Sheppard holds off Pearson to win Dirt Track World Championship

Brandon Sheppard pockets over $100,000 at the Dirt Track World Championship

from the fayobserver

PORTSMOUTH, Ohio — Brandon Sheppard grabbed the lead with 23 laps to go and rolled on to a $100,700 win in the Dirt Track World Championship on Saturday night.
Sheppard, 23 and a native of New Berlin, Illinois, got by Josh Richards of Shinnston, West Virginia, on lap 77 of the 100-lap event at Portsmouth Raceway Park. Dunn-Benson Ford team driver Earl Pearson Jr. of Jacksonville, Florida, was the runner-up, and Richards ended up third. The race wrapped up the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series season.
“We haven’t finished a race in four weeks,” Sheppard said. “To come out and get progressively better all weekend and then to get the win in the last Lucas Oil race of the year means the world to me.”

Lucas series champion Scott Bloomquist of Mooresburg, Tennessee, led the opening 45 laps before being overhauled by Richards. Sheppard moved ahead on lap 72, but Richards got past him to lead laps 73-76. After that, it was all Sheppard, and multiple late-race cautions couldn’t help Pearson in his bid to notch his first win of the year.
“On the restarts, I couldn’t do anything with him,” said Pearson, a four-time Lucas series champion who earned $20,000 for second. “We needed for the race to stay green.”
Richards will put the crowning touches on his fourth World of Outlaws Late Model championship Oct. 27-29 at The Dirt Track at Charlotte.
* -- At Las Vegas, Eli Tomac pocketed $100,000 for winning the Monster Energy Cup for motocross competitors.
* -- At Port Royal, Pennsylvania, homestate racer Logan Schuchart collected his second World of Outlaws sprint car win of the season for Shark Racing.
* -- At Gastonia, former series champ Jeff Smith scored a $5,000 Carolina Clash victory.
* -- At Elm City, Pine Level's Dustin Mitchell closed out the FUEL series season with a $3,000 win.

1. Brandon Sheppard ($100,700), 2. EARL PEARSON JR., 3. Josh Richards, 4. Gregg Satterlee, 5. Darrell Lanigan, 6. Don O’Neal, 7. Devin Moran, 8. Doug Drown, 9. Tim McCreadie, 10. Rod Conley
Final points
     1. Scott Bloomquist 8,405, 2. Jonathan Davenport 7,525, 3. Tim McCreadie 7,325, 4. Brandon Sheppard 7,260, 5. Don O’Neal 7,220, 6. Dennis Erb Jr. 7,205, 7. Darrell Lanigan 6,970, 8. EARL PEARSON JR. 6,725, 9. Jimmy Owens 6,650, 10. Jared Landers 6,195
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