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Ebeling and Payton Victorious in Suspenseful Races at Shenandoah; Gibson Claims Championship

Shenandoah, Virginia (October 7, 2025) – The points finale for the Super Cup Stock Car Series this past Saturday night was not without its intense moments.  Since the Veterans Classic in late August was not able to be concluded in its entirety, 10 teams returned to Shenandoah Speedway with the first of twin 35-lap races serving as “part two” of the annual event.

With an earlier start in the day than the last outing, track conditions were much warmer and thus greasier than the prior visit.  Nevertheless, former local Legends competitor Damian Payton was within a tenth of his qualifying time previously, good enough to earn his first career SCSCS Pole Award circulating the 3/8-mile progressively-banked oval in 17.019 seconds.

Parkersburg, West Virginia’s Eric Barber turned in a personal best third fastest effort in time trials and redrew the first starting position.  It was Payton though starting from the outside that got to the lead by the first corner and led for several laps early on, also his first laps led in SCSCS competition.  Barber continued consistently following in the No. 64 McElligott Performance and Design / Cozy Cabins at Shady Grove / Payton Racing Chevrolet’s tracks, as both maneuvered around lapped traffic.

A pivotal moment with the slower cars occurred on lap 28 of the main event.  Barber dove low in a bid for the lead upon approaching another car into the turn, completing the pass for the top spot in the process, and going on to defend the position out front and cross the line first when the checkered flag flew.

However, the No. 2 WeAreJ6.com / Eric Barber Enterprises Chevrolet would not be scored as the race winner, based on a rule that has been in place since year one at Shenandoah Speedway due to the fact there are no inside walls in the corners and therefore is monitored during each SCSCS visit.

“It was the 2 and the 64, they were side by side coming to a lapped car and going into (turn) 3, the 2 went well below the apron and gained a significant advantage on the 64, since the 64 had to go the long way around,” Chris Lilly, who served as the Race Director for the SCSCS races as well as all of the local races at the track throughout the season, explained.  “We went over that in the drivers meeting, with track limitations you cannot pass four tires below the line.  I made multiple calls on the radio to ask him to give his spot back within the lap, which the driver did not do so, so he was going to be scored behind whoever it is that he passes.  I understand he may not be happy about it, but I was pretty clear about it in the drivers meeting.  Just want to be fair and it’s pretty black and white.”

Lurking behind the leaders was a familiar face that has not been seen since his victories at Kingsport Speedway back in April.  Ben Ebeling’s son had a football game and his daughters were in a pageant earlier in the day close to their Hickory, North Carolina home, so he did not show up at the track until shortly before the green flag.  For the first time in 57 previous SCSCS starts, he had to climb the No. 44 Good Frames, LLC / Ashton Racing Ford from the rear of the field without a single lap of practice or participation in qualifying.

The battle up front allowed Ebeling, who at this moment was third, to steadily catch Payton and pass him with five laps remaining, once again with the help of navigating slower traffic.  Despite being second at the start-finish line, the 2021 SCSCS champion would be credited with the official win after some post-race words were deescalated.

“It took a few laps to knock the rust off and get my bearings to feel where the car was,” Ebeling, acquiring his fifth Veterans Classic trophy, indicated.  “Car wasn’t as good as we’ve been here in the past, so I think it was more right place right time.

“I’ve been on the other end of that before.  I got penalized a few years ago for putting more than two tires below the white line.  I understand why the 2 car went down there, but a rule is a rule and it’s not my fight.  64 and the 2 were racing real hard and that lapped traffic caught all of us up together and when they got kind of tangled up, we were able to get around (Payton) and hold him off there for the last couple laps.”

Payton would get his second runner-up result of 2025 with Petersburg, West Virigina’s Brent Nelson rounding out the podium.  Mitch Gibson quietly brought the No. 35 Moyer Brothers Company / LDW Technologies / Superior Welding / 1500channels.com / Jeffrey Salyers Realty / Trevor’s Team / Ashton Racing Ford to a fourth-place finish, which was good enough to clinch the championship going into the second race.  Rob Hindt from Elkton, Maryland securely rounded out the top five in the No. 42 Drive 2 Thrive / JPR Pontiac for a second consecutive race.

Furthermore, Barber was placed sixth in the final finishing order.  A competition bulletin was communicated ever since the August race about there being only one standard and automatically authorized tire.  Any other options inquired about are continually evaluated on a case-by-case basis and it was expressed to teams that if an alternate option is approved, a driver will officially be credited at best going forward with the top finishing position in the second half of the field.

Lost in some of the post-race drama was a brief anxious moment when the right front of the No. 83 Eibach Springs / SRI Performance / Project Black Cat / DG Motorsports ride driven by Conover, North Carolina’s Dylan Godinez caught on fire due to a brake issue, thus ending his night early upon being extinguished quickly.  Another driver with an early exit from the next race was Yellow Spring, West Virginia’s Larry Frame when a belt malfunction caused him to pull the No. 80x Precision Auto Collision / Nelson Motorsports Chevrolet off the track on the opening lap.

Gibson redrew the pole position but elected to start scratch for the second feature, putting top two finishers Ebeling and Payton on the front row.

Ebeling took the lead from the get-go with Payton and Nelson’s No. 80 Precision Auto Collision / JEBCO / QH Design / RAM Trucking / Snap-On Tools / Nelson Motorsports Chevrolet battling for second.  Once Payton cleared Nelson, he stayed within a couple car lengths of the seven-time Shenandoah race winner one circuit after another, with both often running nearly identical laps.

A yellow flag with 14 laps remaining when Hindt spun in turn three proved to be a game changer.  On the restart, Payton held his outside line and powered ahead on the backstretch, clearing the all-time winningest driver.  Ebeling stayed on his heels, but redemption would be Payton’s as he fended off multiple challenges and was not to be denied for his first series win, becoming the youngest SCSCS winner since 2018.  It was also his first victory at the facility he called home as a teenager, capping off Shenandoah Speedway’s 20th anniversary season.

“It’s a great feeling,” the Winston-Salem, North Carolina resident commented.  “Like I said in the track interview, raced here for the better part of 10 years ago for several seasons and the best I ever finished was second.  To finally be able to park it here feels amazing.  It was no easy task.  (Ebeling) certainly gave me a run for my money and made me work for it.  Awesome and clean racing with that guy.”

Following Payton and Ebeling to the line were Nelson, Gibson, and Marc Jones in his return to the series for the first time since 2019, tying a best career fifth place effort upon taking over driving duties in the No. 31 3iatlasracing@gmail.com / TheJetDaddy.com / FlyBright Pilot Academy / RNR Tire Express / OSI247.com / Jones Motorsports Ford that was debuted by Brooks, Georgia’s Toby Blanton in the first race.

While the action for the top spot was a good one, so was the race for third between Nelson and Gibson during a majority of the distance.  Even so, Gibson took the conservative approach to claim the 2025 Super Cup Stock Car Series title in his first full season, compared to his winning performance from August at Shenandoah.

“Our goal was just to come here and run good and we knew we were going to be a little bit off,” the nearby Weyers Cave, Virginia resident noted.  “We just kept fighting the car all day and the last race we actually got to where we could keep up with the top three.  The first race I think they about lapped me.  I think we were about four turns away in the right front spring and we would have been there.  We got really close.”

Throughout the season, Gibson never finished worse than fifth and completed every lap of competition except for one race, showing like it has most years that consistency is key.

“It was a lot of good guessing I guess you could say, but it was a great season,” Gibson added.  “I have to thank Bill Ashton for a good car.  Without Bill, I wouldn’t have even got here.  It was just a good year.”

More content and a full recap will be available over the coming weeks regarding the annual trophy and awards presentation that took place immediately following the evening’s races.

While the points have been decided, the 2025 racing season is not over just yet.  A special event at Tri-County Speedway in Hudson, North Carolina takes place on Saturday, November 1st, marking the return of the series to one of its first participating venues for the first time in three years.

Further details will soon be found on the Super Cup Stock Car Series official website supercupstockcarseries.com, on Facebook (search Super Cup Stock Car Series), Twitter (@SCSCSRacing), Instagram (SCSCS_Racing), and https://www.youtube.com/SCSCSRacing.

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