Poll Position presented by Keyser Manufacturing
Top 25: RTJ climbs, Pierce perched at No. 1
By Kevin Kovac
DirtonDirt senior writer
Ricky Thornton Jr. (heathlawsonphotos.com)
Amid a week of continued success and a personal concern with the hospitalization of his father and crew chief, Bobby Pierce of Oakwood, Ill., remained atop DirtonDirt’s power rankings in unanimous fashion for the seventh straight week.
Pierce, 29, won for the 22nd time overall this season with a $15,000 victory in July 14’s Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series stop at Adams County Speedway in Corning, Iowa. His plans to compete in Thursday’s Silver Dollar Nationals preliminary at Shelby County Speedway in Harlan, Iowa, were nixed after his father Bob suffered a stroke Wednesday morning and was airlifted to a hospital in Omaha, Neb., for emergency surgery, but he returned to the seat Friday and Saturday with Bob recovering well and registered a third-place finish in the crown jewel event’s 80-lap finale.
With four nights of racing in his home state ahead — including this weekend’s World of Outlaws Late Model Series-sanctioned Prairie Dirt Classic at Fairbury Speedway — Pierce enters the stretch as the No. 1-ranked driver in the Keyser Manufacturing Top 25 poll for the eighth consecutive week overall. He’s received all 10 available first-place votes for seven weeks in a row.
Brandon Sheppard of New Berlin, Ill., remained No. 2 in the rankings following a week in Iowa highlighted by his $15,000 triumph in the Malvern Bank Go 50 to open Shelby County’s weekend. He also finished fifth in the Silver Dollar Nationals headliner.
Nick Hoffman of Mooresville, N.C., stayed at No. 3 after two podium finishes on the Lucas Oil trail, placing third at Adams County and second in Shelby County’s opener. Jonathan Davenport of Blairsville, Ga., moved up two spots to No. 4 on the strength of a $53,000 runner-up finish in the SDS finale while Hudson O’Neal of Martinsville, Ind., slipped one position to No. 5 after failing to crack the top-five in his three Lucas Oil starts in the Hawkeye State.
The driver who showed the week’s most upward mobility was Ricky Thornton Jr. of Chandler, Ariz., who climbed three spots to No. 7 after driving to a dominant flag-to-flag victory worth $52,000 in Saturday’s Silver Dollar Nationals. It was his first full-field Dirt Late Model win since May 28’s World of Outlaws event at Wayne County Speedway in Orrville, Ohio.
Rejoining the Top 25 was Cade Dillard of Robeline, La., who landed at No. 24 after a Comp Cams Super Dirt Series victory on Saturday at Batesville Motor Speedway in Locust Grove, Ark., and Brian Shirley of Chatham, Ill., at No. 25 after three straight top-five finishes during Lucas Oil’s Iowa swing.
Dropping out of the poll was Drake Troutman of Hyndman, Pa., and Saw Seawright of Rainsville, Ala.
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: Emotional roller coaster of a week includes Lucas Oil victory at Adams County, health scare with his father Bob and third-place finish in Silver Dollar Nationals finale. Big week of home-state racing on tap. Series points: 1st (WoO); 9th (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 1st (nc)
2. Brandon Sheppard, New Berlin, Ill.
Comment: Builds Lucas Oil points lead with sixth-place finish at Adams County followed by prelim victory and fifth-place SDN run at Shelby County. Gets four nights of home-turf racing next. Series points: 1st (Lucas Oil); 1st (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 2nd (nc)
3. Nick Hoffman, Mooresville, N.C.
Comment: Takes on Lucas Oil Series regulars in Iowa and scores two podium finishes, placing third at Adams County and second in Shelby County’s prelim. Ready to chase Prairie Dirt Classic win. Series points: 2nd (WoO); 2nd (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 3rd (nc)
4. Jonathan Davenport, Blairsville, Ga.
Comment: Rebounds from DNQ in Shelby County’s opener to score $53,000 runner-up finish in SDN finale. Taking next two weeks off to attend son Blane’s fishing tournaments. Series points: None. Previous ranking: 6th (+2)
5. Hudson O'Neal, Martinsville, Ind.
Comment: Quiet stretch continues with 13th-place finish at Adams County and two sevenths at Shelby County. Looking to regain up-front form in Illinois driving SSI Motorsports entry at Lincoln and Rumley No. 6 at Fairbury. Series points: 2nd (Lucas Oil); 4th (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 4th (-1)
6. Devin Moran, Dresden, Ohio
Comment: Three Lucas Oil Series top-10s topped by fourth-place finish in Shelby County’s opener after intense battle for lead with Ryan Gustin. Spending week in Land of Lincoln. Series points: 3rd (Lucas Oil); 3rd (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 5th (-1)
7. Ricky Thornton Jr., Chandler, Ariz.
Comment: Roars back to winning form with dominant $52,000 Silver Dollar Nationals triumph. Can he heat up with rich week in Illinois? Series points: 6th (Lucas Oil). Previous ranking: T10th (+3)
8. Brandon Overton, Evans, Ga.
Comment: Finishes grow progressively worse, going from seventh at Adams to 14th and 22nd at Shelby County. Will try to right ship with swing through Illinois. Series points: 4th (Lucas Oil); 7th (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 7th (-1)
9. Tyler Erb, New Waverly, Texas
Comment: Takes weekend off with Fun Tour stops coming up in Illinois. Series points: 3rd (WoO); 5th (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 8th (-1)
10. Max Blair, Centerville, Pa.
Comment: Fails to crack top-five during Iowa swing but satisifed with three top-10 runs on black dirt. Staying in Midwest to hone skills on the black surface at Fairbury. Series points: 5th (Lucas Oil). Previous ranking: 9th (-1)
11. Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, Iowa
Comment: Duels for lead with Devin Moran in Shelby County opener before settling for third-place finish, then manages only 10th-place run in Silver Dollar Nationals finale. Back at it with WoO tour at Fairbury. Series points: 5th (WoO). Previous ranking: 12th (-1)
12. Tim McCreadie, Watertown, N.Y.
Comment: Long trek to Shelby County yields 12th-place Silver Dollar Nationals finish. Ready to chase second PDC victory of career. Series points: 4th (WoO). Previous ranking: T10th (-2)
13. Garrett Alberson, Las Cruces, N.M.
Comment: Starts Iowa swing with runner-up finish at Adams County but follows it with two 15th-place outings at Shelby County. Illinois action at Lincoln and Fairbury on agenda. Series points: 7th (Lucas Oil). Previous ranking: 14th (-1)
14. Josh Rice, Crittenden, Ky.
Comment: Struggles debuting at Adams County and Shelby County, topping out with eighth-place run in Shelby’s SDN prelim. Hoping for better results at Fairbury. Series points: 9th (Lucas Oil); 8th (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 13th (-1)
15. Tanner English, Benton, Ky.
Comment: Breaks from competition after grueling Summer Nationals to prep for Fairbury assault. Series points: Champion (Summer Nationals); 4th (MARS). Previous ranking: 16th (+1)
T16. Jason Feger, Bloomington, Ill.
Comment: Grabs MARS triumph at Farmer City before putting attention on Lincoln and Fairbury. Series points: 2nd (MARS); 2nd (Summer Nationals). Previous ranking: 17th (+1)
T16. Dale McDowell, Chickamauga, Ga.
Comment: Idle since runner-up Southern Nationals finish on July 13 at Bulls Gap. Next start TBA. Series points: None. Previous ranking: 15th (-1)
18. Ashton Winger, Hampton, Ga.
Comment: After weekend off, tackling Tuesday’s Southern Nationals show at Senoia and then heading to Fairbury. Series points: 1st (HTF). Previous ranking: 18th (nc)
19. Daulton Wilson, Fayetteville, N.C.
Comment: Big Frog team regroups in shop for resumption of WoO action at Fairbury. Series points: 7th (WoO). Previous ranking: 21 (+2)
20. Ethan Dotson, Bakersfield, Calif.
Comment: Drops in on Southern Nationals for third-place finish at Modoc. Pointing hauler to Midwest for Fairbury competition. Series points: 6th (WoO). Previous ranking: 22nd (+2)
21. Chris Madden, Gray Court, S.C.
Comment: Experiences frustrating trip to Shelby County, finishing 19th in prelim and failing to qualify for SDN finale. Home for weekend before returning to seat for Cedar Lake’s USA Nationals. Series points: None. Previous ranking: 20th (-1)
22. Dillon McCowan, Urbana, Mo.
Comment: Runs up front early at Adams County before slipping over banking and finishing 11th, then struggles to pair of 23rd-place finishes at Shelby County. Takes rig home to Missouri for break. Series points: 14th (Lucas Oil). Previous ranking: 19th (-3)
23. Zack Mitchell, Enoree, S.C.
Comment: After three top-10 runs on Southern Nationals highlighted by a fourth at Harris Speedway, backs off action to prep for racing in Illinois. Series points: 5th (Hunt the Front). Previous ranking: 23rd (nc)
24. Cade Dillard, Robeline, La.
Comment: Enjoys solid Comp Cams weekend at Batesville, finishing fourth in opener and winning finale. Next appearance to be determined. Series points: 1st (Comp Cams). Previous ranking: Unranked
25. Brian Shirley, Chatham, La.
Comment: Rips off three straight top-five Lucas Oil runs in Iowa. Anxious to defend PDC laurels in home state. Series points: 8th (Lucas Oil). Previous ranking: Unranked
Dropped out: Drake Troutman, Sam Seawright
Others receiving votes: Drake Troutman (21), Cody Overton (20), Ryan Unzicker (9), Mike Marlar (8), Clay Harris (6), Sam Seawright (6), Clay Stuckey (4), Gregg Satterlee (3), Chris Ferguson (2), Jesse Sobbing (1).
