Plenty on the Line at Five Flags' Night of Champions #2 on Saturday

There is a lot on the line this Saturday night at Five Flags Speedway for the track's Night of Champions for the Deep South Crane Blizzard Series and Allen Turner Pro Late Model Series.

First, there's the obvious part, the namesake of the night of racing. The Late Model twin-bill will crown 2026 champions for the track's championships in Super Late Model and Pro Late Model competition.

For the Blizzard Series, defending Snowball Derby winner Stephen Nasse enters Saturday with a 15-point advantage in search of his first Blizzard title. However, second-place Cole Butcher and third-place Jake Garcia are entered for Saturday's NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series event at Kansas Speedway, meaning next in line is fourth-place Spencer Davis, 27 points back.

Jake Finch enters Saturday night as the Allen Turner Pro Late Model Series points leader, 15 points ahead of Jim Wall and 18 points ahead of Zack Dixon. Finch is also entered for the Blizzard Series contest, giving him a busy night of racing.

The Blizzard Series feature is also a points-paying event for the ASA Southern Super Series. Spencer Davis leads Bubba Pollard in the SSS points standings by 30 markers, with just the World Crown 300 at Cordele Motor Speedway on the schedule after Five Flags.

This weekend's races are also drivers' last chance to prepare in the heat of competition for the Snowball Derby in December. The 59th Annual Snowball Derby is scheduled for December 3-6, and the Night of Champions is often seen by competitors as an important event for dialing in their entries ahead of the marquee year-ending event.

The Night of Champions also have direct impact on how Snowball Derby weekend will play out for drivers taking part in both the Super Late Model showcase and the Allen Turner Hyundai Snowflake 125.

For the Snowball Derby, potentially three provisional starting positions are available. One of those goes to the highest finisher in the Blizzard Series points who does not qualify into the Snowball Derby on time, with another awarded similarly based on the Southern Super Series standings.

However, a driver must be in the top 10 in points to receive the provisional for that respective series. Drivers hovering near that top 10 mark will certainly be keeping an eye on the standings to ensure their provisional eligibility, and everyone within the top 10 will be hoping to gain as many points as possible, just in case.

The third potential provisional is reserved for the most recent Snowball Derby winner, if that driver does not qualify in the top 30 during qualifying or receive one of the two aforementioned provisionals.

The Blizzard Series Super Late Models and Allen Turner Pro Late Models will both race for 100 laps on Saturday night. They'll be joined by the Crown Stocks for a 25-lap contest.

Fans can watch Saturday's Night of Champions live on RacingAmerica.TV. Click here to subscribe today and tune in to Night of Champions #2 live, with coverage starting at 7:30 p.m. CT/8:30 p.m. ET.

-Photo credit: Will Bellamy