The first 15 rows of the starting lineup for the 57th Annual Snowball Derby have been set following Country Pleasin’ Sausage Pole Night, with storylines throughout the field of 30 drivers that earned starting spots in Sunday’s race.

Defending race winner Ty Majeski nearly broke his own track record in qualifying, ripping a lap of 16.175 on his second lap and just missing the record lap of 16.120 that he set during Derby qualifying nine years ago.

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While the 2024 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion believes he has good speed for the race Sunday, his lap during qualifying surprised even himself.

“It’s a little unexpected.  We had good speed in the car all weekend but I didn’t think we had that raw pole speed,” said Majeski.  “Derby qualifying’s always fun, I feel like it’s a high-pressure moment and as a driver we always like thriving in these moments.  This is the most exciting qualifying session all year, it’s fun to qualify here.”

Majeski was guaranteed a starting spot in this year’s Derby following his win from last year, lifting some pressure off his team stemming from trying to lock into the field on qualifying night.  However, he still embraces the other pressure that comes with the biggest Super Late Model race in the country and as a two-time winner of the event.

“I had a provisional this year so may have kind of been skewed a little bit.  You always feel the pressure, it’s in the atmosphere.  You walk down pit road and you can feel it, it’s a special feeling.  I felt better about our race stuff than our qualifying stuff so hopefully that bodes well.”

Connor Okrzesik Grinds His Way To Top-Five Starting Spot

Perhaps the biggest story from qualifying was Connor Okrzesik.  The driver from nearby Grand Bay, AL struggled throughout both days of practice, and at one point broke a shock mount.  His team borrowed a welder and fixed the issue just before the end of final practice, then proceeded to put his No.14 fifth on his qualifying run.

“We’ve been wrenching on the car all week trying to get it better.  Hats off to my guys, Mike Garvey especially.  I wouldn’t be here without these guys,” said Okrzesik.  “They’re the ones who get it ready, I’m just the one who drives it.  We don’t have any full-time guys, I’m the one who works on this car at the shop.  To be fifth, that’s awesome.”

Stephen Nasse Is Final Driver To Lock-In On Qualifying Time

Meanwhile, former Southern Super Series champion and multi-time Blizzard Series winner Stephen Nasse was the 30th and final driver to lock himself into the field through qualifying.  

A driver who has historically struggled in Snowball Derby qualifying, his team ran into an issue during final practice, which left him unsure as to what the car would do when it came time to qualify.

“We saved all our mock runs for that final practice session and ended up having something wrong with the car that we didn’t catch until that third mock run,” said Nasse.  “What kind of happened was a freak deal so we haven’t made a mock run all day or really in a couple days, so we didn’t know exactly what to expect with the car.  I just tried to get a little too much getting into three that last lap and it got free on me.”

While qualifying has been a struggle over the years for Nasse, race speed has been the opposite.  That has him still feeling good about his chances to hoist the Tom Dawson Trophy come Sunday afternoon.

“Obviously I’m going to have to miss a couple of wrecks and have a couple of things go my way, which isn’t the best position to be in.  I hate it with Anthony Campi and the whole team, the car is capable of being up front but for qualifying, there’s a dark cloud over my head, especially come Derby time.  I think by lap 100 we’ll be in the top-ten somewhere, hopefully moving on up to the front. 

“I’m disappointed but not worried.  We’re going to be really strong come Sunday and it’ll just be that much better of a show for the fans.”

A Four-Peat In The Modifieds

Friday night also saw the Modifieds of Mayhem crown their 2024 series champion, along with the Crown Stock invitational and their second-ever appearance at the Snowball Derby.

Cody Stickler continues to be untouchable in the Modifieds of Mayhem.  After setting fast time in qualifying, the Florida driver worked from the fourth starting spot to take the lead on lap five and never looking back, winning the Snowball Derby Modified race for the fourth year in a row ahead of Kyle Purvis and Kevin Peel.  Jaxon Bishop was crowned series champion for the second time.

Crown Stocks Shine On Derby Friday

Adam Salter returned after a podium run in the official Crown Stock Snowball Derby race at the Preview and dominated the 25-lap affair beating Braeden Kitchen and Hunter Lambert to the line by over six seconds.  He started on the outside front row and wasted little time taking the lead, pacing the field for the final 23 laps.

Snowball Derby Qualifying Results

Modifieds of Mayhem Results

1. Cody Stickler

2. Kyle Purvis

3. Kevin Peel

4. Derrick Griffin

5. Brett Hudson

6. Jared Maupin

7. Timothy Moore

8. Aaron Timmerman

9. Zach Stacy

10. Dodge Carlbert

11. Peyton Burba

12. Donny Matteson Jr

13. Donnie Hamrac

14. Jody Anderson

15. Jason Loveday

16. Jeff Letson

17. Hunter Evans

18. Brad Steel

19. Alec Manke

20. Jaxon Bishop

21. Jeremy Williams

22. Parker Pugh

23. Max Calles

24. Todd Jones

25. Billy Melvin

26. Kaden Honeycutt

27. Blaine Akin

28. Cody Brake

Crown Stocks Results

1. Adam Salter

2. Braeden Kitchen

3. Hunter Lambert

4. Dough Thorpe

5. Ryan Maxwell

6. Okie Mason

7. Ryan Bleich

8. Blaise Boykin

9. Dee Davis 

10. John Taylor

11. Colton Rutherford

12. Steve Sidner

13. Chris Mitchell 

14. Mike Stacy

15. Garrison Story