5/17/2026
Crate Racin' USA
Pennington Dominates “House of Hook” for First Career CRUSA Late Model Sportsman Tour Victory
(Eastaboga, AL – May 17, 2026) – Steens, Mississippi driver Chace Pennington put together a dominant performance Saturday night at Whynot Motorsports Park, scoring his first career Rogers-Dabbs Performance Parts Crate Racin’ USA Late Model Sportsman Tour victory during the tour’s return to the famed “House of Hook.”
Pennington took command of the 30-lap feature on the opening circuit, driving past pole-sitter Andy Pippin and never looking back. The Mississippi native led all 30 laps of the main event, holding off a hard-charging field to secure the milestone victory in front of his home-state crowd.
The win continued an impressive recent stretch for Pennington, who has now won three of his last seven starts in Mississippi and has finished inside the top-three in six of those seven events.
Following the race, Pennington reflected on what the victory meant against a stout field of competition.
“It’s pretty cool to be able to run with a stout group of guys that have a lot of experience at different tracks and what that means to us is we are still headed in the right direction!” Pennington said.
He also made sure to give thanks following the breakthrough victory.
“I give all the thanks to the Good Lord above if it wasn’t for him we wouldn’t be able to do any of this!”
Caleb Ashby charged from the 12th starting position to finish second and, in the process, left Whynot Motorsports Park with the series points lead. Pole-sitter Andy Pippin rounded out the podium in third after leading the field to green.
Colby Ponds crossed the line fourth, while Dustin Harris earned hard charger honors by rallying from the 13th starting spot to complete the top-five finishers.
Whynot Motorsports Park Feature Results (30 Laps):
1-54 Chace Pennington[2]
2-61 Caleb Ashby[12]
3-87 Andy Pippin[1]
4-51 Colby Ponds[5]
5-4 Dustin Harris[13]
6-9 RJ Emison[7]
7-T9 Brodie Thompson[17]
8-111S Brennen Shirley[6]
9-17J Griffin Jones[4]
10-25 Brandon Lunsford[15]
11-95 Joey Tucker[11]
12-67 Randy Boyd[3]
13-12S Steven Bryant[19]
14-W2 Grayson Williams[10]
15-17 Knox Lamberth[9]
16-28 Danny May[14]
17-C4 Devin Whatley[8]
18-111 Kendall Bean[16]
(DNS) 8-Zack Owens
Race Notes:
Entries: 19
Lap Leaders: Pennington (1-30)
Bama Sheds & Pole Barns Pole Award:
Andy Pippin – 13.436
The Rogers-Dabbs Performance Parts Crate Racin’ USA Late Model Sportsman Tour now prepares for its second consecutive weekend in the Magnolia State as teams head to Magnolia Motor Speedway in Columbus, Mississippi for the 602 Sportsman World Championship on Memorial Day weekend, May 23-24.
Sunday night’s finale will pay $5,000-to-win and serve as Round Three of the 2026 championship season. The event will also be broadcast live on CRUSA TV.
CRUSA Late Model Sportsman Tour Points:
1-Caleb Ashby – 176
2-Griffin Jones – 166 (-10)
3-Brodie Thompson – 160 (-16)
4-Joey Tucker – 154 (-22)
5-Steven Bryant – 152 (-24)
6-Brennen Shirley – 150 (-26)
7-Devin Whatley – 130 (-46)
8-Brandon Lunsford – 110 (-66)
9-Grayson Williams – 102 (-74)
10-Mark Whitener – 100 (-76)
Upcoming Events:
May 23-24 – Magnolia Motor Speedway (Columbus, MS)
602 World Championship | $5,000-to-win
June 20 – Xtreme Speedway (Danville, AL)
$2,500-to-win
July 3 – Pine Ridge Speedway (Guntown, MS)
Rumble at the Ridge | $1,000-to-win
July 4 – Pine Ridge Speedway (Guntown, MS)
Rumble at the Ridge | $2,500-to-win
For more information on Crate Racin’ USA, including schedules, points, and rules, visit www.crateracinusa.com or follow @CrateRacinUSA on Facebook, Instagram, and X.
Crate Racin’ USA extends sincere thanks to its valued partners for their continued support, including Rogers-Dabbs Performance Parts, Chevrolet Performance, Hoosier Racing Tire, VP Racing Fuels, VP Racing Lubricants, Knowles Race Parts & Bodies, LLC, Competition Racing Equipment, Inc., Cruise with the Champions, Savage Chassis, Velocita by Melissa Markewitz, Bama Sheds & Pole Barns, MatMan Designs, LLC, Scorpion Race Cars, Columbus Sports Cards, WesPro JCB Atlanta, Next Racing Wheels, Top Knotch Customs, 87 Ink, and MyRacePass.
Photo by: Foto-1
Article Credit: Cody Earley
