Kodie Conner has eight career national touring Super Late Model victories but his All-American 400 pole immediately ranks right up there with each of his race wins.
It was evident from the moment Conner and his team dodged the final bullet, Sammy Smith of Kyle Busch Motorsports, as handshakes, hugs and high fives were exchanged on pit road of the venerable Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway.
“This is a really big pole award for us,” Conner told Short Track Scene after time trials. “We had to work hard just to get the car inside of the top-10. Yesterday, we were 19th and hadn’t really put together long run speed, but I thought we had short run speed, and fortunately qualifying is a short run.
“My guys do everything they can for me. My dad. It’s me and him in the shop every night, doing everything we can to make this car faster.
“I have my quarter-midget guys from back in the day here. Everyone is a volunteer. They take their time to make my dreams a reality. It’s pretty cool that I can show them that their hard work can pay off, so this is a really meaningful moment for me right now.”
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Conner turned a fast lap of 18.432 seconds around the venerable 0.596-mile oval on Saturday evening. It was a surprise to their No. 45 team as it was much of the industry against a field that includes each of the elite from all corners of the country.
He was the 24th of 34 entries and had to wait out heavy hitters Jake Garcia, Donnie Wilson. Jeremy Pate, Derek Thorn and Smith.
Conner has Pro All Stars Series victories at Ace, Greenville-Pickens, Southern National, Orange Country, Hickory and Concord but said a pole against the field at Nashville is different and special.
“Listen, I have a pole at Hickory, but this isn’t Hickory,” Conner said. “This place has a lot of history to it. It’s bad to the bone. Hickory does too, but this is a little different, and it’s a dream come true.”
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Carson Hocevar made the overnight trip from Martinsville, where he competed in the NASCAR Truck Series, to Nashville and held the top spot for much of the qualifying session before Conner jumped to the top of the scoring pylon.
Chandler Smith, driving the No. 26 from the Donnie Wilson Motorsports camp, posted the third best time. Multi-time Southwest Tour champion Derek Thorn and former Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway track champion Willie Allen completed the top five.
The top-20 qualifiers locked into the show based on their qualifying times. The remainder of the field was forced to compete in a Last Chance Race to set the remaining starting lineup positions.
QUALIFYING RESULTS
- Carson Hocevar 18.456
- Chandler Smith 18.518
- Derek Thorn 18.541
- Willie Allen 18.570
- Bubba Pollard 18.592
- Casey Roderick 18.610
- Hunter Robbins 18.621
- Jake Garcia 18.629
- Brandon Oakley 18.639
- Boris Jurkovic 18.662
- Sammy Smith 18.679
- Matt Craig 18.680
- Gabe Sommers 18.686
- Corey Heim 18.697
- Jett Noland 18.711
- Donnie Wilson 18.720
- Stephen Nasse 18.725
- Kyle Neveau 18.726
- Austin Nason 18.732
- Jeremy Pate 18.732
- Jeff Storm 18.741
- Daniel Dye 18.772
- Carson Kvapil 18.772
- Connor Okrzesik 18.780
- Mason Keller 17.782
- Greg Van Alst 18.851
- Brittney Zamora 18.857
- Albert Francis 18.863
- Trevor Cristiani 18.871
- Cody Dempster 18.911
- Hudson Halder 19.029
- Johnny Brazier 19.075
- Trevor McCoy 19.184
STARTING LINEUP
- Kodie Conner
- Carson Hocevar
- Chandler Smith
- Derek Thorn
- Willie Allen
- Bubba Pollard
- Casey Roderick
- Hunter Robbins
- Jake Garcia
- Brandon Oakley
- Boris Jurkovic
- Sammy Smith
- Matt Craig
- Gabe Sommers
- Corey Heim
- Jett Noland
- Donnie Wilson
- Stephen Nasse
- Kyle Neveau
- Austin Nason
- Daniel Dye
- Connor Okrzesik
- Albert Francis
- Brittney Zamora
- Trevor Cristiani
- Cody Dempster
- Jeff Storm
- Hudson Halder
- Mason Keller
- Carson Kvapil
- Greg Van Alst
- Jeremy Pate
- Johnny Brazier
- Trevor McCoy
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