dirtFan.com Find Dirt Track Races

Thornton Defeats Sheppard to Secure Second Straight Farmer City 74

dirtFan website

FARMER CITY, IL (May 9, 2025) - Reigning Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series National Champion and current points leader, Ricky Thornton Jr., passed Brandon Sheppard for the lead on lap 66 and went on to win the Farmer City 74 on Friday at Farmer City Raceway. The win marked his second consecutive victory in the annual May race, as the Chandler, Arizona native earned $25,000 for his seventh series win of 2025.

Sheppard, who led the first 65 laps from his pole starting position, finished in second, 1.177 seconds behind the winner. Hudson O'Neal earned the Hoker Trucking Hard Charger of the Race, coming from his 17th starting position to round out the Big River Steel Podium in third. Brian Shirley, who ran in second for the first 27 laps of the race, finished in fourth, with Devin Moran rounding out the top five drivers.

In Lucas Oil Victory Lane for the 49th time in his career, Thornton stalked Sheppard for several laps before he could finally take the lead with nine laps to go.

"Honestly, moving the tires back out in one and two. Once they did, I was kind of mad. I was like it's really going to kill this middle, but actually it let the track clean up a little bit. I started working around the top in turns one and two, and I was like man if I could ever get a good run, I am going to slide him. I got to him twice, and I'm like I am not going to clear him, and then I really got a good run when he got bottled up in traffic. I went for it and luckily I cleared him."

Sheppard was left wondering what could have been, as he was in control for most of the race and came home in second.

"Leading that race there, I was just kind of running the line I always run here. I wasn't moving around at all. I was just trying to maintain my own pace and try to get away from them, but my crew showed me they were getting closer. When they moved the tires out in one and two that kind of messed me up a little bit, but I still felt I was getting through there o.k., and now we have the right rear tire about half flat. I don't know if that had anything to do with it or not. He (Thornton) definitely found the better part of the track there late in the race in three and four."

O'Neal, who charged through the field from the inside of row seven, couldn't get close in the final laps to make a bid for the win.

"We rode around in the back for a long time until the race track really started to slow down, and we could move around a little bit, and that's when I really started passing cars. Thankfully, we had a lot of restarts, and that helped tremendously, and I was just able to get one or two every restart, and right there at the end, I felt like I had a shot to get up there and mix it up with them. I was on Sheppard's back bumper, and then it got kind of lane dominant down in three. I tried to get a run going into one, but I just had to fall in line."

The winner's Koehler Motorsports, Longhorn Chassis is powered by a Clements Racing Engine is sponsored by Ultimate Towing and Recovery, Elite Ready Mix, Hoker Trucking, Coltman Farms Racing, Knight's Companies, Capital Waste, Sunoco Race Fuels, Bilstein Shocks, EMD Wraps, and Certified Inspection Services.

Tyler Erb, Jonathan Davenport, Dennis Erb Jr., Ethan Dotson, and Garrett Alberson completed the top ten.

Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series

Race Summary

Farmer City 74

Friday, May 9, 2025

Farmer City Raceway - Farmer City, IL

Allstar Performance Time Trials

Fast Time Group A: Brandon Sheppard | 12.423 seconds

Fast Time Group B: Brian Shirley | 12.806 seconds

Penske Shocks Heat Race #1 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 1-Brandon Sheppard[1]; 2. 18-Shannon Babb[3]; 3. 99-Devin Moran[2]; 4. 25F-Jason Feger[5]; 5. 79-Donald McIntosh[7]; 6. 71-Hudson O'Neal[6]; 7. 9-Nick Hoffman[4]; 8. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[10]; 9. 55-Jeep VanWormer[8]; 10. 6-Clay Harris[11]; 11. 62-Randy Shuman[9]

Summit Racing Products Heat Race #2 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[1]; 2. 32-Bobby Pierce[2]; 3. 2-Cody Overton[3]; 4. 74X-Ethan Dotson[5]; 5. 24-Ryan Unzicker[6]; 6. 60-Dan Ebert[4]; 7. 18D-Daulton Wilson[7]; 8. 122-Timmy Dick[8]; 9. 81-Jason Riggs[9]; 10. 7S-Morgan Staggs[11]; 11. 11-Gordy Gundaker[10]

Cool-It Thermo-Tec Heat Race #3 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 3S-Brian Shirley[1]; 2. 1T-Tyler Erb[2]; 3. 76-Brandon Overton[3]; 4. 157-Mike Marlar[7]; 5. 22*-Drake Troutman[4]; 6. 89-Mike Spatola[9]; 7. 58-Garrett Alberson[6]; 8. 31-Tyler Millwood[11]; 9. 09-Michael Leach[8]; 10. 17A-Austin Howes[10]; 11. 16-Tyler Bruening[5]

Simpson Race Products Heat Race #4 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 49-Jonathan Davenport[1]; 2. 40B-Kyle Bronson[2]; 3. 93-Carson Ferguson[3]; 4. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[4]; 5. 19M-Spencer Hughes[5]; 6. 75-Mike McKinney[7]; 7. 5S-Kyle Hammer[6]; 8. 93L-Cory Lawler[9]; 9. 1W-Donny Walden[11]; 10. 22-Daniel Hilsabeck[8]; 11. 10N-Rob Sanders[10]

Fast Shafts B-Main Race #1 Finish (10 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 71-Hudson O'Neal[3]; 2. 79-Donald McIntosh[1]; 3. 24-Ryan Unzicker[2]; 4. 9-Nick Hoffman[5]; 5. 122-Timmy Dick[8]; 6. 55-Jeep VanWormer[9]; 7. 18D-Daulton Wilson[6]; 8. 6-Clay Harris[11]; 9. 7S-Morgan Staggs[12]; 10. (DNF) 60-Dan Ebert[4]; 11. (DNF) 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[7]; 12. (DNF) 62-Randy Shuman[13]; 13. (DNS) 11-Gordy Gundaker; 14. (DNS) 81-Jason Riggs

UNOH B-Main Race #2 Finish (10 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 22*-Drake Troutman[1]; 2. 19M-Spencer Hughes[2]; 3. 89-Mike Spatola[3]; 4. 58-Garrett Alberson[5]; 5. 75-Mike McKinney[4]; 6. 09-Michael Leach[9]; 7. 31-Tyler Millwood[7]; 8. 93L-Cory Lawler[8]; 9. 5S-Kyle Hammer[6]; 10. 17A-Austin Howes[11]; 11. 16-Tyler Bruening[13]; 12. 1W-Donny Walden[10]; 13. 22-Daniel Hilsabeck[12]; 14. 10N-Rob Sanders[14]

Farmer City 74 Feature Finish (74 Laps):

Pos - Start - Car # - Competitor - Hometown - Pay

1 - 3 - 20RT - Ricky Thornton Jr - Chandler, AZ - $26,200

2 - 1 - 1 - Brandon Sheppard - New Berlin, IL - $10,800

3 - 17 - 71 - Hudson O'Neal - Martinsville, IN - $6,800

4 - 2 - 3S - Brian Shirley - Chatham, IL - $4,000

5 - 9 - 99 - Devin Moran - Dresden, OH - $4,500

6 - 6 - 1T - Tyler Erb - New Waverly, TX - $2,700

7 - 4 - 49 - Jonathan Davenport - Blairsville, GA - $3,600

8 - 16 - 28 - Dennis Erb Jr - Carpentersville, IL - $2,300

9 - 15 - 74X - Ethan Dotson - Bakersfield, CA - $2,200

10 - 23 - 58 - Garrett Alberson - Las Cruces, NM - $2,800

11 - 19 - 79 - Donald McIntosh - Dawsonville, GA - $2,800

12 - 14 - 157 - Mike Marlar - Winfield, TN - $1,900

13 - 11 - 2 - Cody Overton - Thomson, GA - $1,800

14 - 18 - 22* - Drake Troutman - Hyndman, PA - $1,700

15 - 24 - 18D - Daulton Wilson - Fayetteville, NC - $2,300

16 - 10 - 76 - Brandon Overton - Evans, GA - $2,200

17 - 13 - 25F - Jason Feger - Bloomington, IL - $1,500

18 - 25 - 22 - Daniel Hilsabeck - Earlham, IA - $800

19 - 20 - 19M - Spencer Hughes - Meridian, MS - $2,200

20 - 12 - 93 - Carson Ferguson - Lincolnton, NC - $2,200

21 - 5 - 18 - Shannon Babb - Moweaqua, IL - $1,500

22 - 22 - 89 - Mike Spatola - Manhattan, IL - $1,500

23 - 21 - 24 - Ryan Unzicker - El Paso, IL - $1,500

24 - 26 - 1W - Donny Walden - Towanda, IL - $1,500

25 - 8 - 40B - Kyle Bronson - Brandon, FL - $1,500

26 - 7 - 32 - Bobby Pierce - Oakwood, IL - $1,500

Race Statistics

Entrants: 44

Victory Fuel Pole Sitter: Brandon Sheppard

MD3 Lap Leaders: Brandon Sheppard (Laps 1-65); Ricky Thornton, Jr. (Laps 66-74)

Hellraizer Jacks Halfway Leader: Brandon Sheppard

Wieland Feature Winner: Ricky Thornton, Jr.

Margin of Victory: 1.177 seconds

Coltman Farms Racing Cautions: Spencer Hughes (Lap 22); Carson Ferguson (Lap 26); Debris (Lap 27); Spencer Hughes (Lap 35); Bobby Pierce (Lap 36); Debris (Lap 46); Ryan Unzicker (Lap 50)

Series Provisionals: Garrett Alberson; Daulton Wilson

Fast Time Provisional: n/a

Emergency Provisional: Daniel Hilsabeck

Track Provisional: Donny Walden

Big River Steel Podium Top 3: Ricky Thornton, Jr., Brandon Sheppard, Hudson O'Neal

Penske Shocks Top 5: Ricky Thornton, Jr., Brandon Sheppard, Hudson O'Neal, Brian Shirley, Devin Moran

PEM 4th Place Feature: Brian Shirley

DMI Rearends 5th Place Feature: Devin Moran

Wilwood Brakes Lucky 7th Place Feature: Jonathan Davenport

Wehrs Machine 11th Place Feature: Donald McIntosh

Deatherage Opticians Lucky 13th Place Feature: Cody Overton

MD3 24th Place Feature: Donny Walden

Hoker Trucking Hard Charger of the Race: Hudson O'Neal (Advanced 14 Positions)

MD3 Most Laps Led: Brandon Sheppard (65 Laps)

Sunoco Race for Gas Highest Finisher: Ricky Thornton, Jr.

Midwest Sheet Metal Spoiler Challenge Point Leader: Ricky Thornton, Jr.

O'Reilly Auto Parts Rookie of the Race: Donald McIntosh

Pro Fabrication Headers Fastest Lap of the Race: Brandon Sheppard (Lap 4 | 14.077 seconds)

Slicker Graphics Slickest Move of the Race: Ricky Thornton, Jr.

Fresh Roof Hard Luck Award: Spencer Hughes

Outerwears Crew Chief of the Race: Zach Frields

ARP Engine Builder of the Race: Clements Racing Engines

Miller Welders Chassis Builder of the Race: Longhorn Chassis

Dirt Draft Fastest in Hot Laps: Jonathan Davenport (12.407 seconds)

Time of Race: 41 minutes 24 seconds

Big River Steel Chase for the Championship Presented by ARP Point Standings:

Pos - Car # - Competitor - Hometown - Points - Pay

1 - 20RT - Ricky Thornton Jr - Chandler, AZ - 2835 - $152,000

2 - 99 - Devin Moran - Dresden, OH - 2720 - $137,849

3 - 49 - Jonathan Davenport - Blairsville, GA - 2585 - $83,500

4 - 58 - Garrett Alberson - Las Cruces, NM - 2390 - $49,950

5 - 76 - Brandon Overton - Evans, GA - 2355 - $56,050

6 - 71 - Hudson O'Neal - Martinsville, IN - 2325 - $49,675

7 - 1 - Brandon Sheppard - New Berlin, IL - 2230 - $45,300

8 - 18D - Daulton Wilson - Fayetteville, NC - 2215 - $43,550

9 - 1T - Tyler Erb - New Waverly, TX - 2035 - $30,100

10 - 93 - Carson Ferguson - Lincolnton, NC - 1965 - $30,075

11 - 22 - Daniel Hilsabeck - Earlham, IA - 1940 - $21,850

12 - 19M - Spencer Hughes - Meridian, MS - 1890 - $24,350

13 - 79 - Donald McIntosh - Dawsonville, GA - 1875 - $20,900

14 - 60 - Dan Ebert - Lake Shore, MN - 1700 - $15,750

15 - 6 - Clay Harris - Jupiter, FL - 1645 - $18,150

16 - 7 - Ross Robinson - Georgetown, DE - 1555 - $20,300

17 - 93L - Cory Lawler - Hanover, PA - 1510 - $9,775

About Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series presented by FloRacing

Founded in 2005, the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series presented by FloRacing showcases the talents of the top dirt late model drivers from across the country. In 2025, the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series will sanction 58 events across 16 states, including some of the biggest marquee events in the industry, providing dirt slinging, sideways, door-to-door racing action lap after lap.

The series receives national exposure through a television package streamed live via FloRacing, with select broadcasts on RACER Network.

The in your face excitement of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series presented by FloRacing is second to none in motorsports. For more information, including the latest news, tour schedule, driver information, and more, visit the official website at: www.LucasDirt.com.

Official Marketing Partners

Associate Marketing Partners

Advanced Powder Coating, Behrent's Performance Warehouse, Black Diamond Chassis, Boyd Bilt Fabrication, Brodix, Capital Race Cars, Clements Racing Engines, Coltman Farms Racing, Dave Warren Powersports, Deatherage Opticians, DMI Rearends, Fast Shafts, Fire Suppression Engineering, FOX Shocks, Fresh Roof Shingle Rejuvenation, Heartbeat Hot Sauce, Heath Lawson Photography, Hellraizer Jacks, Hoker Trucking, Keyser Manufacturing, Longhorn Chassis, MD3, Mega Plumbing of the Carolinas, Midwest Sheet Metal, MSD, Outerwears, PEM - Performance Engineering Mfg, Penske Racing Shocks, ProFabrication Headers, Pro Power Racing Engines, Rocket Chassis, Schoenfeld Headers, Simpson Race Products, Slicker Graphics, Strange Oval, Swift Springs, Thermo-Tec Automotive Products, Vic Hill Race Engines, Victory Fuel, Wehrs Machine & Racing Products, Wilwood, Xceldyne, and 5150 Race Trailers