McDowell Scores Popular Victory in Mountain Moonshine Classic at Smoky Mountain
2026-06-21 18:14
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MARYVILLE, TN (June 20, 2026) - Dale McDowell led all 60 laps of the Mountain Moonshine Classic on Saturday night at Smoky Mountain Speedway, earning a popular hometown victory and collecting $30,000 for his 11th career Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series win.
The victory was McDowell's first Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series triumph triumph since winning the Topless 100 in 2023 and his first Series victory at Smoky Mountain Speedway since 2016.
Devin Moran charged from seventh to finish second after passing Friday night winner Brandon Sheppard on lap 45. Moran closed the gap in the closing laps but crossed the finish line 1.113 seconds behind McDowell. Sheppard rounded out the Big River Steel podium in third after finishing second for the first 44 laps of the race.
Jake O'Neil recorded the best Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series finish of his career with a fourth-place effort after running inside the top five throughout the event. Chris Madden completed the top five.
With his third-place finish, Sheppard trimmed Hudson O'Neal's championship lead to just 20 points heading into next weekend's event at Lernerville Speedway.
McDowell's victory was his 13th overall win at Smoky Mountain Speedway since 2008 and came in front of a home-state crowd.
"I anticipated that second start and wasn't sure where the grip was going to be," McDowell said in Lucas Oil Victory Lane. "Things just kind of fell our way. The car was really good, and the guys have worked hard on it. I've given them some feedback, and sometimes it's probably wrong, but they keep working at it."
"It was an awesome night to win close to home. Like Kyle Busch said, you never know when the last one is going to be, so I'm sure glad to get one here. Shane made a few changes from Friday night, and the car was balanced really well. I was able to pick my way through traffic and guide it where I needed to go."
Moran made a late charge after overtaking Sheppard but couldn't quite reel in the veteran leader.
"Dale McDowell is Dale McDowell for a reason," Moran said. "I'm ready for him to retire. When he got to traffic, I felt like I had a really good run. I was pushing hard and probably overheated the right rear tire trying to get there. Once I got to him and slid it, that pretty much hurt my chances. Still, coming from seventh to finish second isn't bad."
Sheppard believed the race was decided in the opening laps.
"The initial start is what lost the race for us," Sheppard said. "I saw Dale rolling a little bit and was waiting to go, but I got lifted from behind and couldn't launch like I needed to. Once he got out front, we were hoping traffic or a restart would give us an opportunity. I had a good restart and got by Madden, but on the next one I got too close to Dale entering turn one, lost the air on the nose, and Devin got by me."
McDowell's winning Shane McDowell Racing Team Zero Chassis is powered by a Clements Racing Engine and backed by Reece Monument Company, Remtek Enterprises, Otterly Baths, AAA General Contracting, Ace Doran Hauling & Rigging, Klotz Synthetic Lubricants, Mark IV, M&S Motors, Jason Wright Excavating, Black Rock Enterprises, BSI Well Service, Northeastern Fabrication, and Campbell Insulation.
Completing the top ten were Carson Ferguson, Max Blair, Kyle Bronson, Sam Seawright, and Dillon McCowan.
Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
Race Summary
Mountain Moonshine Classic | Night 2
Saturday, June 20, 2026
Smoky Mountain Speedway | Maryville, TN
Allstar Performance Time Trials
Fast Time Group A: Brandon Sheppard | 14.284 seconds (Overall)
Fast Time Group B: Dale McDowell | 14.420 seconds
Penske Shocks Heat Race #1 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 1-Brandon Sheppard[1]; 2. 44M-Chris Madden[2]; 3. 22F-Chris Ferguson[6]; 4. 7M-Donald McIntosh[3]; 5. T1-Todd Morrow[4]; 6. 16W-Ben Watkins[7]; 7. 91-Heath Hindman[8]; 8. 7S-Justin Smith[5]; 9. 1X-JT Seawright[9]
Summit Racing Products Heat Race #2 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 40B-Kyle Bronson[1]; 2. 99-Devin Moran[3]; 3. 8-Dillon McCowan[2]; 4. 16S-Sam Seawright[4]; 5. 6-Clay Harris[5]; 6. 22-Daniel Hilsabeck[7]; 7. 111-Max Blair[8]; 8. 93J-Donovan Jackson[6]; 9. 58-Garrett Alberson[10]; 10. 12-Jack Franklin[9]
Cool-It Thermo-Tec Heat Race #3 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 17M-Dale McDowell[1]; 2. 0-Jake O'Neil[2]; 3. 93-Carson Ferguson[3]; 4. 17SS-Brenden Smith[5]; 5. 157-Mike Marlar[4]; 6. 15-Noah Phillips[6]; 7. 11-Josh Rice[9]; 8. 3S-Brian Shirley[8]; 9. (DNS) 20-Jimmy Owens
Simpson Race Products Heat Race #4 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 71-Hudson O'Neal[1]; 2. 18X-Michael Page[4]; 3. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[3]; 4. 60-Dan Ebert[2]; 5. 76-Brandon Overton[5]; 6. 101-Casey Roberts[7]; 7. 17AU-Dylan Barrow[6]; 8. 18P-Gray Parton[8]; 9. 93L-Cory Lawler[9]
Fast Shafts B-Main Race #1 Finish (10 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 6-Clay Harris[2]; 2. 22-Daniel Hilsabeck[4]; 3. 111-Max Blair[6]; 4. T1-Todd Morrow[1]; 5. 16W-Ben Watkins[3]; 6. 58-Garrett Alberson[10]; 7. 7S-Justin Smith[7]; 8. 91-Heath Hindman[5]; 9. 93J-Donovan Jackson[8]; 10. 1X-JT Seawright[9]; 11. 12-Jack Franklin[11]
UNOH B-Main Race #2 Finish (10 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 157-Mike Marlar[1]; 2. 76-Brandon Overton[2]; 3. 15-Noah Phillips[3]; 4. 101-Casey Roberts[4]; 5. 11-Josh Rice[5]; 6. 3S-Brian Shirley[7]; 7. 93L-Cory Lawler[10]; 8. 18P-Gray Parton[8]; 9. 17AU-Dylan Barrow[6]; 10. (DNS) 20-Jimmy Owens
Mountain Moonshine Classic | Night 2 | Feature Finish (60 Laps):
Pos - Start - Car # - Competitor - Hometown - Earnings
1 - 2 - 17M - Dale McDowell - Chickamauga, GA - $30,000
2 - 7 - 99 - Devin Moran - Dresden, OH - $16,300
3 - 1 - 1 - Brandon Sheppard - New Berlin, IL - $7,900
4 - 6 - 0 - Jake O'Neil - Tucson, AZ - $5,500
5 - 5 - 44M - Chris Madden - Gray Court, SC - $4,500
6 - 10 - 93 - Carson Ferguson - Lincolnton, NC - $4,400
7 - 21 - 111 - Max Blair - Centerville, PA - $3,900
8 - 3 - 40B - Kyle Bronson - Brandon, FL - $3,400
9 - 15 - 16S - Sam Seawright - Fort Payne, AL - $2,400
10 - 11 - 8 - Dillon McCowan - Urbana, MO - $3,300
11 - 17 - 6 - Clay Harris - Jupiter, FL - $3,100
12 - 4 - 71 - Hudson O'Neal - Martinsville, IN - $3,600
13 - 14 - 17SS - Brenden Smith - Dade City, FL - $2,000
14 - 20 - 76 - Brandon Overton - Evans, GA - $2,800
15 - 19 - 22 - Daniel Hilsabeck - Earlham, IA - $2,700
16 - 16 - 60 - Dan Ebert - Lake Shore, MN - $2,650
17 - 24 - 3S - Brian Shirley - Chatham, IL - $2,600
18 - 26 - 93L - Cory Lawler - Hanover, PA - $250
19 - 25 - 11 - Josh Rice - Crittenden, KY - $1,100
20 - 12 - 20RT - Ricky Thornton Jr - Chandler, AZ - $2,850
21 - 22 - 15 - Noah Phillips - Sevierville, TN - $1,550
22 - 13 - 7M - Donald McIntosh - Dawsonville, GA - $1,500
23 - 9 - 22F - Chris Ferguson - Mt. Holly, NC - $1,500
24 - 23 - 58 - Garrett Alberson - Las Cruces, NM - $2,400
25 - 8 - 18X - Michael Page - Douglasville, GA - $1,500
26 - 18 - 157 - Mike Marlar - Winfield, TN - $1,500
Race Statistics
Entrants: 37
Bilstein Shocks Pole Sitter: Brandon Sheppard
MD3 Lap Leaders: Dale McDowell (Laps 1-60)
Hellraizer Jacks Halfway Leader: Dale McDowell
Wieland Feature Winner: Dale McDowell
Margin of Victory: 1.113 seconds
Hellraizer Jacks Cautions: Daniel Hilsabeck, Michael Page, Dan Ebert, Mike Marlar, Garrett Alberson (Initial Start); Cory Lawler (Lap 40); Ricky Thornton, Jr. (Lap 44)
MyRacePass Series Provisional: Garrett Alberson; Brian Shirley
Fast Time Provisional: n/a
Emergency Provisionals: Josh Rice; Cory Lawler
Track Provisional: n/a
Big River Steel Podium Top 3: Dale McDowell, Devin Moran, Brandon Sheppard
Penske Shocks Top 5: Dale McDowell, Devin Moran, Brandon Sheppard, Jake O'Neil, Chris Madden
Behrent's One-Lap-to-Go Top 3: Dale McDowell, Devin Moran, Brandon Sheppard
PEM 4th Place Feature: Jake O'Neil
Diversified Machine 5th Place Feature: Chris Madden
Wilwood Brakes 7th Place Feature: Max Blair
Wehrs Machine 11th Place Feature: Clay Harris
Velocity Manufacturing 13th Place Feature: Brenden Smith
XS Power Batteries 15th Place Feature: Daniel Hilsabeck
Hoker Trucking Hard Charger of the Race: Max Blair (Advanced 11 positions)
MD3 Most Laps Led: Dale McDowell (60 Laps)
Sunoco Race Fuels Race for Gas Highest Finisher: Brandon Sheppard
Midwest Sheet Metal Spoiler Challenge Point Leader: Hudson O'Neal
O'Reilly Auto Parts Rookie of the Race: Dillon McCowan
Pro Fabrication Headers Fastest Lap of the Race: Dale McDowell | Lap 1 | 15.442 seconds
FK Rod Ends Hard Luck Award: Hudson O'Neal
Victory Fuel Power Move of the Race: Devin Moran
Outerwears Crew Chief of the Race: Shane McDowell
ARP Engine Builder of the Race: Clements Race Engines
Miller Welders Chassis Builder of the Race: Team Zero Race Cars
Dirt Draft Fastest in Hot Laps: Brandon Sheppard | 13.8131 seconds
Time of Race: 29 minutes 06 seconds
Big River Steel Championship Standings Presented by ARP:
Pos - Car # - Competitor - Hometown - Points - Earnings
1 - 71 - Hudson O'Neal - Martinsville, IN - 3920 - $170,500
2 - 1 - Brandon Sheppard - New Berlin, IL - 3900 - $158,800
3 - 99 - Devin Moran - Dresden, OH - 3740 - $183,324
4 - 76 - Brandon Overton - Evans, GA - 3555 - $79,800
5 - 20RT - Ricky Thornton Jr - Chandler, AZ - 3495 - $106,125
6 - 111 - Max Blair - Centerville, PA - 3485 - $72,875
7 - 58 - Garrett Alberson - Las Cruces, NM - 3325 - $70,075
8 - 3s - Brian Shirley - Chatham, IL - 3260 - $58,200
9 - 11 - Josh Rice - Crittenden, KY - 3225 - $59,975
10 - 40B - Kyle Bronson - Brandon, FL - 3205 - $50,975
11 - 6 - Clay Harris - Jupiter, FL - 3130 - $62,950
12 - 93 - Carson Ferguson - Lincolnton, NC - 3090 - $50,800
13 - 60 - Dan Ebert - Lake Shore, MN - 2955 - $47,150
14 - 8 - Dillon McCowan - Urbana, MO - 2795 - $36,600
15 - 22 - Daniel Hilsabeck - Earlham, IA - 2650 - $34,775
16 - 17SS - Brenden Smith - Dade City, FL - 2535 - $29,625
17 - 93L - Cory Lawler - Hanover, PA - 2355 - $19,075
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, Steering Buddy, 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.