John Bolen Snags Mobile Pro Late Model Win With Late Charge

John Bolen edged out Dustin Smith in a fight to the finish on Saturday night at Mobile International Speedway, scoring his second win in the Rogers-Dabbs Performance Challenge for 2025.

Bolen and Smith entered the night situated first and second in the points standings for the four-track, eight-race Pro Late Model Challenge, with Smith carrying home field advantage as the points leader in Mobile's Pro Late Model track championship.

Smith took the lead on lap 51, but Bolen slowly reeled in Smith before pressuring him in the closing laps. Finally, Bolen pulled alongside Smith entering turn three with two laps to go and pulled ahead to snag the victory. After the hard-fought battle, both drivers embraced in victory lane.

"I knew we had a good shot there at the end," said Bolen. "Dustin was really good. I wasn't going to move him to win it. Luckily, I was able to race it out real hard right there and pass them the right way."

Bolen has now won three Pro Late Model contests on the year, with two victories at Montgomery Motor Speedway before Saturday's Mobile triumph.

"We had a really good car. I've got to thank all my guys, they've worked really hard. This car right here is three for four for the year. We've brought it out four times, it's won three. It's been really good to us. We've got to thank everybody back in North Carolina that helps us Alabama boys keep up with everybody.

"Any time you come here and beat Dustin, this is his house. That shows a lot where you're at. Props to him, he put up a heck of a fight. It means a lot to come here, stack up and know where we're at."

Smith shared his respect for Bolen after finishing second in Saturday's race.

"I love racing with John Bolen, you know," said Smith. "Me and him have always had respect for each other, so I just wasn't going to go in there and hit him. I gave him my best shot to try and cross him over. It just wasn't enough. He had a little more drive than we did. I think the stagger grew on us."

As is often the case in Late Model races at Mobile, tire management played a factor in the 75-lap feature. Smith was conscious of it from the drop of the green flag at his home track.

"We run Super [Late Model] cars here and, you know, that's kind of what we did in the Super stuff," said Smith. "This track's really abrasive on tires, so you just can't really abuse them. We rode for a little bit. I was talking to my spotter about when should I go and stuff. We started to pick it up on lap 25. I just wanted to get a good start position for the halfway break there."

Chris Davidson finished third, followed by Chad Robinson and Maddox Langham.

The next race for the Rogers-Dabbs Challenge takes place on July 12 at Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway.