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Daily Dirt 03/29/2024 08:01:54

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July 7
Hamilton County Speedway,
Webster City, IA
Sanction: World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series - $8,000
Information provided by: Series reports (last updated July 8, 10:14 am)
Shirley tops Mars, gets second straight WoO win
  1. Brian Shirley
  2. Jimmy Mars
  3. Eric Wells
  4. Josh Richards
  5. Brandon Overton
  6. Chad Simpson
  7. Rick Eckert
  8. Frank Heckenast Jr.
  9. Chub Frank
  10. Shane Clanton
  11. Morgan Bagley
  12. Donny Schatz
  13. Steve Casebolt
  14. Joey Coulter
  15. Jordan Yaggy
  16. Tyler Erb
  17. Billy Moyer Jr.
  18. Rodney Sanders
  19. Brent Larson
  20. Boom Briggs
  21. Chris Simpson
  22. Chase Junghans
  23. Austin Smith
  24. Jason Rauen
presented by
Mike Ruefer/mikerueferphotos.photoreflect.com
Sponsor Arnie Ranta (right) joined Brian Shirley's winning team in vicotry lane.
What won the race: Seventh-starting Brian Shirley of Chatham, Ill., passed race-long leader Jimmy Mars on lap 34 of the 40-lap affair to pick up the victory in the Wild West tour opener for the World of Outlaws Craftsman Late Model Series. Shirley went on to win by 1.492 seconds.
Key notes: Series action continues Friday at Mason City (Iowa) Speedway and Saturday at Deer Creek Speedway in Spring Valley, Minn.
On the move: Josh Richards of Shinnston W.Va., started 14th and finished fourth. ... Donny Schatz of Fargo, N.D., started 23rd and finished 12th.
Winner's sponsors: Shirley's Bob Cullen Racing Longhorn Chassis has a Pro Power Racing Engine and is sponsored by Arnie Ranta, Kid's Castle, Thomas Express, Cheap Cars, KBC Graphix, Popejoy Plumbing, Vallejo Inc., Skateland South and Kim's Auto Body.
Points chase: After the event, Richards leads the standings with 2,970 points over Shane Clanton (2,750) and Rick Eckert (2,682).
Car count: 25
Fast qualifier: Brandon Overton
Time: 17.249 seconds
Polesitter: Brandon Overton
Heat race winners: Billy Moyer Jr., Shane Clanton, Rick Eckert
Consolation race winners: Jordan Yaggy
Next series race: July 8, Mason City Motor Speedway (Mason City, IA) $10,000
Editor's note: Results and race details are unofficial.
From series reports

WEBSTER CITY, Iowa (July 7) — Brian Shirley of Chatham, Ill., moved into uncharted territory with a standout performance in Thursday night’s 40-lap World of Outlaws Craftsman Late Model Series feature at Hamilton County Speedway.

After overtaking race-long pacesetter Jimmy Mars of Menomonie, Wis., for the lead on lap 34, Shirley drove off to an $8,000 victory that gave him back-to-back WoO checkered flags for the first time in his career as the national tour began its annual Wild West Tour.

“We’ve been getting better,” said Shirley, whose third WoO triumph of 2016 and the fourth of his career left him just four points behind Brandon Overton of Evans, Ga., for fourth place in the circuit’s standings. “We’ve just been working hard. We had a rough three weeks there back in the middle of June that kind of haunted us, but you got people like (team owner) Bob Cullen and (primary sponsor) Arnie Ranta that give you … we don’t spare any expense, and we’re just trying to do our best.”

Mars, 44, raced off the outside pole starting spot to outgun the polesitting Overton for the lead at the initial green flag and controlled the majority of the distance. He couldn’t hold off Shirley’s late charge, but he did turn back challenges from Eric Wells of Hazard, Ky., following a lap-34 restart to finish second, 1.492 seconds behind Shirley’s Longhorn Race Car.

The 27-year-old Wells was a close third-place finisher, a mere 0.160 of a second short of overtaking Mars for the runner-up spot. He made a solid advance from the ninth starting spot — rising briefly to second place past Shirley midway through the race, in fact — to record his best WoO finish of the season.

Points leader Josh Richards of Shinnston, W.Va., who started 14th but had to restart after the rear after pitting to make a tire change early in the race, rallied to finish fourth while Overton slipped to fifth in the final rundown.

Shirley, 35, was all smiles after his car came alive late in the distance and he found a way to slip past Mars using the inside groove of the half-mile oval, which hosted the WoO tour for the first time.

“We had a pretty good car,” said Shirley, who remained hot after winning the June 30 WoO event at Rockford (Ill.) Speedway. “There was a couple different options out there and Jimmy was good … everybody was good. We decided to change a couple things and it worked right, so all in all just happy that the Good Lord blessed us tonight.

“It was just one of them deals that it played into our tire program. We decided to do a little something different and it just paid off.”

Mars was simply unable to slide his MB Customs car around the inside of the track like Shirley in the race’s deciding moments.

“Congratulations to Brian,” said Mars, who was looking for his first WoO win since July 31, 2014, at Cedar Lake Speedway in New Richmond, Wis. “He drove a good race. I was kind of committed up on the top more and I wasn’t gonna go down in (turns) three and four … it was getting airborne (rough spots) pretty big time. We had a good run around the top, and then it got pretty dirty up there and my tire selection wasn’t quite good enough for the moisture down below.

“But we’ll take it. It’’s fun running with the World of Outlaws when we get the chance.””

Wells enjoyed by far his most satisfying performance of 2016, besting the fourth-place finish he registered on May 6 at Ponderosa Speedway in Junction City, Ky.

“The car was really good,” said Wells, who secured just his second top-five finish of the campaign. “That’s probably the best I’’ve been this year. That was fun … thanks to Jimmy Mars and Brian, they raced me clean. We could race side-by-side. I had a blast out there.”

Four caution flags slowed the event, including two on lap seven.

Feature lineup

Row 1: Overton, Mars
Row 2: Moyer Jr., Eckert
Row 3: Clanton, Heckenast
Row 4: Shirley, Chris Simpson
Row 5: Wells, Bagley
Row 6: Junghans, Briggs
Row 7: Chad Simpson, Richards
Row 8: Frank, Sanders
Row 9: Casebolt, Erb
Row 10: Yaggy, Smith
Row 11: Rauen, Coulter
Row 12: Schatz, Larson

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