December 6, 2025 | By Chuck Corder

Preston Peltier on Snowball Derby pole, Keelan Harvick wins Snowflake 125

PENSACOLA, Fla.—Eight years ago, Preston Peltier sat on the pole of the biggest race in America.

He turned back the clock Saturday night as the 58th annual Snowball Derby presented by FloSports officially got underway after Mother Nature spoiled the party Thursday, Friday and most of Saturday.

In a qualifying field full of young hotshoes and NASCAR stars, Peltier laid down a blistering lap to reach the top of the Derby pile.

The 48-year-old driver’s time of 16.240 seconds was nearly a track record and will lead 36 cars to the green flag for Sunday afternoon’s 300-lap race for Super Late Models.

“I’m old, but still fast,” Peltier joked.

He topped two-time Derby champ Ty Majeski (16.301), who will start outside of Peltier. Hudson Bulger (16.319), Jake Finch (16.325) and Spencer Davis (16.327) rounded out the top-five.

Defending Derby champion Kaden Honeycutt made it comfortably, as did Cole Butcher—this year’s Deep South Cranes Blizzard Series track champion at Five Flags and winner of eight major SLM races across the country.

Score another one for the old dudes, as David Gilliland—the eldest driver in the Derby field at 49—qualified in the top-10.

Former Derby champion Derek Thorn and perennial contender Bubba Pollard made it into the show. Pollard is looking for his first career Derby win in his 18th appearance, the most starts without a victory.

Three former Derby champs were among those that didn’t qualify on time, including Cup Series legend and future hall-of-famer Kyle Busch.

While Busch was able to advance to the Derby by winning the last chance race—reduced to a 25-lap shootout instead of the traditional 50-lapper because of the weather—the other two Cup drivers fell short. Erik Jones, who won the Derby in back-to-back years (2012-2013), put up a valiant effort, but couldn’t quite reach that fourth and final transfer spot. Noah Gragson, the Derby winner in 2018, had car troubles all week and endured more issues both in qualifying and the last chance race.

The other three to advance from the last chance were Stephen Nasse, Derek Griffith and Jake Garcia.

“I wore myself out on that one,” said a relieved Garcia, who passed Cory Hall late in the 25-lapper. “I was gripping the steering wheel hard and holding my breath. It was as hard as you can go for 25 laps. I figured out where I was better than (Hall). I waited for him to have bad (Turn Nos.) 1 and 2 and made my move.
“We’re looking forward to (Sunday). This is a piece that can go from last to first.”


Top 10 in SBD Qualifying:

1 48 Preston Peltier, Kimberly, ID
2 91 Ty Majeski, Neenah, WI
3 17 Hudson Bulger, Ft. Valley, GA
4 51 Jake Finch, Lynn Haven, FL
5 96 Spencer Davis, Dawsonville, GA
6 3 Michael Atwell, Naples, FL
7 8 Jace Hansen, Berthoud, CO
8 98 David Gilliland, Troutman, NC
9 55 Haeden Plybon, Spokane, WA
10 1 Kasey Kleyn Quincy, WA

Kyle Busch, Stephen Nasse, Derek Griffin, and Jake Garcia make it into Derby in Last Chance Race.


SATURDAY RESULTS

Deep South Cranes Super Late Model  (45 entries)

Snowball LCQ (25 Laps): 1. 51B-Kyle Busch[1]; 2. 51N-Stephen Nasse[4]; 3. 12G-Derek Griffith[2]; 4. 35-Jake Garcia[6]; 5. 4-Erik Jones[9]; 6. 54-Seth Christensen[8]; 7. 14N-Austin Nason[5]; 8. 44J-Conner Jones[7]; 9. 83-Cory Hall[3]; 10. 30G-Noah Gragson[10]; 11. (DNS) 15-Mike Hopkins; 12. (DNS) 5J-Casey Johnson

Qualifying 1: 1. 48-Preston Peltier, 00:16.240[28]; 2. 91-Ty Majeski, 00:16.301[3]; 3. 17-Hudson Bulger, 00:16.319[44]; 4. 51F-Jake Finch, 00:16.325[45]; 5. 96S-Spencer Davis, 00:16.327[30]; 6. 3-Michael Atwell, 00:16.350[43]; 7. 08-Jace Hansen, 00:16.353[39]; 8. 98-David Gilliland, 00:16.356[15]; 9. 55-Haeden Plybon, 00:16.362[18]; 10. 1-Kasey Kleyn, 00:16.384[41]; 11. 89-Dylan Fetcho, 00:16.401[22]; 12. 26S-Dawson Sutton, 00:16.425[11]; 13. 28B-Cole Butcher, 00:16.431[26]; 14. 16-Jacob Gomes, 00:16.433[35]; 15. 96T-Derek Thorn, 00:16.434[33]; 16. 21-Kaden Honeycutt, 00:16.437[37]; 17. 81-Carson Brown, 00:16.446[40]; 18. 5M-Tristan McKee, 00:16.450[24]; 19. 18-Max Reaves, 00:16.459[1]; 20. 26P-Bubba Pollard, 00:16.486[34]; 21. 9-Derek Kraus, 00:16.488[2]; 22. 30T-Treyten Lapcevich, 00:16.493[42]; 23. 30R-Casey Roderick, 00:16.494[25]; 24. 36-Ty Fredrickson, 00:16.498[13]; 25. 22-Buddy Shepherd, 00:16.498[19]; 26. 33-Dustin Smith, 00:16.504[27]; 27. 60-Ryan Preece, 00:16.519[16]; 28. 6-Brandon Lopez, 00:16.521[14]; 29. 76-Kole Raz, 00:16.524[32]; 30. 14P-Chase Pinsonneault, 00:16.543[23]; 31. 44C-Matt Craig, 00:16.552[10]; 32. 51B-Kyle Busch, 00:16.563[38]; 33. 12G-Derek Griffith, 00:16.595[31]; 34. 24-Gavan Boschele, 00:16.598[12]; 35. 83-Cory Hall, 00:16.602[36]; 36. 51N-Stephen Nasse, 00:16.611[29]; 37. 14N-Austin Nason, 00:16.635[20]; 38. 35-Jake Garcia, 00:16.673[9]; 39. 44J-Conner Jones, 00:16.711[17]; 40. 54-Seth Christensen, 00:16.734[8]; 41. 4-Erik Jones, 00:16.820[6]; 42. 5J-Casey Johnson, 00:16.978[5]; 43. 30G-Noah Gragson, 10:04.016[21]; 44. 15-Mike Hopkins, 10:04.016[4]; 45. (DNS) 28W-Timothy Watson


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KEELAN HARVICK WINS SNOWFLAKE 125, TOUNGEST EVER AT AGE 13

PENSACOLA, FL -- Teenagers will find any excuse to stay up late.

Keelan Harvick is no different. The 13-year-old was still bright-eyed and bushy-tailed at 3:30 Sunday morning at Five Flags Speedway. Keelan had a good reason and an even better story once the checkered flag flew in the Allen Turner Snowflake 125 at the 58th annual Snowball Derby presented by FloSports.

Keelan became not only the youngest driver to win the Snowflake, but the youngest champion in Snowball Derby history. He eclipsed Hunter Robbins, who captured his first ’Flake as a 14-year-old in 2005. His head-turning victory had his dad, former NASCAR Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick, beaming with pride.

The two embraced in Victory Lane as father whispered meaningful words after son removed his camouflage helmet.

“This is really cool,” said Keelan, whose eyes lit up as big as saucers when he realized his accomplishment. “Me and my dad watched the Snowflake from last year. We saw everybody coming out of (the turns) low and straight. That's what I did.

“I’m so glad I get to share this with my team. I wanted to get this win for these guys. They all work so hard.”

Fifteen-year-old Tristan McKee finished runner-up and defending Derby champion Kaden Honeycutt rounded out the podium.
Honeycutt dominated the first 75 laps before a competition yellow allowed teams to make adjustments.

“Every time we put tires on, it tightens the car so much,” Honeycutt said. “But it’s nothing to hang our heads about. My guys worked their tails off. (Keelan and Tristan) were really good on the drive off.”

Keelan’s Rackley W.A.R. team made the most of their time in the pits under the controlled caution. He first took the lead on Lap 77 when he slid by Honeycutt with ease.

A few laps later, though, was nearly Keelan’s demise. Following another caution, he struggled on a restart and his opponents pounced on the youngster’s mistake.
“Wrong gear,” he admitted plainly.

Keelan fell from first to fourth in a blink and watched Tristan take the lead on Lap 83. He was undaunted, however. Keelan climbed back to second by Lap 90 and began cutting tenths off Tristan’s lead.

The two friendly rivals carried their season-long battle on the CARS Tour into their first Snowflake. The pair broke away from what was left of the 37-car field, as Keelan inched closer to Tristan with every revolution.

He made a smooth pass, inside of Tristan on Lap 101 to regain the lead and didn’t relinquish again down the stretch.

“(Keelan) had more drive off the corner when it came down to it,” Tristan said. “I needed a little bit more forward drive. We came up a little short.”

Keelan proved to be a quick study when opportunity came knocking on Lap 115. Following the last caution of the night, Keelan did not fumble that restart and kept Tristan at bay


Allen Turner Pro Late Models   (62 entries)

Allen Turner A Feature 1 (125 Laps): 1. 62H-Keelan Harvick[15]; 2. 7-Tristan McKee[6]; 3. 54H-Kaden Honeycutt[2]; 4. 25-Isaac Kitzmiller[17]; 5. 51R-Luke Baldwin[1]; 6. 35-Luke Yarbrough[36]; 7. 00-Jimmy Renfrew Jr[19]; 8. 47B-Gabe Brown[9]; 9. 50S-Evan Szotko[33]; 10. 44-Conner Jones[16]; 11. 99S-Craig Slaunwhite[26]; 12. 20-Sylas Ripley[24]; 13. 29R-Cole Robie[29]; 14. 11C-Dylan Cappello[8]; 15. 54B-Jarrett Butcher[22]; 16. 67A-Colin Allman[11]; 17. 54C-Matt Craig[13]; 18. 6-Brandon Lopez[20]; 19. 42-Alex Labbe[21]; 20. 15J-Jace Hale[30]; 21. 29Z-Dylan Zampa[4]; 22. 96-Spencer Davis[14]; 23. 24A-Jade Avedisian[31]; 24. 62R-Casey Roderick[10]; 25. 1K-Kasey Kleyn[3]; 26. 91-Jim Wall[32]; 27. 68-Aidan Potter[25]; 28. 33F-Albert Francis[5]; 29. 18-Jake Finch[7]; 30. 55-Haeden Plybon[28]; 31. 22B-Chase Burgeson[34]; 32. 46-Cole Williams[23]; 33. 82S-Rafe Slate[18]; 34. 27-Vito Cancilla[12]; 35. 67K-Zack Dixon[27]; 36. 51N-Stephen Nasse[37]; 37. 33S-Dustin Smith[35]

Allen Turner LCQ1 (20 Laps): 1. 24A-Jade Avedisian[5]; 2. 50S-Evan Szotko[1]; 3. 60-DJ Shaw[2]; 4. 50N-Jett Noland[7]; 5. 14-Corey Deuser[6]; 6. 99M-Cody Martell[9]; 7. 4-Elliott Massey[10]; 8. 22D-Donald Crocker[8]; 9. 26C-Tony Cosentino[11]; 10. 83-JP Crabtree[3]; 11. 11M-Will Mack[12]; 12. 47D-TJ DeCaire[4]

Allen Turner LCQ2 (20 Laps): 1. 91-Jim Wall[5]; 2. 22B-Chase Burgeson[3]; 3. 11P-James Patrick[7]; 4. 08N-Nicholas Naugle[4]; 5. 82J-Presley Johnson[1]; 6. 40-Dylan Caldwell[6]; 7. 13-Ben Mack[10]; 8. 37-A J Wernette[12]; 9. 08B-Spencer Bragg[9]; 10. 1B-Cody Brinson[8]; 11. 3-Chris Munson[11]; 12. 38-Cody Haskins[2]

Allen Turner Qualifying 1: 1. 51R-Luke Baldwin, 00:16.543[34]; 2. 54H-Kaden Honeycutt, 00:16.580[44]; 3. 1K-Kasey Kleyn, 00:16.593[28]; 4. 29Z-Dylan Zampa, 00:16.601[46]; 5. 33F-Albert Francis, 00:16.618[57]; 6. 7-Tristan McKee, 00:16.626[18]; 7. 18-Jake Finch, 00:16.626[62]; 8. 11C-Dylan Cappello, 00:16.672[36]; 9. 47B-Gabe Brown, 00:16.681[27]; 10. 62R-Casey Roderick, 00:16.685[50]; 11. 67A-Colin Allman, 00:16.702[32]; 12. 27-Vito Cancilla, 00:16.714[38]; 13. 54C-Matt Craig, 00:16.721[15]; 14. 96-Spencer Davis, 00:16.725[19]; 15. 62H-Keelan Harvick, 00:16.737[3]; 16. 44-Conner Jones, 00:16.774[58]; 17. 25-Isaac Kitzmiller, 00:16.779[61]; 18. 82S-Rafe Slate, 00:16.803[52]; 19. 00-Jimmy Renfrew Jr, 00:16.817[49]; 20. 6-Brandon Lopez, 00:16.818[26]; 21. 42-Alex Labbe, 00:16.819[48]; 22. 54B-Jarrett Butcher, 00:16.820[30]; 23. 46-Cole Williams, 00:16.821[23]; 24. 20-Sylas Ripley, 00:16.834[14]; 25. 68-Aidan Potter, 00:16.847[47]; 26. 99S-Craig Slaunwhite, 00:16.852[31]; 27. 67K-Zack Dixon, 00:16.865[55]; 28. 55-Haeden Plybon, 00:16.879[42]; 29. 29R-Cole Robie, 00:16.883[37]; 30. 15J-Jace Hale, 00:16.899[56]; 31. 50S-Evan Szotko, 00:16.904[22]; 32. 82J-Presley Johnson, 00:16.906[21]; 33. 60-DJ Shaw, 00:16.923[51]; 34. 38-Cody Haskins, 00:16.929[35]; 35. 83-JP Crabtree, 00:16.947[54]; 36. 33S-Dustin Smith, 00:16.952[5]; 37. 22B-Chase Burgeson, 00:16.954[60]; 38. 47D-TJ DeCaire, 00:16.958[4]; 39. 35-Luke Yarbrough, 00:16.960[9]; 40. 08N-Nicholas Naugle, 00:16.982[8]; 41. 24A-Jade Avedisian, 00:16.994[6]; 42. 91-Jim Wall, 00:16.997[33]; 43. 14-Corey Deuser, 00:17.052[1]; 44. 51N-Stephen Nasse, 00:17.080[10]; 45. 40-Dylan Caldwell, 00:17.091[12]; 46. 50N-Jett Noland, 00:17.096[40]; 47. 11P-James Patrick, 00:17.110[13]; 48. 22D-Donald Crocker, 00:17.126[2]; 49. 5-Ryan Phipps, 00:17.179[11]; 50. 1B-Cody Brinson, 00:17.191[24]; 51. 99M-Cody Martell, 00:17.205[7]; 52. 08B-Spencer Bragg, 00:17.222[25]; 53. 4-Elliott Massey, 00:17.253[29]; 54. 13-Ben Mack, 00:17.269[39]; 55. 26C-Tony Cosentino, 00:17.396[20]; 56. 3-Chris Munson, 00:17.482[53]; 57. 11M-Will Mack, 00:17.652[45]; 58. 37-A J Wernette, 00:18.096[41]; 59. 22S-Buddy Shepherd[59]; 60. (DNS) 24P-Jayden Park; 61. (DNS) 88-Boston Oliver; 62. (DNS) 26P-Bubba Pollard