Brian Shirley charged to the win at Farmer City on Sunday
FARMER CITY, IL- April 2, 2017- Brian Shirley must have blown out the candles on his birthday cake this morning and wished for a win because tonight at Farmer City Raceway he claimed his first World of Outlaws Craftsman® Late Model Series victory of the season at the Illini 100.
“I am just happy,” said Shirley. “I am happy for my team. We’ve had a lot of solid runs this year and we’ve had some heart breaks so for this to pay off for Bob Cullen, Lisa Cullen and everyone behind us we appreciate it. The biggest thing is that that we get monkey off our back with [this win] and hopefully there’s more to come.”
To take the lead Shirley had to out-duel three-time World of Outlaws Champion and five-time Farmer City Raceway winner, Billy Moyer as well as regional all-stars Shannon Babb and Bobby Pierce. For the fans the race between the bunch was a flashback to the good ole days of the DIRTcar Summer Nationals.
During the final day of the two-day event, Moyer showed that he remained hungry for a win and unsatisfied with the previous night’s third place finish as he claimed the fastest time in his qualifying group, a heat win and drew the pole position for the feature event.
Moyer started the feature next to Pierce and punched the gas as soon as the green flag fell over Farmer City to claim the lead early in the race. By lap-two Babb found his way past Pierce and by lap-nine he was at Moyers door knocking.
Pierce trailed behind the pair working tirelessly to reel them in. By lap-15 it was a battle for the lead between the three as almost every lap around the track fans saw three-wide action. Shirley found himself in the mix for the podium positions and the atmosphere at Farmer City cranked up a notch.
It was lap-22 that was a game changer in the race as Pierce and Babb fell off the backstretch ledge losing a little momentum in the process. Shirley capitalized with a run on the bottom of the racetrack to pass Moyer for the lead. As the two front runners ran into lap traffic Shirley was able to hold off a hard-charging Moyer and take the checkers.
It was a big day for Shirley and his crew as they snagged Quick Time, won a heat and finished one position ahead of Moyer for the second night in a row.
“We tried and we about got him. We just came up a little short,” said Moyer. “This place always does a good job and puts on a good race and come main event time it’s always a multi-groove deal. Brian could run around that bottom better obviously and he did a good job. We camped out there in the middle and did the best we could do.”
The final podium position went to Pierce.
“It was a fun race I just wish it went the other way,” said Pierce. “It was a really good race between all of us. A lot of sliders a lot of crowds just wish we really could have got it but oh well. I didn’t even know Brian was going to be in the hunt there. He just kind of snuck up.”
Tyler Erb and Brandon Sheppard also were seen wheeling-and-dealing on the track as they each gained eight positions during the 25-laps.
The Series will recoup and regroup before heading back out on the road at the end of the month. The World of Outlaws Craftsman Late Model Series appears next on April 28 at Lakeside Speedway in Kansas City, Kansas.
World of Outlaws Craftsman Late Model Series Statistical Report; Farmer City Raceway April 2, 2017
Feature: 1. 3s- Brian Shirley[5]; 2. 21- Billy Moyer[1]; 3. 32P- Bobby Pierce[2]; 4. 44- Chris Madden[8]; 5. 18b- Shannon Babb[4]; 6. 21j- Billy Moyer Jr[3]; 7. 25- Shane Clanton[9]; 8. 91- Tyler Erb[16]; 9. 1- Brandon Sheppard[17]; 10. 18- Eric Wells[10]; 11. C9- Steve Casebolt[12]; 12. 9- Devin Moran[7]; 13. 25F- Jason Feger[6]; 14. 42- Mckay Wenger[11]; 15. 11- Gordy Gundaker[22]; 16. 7- Rick Eckert[19]; 17. 18c- Chase Junghans[14]; 18. 99jr- Frank Heckenast Jr[21]; 19. 14m- Morgan Bagley[23]; 20. 4G- Bob Gardner[18]; 21. 2c- Joey Coulter[24]; 22. B12- Kevin Weaver[13]; 23. 7R- Kent Robinson[20]; 24. 1*- Chub Frank[15]
Last Chance Showdown 1: 1. 1- Brandon Sheppard[2]; 2. 7- Rick Eckert[1]; 3. 99jr- Frank Heckenast Jr[6]; 4. 32-Chris Simpson[4]; 5. 24- Ryan Unzicker[7]; 6. 14m- Morgan Bagley[10]; 7. 93- Donald Bradsher[3]; 8. 15- Matt Shannon[9]; 9. 2c- Joey Coulter[5]; 10. 1M- Eric Midkiff[8];
Last Chance Showdown 2: 1. 4G- Bob Gardner[4]; 2. 7R- Kent Robinson[9]; 3. 11- Gordy Gundaker[1]; 4. 4-Ds- Chad Hollenbeck[3]; 5. 77m- Jay Morris[5]; 6. 6P- Jose Parga[7]; 7. B1- Brent Larson[2]; 8. 15H- Jon Henry[6]; DNS. 29- Spencer Diercks[8]
Heat 1: 1. 3s- Brian Shirley[1]; 2. 9- Devin Moran[2]; 3. 25- Shane Clanton[5]; 4. B12- Kevin Weaver[7]; 5. 7- Rick Eckert[6]; 6. 93- Donald Bradsher[4]; 7. 2c- Joey Coulter[3]; 8. 24- Ryan Unzicker[8]; 9. 15- Matt Shannon[9]
Heat 2: 1. 44- Chris Madden[1]; 2. 25F- Jason Feger[2]; 3. 18- Eric Wells[4]; 4. 18c- Chase Junghans[3]; 5. 1- Brandon Sheppard[5]; 6. 32- Chris Simpson[6]; 7. 99jr- Frank Heckenast Jr[8]; 8. 1M- Eric Midkiff[9]; 9. 14m- Morgan Bagley[7]
Heat 3: 1. 21- Billy Moyer[1]; 2. 18b- Shannon Babb[2]; 3. 42- Mckay Wenger[3]; 4. 1*- Chub Frank[7]; 5. 11- Gordy Gundaker[5]; 6. 4-Ds- Chad Hollenbeck[4]; 7. 77m- Jay Morris[9]; 8. 6P- Jose Parga[8]; 9. 7R- Kent Robinson[6]
Heat 4: 1. 21j- Billy Moyer Jr[1]; 2. 32P- Bobby Pierce[3]; 3. C9- Steve Casebolt[2]; 4. 91- Tyler Erb[5]; 5. B1- Brent Larson[6]; 6. 4G- Bob Gardner[6]; 7. 15H- Jon Henry[7]; DNS. 29- Spencer Diercks[8]
Qualifying Group A: 1. 3s- Brian Shirley, 12.263; 2. 44- Chris Madden, 12.489; 3. 9- Devin Moran, 12.494; 4. 25F- Jason Feger, 12.56; 5. 2c- Joey Coulter, 12.561; 6. 18c- Chase Junghans, 12.59; 7. 93- Donald Bradsher, 12.626; 8. 18- Eric Wells, 12.634; 9. 25- Shane Clanton, 12.644; 10. 1- Brandon Sheppard, 12.656; 11. 7- Rick Eckert, 12.734; 12. 32- Chris Simpson, 12.753; 13. B12- Kevin Weaver, 12.843; 14. 14m- Morgan Bagley, 12.887; 15. 24- Ryan Unzicker, 12.91; 16. 99jr- Frank Heckenast Jr, 12.953; 17. 15- Matt Shannon, 13.74; 18. 1M- Eric Midkiff, 14.365
Qualifying Group B: 1. 21- Billy Moyer, 12.681; 2. 21j- Billy Moyer Jr, 12.729; 3. 18b- Shannon Babb, 12.747; 4. C9- Steve Casebolt, 12.822; 5. 42- Mckay Wenger, 12.916; 6. 32P- Bobby Pierce, 12.969; 7. 4-Ds- Chad Hollenbeck, 13.014; 8. 4G- Bob Gardner, 13.027; 9. 11- Gordy Gundaker, 13.112; 10. 91- Tyler Erb, 13.196; 11. 7R- Kent Robinson, 13.224; 12. B1- Brent Larson, 13.276; 13. 1*- Chub Frank, 13.341; 14. 15H- Jon Henry, 13.368; 15. 6P- Jose Parga, 13.589; 16. 29- Spencer Diercks, 13.757; DNS. 77m- Jay Morris
CONTINGENCY WINNERS: Craftsman/Sears ($200 Cash): Brian Shirley, Chris Madden, Billy Moyer Jr., Shane Clanton, Tyler Erb; Craftsman/Sears ($100 Cash): Billy Moyer; Comp Cams ($50 product certificate): Bobby Pierce; MSD Ignition ($50 Cash): Billy Moyer; Quarter Master ($100 Product Certificate):Brian Shirley ; Wrisco (Three Sheets of aluminum): Shane Clanton; Penske Racing Shocks ($50 Product Certificate): Eric Wells; JE Pistons ($50 Cash):Brandon Sheppard; VP Racing Fuels ($50 Cash): Steve Casebolt; Edelbrock ($50 Cash):Brandon Sheppard.; Comp Cams ($50 Cash): Eric Wells.;Cometic ($50 Cash): Rick Eckert; JRI Shocks ($50 Cash): Joey Coulter ;Superflow Dyno’s ($50 Cash): Rick Eckert; Quartermaster ($25 Product Certificate): Joey Coulter; JE Pistons (One set of piston rings): Rick Eckert; Quartermaster ($50 Product Certificate): Joey Coulter; Arizona Sport Shirts ($100 Product Certificate):Joey Coulter;JE Pistons (One set of piston rings): Joey Coulter; MSD Ignition ($25 Cash): Chub Frank; QA-1 ($50 Cash): Shane Clanton; Rookie Bonus: Devin Moran; Bonus Bucks: Bobby Pierce
SEASON WINNERS:
Rick Eckert- 1 (Screven Motorsports Complex on Feb. 17)
Chris Madden- 1 (Screven Motorsports Complex on Feb. 18)
Shane Clanton- 1 (Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 24)
Don O’Neal- 1 (Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 25)
Brandon Sheppard- 2 (Whynot Motorsports Park on March 24, Farmer City Raceway on April 1 )
Timothy Culp- 1 (LoneStar Speedway on March 26)
Brian Shirley-1 (Farmer City Raceway on April 2)
Unofficial World of Outlaws Craftsman® Late Model Series Championship Standing
| Pos. | Car # | Driver | Points | Trail By |
| 1 | 1 | Brandon Sheppard | 1056 | 0 |
| 2 | 44 | Chris Madden | 1002 | 54 |
| 3 | 91 | Tyler Erb | 994 | 62 |
| 4 | 3S | Brian Shirley | 992 | 64 |
| 5 | 7 | Rick Eckert | 974 | 82 |
| 18 | Eric Wells | 974 | 82 | |
| 7 | 9 | Devin Moran | 964 | 92 |
| 8 | 99JR | Frank Heckenast Jr. | 954 | 102 |
| 9 | 21JR | Billy Moyer Jr. | 952 | 104 |
| 10 | 25 | Shane Clanton | 938 | 118 |
| 11 | 1* | Chub Frank | 928 | 128 |
| 12 | 14M | Morgan Bagley | 884 | 172 |
| 13 | 2C | Joey Coulter | 856 | 200 |
| 14 | 18C | Chase Junghans | 826 | 230 |
| 15 | 93 | Donald Bradsher | 768 | 288 |
| 16 | 4-D’s | Chad Hollenbeck | 572 | 484 |
| 17 | 21 | Billy Moyer | 538 | 518 |
| 18 | B1 | Brent Larson | 516 | 540 |
| 19 | 116 | Brandon Overton | 448 | 608 |
| 20 | C9 | Steve Casebolt | 444 | 612 |
| 21 | 21 | Ivedent Lloyd Jr. | 374 | 682 |
| 22 | 2F | Dennis Franklin | 340 | 716 |
| 23 | 17M | Dale McDowell | 320 | 736 |
| 24 | 16T | Tyler Bruening | 310 | 746 |
| 25 | 0F | Coleby Frye | 300 | 756 |
