3/23/2026
Crate Racin' USA
Massey, Duke Score Bama Bash CRUSA Wins at Talladega
(Eastaboga, AL – March 23, 2026) – The 2026 Bama Bash at Talladega Short Track brought a packed house and a stacked pit area to “The Hornet’s Nest,” as Week 4 of the Crate Racin’ USA National Points season came to a close. A total of 123 cars filled the grounds, with the CRUSA Late Model Sportsman and CRUSA Modified Sportsman divisions accounting for 54 entries combined.
The event was headlined by the Hunt the Front Super Dirt Series season opener, where Hudson O’Neal captured the $12,000 payday in Super Late Model competition. Meanwhile, CRUSA competitors delivered plenty of action of their own in two features that ultimately came down to time limits.
The CRUSA Late Model Sportsman division saw 24 entries sign in for battle, and it was Marty Massey continuing his recent dominance at Talladega Short Track.
Starting from the pole, Massey led all 11 laps of a feature that was cut short due to time constraints. Despite multiple cautions slowing the pace, Massey maintained control throughout and held off a late-race charge from David Kay to secure his second consecutive victory at the facility.
Cass Fowler showed early speed and challenged for the lead before exiting late in the race, while J.W. Partin and Brennen Shirley rounded out the top four.
One of the drives of the night belonged to Brodie Thompson, who avoided several on-track incidents and advanced an impressive 17 positions to finish fifth, earning Hard Charger honors.
CRUSA 602 Late Model Sportsman Feature (11 of 20 laps – Time Limit):1. 15-Marty Massey[1]; 2. K5-David Kay[4]; 3. P11-JW Partin[5]; 4. 111-Brennen Shirley[3]; 5. T9-Brodie Thompson[23]; 6. 67-Daniel Bradford[21]; 7. 3X-Keatin Lyons[9]; 8. 11-Jason Partin[18]; 9. 79-Chad Wallace[11]; 10. 22-Brody Woods[20]; 11. 97-Jamie Godbee[14]; 12. 1-Garrett Williams[24]; 13. G11-Charles Gower[16]; 14. 16-Heather Lowe[19]; 15. 9-Cass Fowler[2]; 16. 23-Travis Smith[6]; 17. 95-Joey Tucker[12]; 18. 25-David Singleton[8]; 19. 19X-C J Page[7]; 20. 25S-John Sands[13]; 21. 97B-Evan Bell[17]; 22. J17-James Richardson[22]; 23. 112-Michael Luna[15]; 24. (DQ) 7-Brandon Crosby[10]
Lap Leader: Massey (1-11)
Hard Charger: Thompson (+17)
A strong 30-car field assembled for the CRUSA Modified Sportsman division, competing for a $1,000-to-win feature.
Track owner Adam Stewart allowed all competitors to start the main event, though attrition would play a role throughout the caution-filled race.
Front row starter Blant Duke capitalized early and never looked back, leading all 11 laps of the shortened feature to claim the Bama Bash title. The opening lap saw immediate chaos as pole-sitter Kyle May spun in turns one and two, collecting multiple cars and setting the tone for a stop-and-go event.
Despite repeated attempts by former track champion Jarrad Gray and Tyler Hurst to close the gap, Duke remained steady out front to secure the victory.
Kenny Taylor earned Hard Charger honors, advancing 14 positions to finish seventh.
CRUSA Modified Sportsman Feature (11 of 20 laps – Time Limit):1. 24-Blant Duke[2]; 2. 44-Jarrad Gray[3]; 3. 27S-Zach Shelton[13]; 4. 7M-Jason Markewitz[7]; 5. 17C-Jamie Maurice[8]; 6. 122-Logan McVey[11]; 7. 52-Kenny Taylor[21]; 8. 376-Mark Bangs[9]; 9. 99-Eddie Brannon[18]; 10. M7-Steve Maughan[16]; 11. 28-Luke Riddle[14]; 12. 110-Shane Griffith[15]; 13. 32-Kaden Cantrell[22]; 14. 15-Drew Holloway[26]; 15. 18T-Cory Turner[17]; 16. 4-CAM NEWTON[27]; 17. 27-Troy Hinton[24]; 18. T7-Parker Thompson[10]; 19. K55-Kyle May[1]; 20. 16-Tyler Salls[29]; 21. 10M-Jordyn Morris[28]; 22. 10-Scottie Hiett[5]; 23. H25-Tyler Hurst[4]; 24. 18-Brock Love[19]; 25. H44-Randy Holder[20]; 26. 55-Chris Hill[6]; 27. 7C-Dillon Crim[12]; 28. (DNS) 25-Jammie Gowers; 29. (DNS) C1-Dylan Crumpton; 30. (DNS) D55-Parrish Duncan
Lap Leader: Duke (1-11)
Hard Charger: Kenny Taylor (+14)
Talladega Short Track will take the next two weekends off before welcoming a new and unique attraction to the facility. The American Big Rigs will make their debut at “The Hornet’s Nest” for a special night of racing action on the 1/3-mile oval.
For more information, visit TalladegaShortTrack.com or follow Talladega Short Track on social media.
Photo Credit: Simple Moments Photography
Article Credit: Cody Earley
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