World of Outlaws Late Model Series
Fairbury Speedway
July 27, 2013
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Babb Tops McDowell & Pierce In Memorable Prairie Dirt Classic Battle To Finish At Fairbury Speedway
Illinois Star Thrills Packed House, Keeps $20,000 World of Outlaws Prize From Leaving State



by Kevin Kovac
FAIRBURY, IL (July 27) – Shannon Babb battled and battled and battled....and finally came out on top of a Prairie Dirt Classic A-Main for the ages on Saturday night at Fairbury American Legion Speedway.

The 39-year-old star from Moweaqua, Ill., thrilled his home-state crowd, outdueling Dale McDowell of Chickamauga, Ga., and Bobby Pierce of Oakwood, Ill., down the stretch to win a 100-lap race that was one of the most dramatic of the 2013 World of Outlaws Late Model Series campaign.

After watching the 16-year-old Pierce use the inside groove to march forward from the 17th starting spot and take the lead on lap 29, Babb stuck to his preferred outside line around the high-banked, quarter-mile oval and reached second place on lap 48. Babb then relentlessly chased Pierce for the remainder of the distance, nosing ahead to lead briefly on laps 80 and 89-90 before gaining full command on lap 93 and holding off both Pierce and McDowell over the final circuits.

Babb, Pierce and McDowell ran three-wide at times during the last five laps, igniting the packed house that turned out for the biggest event in Fairbury's storied history. The trio came off turn two close together on the final lap, but Pierce's last-ditch bid for the victory entering turn three caused him and McDowell to lose momentum, allowing Babb to vault away to the $20,000 checkered flag.



McDowell settled for second place, 0.730 of a second behind Babb. Pierce registered a career-best WoO LMS finish of third, while Tim McCreadie quietly rallied from a mid-race pit stop to finish fourth and Shane Clanton placed fifth.

Results of WoO Late Model Series '24th Annual Prairie Dirt Classic' at Fairbury American Legion Speedway (Finishing Position/Start/Driver/Laps Completed/Money Won):
1. (6) Shannon Babb/100 $20,050
2. (2) Dale McDowell/100 $10,050
3. (17) Bobby Pierce/100 $6,500
4. (24) Tim McCreadie/100 $5,650
5. (11) Shane Clanton/100 $4,550
6. (20) Josh Richards/100 $3,700
7. (7) Brian Shirley/100 $2,750
8. (19) Brandon Sheppard/100 $3,000
9. (1) Billy Moyer/100 $2,500
10. (15) Chub Frank/100 $2,800
11. (5) Mike Spatola/100 $1,900
12. (25) Scott Bull/100 $1,800
13. (8) Tyler Reddick/100 $1,750
14. (13) Kyle Logue/100 $1,700
15. (10) McKay Wenger/100 $1,600
16. (3) Derek Chandler/100 $1,580
17. (27) Eric Wells/98 $910
18. (23) Rick Eckert/98 $2,190
19. (21) Darrell Lanigan/98 $2,170
20. (12) Eric Smith/98 $1,500
21. (4) Kevin Weaver/76 $1,500
22. (26) Joe Harlan/69 $1,500
23. (18) Randy Korte/62 $1,500
24. (9) Ricky Weiss/62 $1,525
25. (22) Tim Fuller/55 $2,050
26. (14) Billy Drake/38 $1,500
27. (28) Bub McCool/28 $660
28. (16) Aaron Ricketts/25 $1,500
* Earnings include Winners Circle program and cash contingency award bonuses

Time of Race: 43 Mins., 49.357 Secs.
Margin of Victory: 0.730 Secs.
Yellow Flags: 4 (laps 5, 39, 64, 83)
Lap Leaders: McDowell (1-28); Pierce (29-80); Babb (81); Pierce (82-88); Babb (89-90); Pierce (91-92); Babb (93-100)
Provisional Starters: Eckert, McCreadie (WoO points); Bull, J. Harlan (track); Wells, McCool (WoO emergency)
Rookie of the Race: Wells ($250)
WoO LMS 'Bonus Bucks' Winner: Pierce ($500)

B-Main No. 1 (20 laps – Top 2 Transfer): 1. Brandon Sheppard, 2. Darrell Lanigan, 3. Torin Mettille, 4. Daren Friedman, 5. Eric Wells, 6. Morgan Bagley, 7. Clint Smith, 8. Mike Mullvain, 9. Ryan Unzicker, 10. Tim McCreadie, 11. Joe Harlan, 12. Jay Morris, 13. Steve Thorston, 14. Snooke Dehm, 15. Bub McCool, 16. John Mason, 17. Eric Vaughan

B-Main No. 2 (20 laps – Top 2 Transfer): 1. Josh Richards, 2. Tim Fuller, 3. Rick Eckert, 4. Frankie Heckenast, 5. Steve Sheppard Jr., 6. Jimmy Mars, 7. Dillon Wood, 8. Kent Robinson, 9. Donny Walden, 10. Daniel Flessner, 11. Brian Dunn, 12. Tom Thoennes, 13. Rich Harlan, 14. Scott Bull, 15. Mike McGuire, 16. Scott Schmitt

Prairie Dirt Shootout Non-Qualifiers' Race Finish (30 laps): 1. Clint Smith ($2,000); 2. Kent Robinson ($1,200); 3. Daren Friedman ($900); 4. Dillon Wood ($800); 5. Ryan Unzicker ($700); 6. Frankie Heckenast ($600); 7. Scott Schmitt ($575); 8. Mike Mullvain ($550); 9. Torin Mettille ($525); 10. Steve Thorston ($500); 11. Tom Thoennes ($475); 12. Donny Walden ($450); 13. Jay Morris ($425); 14. Daniel Flessner ($400); 15. Rich Harlan ($375); 16. Snookie Dehm ($350); 17. Steve Sheppard Jr. ($325); 18. Eric Vaughan ($300); 19. Brian Dunn ($300); 20. Mike Vaughan ($300)

Heat No. 1 (10 laps – Top 3 Transfer): McDowell, Shirley, Logue, Friedman, B. Sheppard, McCool, McCreadie, Unzicker, McGuire
Heat No. 2 (10 laps – Top 3 Transfer): Chandler, Reddick, Drake, Fuller, Schmitt, Flessner, Dunn, Glasscock
Heat No. 3 (10 laps – Top 3 Transfer): Moyer, Weiss, Frank, Lanigan, Mason, Bagley, Dehm, S. Sheppard
Heat No. 4 (10 laps – Top 3 Transfer): Spatola, Wenger, Ricketts, Richards, Heckenast, Wood, Bull, C. Smith, Thorston
Heat No. 5 (10 laps – Top 3 Transfer): Babb, Clanton, Pierce, Mettille, Wells, Mullvain, Vaughan, Thoennes, R. Harlen
Heat No. 6 (10 laps – Top 3 Transfer): Weaver, E. Smith, Korte, Mars, Robinson, Eckert, Walden, Morris

Time Trial Results (Position/No./Driver/Hometown/Best Lap):

Group ‘A’
1. 17M-Dale McDowell/Chickamauga, GA 13.068
2. 35-Derek Chandler/Pontiac, IL 13.166
3. 21-Billy Moyer/Batesville, AR 13.206
4. 21K-Kyle Logue/Cisco, IL 13.228
5. 11-Tyler Reddick/DuQuoin, IL 13.255
6. 7-Ricky Weiss/Winnipeg, Manitoba 13.256
7. 89-Daren Friedman/Forrest, IL 13.273
8. 9d-Daniel Flessner/Roberts, IL 13.278
9. 72-John Mason/Millersburg, OH 13.292
10. 3s-Brian Shirley/Chatham, IL 13.312
11. 75-Billy Drake/Bloomington, IL 13.338
12. 1*-Chub Frank/Bear Lake, PA 13.350
13. b5-Brandon Sheppard/New Berlin, IL 13.361
14. 10-Scott Schmitt/Tunica, IL 13.399
15. 14M-Morgan Bagley/Longview, TX 13.419
16. 39-Tim McCreadie/Watertown, NY 13.447
17. 19-Tim Fuller/Watertown, NY 13.497
18. 29-Darrell Lanigan/Union, KY 13.521
19. 57J-Bub McCool/Vicksburg, MS 13.545
20. 5-Brian Dunn/Fairbury, IL 13.573
21. 5s-Steve Sheppard Jr./New Berlin, IL 13.591
22. 24-Ryan Unzicker/El Paso, IL 13.606
23. 30-Mike Glasscock/LeRoy, IL 13.633
24. D2-Snookie Dehm/Chatsworth, IL 13.915
25. 44M-Mike McGuire/Forrest, IL 14.478
26. Z-Joe Harlan/El Paso, IL N/T

Group ‘B’
1. 99Jr-Frankie Heckenast/Orland Park, IL 12.986
2. 32-Bobby Pierce/Oakwood, IL 13.000
3. 9-Eric Smith/Bloomington, IL 13.050
4. 89-Mike Spatola/Manhattan, IL 13.087
5. 18-Shannon Babb/Moweaqua, IL 13.097
6. b12-Kevin Weaver/Gibson City, IL 13.141
7. 95-Aaron Ricketts/Fairbury, IL 13.188
8. 18W-Eric Wells/Hazard, KY 13.204
9. 81-Randy Korte/Highland, IL 13.220
10. 42-McKay Wenger/Fairbury, IL 13.293
11. 25-Shane Clanton/Zebulon, GA 13.300
12. 28-Jimmy Mars/Menomonie, WI 13.318
13. 83-Scott Bull/Fairbury, IL 13.426
14. 116-Torin Mettile/Cullom, IL 13.434
15. 1W-Donny Walden/Towanda, IL 13.453
16. 1w-Dillon Wood/New Smyrna Beach, FL 13.467
17. 4-Mike Mullvain/Bartonville, IL 13.511
18. 77M-Jay Morris/Watseka, IL 13.519
19. 1-Josh Richards/Shinnston, WV 13.566
20. 31-Tom Thoennes/Bloomington, IL 13.664
21. 24-Rick Eckert/York, PA 13.665
22. 7T-Steve Thorston/Milford, IL 13.687
23. 36-Eric Vaughan/Fairbury, IL 13.830
24. 7R-Kent Robinson/Bloomington, IN 13.889
25. 44-Clint Smith/Senoia, GA 14.088
26. z28-Rich Harlan/Flanagan, IL 14.096

World of Outlaws Late Model Series
Fairbury Speedway
July 27, 2013
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Event Photos courtesy of John Vass