Dirt on Dirt - Shirley rolls to $5,000 tour win at Springfield

June 21

Springfield Raceway,

Springfield, MO

Sanction: DIRTcar Summer Nationals - $5,000

Information provided by: Series and staff reports (last updated June 22, 7:50 pm)

Shirley rolls to $5,000 tour win at Springfield

Brian Shirley
Bobby Pierce
Max Blair
Logan Martin
Kyle Beard
Payton Freeman
Mason Oberkramer
Ryan Unzicker
Jason Feger
Rusty Schlenk
Joe Godsey
Preston Luckman
Garrett Smith
Deshawn Gingerich
Kaeden Cornell
Kylan Garner
Mark Voigt
Jeff Roth
Brent McKinnon
Doug Tye
Mick Quin
Kye Blight

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Brian Shirley takes the checkered flag first Tuesday at Springfield Raceway.

What won the race: Brian Shirley of Chatham, Ill., bolted past race-long pacesetter Payton Freeman on a lap-17 restart and never looked back en route to capturing Tuesday’s 40-lap DIRTcar Summer Nationals feature at Springfield Raceway. The four-time tour champ earned $5,000 and his second straight series win by 0.834 of a second over Bobby Pierce, who slipped by Max Blair for the runner-up spot with two laps to go.

Quotable: “It was definitely a little nerve-racking,” Shirley said of the cautions that dotted the race. “I was worried about my tires sealing over. I felt good down (low) in the three and four, but I just felt a little bit, down in one and two, not as good as I needed to be. We haven’t had that great of a year, so to get a little bit of momentum here and put the car in victory lane means a lot for our team.”

Key notes: Shirley's right-rear tire was nearly flat in victory lane after his 37th career Summer Nationals win; he also won Sunday at Sycamore Speedway. ... Pierce used a lap-37 restart to sneak under Blair and snatch second place. ... Logan Martin briefly ran as high as second before settling for fourth. ... Freeman faded to sixth after leading laps 1-17. ... Ryan Unzicker, second in points entering the night, was involved in tangles on laps 24 and 25; he had Brent McKinnon’s nose burrowed into his car’s right side in the second incident that was triggered when Rusty Schlenk slowed on the homestretch with mechanical trouble (he continued to finish eighth). … Jason Feger was ninth after pitting for flats on laps 17 and 24. … Nine caution flags slowed the feature. ... Cade Dillard blew a right-rear tire battling for second late in the second heat; he was unable to recover for a transfer spot in the B-main. ... Scott Crigler started the first heat from the pole but was forced pitside by a broken rear end; he made repairs for the B-main but failed to qualify. ... Australian Kye Blight went to a backup car after ignition trouble prevented him from logging a qualifying lap.

On the move: Kyle Beard of Trumann, Ark., started 16th and finished fifth.

Winner's sponsors: Shirley’s Bob Cullen Racing Rocket Chassis is powered by an Andy Durham Racing Engine and sponsored by Thomason Express, Hoker Trucking, J&J Ventures Gaming, Kid’s Castle Learning Center, KBC Graphics, Cheap Cars, Bass Livestock Nutrition, Allgaier Motorsports, East Central Coin, Cheers and Integra Shocks.

Points chase: After Springfield: 1. Bobby Pierce (479); 2. Ryan Unzicker (451); 3. Brian Shirley (442); 4. Jason Feger (425); 5. Dennis Erb Jr. (381); 6. Logan Martin (342); 7. Payton Freeman (339); 8. Joe Godsey (309); 9. Preston Luckman (264); 10. Max Blair (252).

Current weather: Clear, 82°F

Car count: 32

Fast qualifier: Payton Freeman

Time: 12.650 seconds

Polesitter: Payton Freeman

Heat race winners: Brian Shirley, Ryan Unzicker, Joe Godsey, Payton Freeman

Consolation race winners: Kylan Garner

Provisional starters: Mark Voigt, Doug Tye, Kye Blight, Jeff Roth

Next series race: June 22, Adams County Speedway (Quincy, IL) $5,000

Editor's note: Results and race details are unofficial.

From staff and series reports

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — Updates from Tuesday’s seventh round of the DIRTcar Summer Nationals, a 40-lap, $5,000-to-win event at Springfield Raceway (results unofficial):

Feature

Brian Shirley of Chatham, Ill., bolted past race-long pacesetter Payton Freeman on a lap-17 restart and never looked back en route to capturing Tuesday’s 40-lap DIRTcar Summer Nationals feature at Springfield Raceway. The four-time Hell Tour champion earned $5,000 and his second straight series win by 0.834 of a second over Bobby Pierce, who slipped by Max Blair for the runner-up spot with two laps to go.

Feature lineup

Row 1: Payton Freeman, Joe Godsey
Row 2: Ryan Unzicker, Brian Shirley
Row 3: Max Blair, Mason Oberkramer
Row 4: Bobby Pierce, Logan Martin
Row 5: Preston Luckman, Deshawn Gingerich
Row 6: Jason Feger, Kaeden Cornell
Row 7: Rusty Schlenk, Mick Quin
Row 8: Garrett Smith, Kyle Beard
Row 9: Kylan Garner, Brent McKinnon
Row 10: Mark Voigt, Doug Tye
Row 11: Kye Blight, Jeff Roth

Consolation results

(10 laps; top two transfer)

Consolation finish: Kylan Garner, Brent McKinnon, Cole Wells, Cade Dillard, Jeff Roth, Justin Wells, Scott Crigler, Terry Phillips, Kye Blight, Brennon Willard, Joey Smith, Glen Powell, Doug Tye, Mark Voigt (DNS) Dustin Walker, Steve Johnson.

Heat results

(10 laps; top four transfer)

First heat: Brian Shirley, Max Blair, Preston Luckman, Rusty Schlenk, Brent McKinnon, Jeff Roth, Dustin Walker, Scott Crigler.

Second heat: Ryan Unzicker, Mason Oberkramer, Deshawn Gingerich, Mick Quin, Glen Powell, Doug Tye, Steve Johnson, Cade Dillard.

Third heat: Joe Godsey, Bobby Pierce, Jason Feger, Garrett Smith, Kylan Garner, Joey Smith, Cole Wells, Brennon Willard.

Fourth heat: Payton Freeman, Logan Martin, Kaeden Cornell, Kyle Beard, Kye Blight, Justin Wells, Terry Phillips, Mark Voigt.

Time trials

(Heat races start straightup by qualifying times)

Driver (car no.), hometown, time
First group
Scott Crigler (12c), Monticello, Ark., 12.706
Brian Shirley (3s), Chatham, Ill., 12.784
Max Blair (111v), Centerville, Pa., 12.853
Brent McKinnon (26m), Carlyle, Ill., 12.941
Preston Luckman (77), Coos Bay, Ore., 12.998
Jeff Roth (14r), Bentonville, Ark., 13.252
Rusty Schlenk (91), McClure, Ohio, 13.377
Dustin Walker (14w), Peculiar, Mo., 13.498
Second group
Cade Dillard (97), Robeline, La., 12.755
Mason Oberkramer (93), Brosley, Mo., 12.906
Ryan Unzicker (24), El Paso, Ill., 13.048
DeShawn Gingerich (0g), Dover, Pa., 13.322
Mick Quin (23nz), Hawks Bay, New Zealand, 13.359
Glen Powell (26), Nixa, Mo., 13.794
Doug Tye (4D), Collinsville, Ill., 13.854
Steve Johnson (11), Joplin, Mo., 14.281
Third group
Joe Godsey (14G), Bentonville, Ark., 12.736
Bobby Pierce (32), Oakwood, Ill., 12.887
Jason Feger (25), Bloomington, Ill., 12.972
Garrett Smith (10), Eatonton, Ga., 13.133
Cole Wells (7), Aurora, Mo., 13.173
Brennon Willard (3W), Lebanon, Mo., 13.449
Kyle Garner (45), Diamond, Mo., 13.458
Joey Smith (13), Pomona, Mo., 13.461
Fourth group
Payton Freeman (F1), Commerce, Ga., 12.650
Logan Martin (36), West Plains, Mo., 12.933
Kyle Beard (86), Trumann, Ark., 13.026
Kaeden Cornell (50x), Willard, Mo., 13.247
Terry Phillips (75), Springfield, Mo., 13.254
Justin Wells (49), Aurora, Mo., 13.570
Mark Voigt (30), Marine, Ill., 13.785
Kye Blight (31aus), Katanning, W. Australia, no time

Tuesday’s schedule

(All times local)

6:15 p.m. - Drivers’ meeting
6:40 p.m. - Hot laps
- Midwest Mod B hot laps
- Pure stock hot laps
- DIRTcar Late Model hot laps
- Midwest Mod A hot laps
- DIRTcar Late Model qualifying
Opening ceremonies
- Midwest Mod B heats (8 laps)
- DIRTcar Late Model heats (10 laps)
- Pure stock heats (8 laps)
- Midwest Mod A heats (8 laps)
- DIRTcar Late Model C-main (10 laps if needed)
- Midwest Mod B B-main (10 laps if needed)
- Pure stock B-main (10 laps if needed)
- DIRTcar Late Model B-main (10 laps if needed)
Features
- Midwest Mods B (20 laps)
- DIRTcar Late Models (40 laps)
- Pure stocks (20 laps)
- Midwest Mods A (20 laps)