Brandon Sheppard Ties Single-Season Wins Record
Late race pass by Sheppard makes a thrilling Textron Off Road World Finals feature
CONCORD, NC- Nov. 3, 2017- Brandon Sheppard stunned the enormous crowd at the Dirt Track at Charlotte on Friday after he commanded the lead of the World of Outlaws Craftsman® Late Model Series feature with only two laps remaining in the 50-lap event at the Textron Off Road World Finals. As the Rocket #1 passed beneath the checker flag, the packed house jumped to their feet and erupted in cheers.
Moments later in Victory Lane, Sheppard jumped to the rooftop of his Rocket XR1 and let out a battle cry with a huge grin on his face. The young driver from New Berlin, IL solidified his 18th Series victory of the season tying him for the all-time single season wins record with his predecessor in the Rocket House Car, Josh Richards.
"Man, I tell you what, I haven't been this pumped up in a while and I hope I put on a good show for you fans," said Sheppard. "I have to thank all of the fans for coming out. We couldn't do this without you all and Dirt Late Model racing wouldn't be what it is without all of these fans out here this weekend."
While majority of the focus in the 50-lap feature was on the battle up front between Mike Marlar and Dennis Erb Jr., Sheppard stealthily began slicing his way forward from his sixth position start. With 10 laps to go, Marlar and Erb Jr. were dodging lapped traffic on the bottom of the track so Sheppard decided to take it to the high side leaving the pair in the dust on lap 48.
"The bottom was starting to latch up a little bit on both ends really and I got around Dale [McDowell], and I got around Josh [Richards], and [Mike Marlar, Dennis Erb Jr. and Jimmy Owens] were bunched up in front of me messing around with some lapped cars, and I knew we had the points wrapped up already, so I knew we were either going to crash it or we were going to win," said Sheppard.
The final 10 laps of the feature saw six lead changes between Marlar, Erb Jr., and eventual winner Sheppard. The battle for second between Marlar and Erb Jr. came down to the wire but Erb Jr. was able to hold off the "Winfield Warrior".
"[Marlar and I] were both racing hard, we were both racing side-by-side and then Sheppard came up on the outside," said Erb Jr. "We've had a good start to the week so far and to bring home second we are happy with that."
"It was an awesome race there," said Marlar. "Dennis and I got to racing and when I got around [a lapped car] and squeezed past Dennis I thought I was alright and that I could ride this thing out and keep my momentum... but then comes Brandon and I thought, new game plan we're going to have to do something else. If anyone can get up there around that wall and ride it wide open, it's [Brandon]."
New Single-Season Wins Record in Rocket-Shepp's Reach
The route which led the Rocket #1 to Victory Lane on Friday evening was eerily similar to the one they took in 2016. During the 2016 World Finals feature on Friday, Richards set the current single-series win record of 18 on a near last lap pass. This year, Sheppard tied the record after passing for the lead with two laps to go.
While Sheppard claimed earlier in the season breaking the single-season wins record wasn't on the forefront of the teams' mind, it probably is now. Sheppard has one more chance to break the record- Saturday evening at the Textron Off Road World Finals.
"What a phenomenal year man," said Sheppard. "We tied the record and I guess we have a chance at it now. We have to win tomorrow and I know it will be tough but we'll just see what we can do."
Sheppard will start out the evening in the pole position for his heat race.
Additional Race Notes
- Brandon Overton charged from a 15th position start to finish sixth. Right behind him, Chris Madden finished 7th from a 20th position start.
- Full-time World of Outlaws regular, Frank Heckenast Jr. has been sidelined with an injury from completing the final two races of the season but will receive medical provisional points in the Series standings (60 points)
- The closest points battle remains between Chub Frank (eighth) and Morgan Bagley (ninth) who are only two points apart headed into Saturday's events. Two points is the difference of only one position during the feature.
The Dirt Track at Charlotte Abbreviated Results:
Craftsman Club Feature: 1. 1- Brandon Sheppard[6]; 2. 28- Dennis Erb Jr[2]; 3. 157- Mike Marlar[1]; 4. 20- Jimmy Owens[3]; 5. 17M- Dale McDowell[5]; 6. 116- Brandon Overton[15]; 7. 44- Chris Madden[20]; 8. 1r- Josh Richards[4]; 9. 22*- Brian Shirley[14]; 10. 9- Devin Moran[25]; 11. 39- Tim McCreadie[12]; 12. 25- Shane Clanton[7]; 13. 0- Scott Bloomquist[13]; 14. 5- Don O'Neal[17]; 15. C9- Steve Casebolt[22]; 16. 71- Hudson O'Neal[8]; 17. B1- Brent Larson[21]; 18. 18- Eric Wells[29]; 19. 18c- Chase Junghans[11]; 20. 18K- Brandon Kinzer[9]; 21. 2H- Nick Hoffman[24]; 22. 14m- Morgan Bagley[31]; 23. 7- Rick Eckert[26]; 24. 91- Tyler Erb[28]; 25. 111- Steven Roberts[27]; 26. 1*- Chub Frank[30]; 27. 55- Benji Hicks[18]; 28. 72c- Jason Covert[16]; 29. 101- Casey Roberts[23]; 30. 14z- Zach McMillan[10]; 31. 49- Jonathan Davenport[19]
Schatz Reaches 20-Win Plateau for Fifth Straight Year with Win at Textron Off Road World Finals
Ian Madsen and Dave Blaney complete podium in stacked 53-car field
CHARLOTTE, NC - November 3, 2017 - No matter who is in the pits, it's tough to bet against Donny Schatz. That proved true on Night Two of the Textron Off Road World of Outlaws World Finals at The Dirt Track at Charlotte Motor Speedway, as Schatz bested a stout field of 53 cars from across the world to win his 20th World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series Feature of 2017. Ian Madsen and 10th-starting Dave Blaney completed the podium.
The 2017 IRA Champion, Bill Balog, grabbed the early lead from fellow front row starter, Ian Madsen. Balog, a one-time World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series Winner in his career, led the first nine laps of the Feature before extremely heavy lapped traffic slowed his torrid pace. Balog was stalked by the Madsen Brothers in the early going, but it was Donny Schatz that made a three-wide pass for the lead down the backstretch to lead lap 10.
As Balog went high to navigate the lapped cars, Schatz made a jaw-dropping move. The, now nine-time, Series Champion glued his car to the bottom to work by Balog, Kerry Madsen and the lapped car of Parker Price-Miller off of turn two for the lead.
Lap 11 saw a pair of World of Outlaws young guns, Sheldon Haudenschild and David Gravel, succumb to flat right rear tires. Gravel was running third at the time of the misfortune.
The ensuing restart saw Ian Madsen maneuver his way back into the runner-up position. The Australian actually closed significantly on Schatz for the lead, coming as close as a car-length back of the Tony Stewart Racing No. 15.
With six laps remaining, Daryn Pittman's top five run came to an end due to a flat tire. This set up a double-file restart with Ian to the outside of Schatz. Schatz got a brilliant restart and paced the field comfortably the final six circuits to score the victory.
The first thing Schatz mentioned in Victory Lane was the outstanding World of Outlaws Craftsman Late Model Feature that was held beforehand. "That [Feature] was pretty cool to watch. It got me motivated to get it done as well," Schatz, who is doing double-duty this weekend, said.
"My team has worked awful hard lately. We've been stuck on 19 wins for a long time, so it was great to finally reach 20. It sucks the season is over, because we are rolling right now," Schatz added. Tonight's win marked the fifth consecutive season that Schatz has won at least 20 Features.
Ian Madsen, the 2017 Knoxville Raceway Track Champion, finished second with 1995 World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series Champion, Dave Blaney coming from 10th to complete the podium.
"It's pretty cool to be able to run up front with these guys. I thought we had a shot for the lead a couple of times. It was a lot of fun out there," Madsen said. Schatz echoed Madsen's statement about the track conditions, "I thought the track would rubber up, but it really cleaned off and made it a lot of fun as a driver."
Blaney cited restarts being a focal point to his success on the evening. "The car really took off on the starts and restarts. Going forward in the Heat Races is very important with this format," the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame Member said.
Kerry Madsen and Joey Saldana completed the top five. Balog, 20th-starting Logan Schuchart, Jason Johnson, 25th-starting Brad Sweet and Tim Shaffer completed the top ten. Sweet's effort was good enough to earn KSE Hard Charger Honors.
The 2017 World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series concludes tomorrow with the finale of the Textron Off Road World of Outlaws World Finals at The Dirt Track at Charlotte Motor Speedway. If you can't make it to the track, be sure to tune in to DIRTVision.com for LIVE VIDEO of all the action! |
Abbreviated Results from The Dirt Track at Charlotte Motor Speedway - November 3, 2017
Feature (30 Laps): 1. 15-Donny Schatz [3][$12,000]; 2. 18-Ian Madsen [1][$5,500]; 3. 71M-Dave Blaney [10][$3,200]; 4. 2M-Kerry Madsen [4][$2,800]; 5. 71-Joey Saldana [5][$2,500]; 6. 17B-Bill Balog [2][$2,300]; 7. 1S-Logan Schuchart [20][$2,200]; 8. 41-Jason Johnson [12][$2,100]; 9. 49-Brad Sweet [25][$1,050]; 10. 49X-Tim Shaffer [9][$2,000]; 11. 13M-Paul McMahan [11][$1,500]; 12. 21-Brian Brown [19][$1,200]; 13. 12N-Cole Duncan [23][$1,100]; 14. 2-Shane Stewart [15][$1,050]; 15. 7S-Jason Sides [28][$]; 16. 93-Sheldon Haudenschild [26][$]; 17. 5-David Gravel [7][$1,000]; 18. 3-Sammy Swindell [16][$1,000]; 19. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss [6][$1,000]; 20. 17-Jac Haudenschild [29][$]; 21. 14-Tony Stewart [18][$1,000]; 22. 9-Daryn Pittman [8][$1,000]; 23. 44-Trey Starks [13][$1,000]; 24. 11K-Kraig Kinser [24][$1,000]; 25. 24-Terry McCarl [14][$1,000]; 26. 19-Brent Marks [27][$]; 27. 59-Ryan Smith [22][$1,000]; 28. 4-Parker Price-Miller [30][$]; 29. 15H-Sam Hafertepe [21][$1,000]; 30. W20-Greg Wilson [17][$1,000]; Lap Leaders: Bill Balog 1-9, Donny Schatz 10-30; KSE Hard Charger Award: 49-Brad Sweet[+16]
Qualifying Flight-A: 1. 5-David Gravel, 12.53; 2. 15-Donny Schatz, 12.584; 3. 71-Joey Saldana, 12.592; 4. 44-Trey Starks, 12.597; 5. 13M-Paul McMahan, 12.605; 6. W20-Greg Wilson, 12.663; 7. 49X-Tim Shaffer, 12.681; 8. 2-Shane Stewart, 12.681; 9. 18-Ian Madsen, 12.694; 10. 19P-Paige Polyak, 12.707; 11. 21-Brian Brown, 12.714; 12. 59-Ryan Smith, 12.72; 13. 12N-Cole Duncan, 12.767; 14. 17-Jac Haudenschild, 12.768; 15. 39-Spencer Bayston, 12.812; 16. 7S-Jason Sides, 12.841; 17. 19-Brent Marks, 12.874; 18. 27-Greg Hodnett, 12.881; 19. 1A-Jacob Allen, 12.889; 20. 49K-Scott Kreutter, 12.923; 21. 3G-Carson Macedo, 12.927; 22. 49D-Shawn Dancer, 13.053; 23. 5B-Justin Barger, 13.175; 24. 7KX-Dan Shetler, 13.176; 25. OO-Dane Lorenc, 13.619; 26. 27G-Jay Galloway, 13.707
Qualifying Flight-B: 1. 9-Daryn Pittman, 12.551; 2. 71M-Dave Blaney, 12.558; 3. 17B-Bill Balog, 12.646; 4. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss, 12.649; 5. 2M-Kerry Madsen, 12.67; 6. 41-Jason Johnson, 12.671; 7. 15H-Sam Hafertepe, 12.696; 8. 1S-Logan Schuchart, 12.728; 9. 13D-Danny Dietrich, 12.752; 10. 11K-Kraig Kinser, 12.774; 11. 93-Sheldon Haudenschild, 12.789; 12. 14-Tony Stewart, 12.826; 13. 7K-Cale Conley, 12.856; 14. 49-Brad Sweet, 12.867; 15. 7J-Chad Kemenah, 12.87; 16. 24-Terry McCarl, 12.873; 17. 17X-Josh Baughman, 12.89; 18. 13-Clyde Knipp, 12.946; 19. 4-Parker Price-Miller, 12.977; 20. 3-Sammy Swindell, 12.978; 21. 17C-Caleb Helms, 12.984; 22. 14X-Coleman Gulick, 13.081; 23. 9X-Paul Nienhiser, 13.115; 24. 47-Eric Riggins, 13.366; 25. 12W-Troy Fraker, 13.717; 26. 91-Sadie Siegel, 13.914; 27. 822-John Price, NT
Unofficial World of Outlaws Craftsman® Sprint Car Series Championship Standings:
Pos. |
Car |
Driver |
Total |
Diff |
Wins |
Top 5's |
Top 10's |
1 |
15 |
Donny Schatz |
11264 |
0 |
20 |
65 |
73 |
2 |
49 |
Brad Sweet |
11072 |
-192 |
5 |
56 |
72 |
3 |
5 |
David Gravel |
10932 |
-332 |
17 |
42 |
67 |
4 |
9 |
Daryn Pittman |
10582 |
-682 |
3 |
28 |
55 |
5 |
2 |
Shane Stewart |
10580 |
-684 |
8 |
30 |
56 |
6 |
41 |
Jason Johnson |
10394 |
-870 |
4 |
27 |
51 |
7 |
93 |
Sheldon Haudenschild |
10014 |
-1250 |
0 |
12 |
41 |
8 |
11k |
Kraig Kinser |
9840 |
-1424 |
1 |
7 |
28 |
9 |
1S |
Logan Schuchart |
9716 |
-1548 |
4 |
11 |
31 |
10 |
7S |
Jason Sides |
9626 |
-1638 |
0 |
8 |
23 |
11 |
19 |
Brent Marks |
9612 |
-1652 |
0 |
1 |
22 |
12 |
W20 |
Greg Wilson |
9052 |
-2212 |
0 |
6 |
19 |
13 |
13M |
Paul McMahan |
8236 |
-3028 |
0 |
3 |
18 |
14 |
1A |
Jacob Allen |
8126 |
-3138 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
15 |
13 |
Clyde Knipp |
7698 |
-3566 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
16 |
18 |
Ian Madsen |
5670 |
-5594 |
1 |
6 |
21 |
17 |
71 |
Joey Saldana |
5330 |
-5934 |
0 |
6 |
13 |
18 |
17 |
Jac Haudenschild |
5002 |
-6262 |
0 |
2 |
12 |
19 |
4 |
Parker Price-Miller |
4408 |
-6856 |
1 |
1 |
4 |
20 |
21 |
Brian Brown |
4226 |
-7038 |
2 |
12 |
17 |
Full Results from The Dirt Track at Charlotte Motor Speedway can be found here. |
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