Ramstrom Takes MegaMeltdown Win; Griffith, Craig Claim Titles At Hickory

HICKORY, NC (November 10) –Derek Ramstrom took the lead for the final time with just over 30 laps to go and led the rest of the way to claim his first career Pro All Stars Series (PASS) South Super Late Model win Saturday afternoon at Hickory Motor Speedway in the Mason-Dixon MegaMeltdown 200. While Ramstrom took the win, Derek Griffith finished second to capture the PASS National Championship Super Late Model title and third place finisher Matt Craig took his third straight PASS South championship.

“This is just awesome for us, we’ve been coming down here ever since 2006 and we’ve finally gotten us a win down south,” said Ramstrom. “Hickory is a great place to come to and reminds us of a lot of the tracks back home in New England. We came with a totally different package this time and I just can’t say enough for all the guys and the work they put in to give us such a great car.”

In qualifying, Kodie Conner claimedhis secondstraightMegaMeltdown pole by edging out Craig. After the top 10 qualifiers redraw,Jody Measamer drew the pole, while Conner pulled pill two to start alongside.

Conner quickly moved to the front and would lead the first 28 laps before Jake Crum moved by and assumed the lead. The first caution of the day did not wave until lap 33 when Lucas Jones spun in turn two following contact from Brandon Barker. On the restart, Ramstrom would get the advantage over Crum to take the lead for the first time of the day. While batting for sixth, former Hickory winners Brandon Setzer and Preston Peltier made contact on lap 60, ripping the left front fender from Peltier’s car and ending his day.

Ramstrom and Griffith would swap the lead a couple of times before the caution waved again on lap 96 when Gabe Brown spun in turn three while running eighth. Conner would reassume the top spot on the restart and led until the competition caution on lap 125.

Following the pit stops, Ramstrom powered his way back into the lead and would continue to lead through a couple of quick cautions due to incidents for Brandon Johnson and TJ Brackett. Conner would retake the lead from Ramstrom with 52 laps to go, but both Ramstrom and Setzer would move by to knock Conner back to third on lap 168.

Ramstrom and Setzer then separated themselves from the rest of the field as they attempted to settle the 200-lapper amongst one another. But, with 10 laps to go, Setzer would make contact with Gracie Trotter while lapping her, sending her for a spin in turn one, which collected Conner in the process. Setzer was placed at the rear of the field by PASS officials for avoidable contact with Trotter. From there, Ramstrom would lead the rest of the way to take the win over Griffith, Craig, Cory Casagrande, and Measamer. Rounding out the top 10 were Austin Theriault, Crum, Tyler Church, Wyatt Alexander, and Brandon Lynn.

Griffith’s championship season culminated on a day that saw it nearly slip away in morning practice. He avoided the wall after breaking a trailing arm bracket, which allowed his team to make the necessary welding repairs at Setzer’s nearby shop prior to qualifying.

“This is just amazing, the guys did a great job to get the car repaired,” said Griffith. “I can’t thank Brandon and Dennis [Setzer] for letting us use their shop. Ray Christian, my nearest competitor for the championship, he offered to let me use their backup car. I mean, what can you say about that? This has just been a great year and I’m so proud of what we’ve been able to accomplish.”

The Mason-Dixon MegaMeltdown 200 from Hickory will air on MAVTV on Wednesday night, January 23, 2019 at 7 PM Eastern as part of Speed51’s Short Track America.

The2018PASS Super Late Model is complete, but continue to monitor ProAllStarsSeries.com over the coming weeks for moreinformationon the upcoming season. Be sure to “Like” the Pro All Stars Series on Facebook or follow us on Twitter at @PASSSLM14.

Race Results
Mason-Dixon MegaMeltdown 200
PASS South
November 10, 2019
Hickory Motor Speedway – Hickory, NC

Finish Position, Driver

1. 35 – Derek Ramstrom 200

2. 12G – Derek Griffith 200

3. 54 – Matt Craig 200

4. 7G – Cory Casagrande 200

5. 98 – Jody Measamer 200

6. 57 – Austin Theriault 200

7. 01 Jake Crum 200

8. 7C – Tyler Church 200

9. 96 – Wyatt Alexander 200

10. 97 – Brandon Lynn 200

11. 93CT – Ray Christian, III 200

12. 8F – Tate Fogleman 200

13. 24J – JP Josiasse 199

14. 6W – Matt Wallace 198

15. 16X – Brandon Barker 198

16. 6S – Brandon Setzer 195

17. 49 – Jeff Batten 193

18. 4N – Ben Rowe 190

19. 45 Kodie Conner 189

20. 2T – Gracie Trotter 188

21. 47 – Gabe Brown 146

22. 1 – Brandon Johnson 139

23. 61 – TJ Brackett 129

24. 82 – John-Michael Shenette 128

25. 28 – Jared Irvan 88

26. 16 – Lucas Jones 66

DQ 33 – Preston Peltier 60