Brandon Sheppard
LINCOLN, Ill. – July 3, 2011 – Brandon Sheppard finally achieved his goal of winning a DIRTcar Summer Nationals Hell Tour event, taking the checkered flag Sunday night at Lincoln Speedway.
Sheppard of New Berlin, Ill., used a lap three restart to claim the lead from fellow front row starter Bobby Pierce of Oakwood, Ill. He then held off current ‘Hell Tour’ point leader Shannon Babb of Moweaqua, Ill., over the last half of the event to claim the win worth $5,000. The victory is the 18-year-old driver’s first after following the tour full-time since the 2009 season. Babb settled for second ahead of Greenbriar, Ark., driver Jack Sullivan who earned his second top five finish on the Summer Nationals Tour. Waterville, Ohio driver Matt Miller would cross the line fourth one spot in front of Jeep VanWormer of Pinconning, Mich.
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Babb, once again extended his points lead after his second place finish at Lincoln. Second in points, Lawrenceburg, Ind., driver Scott James finished 9 th, which puts him unofficially 125 points behind Babb. Defending ‘Hell Tour’ champ Jason Feger finished 16th after tire issues relegated him to the rear twice.
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The DIRTcar Summer Nationals will return to action Monday, July 4 at 34 Raceway in Burlington, Iowa.
DIRTcar Summer Nationals Hell Tour Statistical Report; Lincoln Speedway; Lincoln, Ill.; July 3, 2011
A-Main (40-Laps): 1. Brandon Sheppard ($5,000), 2. Shannon Babb, 3. Jack Sullivan, 4. Matt Miller, 5. Jeep Van Wormer, 6. Dennis Erb Jr., 7. Billy Drake, 8. Bobby Pierce, 9. Scott James, 10. Dillan White, 11. Brian Shirley, 12. Ryan Unzicker, 13. Roger Brickler, 14. Mike Spatola, 15. Jason Oldfield, 16. Jason Feger, 17. Wes Steidinger, 18. Brian Diveley, 19. Donny Walden, 20. Eric Smith, 21. Rusty Schlenk, 22. Kevin Weaver. Fast qualifiers: (among 35 cars): Babb, Feger, Drake, Miller. Heat race winners: Spatola, Pierce, Sheppard, Miller. B-Main winner: Dively. Provisional starters: Erb, Schlenk, Smith, White.
2011 DIRTcar Summer Nationals “The Hell Tour” Schedule
| Date | Track | Location | Winner (Cars) |
| June 15 | Brownstown Speedway | Brownstown, Ind. | PPD/July 12 |
| June 16 | Kankakee County Speedway | Kankakee, Ill. | Mike Spatola (37) |
| June 17 | Cedar Lake Speedway | Cedar Lake, Wis. | Scott James (29) |
| June 18 | Cedar Lake Speedway | Cedar Lake, Wis. | Canceled Rain |
| June 20 | LaSalle Speedway | LaSalle, Ill. | PPD/July 13 |
| June 21 | Spoon River Speedway | Canton, Ill. | PPD/July 14 |
| June 22 | Highland Speedway | Highland, Ill. | Scott James (50) |
| June 23 | Fayette County Speedway | Brownstown, Ill. | Jason Feger (48) |
| June 24 | Tri-City Speedway | Pontoon Beach, Ill. | Dan Schlieper (52) |
| June 25 | Fairbury American Legion Speedway | Fairbury, Ill. | PPD/July 23 |
| June 26 | I-96 Speedway | Lake Odessa, Mich. | Shannon Babb (46) |
| June 28 | Lincoln Park Speedway | Putnamville, Ind. | Shannon Babb (22) |
| June 29 | Belle Clair Speedway | Belleville, Ill. | Michael Kloos (32) |
| June 30 | Clay Hill Motorsports Park | Atwood, Tenn. | Mike Spatola (30) |
| July 1 | Paducah International Raceway | Paducah, Ky. | Ray Cook (40) |
| July 2 | I-55 Raceway | Pevely, Mo. | Billy Moyer (41) |
| July 3 | Lincoln Speedway | Lincoln, Ill. | Brandon Sheppard (35) |
| July 4 | 34 Raceway | Burlington, Iowa | |
| July 6 | Peoria Speedway | Peoria, Ill. | |
| July 7 | Macon Speedway | Macon, Ill. | |
| July 8 | Farmer City Raceway | Farmer City, Ill. | |
| July 9 | Clarksville Speedway | Clarksville, Tenn. | |
| July 10 | Tri-State Speedway | Haubstadt, Ind. | |
| July 12 | Brownstown Speedway | Brownstown, Ind. | |
| July 13 | LaSalle Speedway | LaSalle, Ill. | |
| July 14 | Spoon River Speedway | Canton, Ill. | |
| July 15 | Attica Raceway Park | Attica, Ohio | |
| July 16 | Oakshade Raceway | Wauseon, Ohio |
The DIRTcar Summer Nationals is brought to fans by many important sponsors and partners including Hoosier Racing Tires, GM Performance Parts, ASI Racewear, Comp Cams, Intercomp Racing, JE Pistons, QuarterMaster, Superflow, Wix Filters, Wrisco Aluminum, the University of Northwestern Ohio, R2C Competition Series Air Filters, VP Racing Fuels, Racing Electronics, ButlerBuilt, MSD Ignition, Chizmark Larson Insurance, Vicci Apparel, Beyea Custom Headers, Fusion Graphics & Sign Company, Dyer’s Rods, and Ohlins Shocks.
