Poll Position presented by Keyser Manufacturing
Top 25: Pierce's grip on No. 1 ranking continues
By Todd Turner
DirtonDirt managing editor
Bobby Pierce (joshjamesartwork.com)
Further solidifying his unanimous No. 1 ranking, Bobby Pierce’s historic Sunoco North-South 100 victory at Florence Speedway in Union, Ky., kept him atop DirtonDirt’s weekly power rankings presented by Keyser Manufacturing.
Pierce’s record-setting third consecutive victory in the crown jewel event also made him the race’s first tour-time winner as he won a mid-race duel with No. 2-ranked Jonathan Davenport en route to the $75,000 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series victory.
Blairsville, Ga.’s Davenport, who received all but one second-place vote after finishing third at Florence, and the rest of the top five remained the same. North-South runner-up Ricky Thornton Jr. of Chandler, Ariz., is No. 3 followed by No. 4 Hudson O’Neal of Martinsville, Ind., who finished seventh at Florence, and No. 5 Brandon Sheppard of New Berlin, Ill., who finished 12th in the North-South.
Devin Moran of Dresden, Ohio, the fourth-place finisher at Florence, moved up two positions to No. 6 in a poll with little movement after the second weekend in August. Daulton Wilson of Fayetteville, N.C., one of four Florence semifeature winners, inched up one position to No. 20.
Ashton Winger of Hampton, Ga., replaced Chris Madden of Gray Court, S.C, to become the lone newcomer to the poll. Winger notched his third victory in 23 days with Friday’s Comp Cams Super Dirt Series triumph at Magnolia Motor Speedway in Columbus, Miss.
Voting is done by a 10-member committee made up of staffers and contributors to determine the Top 25 power rankings: Richard Allen, Bryan Ault, Jeff Broeg, Kelley Carlton, Ryan Delph, Josh James, Kevin Kovac, Kyle McFadden, Mike Ruefer and Kyle Symons. Results are compiled and tabulated by Todd Turner, who serves as a voting alternate along with fellow staffer Aaron Clay.
Rankings appear Tuesdays through mid-November provided at least half of the drivers in the current rankings are in action in the previous week.
1. Bobby Pierce, Oakwood, Ill.
Comment: After historic third straight and fourth overall North-South 100 victory, he has World of Outlaws Real American Beer Late Model Series events coming up at Highland, Spoon River and Maquoketa. Series points: 1st (WoO). 1st (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 1st (nc)
2. Jonathan Davenport, Blairsville, Ga.
Comment: Damage from kerfuffle with Pierce forces him to settle for third at Florence’s North-South 100. Heads to Double L’s home base of Batesville for Topless 100. Series points: 1st (Lucas Oil); 2nd (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 2nd (nc)
3. Ricky Thornton Jr., Chandler, Ariz.
Comment: Posts runner-up finish at North-South 100 for second time in three years. Batesville’s Topless 100 up next. Series points: 2nd (Lucas Oil); 3rd (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 3rd (nc)
4. Hudson O’Neal, Martinsville, Ind.
Comment: Salvages seventh-place finish at North-South after flat tire. SSI Motorsports team heads to Arkansas. Series points: 3rd (Lucas Oil); 6th (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 4th (nc)
5. Brandon Sheppard, New Berlin, Ill.
Comment: Rocket Chassis house car driver gains position in Lucas Oil points, but he’s just 12th at Florence’s crown jewel. Batesville next. Series points: 5th (Lucas Oil); 4th (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 5th (nc)
6. Devin Moran, Dresden, Ohio
Comment: Second place in North-South slips away in closing laps, but Florence weekend includes $6,000 semifeature victory. He’ll rip off the roof and head to Batesville. Series points: 4th (Lucas Oil); 7th (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 8th (+2)
7. Nick Hoffman, Mooresville, N.C.
Comment: Fades from front-row starting spot at North-South to finish 10th. Four WoO races coming up in Illinois and Iowa. Series points: 2nd (WoO); T7th (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 6th (-1)
8. Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, Iowa
Comment: Still soaking up $100,000 USA Nationals victory, team will be well rested before Highland Speedway opens four-race WoO stretch. Series points: 3rd (WoO); T7th (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 7th (-1)
9. Garrett Alberson, Las Cruces, N.M.
Comment: Semifeature victory highlights North-South weekend that ends with 17th-place finish in finale. Topless 100 on tap. Series points: 6th (Lucas Oil); 10th (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 9th (nc)
10. Tim McCreadie, Watertown, N.Y.
Comment: After a weekend off, Briggs Transport team goes back to work on WoO circuit starting with his debut at Highland Speedway. Series points: 4th (WoO). Previous ranking: 10th (nc)
11. Brandon Overton, Evans, Ga.
Comment: Unpinned hood that goes flying at outset of North-South 100 is a downer, but he rallies to finish eighth. Longhorn Factory Team heads for Batesville. Series points: 7th (Lucas Oil). Previous ranking: 13th (+2)
12. Mike Marlar, Winfield, Tenn.
Comment: Tangle with lapped car knocks him out of lead in Florence semifeature with weekend ending with 14th-place finish in 100-lapper. Next action not publicized. Series points: None. Previous ranking: 12th (nc)
13. Brian Shirley, Chatham, Ill.
Comment: After a family vacation, he’ll try to repeat last year’s WoO victory at Highland ahead of series events at Spoon River and Maquoketa. Series points: 7th (WoO); 5th (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 11th (-2)
14. Tyler Erb, New Waverly, Texas
Comment: Posted second- and sixth-place finishes on Comp Cams circuit at Magnolia. He’ll head for Spoon River followed by more WoO action at Maquoketa. Series points: 2nd (Summer Nationals). Previous ranking: T14th (nc)
15. Jason Feger, Bloomington, Ill.
Comment: After a MARS victory at Sycamore, he’ll challenge WoO competitors in this week’s events at Highland, Spoon River and Maquoketa. Series points: Champion (Summer Nationals); 1st (MARS). Previous ranking: 18th (nc)
16. Dennis Erb Jr., Carpentersville, Ill.
Comment: Makes a single weekend start with runner-up showing in MARS action at Sycamore. Heads to Highland where he’s a Summer Nationals winner from 2007 but hasn’t been better than 10th in last three starts. Series points: 6th (WoO); 9th (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 16 (nc)
17. Zack Mitchell, Enoree, S.C.
Comment: Takes weekend off after a busy month that included five victories. He plans to run Saturday's Southern All Star event at Sugar Creek. Series points: 2nd (Hunt the Front). Previous ranking: T14th (-3)
18. Jimmy Owens, Newport, Tenn.
Comment: In 21st straight North-South 100 start, he retires early at Florence. Tentatively plans to remain idle until Aug. 23 Hunt the Front tour event at North Georgia. Series points: 1st (Hunt the Front); T2nd (Southern Nationals). Previous ranking: 17th (-1)
19. Josh Rice, Crittenden, Ky.
Comment: Nothing goes his way at North-South 100 weekend that ends with 21st-place finish. Richmond’s Butterball Wooldridge Memorial likely up next. Series points: 1st (Northern Allstars). Previous ranking: 19th (nc)
20. Daulton Wilson, Fayetteville, N.C.
Comment: Captures opening night North-South semifeature, but right-front damage forced him out of finale. Batesville’s up next. Series points: 8th (Lucas Oil). Previous ranking: 21st (+1)
21. Max Blair, Centerville, Pa.
Comment: Fails to crack North-South 100 starting field and settles for runner-up finish in non-qualifiers’ race. Next action set for Lucas Oil’s Aug. 22-23 visit to Port Royal. Series points: None. Previous ranking: 20th (-1)
22. Cory Hedgecock, Loudon, Tenn.
Comment: Rallies from 19th to ninth in North-South 100, where he’s also fourth in a semifeature. North Georgia’s HTF action next on public schedule. Series points: 3rd (Hunt the Front). Previous ranking: 24th (+2)
23. Sam Seawright, Rainsville, Ala.
Comment: Posts a solid pair of top-five finishes in Clash at the Mag on the Comp Cams Super Dirt Series. Upcoming schedule unannounced. Series points: 7th (Hunt the Front). Previous ranking: 2nd (-1)
24. Drake Troutman, Hyndman, Pa.
Comment: Grabs a weekend modified victory at Virginia’s Wythe Raceway ahead of four straight WoO events in Illinois and Iowa. Series points: 5th (WoO). Previous ranking: 23rd (-1)
25. Ashton Winger, Hampton, Ga.
Comment: Wins lead-swapping Clash at Mag opener for Comp Cams victory, but mechanical woes keep him out the next night. Series points: None. Previous ranking: Unranked
Dropped out: Chris Madden
Others receiving votes: Chris Madden (10), Jason Jameson (8), Dale McDowell (8), Mason Zeigler (8), Kyle Bronson (6), Gregg Satterlee (6), Rusty Schlenk (4), Cody Overton (3), Tanner English (3), Donald McIntosh (3), Zack Dohm (2), Ryan Unzicker (2), Shane Clanton (1).
