PLYMOUTH, Wis. (July 29) — Brandon Sheppard fully understood that he had to strike quick in Monday night’s 50-lap World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series feature at Plymouth Dirt Track.

“Just from being here last year, I knew that if the top was gonna be any good, it was gonna be right at the very beginning and then it was gonna go away,” said Sheppard, who won Plymouth’s inaugural WoO event in 2018. “So I knew if I was gonna make the top work, I’d have to do it early.”

Sheppard, 26, of New Berlin, Ill., did just that, using the outside of the third-mile oval to bolt from the fourth starting spot to lead by lap two in his Rocket Chassis house. He then stayed there for all but one circuit over the remaining distance en route to a $10,000 score that marked his second victory in as many appearances at Plymouth and his WoO-leading 15th of 2019.

While Chase Junghans of Manhattan, Kan., did nose ahead of Sheppard to lead lap 31, Sheppard regained command the following circuit and never looked back as he romped to a checkered flag that came just two days after his dramatic last-lap win in the Prairie Dirt Classic at Fairbury (Ill.) Speedway.

Junghans, 26, was unable to stick with Sheppard on the six restarts that followed his brief turn in the lead and settled for a runner-up finish in his father Greg’s XR1 Rocket machine, 1.430 seconds behind Sheppard.

WoO Rookie of the Year leader Ricky Weiss of Headingley, Manitoba, ceded second to Junghans on lap 26 while racing through slower traffic and saw his efforts to reclaim the position fail, leaving him with a third-place finish in his Bloomquist Race Car.

Brian Shirley of Chatham, Ill., finished fourth in his closest race of the season to his car owner Bob Cullen’s Wisconsin home and Dennis Erb Jr. of Carpentersville, Ill., placed fifth.

Still riding a high from his $30,000 Fairbury success, Sheppard used the momentum to propel him by polesitter and lap-one leader Darrell Lanigan of Union, Ky., in short order. His aggressive start paid off.

“Luckily, right there at the very beginning, we had it packed in good enough up top where I could get up there and run it pretty good,” related Sheppard, who established a new track record of 13.709 seconds in setting fast time in qualifying. “The bottom wasn’t throwing very much stuff out there yet so you could stick, and I knew all them guys were diving to the bottom, which was the only way I was gonna get by him.

“Just like last year, we all got on the bottom eventually. The (inside marker) tires are so small that you can hit ‘em in and then crumbs get thrown across the track all night, so it takes the top out as a factor.”

Actually, Sheppard attempted to move up the track and use a high line when he reached a heavy batch of lapped traffic at the race’s halfway point. He soon realized that was an incorrect strategy, however.

“I was running the crap out of it and not going anywhere,” Sheppard said of the track’s outside lane. “It’s crumby up there and you’re just wheel-spinning as hard as you can trying to hit the cushion, and you can’t really see the cushion because the crumbs are there laying on top of it.”

As Sheppard struggled to pass slower cars using the outside groove, Junghans remained on the inside of the track — where he was when he overtook Weiss for the bridesmaid spot on lap 26 — and caught the leader. Junghans then slipped ahead of Sheppard on lap 31 and might have stayed in the lead longer if an opening in lapped traffic hadn’t appeared for Sheppard the following circuit.

“The problem was, I got almost to the that 74 car’s quarter-panel on the outside, and I’m like, ‘Well, what do I do? Tuck down in behind him or keep trying to pass him?’” Sheppard said, referring to how he dealt with the car driven by Mitch McGrath of Waukesha, Wis. “Luckily I shot through the middle of (turns) one and two and I showed the 74 car a nose and he respectfully let off for me to get back down to the bottom.

“He must have known that the bottom was the right groove. He probably heard my motor revving outside of him there a few laps, too, but definitely thanks to him. That was a very respectful move that he did.”

Junghans realized that his best chance of upsetting Sheppard had evaporated.

“We were all racing those lapped cars and they (Sheppard and Weiss) kind of were checked out a little bit,” said Junghans, who started eighth. “Then they slowed down and I got to ‘em, and they were trying to go out of the bottom and it was still right around the bottom so I just stayed down there and luckily got by (Weiss). I thought I almost had Shepp, too.

“But (Sheppard) got alongside of (McGrath) just enough down the back straightaway that he kind of scared the guy, and I think when he scared the guy the guy turned away and (Sheppard) was able to turn down … and I was right there, and that’s when I hit a lapped car. It was all I could do to not drive over those infield tires.”

Junghans had no answer for Sheppard on open track following restarts.

“He was just a little bit better,” Junghans said. “That’s all there is to it.”

The 30-year-old Weiss went from challenging Sheppard for the lead to being resigned to a third-place finish. He lost second to Junghans on lap 26 when he slid high in turn two while attempting to find a way past Sheppard in lapped traffic.

“I think we had a real good car tonight,” said Weiss, who started fifth. “We were able to get under Brandon and he got down just in time (to find the traction) and then it was pretty much down around the tires all night. It was a little hard being third because second gets to chose the lane for the restarts … one time I almost got around Chase, but it was a good race.”

Weiss continued to fall short in his chase of an elusive first career WoO victory, but he resisted the temptation to show frustration with his fate.

“I thought this might be the night,” said Weiss, who now ranks second in the WoO points standings. “Everyone just keeps saying to keep digging and doing what we’re doing and they’ll come (wins). Hopefully they just come in six- and 12-packs. Maybe we can even get one for 50-grand this weekend (in the USA Nationals at Cedar Lake Speedway in New Richmond, Wis.).”

Sheppard, meanwhile, was looking ahead to Tuesday night’s WoO stop at Shawano (Wis.) Speedway after his latest conquest.

“Hopefully we can do good at Shawano tomorrow because my track record’s not real good there,” Sheppard said. “Me and (team owner) Mark (Richards) were just talking today, we hope was can get it figured out because every time we go there we mess something up or I mess something up and it just never works out for us.

“I felt like I got really comfortable there last year and then I had a mishap in the heat race. I was running second and spun myself out, I got in the uke tire, and it put us behind the rest of the night.

“It’s one of them deals where it never really goes our way there, but so far this year everything seems to be going our way for the most part so I’m definitely looking forward to it,” he added. “I’m looking forward to any race we can get to right now. I’m pumped up for any of ‘em.”

Nine caution flags slowed the feature, which took just over 36 minutes to complete.

Notes: Sheppard recorded his 51st career WoO victory. … Lanigan was running fourth when he abruptly pulled off the track and retired with mechanical trouble, dropping him from third to fifth in the points standings. … Tyler Bruening was scheduled to start third after winning a heat race but didn’t make it to the green flag because his car’s left-rear wheel came off after the four-wide parade lap. He was towed off before rejoining the race several laps down; his night ended on lap 13 when he stopped in turn two with problems that required another wrecker-ride to the pits. … Outside polesitter Boom Briggs, who turned 48 on Monday, slowed on lap five to bring out a caution. He returned and went on to finish 10th. … The only significant tangle occurred on lap 32 when Justin Reed and Justin Ritchie came together in turn three. … World of Outlaws Sprint Car champion Donny Schatz took advantage of a break in his open-wheel schedule to enter his Dirt Late Model in Plymouth’s action. He finished 12th after making a late pit stop.