NEWPORT, Tenn. — Being in two places at once is hard enough, but Derek Kraus made the most of it after he started on the tail in the Food Country USA 300 at Newport Speedway and picked up the victory Saturday night at Newport Speedway.
The Appalachian Sucker Punch ASA STARS Tour part-time driver started on the rear after missing qualifying due to his NASCAR obligations for the Coke 600. He flew to Newport and took the lead on lap 272 to win his first ASA STARS National Tour event.
Before the race Kraus had finished third at Wisconsin Int’l Raceway in 2023 marking his best finish before tonight.
Finishing in second was Stephen Nasse who got a much-needed rebound after a disappointment at Hickory. Nasse charged from 12th to post the runner-up finish. In third was Dawson Sutton who led over 200 laps in the series’ first visit to Newport.
Carson Brown and Austin Nason rounded out the top five. Brown was the only driver who finished in the top five in both the Newport and Hickory events this weekend. Brown also won the CorvetteParts.net Pole Award with a lap of 12.638.
Series point leader Cole Butcher was leading shortly after lap 200 and was on his way to another victory. However, a broken axle under caution put the 28 off the lead lap and he never recovered. He did keep up his streak of having led in all five races this season.
Kraus has run 555 laps this week in his Super Late Model after the Food Country USA 300. He will look to add 400 more laps on Sunday in his first Coke 600 start.
The finish:
Derek Kraus, Stephen Naase, Dawson Sutton, Carson Brown, Austin Nason, Colby Howard, Matthew Craig, Chase Pinsonneault, Bubba Pollard, Kyle Steckly, Cole Butcher, Gavan Boschele, George Phillips, Conner Jones, Derek Thorn, Gabrielle Grigsby.
