CALIFORNIA PRO LATE MODEL RANKINGS: #7-#4

NORTH HIGHLANDS, Calif. (April 21, 2020) – The editors of ShortTrackLive.com will be ranking drivers across different disciplines of California grassroots motorsports throughout the season. We begin our rankings with one of the fastest growing divisions in the country, west coast-style Pro Late Models. This ranking is compiled from polls we sent out to many within the industry and are a power poll from 2019 results before the 2020 season gets underway. Two qualified for the top-ten without a win, due in large part to the top-three in our poll accumulating 22 wins total.  Photos by Don Thompson

#10 – #8 (released 4/21)

#7 Dylan Zampa – Napa, CA
Dylan Zampa burst onto the Pro Late Model scene with a stunning opening-night win in the Nut Up Pro Late Model division at Madera Speedway. Then just a 15-year-old, the younger Zampa outdueled older brother Logan in a family-prepared car to win the $5,000 main event in a rain-shortened race. Perhaps the win shouldn’t have caught anyone off guard; after all, Dylan Zampa won three 51FIFTY Junior Late Model races in 2018. While he couldn’t repeat his opening night magic, the Napa native did capture top-five finishes in half his starts (5 of 10), including two more podium finishes, and was a championship contender up until the final race of 2019. He ultimately finished third in the MAVTV-televised series at Madera, and capped 2019 with a strong run in the $10,000 finale at All American Speedway. – Jason Galvin

#6 Cole Moore – Granite Bay, CA
After a successful 2018 season in the Pacific Challenge Series that netted three victories, Cole Moore set his sights on the 2019 SPEARS SRL Southwest Tour championship. Moore achieved that feat on the strength of a consistent season, with seven top-fives and eight top-tens in the nine-race series. The driving technique learned in touring stock car racing appeared to pay huge dividends for Moore in the biggest race of the season at All American Speedway, when he dominated for the 100-lap, $10,000 victory in November. Moore added an impressive win on September 14 in the first of that night’s NASCAR twin bill as well. Even with his controversial top-five finish at Madera’s Short Track Shootout stripped from his records, Moore scored six top-fives, eight top-tens, and two wins in his eight race Pro Late Model season. He ended the year as one of the largest threats towards the dominance of Jason Romero and Jeremy Doss heading into 2020. – Steven Blakesley

#5 Buddy Shepherd – Bakersfield, CA
Bakersfield’s Buddy Shepherd was one of the hottest prospects in Late Model racing in California. 2019 may have been a rebuilding year for the champion driver. Shepherd won the 2015 and 2017 championships in the MAVTV series at Madera Speedway, and put together a near-perfect season at Kern County Raceway Park for a NASCAR championship in 2016 as well. The second-generation racing star and his family started focusing on bigger events with less total races on the schedule. Shepherd continued to run up front despite a limited schedule, finding victory lane three times in just eight starts – including a win on August 24 at Madera Speedway in the Nut Up Pro Late Models. Buddy bookended the TV win with a pair of non-TV victories in the weekly Madera series. Shepherd also ventured to All American Speedway to close out 2019, and again showed he is not a one-track pony by mixing it up with the best drivers in Northern California. With plans to return to full-time competition with Eshleman Racing in 2020, there is no question he can contend for the top spot on this list. – Jason Galvin

#4 Matt Erickson – La Grange, CA
What do Matt Erickson and Tom Brady have in common? They both wore blue in 2019 and they both continue to be recognized for their excellence despite less production than previous seasons. Still carrying the title as the winningest Pro Late Model driver since the division began at Madera in 2011, Matt Erickson won only twice last season. Both wins came in NASCAR events at All American Speedway, with Erickson uncharacteristically shut out in the MAVTV-televised Pro Late Model events. The Short Track Shootout at Madera Speedway continued to be his nemesis as well. But Erickson had one of his best seasons from a qualifying perspective, qualifying within the top-three on multiple occasions in the Pro Late Models at Madera. He also added a second-place qualifying effort at Irwindale this February. Erickson’s 2019 season still saw the multi-time champion earn 12 top-fives and 17 top-tens in 21 outings, remaining a key fixture near the front of the pack each week. – Steven Blakesley

PosCarDriverWinsTop 5Top 10Features
442Matt Erickson2121721
522Buddy Shepherd3557
620Cole Moore2688
792zDylan Zampa15710
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About Steven Blakesley

Steven Blakesley is a motorsports announcer and public relations specialist with more than 15 years of experience. His biggest pet peeve is race fans who only enjoy one form of racing over all others.

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