Brandon Sheppard
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Brandon Sheppard Earns Hard Fought Fairbury Win
Pierce continues to expand his Summer Nationals points lead
FAIRBURY, Ill. – June 25, 2016 – It was not an easy win, but Brandon Sheppard held tough and fought back challenges Saturday night at Fairbury American Legion Speedway to claim his first Summer Nationals victory of the season.
Sheppard started the feature on the outside pole with veteran Billy Moyer next to him. Moyer jumped out to an early lead. Sheppard got around him on lap three but Moyer battled back. He cruised through the next 20 laps with Sheppard glued to the high-side of the track and fighting to maintain his second place position, which he lost briefly at the midpoint of the feature.
Sheppard found another opening on lap 26 and held the top spot for two laps but Moyer again battled back to the lead. This time, Shannon Babb was on the move and took the top spot from Moyer – but again, only briefly. On a lap 35 restart, Sheppard, who at that point was in fourth, blasted forward retaking third from Jimmy Mars, then second from Moyer. Using that high line, Sheppard then fought past Babb to retake the lead.
It was smooth sailing to the end.
“I knew I just had to hit my marks and not bobble,” Sheppard said. “The cushion was like a one-foot brick wall all the way around the top. It was really hard. And the tire rule that we’re on, my left-rear (tire) would die after about five laps and I’d just have to run sideways all the way around the corner and hope not to push, because my right-front wouldn’t steer either. We just tried to hit our marks and keep everything together, and we did.”
Moyer finished second and Jimmy Mars in third. Bobby Pierce, who finished eighth, continues to hold a strong points lead over second place Mike Marlar.
The DIRTcar Summer Nationals returns to action on Sunday at Tri-State Speedway in Haubstadt, Ind.
Follow the Summer Nationals and Summit Modified Nationals on Twitter at Twitter.com/SummerNationals or on Facebook at Facebook.com/SummerNationals. Stay up-to-date with the latest news from the series throughout the lead up and the summer on the series’ websites at TheHellTour.com and ModifiedNationals.com.
DIRTcar Summer Nationals Statistical Report; Fairbury American Legion Speedway; Fairbury, Ill.
Super Late Models – A-Main
Finish Start Car Driver Hometown
1 2 B5 Brandon Sheppard New Berlin, Il
2 1 21 Billy Moyer Batesville , Ar
3 5 28M Jimmy Mars Menomonie , Wi
4 13 6K Michael Kloos Trenton , Il
5 10 Z Joe Harlan El Paso, Il
6 20 24 Ryan Unzicker El Paso, Il
7 8 12B Kevin Weaver Gibson City, Il
8 9 32 Bobby Pierce Oakwood , Il
9 7 89 Mike Spatola Manhattan , Il
10 17 35 Derek Chandler Pontiac , Il
11 21 83 Scott Bull Fairbury , Il
12 14 77M Jay Morris Watseka , Il
13 12 157 Mike Marlar Winfield , Tn
14 4 4G Bob Gardner East Peoria, Il
15 6 10S Scott Schmitt Tonica , Il
16 19 25 Jason Feger Bloomington , Il
17 16 C8 Timothy Culp Sheridan , Ar
18 22 11 Gordy Gundaker St Charles, Mo
19 18 73 Ashley Newman Rippley , Tn
20 3 18 Shannon Babb Moweaqua , Il
21 11 B1 Brent Larson Lake Elmo, Mn
22 15 29 Spencer Diercks Davenport , Ia
Super Late Models – B-Main
Finish Start Car Driver Hometown
1 7 35 Derek Chandler Pontiac , Il
2 1 73 Ashley Newman Rippley , Tn
3 3 33X Tim Manville Troy , Il
4 8 24 Ryan Unzicker El Paso, Il
5 2 11 Gordy Gundaker St Charles, Mo
6 13 7T Steve Thorsten Milford , Il
7 12 83 Scott Bull Fairbury , Il
8 5 51 Matt Furman Columbus , Oh
9 11 R1 Riley Hickman Cleveland , Tn
10 6 9D Daniel Flessner Roberts , Il
11 16 7H Joseph Hughs Springfield , Il
12 15 10 Paul Parker Depere , Wi
13 4 25 Jason Feger Bloomington , Il
14 9 74 Taylor Scheffler Waukesha , Wi
15 14 1M Jim Moon New Florence, Mo
16 10 15 Kolby Vandenbergh Ashland , Il
2016 DIRTcar Summer Nationals Schedule
| Date | Day | Track | Winners |
| Northern Kickoff | |||
| June 15 | Wednesday | Brownstown Speedway | Rain/Cancelled |
| June 16 | Thursday | Kankakee Co. Speedway | Bobby Pierce |
| June 17 | Friday | Cedar Lake Speedway | Billy Moyer |
| June 18 | Saturday | Cedar Lake Speedway | Billy Moyer (2) |
| June 19 | Sunday | Wilmot Speedway | Bobby Pierce (2) |
| Heartland Tour | |||
| June 20 | Monday | OFF | |
| June 21 | Tuesday | Jacksonville Speedway | Bobby Pierce (3) |
| June 22 | Wednesday | Farley Speedway | Rain/Cancelled |
| June 23 | Thursday | Spoon River Speedway | Dennis Erb Jr. |
| June 24 | Friday | Tri-City Speedway | Bobby Pierce (4) |
| June 25 | Saturday | Fairbury Speedway | Brandon Sheppard |
| June 26 | Sunday | Tri-State Speedway | |
| Southern Tour | |||
| June 27 | Monday | OFF | |
| June 28 | Tuesday | Clarksville Speedway | |
| June 29 | Wednesday | Belle Clair Speedway | |
| June 30 | Thursday | Springfield Raceway | |
| July 1 | Friday | Fayette Co. Speedway | |
| July 2 | Saturday | Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 | |
| July 3 | Sunday | Lincoln Speedway | |
| Independence Week | |||
| July 4 | Monday | LaSalle Speedway | |
| July 5 | Tuesday | Daugherty Speedway | |
| July 6 | Wednesday | Peoria Speedway | |
| July 7 | Thursday | Macon Speedway | |
| July 8 | Friday | Farmer City Speedway | |
| July 9 | Saturday | Highland Speedway | |
| July 10 | Sunday | Quincy Raceways | |
| Champions Week | |||
| July 11 | Monday | OFF | |
| July 12 | Tuesday | Plymouth Speedway | |
| July 13 | Wednesday | Shadyhill Speedway | |
| July 14 | Thursday | Merritt Speedway | |
| July 15 | Friday | Oakshade Raceway | |
| July 16 | Saturday | Oakshade Raceway |
The DIRTcar Summer Nationals “Hell Tour” is brought to fans across the country by many important partners including: Arizona Sport Shirts (Official Apparel Company), Hoosier Racing Tires (Official Racing Tires), Racing Electronics (Official Communication), VP Racing Fuel (Official Racing Fuel); in addition to these fine Contingency Partners: Beyea Headers, Comp Cams, Edelbrock, Fox Shocks, JE Pistons, MSD, Impact Race Products, Quartermaster, Superflow Dynos, Summit Racing Equipment and Wrisco Aluminum; Promotional Partners include: Chevy Performance Parts, Indiana Decal, Intercomp and Petroff Towing.
