The 57th annual Snowball Derby is ready to make waves across the short-track world in only a few days. The Tom Dawson trophy? A record-breaking $50,000 winner’s prize, with the chance for the world to see the race live for its first-ever broadcast on FloRacing? The stakes could not be higher for all those eyeing the ultimate honors this time.

But amidst a field packed with hungry young talents and battle-tested veterans, one name stands out a little more than most: Noah Gragson. The Las Vegas native is “super pumped” to etch his name into the history books as the 13th driver to win multiple Snowball Derbies. But standing in his way is a formidable challenge. Defending Snowball Derby champion Ty Majeski, fresh off the momentum of his 2024 NASCAR Truck Series championship, and he’s not about to give up his title so easily. So who will emerge as the king at the Five Flags Speedway?

Reigning champ Ty Majeski faces Noah Gragson’s grit for Snowball Derby crown

Since 1968, the prestigious Snowball Derby has been the pinnacle of Late Model pavement racing, with names like Donnie Allison, Darrell Waltrip, Kyle Busch, Chase Elliott, and Rich Bickle gracing the championship folds. Fun fact: Bickle is the winningest driver in the event’s history, having won five Snowball Derbies If Ty Majeski defends his crown at the 300-lap headliner on December 8th, he’ll join the ranks of Bickle as the only driver to win the prestigious feature more than twice.

But it won’t be easy. Majeski faces fierce competition from a stacked field, including guts like Bubba Pollard, Stephen Nasse, Cole Butcher, and a lesser-known name, Noah Gragson. If you’re a short-track racing fan, you’ll know that the entire Bubba Pollard-Stephen Nasse rivalry will take center stage at some odd point during the race. After all, they’ve been vying for their inaugural Snowball Derby titles for over a decade. But make no mistake. The clash of the heavyweights this time around will undoubtedly take place between Noah Gragson and Ty Majeski.

Historically, the 2024 Truck Series champion boasts a better record than Gragson at the Snowball Derby. In ten starts, he’s earned two wins and five podium finishes. In contrast, Gragson has claimed only one trophy and finished inside the top 10 once in eight attempted outings at the December feature. He broke his wrist in a crash when he debuted back in 2015. And his most recent start ended in disaster with just 20 laps to go, after he triggered the Big One from the second row, his first genuine opportunity at another Tom Dawson trophy since 2018.

That can only mean the newly hired Front Row Motorsports driver has plenty to prove before the 2025 NASCAR season rolls around in February. His new organization is tackling the legal proceedings of an anti-trust lawsuit against the sport and its founding family. Plus, that third charter deal with Gragson’s previous employers, Stewart-Haas Racing, is still up in the air, all thanks to the legal print that’s been a hot topic of debate in the federal court of Western North Carolina lately.

Regardless, Noah Gragson’s eyes are on the bigger picture this weekend. A $50,000 grand prize, accompanied by bragging rights to kick off the new season, is incentive enough for the 26-year-old to put faith in his advances. Besides, his old adversary Ty Majeski, who Noah warded off in 2018 on the last laps with everything he’s got to claim his first Snowball Derby, can only put him on a positive edge in this instance. Only a few days ago, Majeski won himself $35,000 at the Bill Bigley Memorial 128 at Freedom Factory. That type of momentum can prove difficult to disarm.

But Noah Gragson’s riding a high of his own, and his positive attitude before his 2024 Snowball Derby appearance might signal some equally positive results when the dust settles in Pensacola, Florida.

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After a tumultuous season with Legacy Motor Club in 2023, Gragson’s new team announced they’d shut down their operations together in his first year on board. Thanks to that, the Sin City citizen had to take his ambitions to a third full-time team in as many years, and it’s not even his fault. However, he remains optimistic before the 57th annual Snowball Derby, and the change in atmosphere might be helping his morale.

As Noah Gragson told FloRacing in a recent telephonic conversation, “It’s obviously one of my favorite events of the season in any form of racing. Going down there and seeing faces I only see one time a year, or faces I see throughout the NASCAR season, you get a little mix of everything. It’s great to go down there. The competition level, everything about it. It’s just a fun week. The town of Pensacola and the race, the atmosphere, everything about it is just awesome.”

The added incentive of becoming a multi-time winner bears on the guy’s mind. No doubt. But his love for the event weighs heavier than all motives. That could help Noah Gragson take the title from Majeski’s hands with little thought. “I put probably the most amount of pressure on myself for that race compared to other races, as silly as that sounds,” asserted the No.30 listed driver at this year’s Snowball Derby.

So what happens next at Five Flags Speedway come Sunday? Will Ty Majeski reclaim his crown at the end of the scheduled 300 laps? Can Noah Gragson swoop and spoil the party? Will another equally worthy contender emerge from the shadows and stake his claim at a $50k cash prize in Pensacola, Florida? The possibilities are endless; same as the feelings attached to the 57th annual running of one of the oldest Late Model pavement features in stock car racing history. To join the festivities, tune into FloRacing’s live stream on Sunday, December 8th at 1 PM ET.