Shirley Claims Atomic Speedway

sn atomic

 

 

Shirley Dominates Atomic Speedway for Third Win of 2014 DIRTcar Summer Nationals Season

 

By Jordan Morris

 

CHILLICOTHE, Ohio. July 16, 2014 — 2012 DIRTcar Summer Nationals champion Brian Shirley survived an over-heating engine en route to dominating all 40-laps and claiming the $5,000 checkered flag Wednesday night at Atomic Speedway.

 

Shirley started the feature event in the third position behind front-row starters Duane Chamberlain and Delmas Conley. On the races opening lap, Shirley quickly made his way to the lead by rocketing around both drivers before either had a chance to lead a single lap.

 

Conley fell back through the field, eventually settling for an 18th place finish. Chamberlain stayed glued to the leader’s back-bumper for the first handful of laps, as he challenged Shirley for the top spot on several occasions. Shirley had trouble pulling away from Chamberlain in the early laps of the race, but by lap 18 the leader began to inch further from the field after finding a faster line higher up the track.

 

Shirley had the car to beat, eventually building a lead of over two-seconds on second-place, but in the final stages of the event his car began to overheat. The leader suffered a punctured hole in his radiator, turning his car into a ticking bomb waiting to explode. Shirley continued on, never surrendering the lead during the duration of the event, and surviving an overheating engine to claim his third victory of the 2014 DIRTcar Summer Nationals season at Atomic Speedway.

 

“It’s nice to still have a shot at the championship, but we’re not worrying about the points deal,” said Shirley, who last won at Clayhill Motorsports Park on June 26. “We just came out here to try to win races and make as much money as we can – so we’re just gonna try to win the rest of the races and let the points fall where they fall.”

 

If the battle atop the championship standings wasn’t close enough before the race, it has since gotten closer. Points-leader Shannon Babb started the feature in the eighth position, six spots better than Ryan Unzicker who trailed Babb in the standings by 41-points heading into the night.

 

On lap 29, Babb managed to climb to the fifth position and was slowly working his way to the front of the field when his car suddenly slowed on the front stretch. Babb was forced to retire following mechanical issues, giving Unzicker the opportunity to gain ground on the points-leader. Unzicker took advantage, finishing the night in the seventh position, and cutting Babb’s points lead to 26-points.

 

After capturing the win on Wednesday night, Brian Shirley now sits third in the championship standings only 45-markers behind Babb for the top spot and 19 behind Unzicker for second. The championship battle now becomes a three driver fight with three races remaining.

 

RJ Conley, Doug Drown and Jeep Van Wormer rounded out the top five.

 

Heat race winners were Chamberlain, Delmas Conley and Shirley.

 

With only three races remaining in the 2014 DIRTcar Summer Nationals season, the tour joins the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals on Thursday night at Brushcreek Motorsports Complex in Peebles, Ohio.

 

DIRTcar Summer Nationals Statistical Report; Atomic Speedway; Chillicothe, Ohio; July 16, 2014;

A-Main (40-laps): 1. 81-Brian Shirley ($5,000), 2. 20C-Duane Chamberlain, 3. 71C-RJ Conley, 4. 20-Doug Drown, 5. 55-Jeep Van Wormer, 6. 99M-Devin Moran, 7. 24-Ryan Unzicker, 8. B5-Brandon Sheppard, 9. 81JR-Jason Riggs, 10. 21M-Jason Montgomery, 11. 5M-Ryan Markham, 12. 51-Jamie Oldfield, 13. 96-Tanner English, 14. 77K-Steve Kester, 15. 25L-Steve Lance Jr, 16. 19-Chad Smith, 17. 18-Shannon Babb, 18. 71-Delmas Conley, 19. 29K-Garrett Krummert, 20. 9F-Mark Frazier, 21. 71R-Rod Conley, 22. 33-Kevin Wagner.

 

 

2014 DIRTcar Summer Nationals Schedule

Date

Day

Track

Location

Win

June 11

Wed

Brownstown Speedway

Brownstown, Ind.

RAIN

June 12

Thur

Kankakee Co. Speedway

Kankakee, Ill.

Billy Moyer

June 13

Fri

Cedar Lake Speedway

Somerset, Wis.

Rick Eckert

June 14

Sat

Cedar Lake Speedway

Somerset, Wis.

RAIN

June 15

Sun

Wilmot Raceway

Wilmot, Wis.

Rick Eckert(2)

June 16

Mon

Off

   

June 17

Tue

Farley Speedway

Farley, Iowa

Shannon Babb

June 18

Wed

Spoon River Speedway

Canton, Ill.

Jason Feger

June 19

Thur

Quincy Raceways

Quincy, Ill.

RAIN

June 20

Fri

Tri-City Speedway

Pontoon Beach, Ill.

Billy Moyer(2)

June 21

Sat

Fairbury Speedway

Fairbury, Ill.

RAIN

June 22

Sun

I-96 Speedway

Ionia, Mich.

Brian Shirley

June 23

Mon

Peoria Speedway

Peoria, Ill.

Brandon Sheppard

June 24

Tue

Off

   

June 25

Wed

Clarksville Speedway

Clarksville, Tenn.

Shannon Babb(2)

June 26

Thur

Clayhill Motorsports

Atwood, Tenn.

Brian Shirley (2)

June 27

Fri

Paducah Int. Raceway

Paducah, Ky.

RAIN

June 28

Sat

Federated Auto Parts Raceway

Pevely, Mo.

Brian Birkhofer

June 29

Sun

Lincoln Speedway

Lincoln, Ill.

Brady Smith

June 30

Mon

Off

   

July 1

Tue

Belle Clair Speedway

Belleville, Ill.

Bobby Pierce

July 2

Wed

Jacksonville Speedway

Jacksonville, Ill.

Jason Feger(2)

July 3

Thur

LaSalle Speedway

LaSalle, Ill.

Brian Birkhofer(2)

July 4

Fri

Fayette Co. Speedway

Brownstown, Ill.

Brandon Sheppard(2)

July 5

Sat

Highland Speedway

Highland, Ill.

Tyler Reddick

July 6

Sun

Tri-State Speedway

Haubstadt, Ind.

Billy Moyer(3)

July 7

Mon

Off

   

July 8

Tue

Florence Speedway

Union, Ky.

Jason Jameson

July 9

Wed

Terre Haute Action Track

Terre Haute, Ind.

Billy Moyer(4)

July 10

Thur

Macon Speedway

Macon, Ill.

Shannon Babb(3)

July 11

Fri

Farmer City Raceway

Farmer City, Ill.

Billy Moyer(5)

July 12

Sat

34 Raceway

Burlington, Iowa

Billy Moyer (6)

July 13

Sun

Vermilion Co. Speedway

Danville, Ill.

Shannon Babb(4)

July 14

Mon

Off

   

July 15

Tue

TBA

   

July 16

Wed

Atomic Speedway

Chillicothe, Ohio

Brian Shirley (3)

July 17

Thur

Brushcreek Motorsports Complex

Peebles, Ohio

$5,000

July 18

Fri

Attica Raceway Park

Attica, Ohio

$5,000

July 19

Sat

Oakshade Raceway

Wauseon, Ohio

$10,000

 

The DIRTcar Summer Nationals “Hell Tour” is brought to fans across the country by many important partners including: Arizona Sport Shirts (Official Apparel Company), Hoosier Racing Tires (Official Racing Tires), Racing Electronics (Official Communication), Velocita (Official Uniform), VP Racing Fuel (Official Racing Fuel); in addition to these fine Contingency Partners: Beyea Headers, Cometic Gasket, Comp Cams, Dominator Race Products, Edelbrock, Fox Shocks, JE Pistons, JRI Shocks, Mobil 1, MSD, Quartermaster, Superflow Dynos, Summit Racing Equipment and Wrisco Aluminum; Promotional Partners include: Chevy Performance Parts, Indiana Decal, Intercomp and Petroff Towing.