Davenport Returns to Victory Lane at Golden Isles with Wieland Winter Nationals Triumph
2026-03-07 17:51
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WAYNESVILLE, GA (March 4, 2026) - Jonathan Davenport scored his first win at Golden Isles Speedway since February 6, 2016, on Wednesday night, leading all 30 laps of the Wieland Winter Nationals feature for the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series presented by FloRacing.
The victory marked Davenport's fifth career win at Golden Isles. He led a hard-charging Hudson O'Neal across the finish line in a caution-free feature — the third such race of the season for the series.
Davenport held more than a three-second lead for much of the second half of the race until O'Neal trimmed the advantage to just over a second in the closing laps. Brandon Sheppard, who was seeking his first career win at Golden Isles, finished third, followed by Devin Moran. Max Blair earned the Hoker Trucking Hard Charger of the Race honors, finishing fifth after starting 12th.
The win was the 93rd Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series victory of Davenport's career. The Blairsville, Georgia native and three-time series champion captured his first Golden Isles win in 10 years and his first victory of the 2026 season.
"It was my first lap led of the year," Davenport said. "It just feels like we could never get any air on the front of this car. I started on the front row in Arizona, but we could never get the start we needed and just didn't have the car to come back to the front. My guys gave me an awesome car tonight, and this one is definitely for them. We wrecked that car on Thursday at Ocala, and they worked their tails off and drove a lot more miles than they should have to fix it."
"The race car was awesome tonight. They've done a great job widening the track back out, especially going into turn one. They took a lot of the cup out of turn two, so we didn't have to run up there as much and could let the bottom come in a little bit. The biggest difference was tires — Hudson and I were a little different from the other guys up front. I knew I needed to get the lead and get some clean air."
O'Neal, who will enter Thursday night's action as the Midwest Sheet Metal points leader, charged from eighth to finish second.
"More than anything, I was following those guys on the bottom, and I felt like I was better than them running sixth or seventh, wherever I was," O'Neal said. "So I moved to the top and started passing a few of them. Then I got back down behind (Mark) Whitener and kept trying to peek under him, but I couldn't quite make it work. I think that was when the top finally cleaned off a little bit, and we started making really good time up there."
"I was able to move around, and I thought the race track turned out awesome. We could race all over it with different tire choices — from the softer tires on the inside to literally rubbing the right-rear tire on the wall."
Sheppard rounded out the Big River Steel Podium in third.
"We finished tonight — that's all I'm going to say," Sheppard said. "The last few nights at Ocala, we had some unfortunate situations, and we had a really fast car there. The track was awesome tonight, our car was really fast, and we had another consistent night."
The winning Double L Motorsports, Longhorn Chassis is powered by a Cornett Racing Engine and sponsored by Ace Doran Hauling and Rigging, Nutrien Ag Solutions, ASC Warranty, Mark Martin Automotive, and Mega Plumbing of the Carolinas.
Completing the top 10 were Tyler Erb, Brian Shirley, Mark Whitener, Garrett Alberson, and Brandon Overton.
In the companion Crown Vic feature, Brody Collins of Hilliard, Florida, led all 15 laps for the victory. Collins inherited the pole position when his father, Johnny, scratched from the feature due to mechanical issues.
Daniel Baldwin finished second, followed by J.O. Nobles, Chase Collins, and Kevin Hildebrand.
Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
Race Summary
Wieland Winter Nationals
Wednesday, March 4, 2026
Golden Isles Speedway | Waynesville, GA
Allstar Performance Time Trials
Fast Time Group A: Ricky Thornton, Jr. | 15.189 seconds (Overall)
Fast Time Group B: Garrett Alberson | 15.380 seconds
Penske Shocks Heat Race #1 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 49-Jonathan Davenport[5]; 2. 76-Brandon Overton[6]; 3. 19M-Brenden Smith[2]; 4. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[1]; 5. 55-Benji Hicks[10]; 6. 22-Daniel Hilsabeck[8]; 7. 11-Josh Rice[7]; 8. 09-Michael Leach[4]; 9. 79-Cory Hedgecock[9]; 10. (DNS) 88-Trent Ivey
Summit Racing Products Heat Race #2 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 99-Devin Moran[4]; 2. 5-Mark Whitener[1]; 3. 1T-Tyler Erb[2]; 4. 76N-Blair Nothdurft[7]; 5. 93-Carson Ferguson[6]; 6. 8-Dillon McCowan[9]; 7. 7-Ross Robinson[3]; 8. 16-Tyler Bruening[8]; 9. 13-Dallon Murty[5]; 10. (DNS) 157-Mike Marlar
Cool-It Thermo-Tec Heat Race #3 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 3S-Brian Shirley[3]; 2. 58-Garrett Alberson[1]; 3. 6-Clay Harris[2]; 4. 97-Cody Overton[4]; 5. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[7]; 6. 40B-Kyle Bronson[5]; 7. 60-Dan Ebert[6]; 8. 4G-Tripp Gerrald[8]; 9. C4-Freddie Carpenter[9]; 10. (DNS) 93L-Cory Lawler
Simpson Race Products Heat Race #4 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 1-Brandon Sheppard[1]; 2. 71-Hudson O'Neal[2]; 3. 111-Max Blair[5]; 4. 10-Garrett Smith[3]; 5. 16B-Ross Bailes[7]; 6. 388-Jackson Hise[6]; 7. 81F-Jadon Frame[8]; 8. 555-Brock Pinkerous[9]; 9. 14-Trey Mills[4]; 10. (DNS) 77-Preston Luckman
Fast Shafts B-Main Race #1 Finish (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 93-Carson Ferguson[2]; 2. 55-Benji Hicks[1]; 3. 22-Daniel Hilsabeck[3]; 4. 13-Dallon Murty[10]; 5. 7-Ross Robinson[6]; 6. 88-Trent Ivey[11]; 7. 09-Michael Leach[7]; 8. 16-Tyler Bruening[8]; 9. 8-Dillon McCowan[4]; 10. 11-Josh Rice[5]; 11. (DNS) 79-Cory Hedgecock; 12. (DNS) 157-Mike Marlar
UNOH B-Main Race #2 Finish (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[1]; 2. 16B-Ross Bailes[2]; 3. 40B-Kyle Bronson[3]; 4. 60-Dan Ebert[5]; 5. 81F-Jadon Frame[6]; 6. 388-Jackson Hise[4]; 7. 93L-Cory Lawler[11]; 8. 14-Trey Mills[10]; 9. C4-Freddie Carpenter[9]; 10. 555-Brock Pinkerous[8]; 11. 4G-Tripp Gerrald[7]; 12. (DNS) 77-Preston Luckman
Wieland Winter Nationals Feature Finish (30 Laps):
Pos - Start - Car # - Competitor - Hometown - Earnings
1 - 1 - 49 - Jonathan Davenport - Blairsville, GA - $7,000
2 - 8 - 71 - Hudson O'Neal - Martinsville, IN - $3,500
3 - 4 - 1 - Brandon Sheppard - New Berlin, IL - $2,000
4 - 3 - 99 - Devin Moran - Dresden, OH - $1,500
5 - 12 - 111 - Max Blair - Centerville, PA - $1,400
6 - 11 - 1T - Tyler Erb - New Waverly, TX - $1,300
7 - 2 - 3S - Brian Shirley - Chatham, IL - $1,200
8 - 7 - 5 - Mark Whitener - Middleburg, FL - $1,100
9 - 6 - 58 - Garrett Alberson - Las Cruces, NM - $1,000
10 - 5 - 76 - Brandon Overton - Evans, GA - $950
11 - 10 - 6 - Clay Harris - Jupiter, FL - $900
12 - 14 - 97 - Cody Overton - Thomson, GA - $850
13 - 13 - 20RT - Ricky Thornton Jr - Chandler, AZ - $800
14 - 16 - 10 - Garrett Smith - Madison, GA - $750
15 - 9 - 19M - Brenden Smith - Dade City, FL - $725
16 - 18 - 28 - Dennis Erb Jr - Carpentersville, IL - $700
17 - 15 - 76N - Blair Nothdurft - Renner, SD - $700
18 - 23 - 13 - Dallon Murty - Chelsea, IA - $700
19 - 17 - 93 - Carson Ferguson - Lincolnton, NC - $650
20 - 21 - 22 - Daniel Hilsabeck - Earlham, IA - $625
21 - 19 - 55 - Benji Hicks - Mount Airy, NC - $625
22 - 24 - 60 - Dan Ebert - Lake Shore, MN - $600
23 - 22 - 40B - Kyle Bronson - Brandon, FL - $600
24 - 20 - 16B - Ross Bailes - Clover, SC - $600
Race Statistics
Entrants: 40
Bilstein Shocks Pole Sitter: Jonathan Davenport
MD3 Lap Leaders: Jonathan Davenport (Laps 1-30)
Hellraizer Jacks Halfway Leader: Jonathan Davenport
Wieland Feature Winner: Jonathan Davenport
Margin of Victory: 1.194 seconds
Hellraizer Jacks Cautions: n/a
MyRacePass Series Provisionals: n/a
Fast Time Provisional: n/a
Emergency Provisionals: n/a
Track Provisional: n/a
Big River Steel Podium Top 3: Jonathan Davenport, Hudson O'Neal, Brandon Sheppard
Penske Shocks Top 5: Jonathan Davenport, Hudson O'Neal, Brandon Sheppard, Devin Moran, Max Blair
Behrent's One-Lap-to-Go Top 3: Jonathan Davenport, Hudson O'Neal, Brandon Sheppard
PEM 4th Place Feature: Devin Moran
Diversified Machine 5th Place Feature: Max Blair
Wilwood Brakes 7th Place Feature: Brian Shirley
Wehrs Machine 11th Place Feature: Clay Harris
Velocity Manufacturing 13th Place Feature: Ricky Thornton, Jr.
XS Power Batteries 15th Place Feature: Brenden Smith
Hoker Trucking Hard Charger of the Race: Cody Overton (Advanced 2 positions)
MD3 Most Laps Led: Jonathan Davenport (30 Laps)
Sunoco Race Fuels Race for Gas Highest Finisher: Hudson O'Neal
Midwest Sheet Metal Spoiler Challenge Point Leader: Hudson O'Neal
O'Reilly Auto Parts Rookie of the Race: n/a
Pro Fabrication Headers Fastest Lap of the Race: Hudson O'Neal | Lap 6 | 15.964 seconds
FK Rod Ends Hard Luck Award: Mike Marlar
Victory Fuel Power Move of the Race: Hudson O'Neal
Outerwears Crew Chief of the Race: Cory Fostvedt
ARP Engine Builder of the Race: Clements Race Engines
Miller Welders Chassis Builder of the Race: Longhorn Chassis
Dirt Draft Fastest in Hot Laps: Hudson O'Neal | 15.3089 seconds
Time of Race: 8 minutes 18 seconds
Official Marketing Partners
Associate Marketing Partners
Advanced Powder Coating, All Makes Collision Center, Arizona Sport Shirts, Behrent's Performance Warehouse, Black Diamond Chassis, Bilstein Shocks, Boyd Bilt Fabrication, Brodix, Capital Race Cars, Clements Racing Engines, Cornett Racing Engines, Dave Warren Powersports, Denago Powersports, Diversified Machine Inc, Fast Shafts, Fire Suppression Engineering, FOX Shocks, Heartbeat Hot Sauce, Heath Lawson Photography, Hellraizer Jacks, Hoker Trucking, Jackson County Tourism, Keyser Manufacturing, Longacre Scales, Longhorn Chassis, The Massengill Company, MD3, Mega Plumbing of the Carolinas, Midwest Sheet Metal, MSD, Ohlins Shocks, Outerwears, PEM - Performance Engineering Mfg, Penske Racing Shocks, ProFabrication Headers, Pro Power Racing Engines, Rocket Chassis, Schoenfeld Headers, Shocker Hitch, Simpson Race Products, Slicker Graphics, Strange Oval, Swift Springs, Thermo-Tec Automotive Products, Velocity Manufacturing, Victory Fuel, Wehrs Machine & Racing Products, Wilwood, Xceldyne, XS Power Batteries, and 5150 Race Trailers.