Newly crowned Southern Super Series champion Stephen Nasse has basically become the Captain Ahab of Super Late Model racing and Bubba Pollard is his elusive great white whale.
Much was made by Nasse himself about winning the southeastern tour championship without the virtue of a single victory this season. Since then, he’s accepted and even embraced it, but knows he probably would have won several times if not for Pollard and the No. 26.
In fact, Nasse finished second to Pollard on three different occasions this season: The Lee Fields 150 at Mobile, the Watermelon 125 at Watermelon Capital and Deep South Cranes 125 at Pensacola Five Flags.
“We’ve discussed that as a team and obviously Garrett Jones and Chandler Smith aren’t slouches even though they’re younger but we’ve got to get past Pollard,” Nasse said. “Garrett and Chandler are good drivers, young but experienced, have some money and have stout cars. I’m proud to have won that championship against him.
“But I’m sour on that Bubba thing. I’ve finished second to him four times. We beat one 26 (Smith) and now we just need to beat the other.”
He’s going to get another chance on Sunday during the prestigious All-American 400. He will start fourth while Pollard, the defending race winner, will launch from 12th.
For his part, Pollard says he can sympathize with Nasse’s frustration. Once upon a time, he was a younger driver trying to take down the greats and now he’s taken his own turn at the top of the mountaintop.
“He’s matured a lot over this past year,” Pollard said. “That’s made him an even better driver. There were times when he was younger that maybe he would get too emotional and maybe you couldn’t race hard against him but he’s really become someone I look forward to racing against each week.
“Right now, we’re winning a lot of these battles but he’s racing us hard. He doesn’t make it easy. I know what that’s like. He’s going to get one soon but it’s our job to make sure it ain’t against us.”
For now, Nasse is carrying a little bit of pride with him into Nashville. There’s still something to be said about winning a championship of any kind.
But make no mistake, Nasse still wants to win one of the big races coming up at Nashville, New Smyrna or Pensacola.
“Honestly, I’m still a little bitter about it,” Nasse said. “What I say is what I mean, and I meant what I said when I talked about wanting a win to kind of confirm our championship. I’m still bummed out but at the end of the day, but if I went into that race and lost the championship, I would have been two times the bummed out by not winning it.
“I’ve looked at it from every aspect but you have to understand from a driver’s standpoint, I’m in it to win it. I’m not trying to advance or anything. I just want to win races for everyone that pitches in. That’s what I’m here to do.”
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