Tristan McKee Finds Redemption in CARS Tour Debut at Cordele

After missing out on a victory in a dominant showing at New River All American Speedway to start the season, Tristan McKee scored redemption in the zMAX CARS Tour's inaugural Pro Late Model event at Cordele Motor Speedway.

McKee took the lead from Colin Allman on a restart with 20 laps to go and scored his fourth career victory with the CARS Tour on Saturday night as part of the Byron Outdoor Superstore 225 at Cordele.

Allman assumed the top spot on lap 42 and led until the decisive late-race restart. Allman took the inside lane for the restart, and raced side-by-side with McKee for several laps before McKee pulled away with the lead for the win.

For McKee, the outside lane had proven to his liking before the restart, and he used it to his advantage when it mattered.

"I was trying my hardest right there," said McKee. "I think we didn't have quite the best car, but I made use on the top. The top kind of came in after that long red flag we had. It just came in really well. I passed for second and then I was just kind of riding until we got that red flag.

After the disappointment at New River to start the year, finishing second in a race where he led 97 laps, McKee was thrilled to get back to victory lane.

"I'm glad we got another one, because we led most of the race at New River, and whatever happened, happened, so it feels good to get another. Now we've got to put our focus on the Late Model."

While McKee celebrated his Pro Late Model victory before climbing in his Late Model Stock Car for the second feature of the evening, Allman was left wondering what might have been with a different lane choice on the restart.

"The car was good. I'm biting myself in the butt for picking the bottom because of how dirty it was. I thought I had it cleaned off pretty good. I just went into one and just slid up, we had no grip. We were talking about taking the top, but it opens up the opportunity for him to move me up. I've never raced with him, so I don't know how he races. I just didn't want to put that into his hands as an option.

"I just went off into one, slid up and we made a little contact. I was just sliding in the speedy dry, I couldn't do nothing. He cleared us. I started inching on him a little bit and then I got in the gas a little too early, to hard, got the right rear hot, and we were done after that.

Jett Noland rounded out the podium in the event, passing T.J. DeCaire on the final lap to secure third position after starting 18th in the field.

"We had a great car. Towards the end, we started to fade out of it just because we started so far back. We started 18th and basically had to dig the entire race, so we were really, really faded by the end of it."

DeCaire finished fourth, while Keelan Harvick finished fifth in his zMAX CARS Tour Pro Late Model debut after starting on the pole.

The zMAX CARS Tour returns to action in two weeks' time at Orange County Speedway on Saturday, April 26.

-Photo credit: Jason Reasin

Byron Outdoor Superstore 225 Pro Late Model Results