For the past two years, Stetsen Todd has regretted letting a World Short Track Championship victory slip through his fingers. So, when another opportunity for a win presented itself Saturday night, he wasn’t going to make the same mistake twice.
The SRI Performance/Stock Car Steel & Aluminum Thunder Bomber Feature started in dramatic fashion with the front row colliding as they entered Turn 1, sending polesitter Bryson Sweatt spinning in front of the field. He was hit and flipped at the top of the turn as several other cars spun and piled into the wreck.
Once the field reset, the new front row had Austin Brown on the pole and Todd to his outside. They had a cleaner entrance into the first turn, leading to Todd charging by Brown to take the top spot.
Brown continued to fall after losing the lead, even spinning a lap later. That allowed Austin Holcombe to move into second and Cruz Mattison into third, where they would battle for the remainder of the Feature.
Several cautions put more stress on Todd’s reign out front, as Holcombe and Mattison threw attacks at him every restart. However, Todd proved to have the better car each time, pulling away in clean air. Mattison and Holcombe dueled lap after lap for the runner-up spot with Mattison winning that battle at the end.
Todd used his clean air advantage to earn his first World Short Track Championship victory during the 11th edition of the event at The Dirt Track at Charlotte.
“Two years ago, we set Quick Time, won out Heat Race, led some of the race, and I let that one get away from me, and I was upset,” Todd recounted in Victory Lane as he started to get more emotional with every word.
“Just a blessing, man. I’ve started crying. I mean, this is what it’s all about. There are other races that pay bigger money, but this is what we, what I shoot for.”
RESULTS: Feature (15 Laps): 1. 19-Stetsen Todd[3]; 2. 05-Cruz Mattison[7]; 3. 8A-Austin Holcombe[5]; 4. 21-Nate Jackson[13]; 5. 82B-James Baker[22]; 6. 83-Ricky Bogan[20]; 7. 119-Justin Barber[15]; 8. 71-Donny Atkins[9]; 9. 04-Austin Brown[2]; 10. 135J-Trenten Jamieson[14]; 11. 47-Parker Guice[23]; 12. S4-Tyler Smith[27]; 13. 4S-Cory Skipper[10]; 14. P8-Christopher Patterson[25]; 15. 46-Bailey Hipp[4]; 16. 28-Bryson Guice[8]; 17. 88-Luke Doggett[6]; 18. S2-Garrett Sweatt[11]; 19. 4-Doug Penny[21]; 20. 13-Bundy Stowe[12]; 21. G41-Grant Burton[26]; 22. 44-Hunter Aiken[19]; 23. 9R-Ray Cagle Jr[16]; 24. 114-Jonathon Holcombe[24]; 25. (DNF) 45-Jamie Decker[28]; 26. (DNF) 43F-Jacob Funderburke[17]; 27. (DNF) S1-Bryson Sweatt[1]; 28. (DNF) 13P-Blake Pryor[18]
Austin Holcombe (left), Stetsen Todd (center), Cruz Mattison (right) | Chris Dolack Photo
