Madden and Clanton Round Out Podium
Story By: COLBY GORNIEWICZ / WOO LATE MODEL SERIES MEDIA
Photos By: RACERSGUIDE.COM PHOTO FILES
MARYVILLE, T.N. – May 14, 2017- Brandon Overton claimed his second-ever World of Outlaw Craftsman® Late Model Series win at Smoky Mountain Speedway. For the redraw six kids from the crowd were selected to draw the drivers starting positions. Luckily for Overton the Craftsman wrench that was picked was a number two, putting him outside of pole-sitter, Brandon Sheppard.
Sheppard held on to the lead for the first 19 laps of the race, despite two cautions which reset the field giving Overton the chance to jump the chain. On lap 19 Overton maneuvered to the top of the track between turns three and four which gave him the much-needed momentum to finally pass the Rocket 1 machine. By lap 30 Overton was able to create nearly a three second lead over Sheppard and the rest of the field.
The battle then ensued for second between Sheppard, Shane Clanton and Chris Madden who ran bumper-to-bumper and door-to-door for the remaining laps. It was ultimately Madden and Clanton who found their way to the podium.
“I knew Sheppard had that thing rolling there at the beginning and I was just trying not to burn my tires up,” said Overton. “I waited until an opportunity came right there in
lap traffic. I knew we had a good car, I just didn’t want to abuse it early.”
Overton’s first-ever Outlaw win was during his sophomore season with the Series at Lernerville Speedway for the first night of the Firecracker 100. He was emotional in Victory Lane as he gave thanks to his father for helping support his dreams. This time around, Overton was all smiles as he drove Randy Weaver’s 116 Dream Ride into Victory Lane after he was able to outrun the Outlaws.
World of Outlaws Craftsman Late Model Series Statistical Report; Smoky Mountain Speedway on May 13, 2017:
Feature: 1. 116- Brandon Overton[2]; 2. 44- Chris Madden[5]; 3. 25- Shane Clanton[6]; 4. 101- Casey Roberts[7]; 5. 1- Brandon Sheppard[1]; 6. 7- Rick Eckert[8]; 7. 49- Jonathan Davenport[4]; 8. 99jr- Frank Heckenast Jr[13]; 9. 91 -Tyler Erb[16]; 10. 18- Eric Wells[19]; 11. 1*- Chub Frank[9]; 12. 50- Shanon Buckingham[14]; 13. 9- Devin Moran[18]; 14. 14m- Morgan Bagley[22]; 15. 31- Skip Arp[24]; 16. 15- Steve Francis[15]; 17. 2c- Joey Coulter[11]; 18. 93- Donald Bradsher[12]; 19. 21- Robby Moses[20]; 20. 201- Billy Ogle Jr[23]; 21. 97- Bobby Giffin[21]; 22. 7M- Donald McIntosh[10]; 23. 3s- Brian Shirley[25]; 24. 17M- Dale McDowell[3]; 25. 4T- Tommy Kerr[17]
Heat 1: 1. 49- Jonathan Davenport[2]; 2. 25- Shane Clanton[1]; 3. 101- Casey Roberts[3]; 4. 7M- Donald McIntosh[4]; 5. 99jr- Frank Heckenast Jr[7]; 6. 91- Tyler Erb[6]; 7. 18- Eric Wells[8]; 8. 14m- Morgan Bagley[9]; 9. 3s- Brian Shirley[5]
Heat 2: 1. 1- Brandon Sheppard[1]; 2. 116- Brandon Overton[3]; 3. 7- Rick Eckert[6]; 4. 2c- Joey Coulter[2]; 5. 50- Shanon Buckingham[5]; 6. 4T- Tommy Kerr[7]; 7. 21- Robby Moses[4]; 8. 201- Billy Ogle Jr[8];
Heat 3: 1. 44- Chris Madden[1]; 2. 17M- Dale McDowell[2]; 3. 1*- Chub Frank[5]; 4. 93- Donald Bradsher[4]; 5. 15- Steve Francis[6]; 6. 9- Devin Moran[3]; 7. 97- Bobby Griffin[8]; 8. 31- Skip Arp[7]
Qualifying: 1. 25- Shane Clanton, 15.614; 2. 1- Brandon Sheppard, 15.691; 3. 44- Chris Madden, 15.764; 4. 49- Jonathan Davenport, 15.782; 5. 2c- Joey Coulter, 15.858; 6. 17M- Dale McDowell, 15.859; 7. 101- Casey Roberts, 15.974; 8. 116- Brandon Overton, 15.982; 9. 9- Devin Moran, 15.989; 10. 7M- Donald McIntosh, 16.042; 11. 21- Robby Moses, 16.07; 12. 93- Donald Bradsher, 16.126; 13. 3s- Brian Shirley, 16.147; 14. 50- Shanon Buckingham, 16.155; 15. 1*- Chub Frank, 16.166; 16. 91- Tyler Erb, 16.205; 17. 7- Rick Eckert, 16.21; 18. 15- Steve Francis, 16.211; 19. 99jr- Frank Heckenast Jr, 16.241; 20. 4T- Tommy Kerr, 16.245; 21. 31- Skip Arp, 16.304; 22. 18- Eric Wells, 16.32; 23. 201- Billy Ogle Jr, 16.375; 24. 97- Bobby Giffin, 16.409; 25. 14m- Morgan Bagley, 16.596
CONTINGENCY WINNERS:
Craftsman/Sears ($200 Cash): Chris Madden; Shane Clanton; Brandon Sheppard; Rick Eckert; Frank Heckenast Jr.; Craftsman/Sears ($100 Cash): Brandon Overton; Comp Cams ($50 product certificate):Chris Madden; MSD Ignition ($50 Cash):Chris Madden; Quarter Master ($100 Product Certificate): Chris Madden; Wrisco (Three Sheets of aluminum): Shane Clanton; Penske Racing Shocks ($50 Product Certificate): Chris Madden; JE Pistons ($50 Cash): Brandon Sheppard; VP Racing Fuels ($50 Cash): Chub Frank; Edelbrock ($50 Cash): Chub Frank; Comp Cams ($50 Cash): Eric Wells; Extended Stay America ($50 Cash): Chub Frank; Cometic ($50 Cash): Morgan Bagley; JRI Shocks ($50 Cash): Donald Bradsher; Superflow Dyno’s ($50 Cash): Steve Francis; Quartermaster ($25 Product Certificate): Joey Coulter; JE Pistons (One set of piston rings): Steve Francis; Quartermaster ($50 Product Certificate): Billy Ogle Jr.; Arizona Sport Shirts ($100 Product Certificate): Billy Ogle Jr.; JE Pistons (One set of piston rings): Donald McIntosh; MSD Ignition ($25 Cash): Chris Madden; QA-1 ($50 Cash): Shane Clanton; Rookie Bonus: Donald Bradsher; Bonus Bucks: Shanon Buckingham
SEASON WINNERS:
Brandon Sheppard- 3 (Whynot Motorsports Park on March 24, Farmer City Raceway on April 1, Fayetteville Motor Speedway on May 6)
Shane Clanton- 2 (Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 24, Cherokee Speedway on May 6)
Rick Eckert- 1 (Screven Motorsports Complex on Feb. 17)
Chris Madden- 1 (Screven Motorsports Complex on Feb. 18)
Don O’Neal- 1 (Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 25)
Timothy Culp- 1 (LoneStar Speedway on March 26)
Brian Shirley-1 (Farmer City Raceway on April 2)
Brandon Overton- 1 (Smoky Mountain Speedway on May 14)
Unofficial World of Outlaws Craftsman Late Model Series Championship Standing
Pos. Car # Driver Earnings Points
1 1 Brandon Sheppard $59,375 1492
2 44 Chris Madden $36,550 1408
3 91 Tyler Erb $27,600 1406
4 7 Rick Eckert $30,025 1394
5 18 Eric Wells $24,600 1370
6 25 Shane Clanton $38,050 1364
7 9 Devin Moran $24,520 1354
8 3S Brian Shirley $27,400 1338
9 99JR Frank Heckenast Jr. $16,100 1326
10 1* Chub Frank $17,020 1310
11 14M Morgan Bagley $12,520 1244
12 2C Joey Coulter $9,720 1226
13 93 Donald Bradsher $7,700 1144
14 21JR Billy Moyer Jr. $15,600 952
15 18C Chase Junghans $4,970 826
16 116 Brandon Overton $18,400 708
17 4-D’s Chad Hollenbeck $2,755 572
18 101 Casey Roberts $6,900 552
19 21 Billy Moyer $11,650 538
20 B1 Brent Larson $1,190 516
21 2F Dennis Franklin $3,120 464
22 C9 Steve Casebolt $3,260 444
23 17M Dale McDowell $2,900 422
24 21 Ivedent Lloyd Jr. $2,135 374
25 24-D Michael Brown $2,880 352
The World of Outlaws Craftsman® Late Model Series is brought to fans across the country by many important sponsors and partners, including: Arizona Sport Shirts (Official Apparel Company), Textron Off Road (Official Side-by-Side Vehicle), Craftsman (Official Tool), Extended Stay America (Official Hotel), Hoosier Racing Tire (Official Tire), Morton Buildings (Official Building), Sears (Official Home Store), The Kenny Wallace Dirt Racing Experience (Official Racing Experience, VP Racing Fuels (Official Racing Fuel) and DirtonDirt.com (Hard Charger Award); in addition to contingency sponsors, including: Cometic Gasket, Comp Cams, Edelbrock, JE Pistons, JRI Shocks, MSD, Penske Shocks, QA1, QuarterMaster, Superflow Dynos and Wrisco Aluminum (Exclusive Racing Aluminum); along with manufacturer sponsors, including: Capital Race Cars, Integra Shocks, Impact Racing Products, Intercomp, Racing Electronics, Rocket Chassis and TNT Rescue.
Founded in 1978, the World of Outlaws®, based in Concord, N.C., is the premier national touring series for dirt track racing in North America, featuring the most powerful cars on dirt, the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series and the World of Outlaws Craftsman Late Model Series. Annually, the two series race nearly 140 times at tracks across the United States and Canada. CBS Sports Network is the official broadcast partner of the World of Outlaws. DIRTVision® also broadcasts all World of Outlaws events over the Internet to fans around the world. Learn more about the World of Outlaws.
