knowles wins the Dega 100, Johnson has to finish tenth or better to win the championship.  Without a win, Knowles would have to finish 11 spots ahead of Johnson to take the title.  For Crowder to sneak away with the championship, he would have to win the race, and Johnson would have to finish 18th or worse.

Johnson is trying to rebound after finishing 19th in his last Chevy Super Series race on September 27 at East Alabama Motor Speedway in Phenix City, AL.  Johnson cut down a tire on the first lap of the race, had to go to the tail for the restart, and then got collected in a multi-car pile-up on that restart.  It was the first race of the season where Johnson finished outside of the top three.

Talladega Short Track will bookend the 2014 Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series season, as they also hosted the season opener on March 22.  Johnson, Knowles and Crowder are very familiar with each other at “The Hornet’s Nest,” as they finished second, third and fourth respectively in the first race of the season.

Jacob Grizzle of Blairsville, GA is just behind the top three in the fourth spot with 680 points after three top five finishes and six top ten finishes in eight Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series race.  Grizzle finished sixth in the season opener at Talladega Short Track on March 22.

Brent Barrett of Cleveland, MS leads the Chevy Super Series Rookie of the Year points chase and is fifth overall in the standings with 608 points and three top ten finishes.  His challenger for the RoY Award and a trip to the Caribbean courtesy of Cruise With The Champions is 15-year-old Jadon Frame of Winchester, TN.

Frame is sixth overall in the Chevy Super Series standings with 596 points and two top five finishes this season.  Frame also has the better record in Chevy Super Series competition over Barrett at Talladega Short Track.  In the season opener on March 22, Frame finished ninth and Barrett finished 21st.

Seventh through tenth in the Chevy Super Series point standings are Mark Dowdy of Waterloo, AL, Lavon Sparks of Phenix City, AL, the defending champion of the Dega 100 Tim Busha of Boaz, AL, and David Brannon of Elora, TN.  They will be trying to stay in the Top 10 point fund-paying positions, while a host of drivers will also be looking to race their way in.

Just outside the Top 10 of the Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series point standings are Chase Edge of LaFayette, AL, Josh Adkins of Talladega, AL, Matthew Turner of Dawsonville, GA, Brandon Williams of Crossville, TN, Frank Wilson of Milton, FL, Pierce McCarter of Gatlinburg, TN, and Ryan King of Anniston, AL.

The Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series regulars will face some tough competition from the Talladega Short Track Super Late Model favorites in the 2nd Annual Dega 100.  Busha and King are already regulars at TST, and they will be joined by the defending track champion Tim Roszell of Anniston, AL, the father and son team of Ross and Adam Martin of Talladega, AL, Ted Lackey of Munford, AL, and Steve Kirk of Munford, AL.

Also expected is Super Late Model driving star Chris Madden of Laurens, SC.  Madden won the first Chevy Super Series race he entered on September 26 at East Alabama Motor Speedway, but it wasn’t by much.  Knowles came from the 12th starting spot to race side-by-side with Madden at the checkered flag.  Madden took the victory by just .046 seconds.

Race fans attending the 2md Annual Dega 100 this Saturday night at Talladega Short Track will witness a new style of Super Late Model racing that is economical with close two and three-wide racing along with easy access to the drivers and their race cars through the Chevy Fan Zone.

                With financial support from Chevrolet Performance, the Chevy Super Series is the first dirt late model series in the history of the sport to be backed by a major automobile manufacturer.  The dirt late models in the series are powered by the all-aluminum Chevrolet Performance CT525 racing engine that is based off the Chevrolet production LS3 Engine.

                The LS3 Engine comes under the hood of the Chevrolet Corvette, Chevrolet Camaro, and the Chevrolet SS available to the consumer at Chevrolet dealership worldwide.  The Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series is the first dirt late model series in the history of the sport where the race cars are powered by the same factory built engine the fans can purchase in their passenger cars to get to the race track to watch them.

The CT 525 Engine is more based on torque than horsepower.  This torque gives the cars forward bite without spinning the tires.  This leads to multi-groove racing with drivers battling each other for position two and three-wide.

The Chevy Super Series brings the sport of dirt track racing up close and personal with new super late model innovations and opportunities.  One of the first thing fans see when they arrive at the venue of a Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series Race is the Chevy Fan Zone.

                The majority of fans that buy a ticket to a super late model race sit in the stands, and they see a car with a number on the door, and find out from the announcer the name of the driver in each numbered car.  With the exception of a trackside interview where they can see the driver and his car from a distance, they rarely get the opportunity to visit with the driver, or see his race car up close.

                Before the racing action gets underway at every Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model race, fans are invited to socialize with the drivers and get an up close look at their race cars in the Chevy Fan Zone.  Just after the grandstand gates open, the Chevy Super Series drivers come to the fans in the grandstand area and bring their race cars with them.

                The next thing fans will see in the Chevy Fan Zone is that the drivers and the fans get to know each other, as the drivers autograph “hero cards,” pose for photos, hand out coloring books to the kids.  The drivers are more than willing to show the fans their race cars and the production-based Chevrolet CT 525 Engine under the hood. 

The Chevy Fan Zone gives the fans more enjoyment and more involvement watching the race, as they not only are familiar with the race car by number, but also with the driver sitting in the seat.

This Saturday night, the Talladega Short Track gates open at 4 p.m., with Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series Pre-Race Registration and Technical Inspection from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.  The Chevy Fan Zone will be open at 5 p.m., and the Drivers Meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. with Hot Laps and Racing to follow.

Talladega Short Track is located at 4343 Speedway Blvd., Eastaboga, AL 36260.  For more information call 256-831-1413, or visit the track web site at www.talladegashorttrack.com. You can also like them on Facebook at Talladega Short Track.

For more information about the Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series visit the series web site at www.525superseries.com, or visit the series on Facebook at Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series. 

Chevrolet Performance Parts is the Title Sponsor of the Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series.  Hoosier Racing Tire is the Official Tire Sponsor of the Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series.  Schaeffer’s Oil Presented By Chad Wallace and Heather Newsome is the Official Oil of the Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series.  AR Bodies is an Official Sponsor of the Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series.  Cruise With The Champions is an Official Sponsor of the Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series.  Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series Contingency Sponsors for 2014 are Modern Images, Mike Custom Tanks, KRC Power Steering, David Smith Carburetors, Kinser Air Filters, and Shorty’s Shock Service.

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