ROSSBURG, Ohio (Sept. 8) — Finding success at a place that hasn’t always been that kind to him, Brian Shirley was a little choked up in victory lane. After winning in spectacular fashion — a turn-four, last-lap pass of Ricky Thornton Jr. — Shirley’s victory in Friday’s second 25-lap semifeature during prelim action for Saturday’s 53rd annual World 100 left the fans at Eldora Speedway tongue-tied as well.

After taking the lead from Shirley on lap 19, Thornton, of Chandler, Ariz., appeared headed for his 26th win of the season. But as he tried to close out the 25-lapper, he also closed in on lapped traffic, allowing Shirley, of Chatham. Ill., to reel him back in. Pinned behind a pair of slower cars as they entered turn three on the final lap, Thornton went to the high side while Shirley dove to the bottom and won the drag race to the checkered flag by just five-one-hundredths of a second.

“I tell you, I've been dreaming about (winning) coming here for a long time, a long time,” said Shirley, his voice crackling with emotion. “And that one definitely means a lot. It's, you know, chasing these guys. You know, you're chasing Thornton and Bobby (Pierce) all year and sometimes getting your d--- drug in the dirt. And we just keep coming and coming. And then you got guys like (car owners) Bob and Lisa Cullen that just give you everything they can, every opportunity. Then you get a great guy like Brian Conard that just believed in me enough to help me and look, here we are in victory lane.”

Thornton, who started second alongside polesitter Haiden Cowan of Rincon, Ga., finished second after leading the opening lap and laps 19-24. Chris Madden of Gray Court, S.C., started fourth and finished third, while Brandon Sheppard of New Berlin, Ill., improved five positions to finish fourth. Seventh-starting Stormy Scott of Las Cruces, N.M., completed the top five.

Shirley grabbed the lead from Thornton on the second lap and pulled away to lead by as much as 2.345 seconds. But during the race’s middle stage, Thornton chipped away at the lead until he managed to sneak by Shirley on lap 19, forcing Shirley to regroup.

“The problem is I just I felt like when (Thornton) surprised me, I should have been driving harder,” said Shirley. “I got out there and I started to momentum a little bit and then I'm shutting down too much where I needed this momentum and then we started running back to them. Then we did get the lapped traffic and I was like, ‘Holy cow!’ I knew how good we was on the bottom. I wasn't sure I was going to be able to get him because I was really, really coming into that guy that was coming off of (turn) four there. But all in all, it was just it was our night.”

Thornton was thankful to finish second considering he felt like his engine was down a cylinder and while trying to relay information to this crew during a caution he almost drove into the back of a safety truck that was stopped at the end of the front-stretch. Thornton swerved to the left just in the nick of time, but his quarterpanel and the right side of his spoiler still hit the truck, knocking out a taillight. Despite the freak accident — and the ailing powerplant — Thornton still managed to retake the lead, though he simply couldn’t hang on to it.

“I just felt like I couldn't really get down the straightaways,” said Thornton. “I just kind of run wide open. Congrats to Brian. He was really good. I feel like he was probably the best car as far as being able to maneuver once we got to the traffic. So we'll take a second. We we're down a cylinder. I kind of felt like we were all weekend and to be as good as we are I think they better look out.”

Third-finishing Madden’s confidence was equally as high after his second consecutive top-five finish.

“I feel really good about what we got going on right now,” said Madden. “We were really good (Thursday) night. I just needed a little bit and we we made an adjustment today to see how far we needed to go. We went just a little bit too far. So I feel really good about the 100 laps tomorrow for sure.

“The racetrack is racing awesome. You know, it's all over the place. So (track owner) Tony (Stewart) and his guys are doing a phenomenal job giving us a great surface to race on. And what a great group of fans coming out and supporting us. We appreciate all you guys. Thanks to all my sponsors and thanks to my guys for working hard. We’ve struggled a little bit this year, but we got a real peace now and I feel really good about it.”

Notes: The race was slowed by two cautions. On lap 12, 17th-starting Kyle Bronson of Brandon, Fla., brought out the first caution when he slowed with a plume of smoke billowing from his No. 40b. Bronson planned to change his car’s engine for Saturday’s program. … The second caution waved on lap 14 when Haiden Cowan spun after contact with Garrett Smith. … Smith, Eatonton, Ga., had to change an engine during the heats. He started last in his consolation race and finished second. He rallied from 23rd to 12th in the feature. … After winning a consolation race, Kent Robinson of Bloomington, Ind., started 22nd and finished 14th.

Semifeature lineup

(25 laps)
Row 1: Haiden Cowan, Ricky Thornton Jr.
Row 2: Brian Shirley, Chris Madden
Row 3: Trent Ivey, Donald McIntosh
Row 4: Stormy Scott, Mike Marlar
Row 5: Brandon Sheppard, Jason Feger
Row 6: Tristan Chamberlain, Shane Clanton
Row 7: Ryan Gustin, David McCoy
Row 8: Will Roland, Brandon Overton
Row 9: Kyle Bronson, Michael Brown
Row 10: Seth Daniels, Casey Noonan
Row 11: Tyler Nicely, Kent Robinson
Row 12: Garrett Smith, Ross Bailes

Consolation race results

(10 laps; top two transfer)
First consolation: Tyler Nicely, Garrett Smith, Kyle Strickler, Tanner English, Tim Lance, Josh Dietz, Terry Rushlow, John Tweed, Jeremy Cropper, Curtis Roberts, Kirk Phillips, Rod Conley. Scratched: Austin Kirkpatrick, Bryant Dickinson, David Ellis, Freddie Carpenter.

Second consolation: Kent Robinson, Ross Bailes, Carson Ferguson, Brad Dyer, Kenny Collins, Chase Osterhoff, Rob Anderzack, Mike Bargo, Jon Hodgkiss, Tyler Carpoenter, Kaede Loudy, Forrest Trent. Scratched: Luke Anstett, Jeff Kohn, Dona Marcoullier.

Consolation lineups

(10 laps; top two transfer)
First consolation
Row 1: Tyler Nicely, Tanner English
Row 2: Curtis Roberts, Tim Lance
Row 3: Rod Conley, Kirk Phillips
Row 4: Jeremy Cropper, Kyle Strickler
Row 5: Terry Rushlow, John Tweed
Row 6: Austin Kirkpatrick, Josh Dietz
Row 7: Garrett Smith, Bryant Dickinson
Row 8: David Ellis, Freddie Carpenter
Second consolation
Row 1: Ross Bailes, Kent Robinson
Row 2: Kenny Collins, Tyler Carpenter
Row 3: Kaede Loudy, Carson Ferguson
Row 4: Mike Bargo, Rob Anderzack
Row 5: Jon Hodgkiss, Brad Dyer
Row 6: Chase Osterhoff, Forrest Trent
Row 7: Luke Anstett, Jeff Kohn
Row 8: Dona Marcoullier

Heat race notes

Chris Madden grabbed the lead from Jason Feger on lap four en route to capturing the first heat. … Jeremy Cropper brought out the first caution of Heat 1 with a lap-four spin. … The first heat was slowed on the final circuit when sixth-running Austin Kirkpatrick’s car fell off the pace in a thick cloud of smoke; there was a delay of several minutes before the race restarted because Kirkpatrick’s car left moisture around much of the racetrack. … Feger was shuffled from second to fifth on the green-white-checkered restart that closed the first heat. … Garrett Smith was scheduled to start sixth in Heat 1, but his attempt to make an engine change following time trials fell short and he failed to make the call for the race. … Brian Shirley slipped past fellow Land of Lincoln resident Brandon Sheppard for the lead on lap three and went on to win the second heat by 1.369 seconds over B-Shepp. … Mike Marlar executed a slider on Ryan Gustin to assume command on lap three and rolled on to win the third heat. … Shane Clanton power-slid past Donald McIntosh in turn four to take the lead on lap seven and pulled away to claim the fourth heat. … Forrest Trent tagged the turn-one wall amid an opening-lap tangle in Heat 4, causing him to slow and bring out a caution flag. … Rob Anderzack also triggered caution conditions in the fourth heat with a turn-four spin on lap five. … Carson Ferguson shot into the lead on lap six but was felled by a blown right-rear tire before completing another circuit. … The restart following Ferguson’s caution saw Tyler Carpenter spin around between turns one and two as he was bidding to overtake Donald McIntosh for second after starting 11th.

Heat race results

(Eight laps; top five transfer)
First heat: Chris Madden, Brandon Overton, Ricky Thornton Jr., David McCoy, Jason Feger, Tyler Nicely, Curtis Roberts, Rod Conley, Jeremy Cropper, Terry Rushlow, Austin Kirkpatrick. Scratched: Garrett Smith, David Ellis.

Second heat: Brian Shirley, Brandon Sheppard, Trent Ivey, Will Roland, Michael Brown, Tanner English, Tim Lance, Kirk Phillips, Kyle Strickler, John Tweed, Josh Dietz, Bryant Dickinson. Scratched: Freddie Carpenter.

Third heat: Mike Marlar, Ryan Gustin, Stormy Scott, Kyle Bronson, Haiden Cowan, Ross Bailes, Kenny Collins, Kaede Loudy, Mike Bargo, Jon Hodgkiss, Chase Osterhoff, Luke Anstett. Scratched: Dona Marcoullier.

Fourth heat: Shane Clanton, Donald McIntosh, Tristan Chamberlain, Casey Noonan, Seth Daniels, Kent Robinson, Tyler Carpenter, Carson Ferguson, Rob Anderzack, Brad Dyer, Forrest Trent. Scratched: Jeff Kohn.

Heat race lineups

(Eight laps; top five transfer)
First heat
Row 1: David McCoy, Jason Feger
Row 2: Ricky Thornton Jr., Chris Madden
Row 3: Brandon Overton, Garrett Smith
Row 4: Austin Kirkpatrick, Terry Rushlow
Row 5: Rod Conley, Tyler Nicely
Row 6: Jeremy Cropper, Curtis Roberts
Row 7: David Ellis
Second heat
Row 1: Will Roland, Brandon Sheppard
Row 2: Trent Ivey, Brian Shirley
Row 3: Kyle Strickler, Josh Dietz
Row 4: Tanner English, Michael Brown
Row 5: Kirk Phillips, Tim Lance
Row 6: John Tweed, Bryant Dickinson
Row 7: Freddie Carpenter
Third heat
Row 1: Ryan Gustin, Mike Marlar
Row 2: Stormy Scott, Haiden Cowan
Row 3: Kyle Bronson, Ross Bailes
Row 4: Jon Hodgkiss, Kenny Collins
Row 5: Kaede Loudy, Mike Bargo
Row 6: Chase Osterhoff, Luke Anstett
Row 7: Dona Marcoullier
Fourth heat
Row 1: Shane Clanton, Tristan Chamberlain
Row 2: Donald McIntosh, Carson Ferguson
Row 3: Brad Dyer, Rob Anderzack
Row 4: Forrest Trent, Seth Daniels
Row 5: Kent Robinson, Casey Noonan
Row 6: Tyler Carpenter, Jeff Kohn

Pre-race notes

Friday’s second night of World 100 action is running under mostly cloudy skies after afternoon highs reached into the low 70s. … All entered drivers were called into the media center at 5 p.m. for a mandatory meeting — roll call was taken to ensure attendance — during which Eldora owner Tony Stewart spoke to remind competitors to treat event officials with respect and also clarify rules on crew signaling. Stewart told drivers that hand signals from crew members will be allowed only from a designated area inside the backstretch; some crew members were seen signaling while standing on the liftgates of trailers parked along the frontstretch but liability issues for the track led Stewart to ban teams from continuing the practice. … With a sixth-place finish in Thursday’s second preliminary feature, Jason Feger of Bloomington, Ill., enjoyed his best Eldora outing since a sixth-place run in a 2013 World 100 preliminary. Feger has struggled in recent years at Eldora; he hasn’t qualified for a crown jewel finale since the 2017 World 100 (finished 27th) and since 2021 has started just three of a possible 14 preliminary features during the World 100, Dream and Eldora Million. … Tristan Chamberlain of Richmond, Ind., is looking to crack a World 100 weekend feature lineup in his first-ever attempt at the event after the 16-year-old fell two spots short of transferring on Thursday in a B-main. … Mike Benedum of Salem, W.Va., thought he had solved the miss in his engine that hampered his second qualifying lap on Thursday by changing spark plugs, but the skip returned as he held second place midway through his heat and he faded quickly to the back of the pack. He said he hopes he’s figured out the problem after more work produced a trouble-free B-main run, though he failed to qualify for a preliminary feature. … Dona Marcoullier of Houghton Lake, Mich., is listed on Friday’s qualifying order but he has scratched from further competition this weekend after sustaining terminal engine trouble early in Thursday’s program.

Time trials

Driver (car no.), hometown, time (unofficial)
Chris Madden (87), Gray Court, S.C., 15.313
Brian Shirley (8), Chatham, Ill., 15.475
Haiden Cowan (214), Rincon, Ga., 15.478
Carson Ferguson (00F), Lincolnton, N.C., 15.509
Ricky Thornton Jr. (20rt), Chandler, Ariz., 15.515
Trent Ivey (88), Union, S.C., 15.530
Stormy Scott (2s), Las Cruces, N.M., 15.552
Donald McIntosh (79), Dawsonville, Ga., 15.574
Jason Feger (25), Bloomington, Ill., 15.590
Brandon Sheppard (B5), New Berlin, Ill., 15.612
Mike Marlar (157), Winfield, Tenn., 15.653
Tristan Chamberlain (20TC), Richmond, Ind., 15.710
David McCoy (187), Franklin, N.C., 15.717
Will Roland (22R), Jasper, Ga., 15.737
Ryan Gustin (19r), Marshalltown, Iowa, 15.743
Shane Clanton (25), Zebulon, Ga., 15.751
Brandon Overton (4), Evans, Ga., 15.752
Kyle Strickler (8), Mooresville, N.C., 15.756
Kyle Bronson (40B), Brandon, Fla., 15.797
Brad Dyer (0), Mohawk, Tenn., 15.833
Garrett Smith (10), Eatonton, Ga., 15.840
Josh Dietz (9D), Hebron, Ky., 15.840
Ross Bailes (79), Clover, S.C., 15.857
Rob Anderzack (8), Swanton, Ohio, 15.880
Austin Kirkpatrick (11), Harrisburg, N.C., 15.881
Tanner English (96v), Benton, Ky., 15.883
Jon Hodgkiss (69), Kennedy Township, Pa., 15.885
Forrest Trent (101), Morristown, Tenn., 15.919
Terry Rushlow (63), Holland, Ohio, 15.924
Michael Brown (24-D), Pageland, S.C., 15.942
Kenny Collins (1c), Colbert, Ga., 15.960
Seth Daniels (S21), Jackson, Ohio, 16.034
Rod Conley (71R), Wheelersburg, Ohio, 16.049
Kirk Phillips (21), Ashland, Ky., 16.055
Kaede Loudy (126), Rogersville, Tenn., 16.060
Kent Robinson (7R), Bloomington, Ind., 16.110
Tyler Nicely (6), Owensboro, Ky., 16.123
Tim Lance (48), Brimfield, Ill., 16.135
Mike Bargo (316), Corbin, Ky., 16.156
Casey Noonan (1N), Sylvania, Ohio, 16.156
Jeremy Cropper (7c), Ringgold, Ga., 16.325
John Tweed (5), Greeneville, Tenn., 16.527
Chase Osterhoff (130), Kankakee, Ill., 16.802
Tyler Carpenter (28c), Parkersburg, W.Va., 16.842
Curtis Roberts (9r), Coleman, Mich., 16.966
Bryant Dickinson (5*), Ionia, Mich., 17.314
Luke Anstett (64), Greenville, Mich., 17.344
Jeff Kohn (25K), Sheridan, Mich., no time
David Ellis (17), Defiance, Ohio, no time
Freddie Carpenter (C4), Parkersburg, W.Va., no time
Dona Marcoullier (6m), Houghton Lake, Mich., no time

Prelim points after Thursday

Driver (car no.), hometown - points

1. Bobby Pierce (32), Oakwood, Ill. - 498
2. Hudson O’Neal (1), Martinsville, Ind. - 485
3. Ricky Thornton Jr. (20rt), Chandler, Ariz. - 485
4. Chris Madden (87), Gray Court, S.C. - 485
5. Jason Jameson (12), Lawrenceburg, Ind. - 484
6. Brandon Sheppard (B5), New Berlin, Ill. - 478
7. Tim McCreadie (39), Watertown, N.Y. - 477
8. Brian Shirley (3s), Chatham, Ill. - 476
9. Mike Marlar (157), Winfield, Tenn. - 475
10. Shannon Babb (18), Moweaqua, Ill. - 475
11. Devin Moran (99), Dresden, Ohio - 465
12. Jason Feger (25), Bloomington, Ill. - 463
13. Spencer Hughes (11), Meridian, Miss. - 456
14. Daulton Wilson (1), Fayetteville, N.C. - 452
15. David McCoy (187), Franklin, N.C. - 452
16. Jonathan Davenport (49), Blairsville, Ga. - 450
17. Michael Brown (24-D), Pageland, S.C. - 449
18. Shane Clanton (25), Zebulon, Ga. - 448
19. Trent Ivey (88), Union, S.C. - 446
20. Earl Pearson Jr. (46), Jacksonville, Fla. - 444
21. Jimmy Owens (20), Newport, Tenn. - 438
22. Kyle Bronson (40B), Brandon, Fla. - 433
23. Josh Rice (11), Verona, Ky. - 432
24. Ryan Gustin (19r), Marshalltown, Iowa - 431
25. Brandon Overton (4), Evans, Ga. - 430
26. Mason Zeigler (25z), Chalk Hill, Pa. - 429
27. Haiden Cowan (214), Rincon, Ga. - 426
28. Joseph Joiner (10), Milton, Fla. - 422
29. Steven Roberts (111), Sylvester, Ga. - 421
30. Gregg Satterlee (22), Indiana, Pa. - 417
31. Chris Ferguson (22), Mount Holly, N.C. - 417
32. Garrett Alberson (58), Las Cruces, N.M. - 412
33. Matt Sheppard (42), Waterloo, N.Y. - 409
34. Dale McDowell (17m), Chickamauga, Ga. - 409
35. Tyler Erb (1), New Waverly, Texas - 405
36. Tristan Chamberlain (20tc), Richmond, Ind. - 402
37. Cody Overton (15k), Evans, Ga. - 401
38. Dennis Erb Jr. (28), Carpentersville, Ill. - 400
39. Carson Ferguson (00), Lincolnton, N.C. - 394
40. Stormy Scott (2s), Las Cruces, N.M. - 392
41. Wil Herrington (19m), Hawkinsville, Ga. - 390
42. Donald McIntosh (79), Dawsonville, Ga. - 388
43. G.R. Smith (22x), Cornelius, N.C. - 387
44. Jordan Koehler (114), Mount Airy, N.C. - 386
45. Kenny Collins (1c), Colbert, Ga. - 380
46. Richie Stephens (00), Phenix City, Ala. - 377
47. Mike Benedum (25), Salem, W.Va. - 371
48. Ricky Weiss (7W), Headingley, Manitoba - 371
49. Casey Noonan (1N), Sylvania, Ohio - 370
50. Kyle Strickler (8), Mooresville, N.C. - 367
51. Garrett Smith (10), Eatonton, Ga. - 367
52. Dustin Nobbe (5N), Batesville, Ind. - 363
53. Austin Kirkpatrick (11), Harrisburg, N.C. - 362
54. Cory Hedgecock (23), Loudon, Tenn. - 361
55. Tim Lance (48), Brimfield, Ill. - 354
56. Nick Hoffman (9), Mooresville, N.C. - 351
57. Tanner English (96v), Benton, Ky. - 348
58. R.J. Conley (71C), Wheelersburg, Ohio - 344
59. Ross Bailes (5B), Clover, S.C. - 344
60. Austin Neely (3), New Tazewell, Tenn. - 343
61. Will Roland (22), Jasper, Ga. - 342
62. Matt Cosner (66), Ridgeley, W.Va. - 341
63. Gordy Gundaker (11), St. Charles, Mo. - 340
64. Seth Daniels (s1), Jackson, Ohio - 337
65. Josh Dietz (9D), Hebron, Ky. - 332
66. Kye Blight (31aus), Bunbury, W. Australia - 331
67. Forrest Trent (101), Morristown, Tenn. - 330
68. Benji Hicks (55), Mount Airy, N.C. - 330
69. Travis Stemler (4s), Ionia, Mich. - 323
70. Kody Evans (4G), Camden, Ohio - 321
71. Jake Timm (49), Winona, Minn. - 315
72. Rod Conley (71R), Wheelersburg, Ohio - 311
73. Chase Osterhoff (130), Kankakee, Ill. - 311
74. Jerry Bowersock (95j), Wapakoneta, Ohio - 310
75. Kaede Loudy (126), Rogersville, Tenn. - 309
76. Jeep Van Wormer (55), Pinconning, Mich. - 308
77. Tyler Carpenter (28), Parkersburg, W.Va. - 305
78. Jason Riggs (81r), College Grove, Tenn. - 303
79. Jon Hodgkiss (69), Kennedy Township, Pa. - 303
80. Rob Anderzack (8), Swanton, Ohio - 303
81. Brad Dyer (0), Mohawk, Tenn. - 302
82. Tyler Nicely (6), Owensboro, Ky. - 302
83. Kent Robinson (7R), Bloomington, Ind. - 299
84. Kirk Phillips (21k), Ashland, Ky. - 297
85. Curtis Roberts (9r), Coleman, Mich. - 296
86. Freddie Carpenter (c4), Parkersburg, W.Va. - 294
87. Justin Cooper (00), Wheelersburg, Ohio - 292
88. Brian Ruhlman (49), Clarklake, Mich. - 292
89. Brenden Smith (17ss), Dade City, Fla. - 291
90. Terry Rushlow (63), Holland, Ohio - 290
91. Donnie Jeschke (99J), Dayton, Ohio - 289
92. Mike Bargo (316), Corbin, Ky. - 286
93. John Tweed (5), Greeneville, Tenn. - 284
94. Jeremy Cropper (7c), Ringgold, Ga. - 277
95. David Ellis (17), Defiance, Ohio - 277
96. Jeff Kohn (25), Sheridan, Mich. - 275
97. Bryant Dickinson (5*), Ionia, Mich. - 267
98. Jeff Robertson (P3), Defiance, Ohio - 266
99. Luke Anstett (64), Greenville, Mich. - 259
100. Terry Wolfenbarger (14), Powell, Tenn. - 82
101. Dona Marcoullier (6m), Houghton Lake, Mich. - 0
102. Gilbert Hess (44), Inwood, W.Va. - 0

Friday’s schedule

7-11 a.m. - Breakfast served (turn four concession building)
10 a.m. - Ticket office opens (ticket and pit pass sales)
11 a.m. - Grounds cleared and secured
Noon - All gates, suites and concessions open
Noon-4:30 p.m. - Technical inspection
1 p.m. - Cornhole tournament (Eldora barn)
3:30-6:30 p.m. - Billy Chez Cheese concert (fan zone)
5 p.m. - Drivers’ meeting
6:30 p.m. - Hot laps
8 p.m. - Opening ceremonies
- Late Model time trials
- Late Model heats (8 laps)
- Late Model consolations (10 laps)
- Late Model first feature (25 laps)
- Late Model second feature (25 laps)