When Stephen Nasse walked out of Five Flags Speedway last December with a runner-up finish to Kaden Honeycutt in the Snowball Derby, he carried high expectations into the 2025 season.

But with just over a week remaining before the 58th running of the Snowball Derby, Nasse is still searching for his first win of the year. His most recent trip to victory lane came 12 months ago in the Snowflake 100, the night before last year’s Derby.

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The Snowball result didn’t derail him—Super Late Model racing at the top level is simply unforgiving, and 2025 has been a reminder of how narrow the margins can be. In past seasons, Nasse regularly stacked up three, four, or more wins. This year, his strong runs have stopped just short of victory, producing only top-five and top-10 finishes.

Still, the consistency has been undeniable. Nasse has recorded 17 top-five finishes and 23 top-10s in 29 starts—a resume a lot of teams would gladly accept, even if it hasn’t included a win.

He remained in the hunt for multiple championships throughout the year, contending for the Blizzard Series title at Five Flags Speedway, the ASA Southern Super Series crown, and, for a stretch, the ASA STARS National Tour championship.

“Nothing is given to you in racing,” Nasse said. “We just have to work a little harder to get the results we want, and hopefully that can happen this December.”

Nasse returns to Pensacola encouraged by last year’s charge from 30th to second. History suggests he may be closer to a breakthrough than his winless season implies: nine former Snowball Derby champions—Darrell Waltrip, Jody Ridley, Butch Miller, Rick Crawford, Jeff Purvis, Rich Bickle, Eddie Mercer, Ty Majeski, and Derek Thorn—all finished second before winning the Tom Dawson Trophy.

The question now is whether Nasse becomes the tenth.

Many of those eventual champions also benefited from continuity with the same race team. Jeff Purvis won with James Finch. Derek Thorn captured his Derby victory with Campbell Motorsports.

Nasse hopes to follow a similar path as he teams with Anthony Campi Racing for the marquee events. The pairing recently delivered a top-five finish in the All American 400 and now turns its attention back to Pensacola.

“We haven’t been able to finish the job just yet, but we have the same goal—and that’s what motivates us,” Nasse said. “All the teams will be on a new tire combination come Derby time, and I think that could be in our favor.”

After all of the ups and downs Nasse has had at the Snowball Derby, what a story it would be if he turns his winless season into Snowball Derby glory.