Travis Braden Records Third-Place Finish in Emotional Return to the Snowball Derby
Dec 4, 2023
Another year has come and gone, and another Snowball Derby is in the books. Here are some notable numbers and stats from the 56th Annual Snowball Derby presented by Hooters and Safe Locator.
13 for Augie: With a third-place finish in the Modified event on Friday, Augie Grill now has 13 podium finishes on Snowball Derby weekend. He still holds the record for most wins with eight (two Snowballs, three Snowflakes and three Modified races.)
4 Time: Speaking of winners, Robert Loper took home his fourth win in the Pure Stock race on Thursday night. He has four wins in the event, as this was his first since 2021.
7th time: Bubba Pollard led the Snowball Derby for the seventh time in his career. Eddie Mercer led the race a record 12 different times. Pollard has led nearly 400 laps in the Snowball Derby.
1000: Speaking of laps, Derek Thorn has now led over 1,000 laps at the Snowball Derby. This is the first year since 2019 that Thorn did not lead the most laps.
Catch 22: Stephen Nasse becomes the 22nd driver to lead over 100 laps in a Snowball event and not go to victory lane.
READ MORE: Bubba Pollard, Stephen Nasse Come Up Empty Handed in the Derby Again After Late-Race Tussle
18 for 18: It was 18 years ago that a 14-year-old Hunter Robbins took his number 18 to victory lane. He did it again on Monday night, 18 years later.
5 Bag: Travis Braden backed up his Snowball Derby win with another podium finish at Five Flags. Braden, a former Winchester 400 winner, now has five podium runs in Super Late Model Crown Jewel events.
READ MORE: Travis Braden Records Third-Place Finish in Emotional Return to the Snowball Derby
9 is Divine: Derrick Griffin became only the ninth driver to win multiple feature events at the Snowball Derby. Griffin won a Modified feature a few years back before his Outlaw win this year.
400: Both Matt Craig and Stephen Nasse completed all 400 laps between the Snowflake and the Snowball Derby. Nasse was third in the Snowflake and sixth in the Derby.
2 for 2 from 2: Ty Majeski has now won both his Snowball Derby events from the outside of the front row. He joins Gary Balough as the only other driver to win the race from the front row twice. Balough was on the pole for his wins in 1980 and 1986.
Top 10 for Top Rookie: William Sawalich was the top rookie at the Snowball Derby this year with a 10th-place finish. That’s the ninth time in the last 10 years that the top rookie has cracked the top 10.
-Photo credit: Will Bellamy/Racing America