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Brandon Sheppard Rules Firecracker 100 Preliminary

Rebounding from a mishap on Thursday, Brandon Sheppard cruised to a $6,000 victory during Friday night’s Firecracker 100 preliminary event at Lernerville Speedway in Sarver, Pa.

Kicking off the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series weekend on Thursday, Rocket1 was one of 48 entries on hand for the event. After qualifying third in his group, Brandon went on to a heat race win which sent him to the redraw.

Drawing the fourth spot on the feature grid, Sheppard moved into third on lap 15 of the 25-lapper and began to track down Cade Dillard and Max Blair. With Blair at the point, Sheppard had closed the gap just as the white flag waved.

Sheppard dove under Blair as the duo battled through lapped traffic exciting turn two. Unfortunately, it all went wrong in turn three. Blair made contact with Sheppard, spinning him around and causing a caution. Having to restart from the tail of the field, Brandon recorded a 22nd place finish.

On Friday, after drawing the pole position after he was QuickTime in his group and winning his heat race, Sheppard piloted the Valvoline No. 1 Seubert Calf Ranches/ Durham Racing Engines-powered Rocket Chassis to a dominate victory.

Sheppard immediately gained control of the top spot at the drop of the green flag in the 25-lap affair. He survived a late rally from Michael Norris to claim his 60th career World of Outlaws Late Model Series win.

“This track was definitely a lot different than what I’m used to, but we were still really good,” noted Sheppard. “I could run the middle-to-high really well, didn’t try the bottom too much, but I felt comfortable down there when I did.”

Sheppard’s preliminary efforts on Thursday and Friday earned him a spot in the redraw for Saturday’s $30,000-to-win finale. Earning the seventh position on the starting grid, Brandon raced to a sixth-place finish in the 50-lap main event.

The World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series continues this Thursday-Saturday, July 2-3-4, with an Independence Day Spectacular at Cedar Lake Speedway in New Richmond, Wis. Thursday’s program will serve as qualifying with Friday and Saturday both offering $20,000-to-win features. Saturday’s finale is scheduled to air LIVE on CBS Sports Network.

Rocket1 Racing continues to lead the latest World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series Championship Standings.

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