Ricky Thornton Jr. passed Brandon Sheppard with four laps remaining to win the opening night of the UNOH Clash on the Wabash at Tony Stewart's Eldora Speedway, earning $10,000 for the victory.
Thornton, last year's World 100 winner at Eldora, started fourth and collected his 63rd career Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series victory. The third different leader of the 40-lap race, Thornton beat Sheppard to the finish line by 1.065 seconds.
Sheppard led a race-high 20 laps and maintained his championship points lead heading into Saturday's $50,000-to-win feature.
Sheppard holds a 65-point lead over Hudson O'Neal, who earned Hoker Trucking Hard Charger of the Race honors by rallying from 21st to fifth. Devin Moran finished third after starting 11th, rounding out the Big River Steel Podium, and sits 75 points behind Sheppard. Kyle Bronson debuted a new Longhorn race car and finished fourth.
Thornton led the fewest laps of the race's three leaders—Sheppard, Chris Madden, and himself—but made the decisive move in lapped traffic on lap 37.
"I didn't think I was going to get back to him (Sheppard). I knew he was running across the middle to the bottom, and if I was able to get to him, I would have to move up and try to carry speed and momentum. It was really kind of weird. There wasn't a curb up there. You could roll it straight, and it was smooth enough where you could just carry speed. I tore the right side of the car up when I got into Madden there in three. He got in like he was going to slide in the middle, and he started coming back down, but I was committed at that point. We hit pretty good there, and I definitely didn't want that to happen."
"I thought I was good all night. We need to work on a few small things. I felt like we got better here than we have been in the last two years. I still think we can be a little better come feature time tomorrow night. It was the most different I have ever been in a feature here."
Sheppard, who is pursuing his first Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series championship, felt a victory had slipped away after he led the most laps Friday night.
"We were kind of running off of that brown a little bit when we were leading the race. It got real shiny. The two lapped cars in front of me were swinging out so wide, so I didn't think I could get a good run on the top. Obviously, that is where I needed to be, and Ricky did that. We always race hard and clean together. I definitely felt I gave that one up in lapped traffic there, but we were a little bit different on tires than these other two guys in the top three. I got to where I couldn't steer a little bit at the end. If I could have gotten to the top, it would have been at least a little harder for them to get by me."
Moran followed his dominant Pittsburgher victory last weekend with a third-place finish at Eldora.
"Honestly, I didn't really want to see that last caution because I knew Brandon was on a little bit different tire than us. We were way back, and both Ricky and I reeled him in. All in all, for how fast the track was, it was so hard to pass until about the last 15 or 20 laps. With the cool air, it just made it a little faster than they expected. It was not a horrible night for us. We are still within reach. I think we caught a little bit up on Hud, but we definitely lost a little bit to Shepp."
Thornton's Bobby and Jessica Koehler-owned Koehler Motorsports Longhorn Chassis is powered by a Cornett Racing Engine and sponsored by Knight's Companies, Hoker Trucking, Coltman Farms Racing, Elite Ready Mix, Capital Waste, Certified Inspection Services, Strange Oval, Sunoco Race Fuels, SI Towing and Recovery, and D&E Outside Services.
Completing the top 10 were Josh Rice, Bobby Pierce, Garrett Alberson, Chris Madden, and Nick Hoffman.
The UNOH Clash on the Wabash concludes tomorrow, Saturday, October 10, at Eldora Speedway with a $50,000-to-win main event for the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series. Hot Laps have been moved up to 4:45 p.m.
Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
Race Summary
The UNOH Clash on the Wabash | Night 1
Friday, October 9, 2026
Eldora Speedway | Rossburg, OH
Allstar Performance Time Trials
Fast Time Group A: Nick Hoffman | 14.834 seconds
Fast Time Group B: Garrett Alberson | 14.802 seconds (Overall)
Penske Shocks Heat Race #1 Finish (8 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 44M-Chris Madden[2]; 2. 9H-Nick Hoffman[1]; 3. 32-Bobby Pierce[4]; 4. 111-Max Blair[3]; 5. 12J-Jason Jameson[6]; 6. 20TC-Tristan Chamberlain[5]; 7. 8-Dillon McCowan[7]; 8. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[8]; 9. 15C-Curt Schroeder[9]
Summit Racing Products Heat Race #2 Finish (8 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 11-Josh Rice[2]; 2. 93F-Carson Ferguson[3]; 3. 22F-Chris Ferguson[1]; 4. 12M-Ryan Montgomery[6]; 5. 20-Jimmy Owens[8]; 6. 5J-Braden Jones[7]; 7. 97-Cody Overton[5]; 8. S21-Seth Daniels[4]
Cool-It Thermo-Tec Heat Race #3 Finish (8 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 49-Jonathan Davenport[1]; 2. 99-Devin Moran[2]; 3. 10-Garrett Smith[3]; 4. 71-Hudson O'Neal[4]; 5. 6-Clay Harris[5]; 6. 19R-Ryan Gustin[6]; 7. 22-Daniel Hilsabeck[7]; 8. 5N-Dustin Nobbe[8]
Simpson Race Products Heat Race #4 Finish (8 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 58-Garrett Alberson[1]; 2. 17M-Dale McDowell[2]; 3. 60-Dan Ebert[4]; 4. 76-Brandon Overton[3]; 5. 95J-Jerry Bowersock[5]; 6. 1P-Earl Pearson Jr[6]; 7. 17SR-Brody Smith[8]; 8. 157-Mike Marlar[7]; 9. 8A-Rob Anderzack[9]
MyRacePass Heat Race #5 Finish (8 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[1]; 2. 40B-Kyle Bronson[2]; 3. 95-Boom Briggs[3]; 4. 49M-Luke Morey[4]; 5. 555-Brock Pinkerous[5]; 6. 74X-Ethan Dotson[7]; 7. 7T-Christian Thomas[6]; 8. 69-Jon Hodgkiss[8]
Lucas Oil Products Heat Race #6 Finish (8 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 1-Brandon Sheppard[1]; 2. 1T-Tyler Erb[2]; 3. 8S-Brian Shirley[3]; 4. 17SS-Brenden Smith[5]; 5. 5T-Drake Troutman[7]; 6. 9 1 1-Freddie Carpenter[6]; 7. 89-Mike Spatola[8]; 8. 7*-Logan Hitt[4]
Fast Shafts B-Main Race #1 Finish (10 Laps, Top 2 Transfer): 1. 111-Max Blair[1]; 2. 71-Hudson O'Neal[3]; 3. 12J-Jason Jameson[4]; 4. 12M-Ryan Montgomery[2]; 5. 8-Dillon McCowan[10]; 6. 20-Jimmy Owens[5]; 7. 19R-Ryan Gustin[9]; 8. 20TC-Tristan Chamberlain[7]; 9. S21-Seth Daniels[14]; 10. 22-Daniel Hilsabeck[12]; 11. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[13]; 12. 6-Clay Harris[6]; 13. 5N-Dustin Nobbe[15]; 14. 15C-Curt Schroeder[16]; 15. 5J-Braden Jones[8]; 16. (DNS) 97-Cody Overton
UNOH B-Main Race #1 Finish (10 Laps, Top 2 Transfer): 1. 76-Brandon Overton[1]; 2. 17SS-Brenden Smith[3]; 3. 95J-Jerry Bowersock[4]; 4. 49M-Luke Morey[2]; 5. 157-Mike Marlar[13]; 6. 5T-Drake Troutman[6]; 7. 1P-Earl Pearson Jr[7]; 8. 74X-Ethan Dotson[8]; 9. 9 1 1-Freddie Carpenter[9]; 10. 89-Mike Spatola[12]; 11. 555-Brock Pinkerous[5]; 12. 8A-Rob Anderzack[16]; 13. 7*-Logan Hitt[15]; 14. 69-Jon Hodgkiss[14]; 15. 17SR-Brody Smith[10]; 16. 7T-Christian Thomas[11]
The UNOH Clash on the Wabash | Night 1 | Feature Finish (40 Laps):
Pos - Start - Car # - Competitor - Hometown - Earnings
1 - 4 - 20RT - Ricky Thornton Jr - Chandler, AZ - $10,000
2 - 6 - 1 - Brandon Sheppard - New Berlin, IL - $5,600
3 - 11 - 99 - Devin Moran - Dresden, OH - $3,500
4 - 10 - 40B - Kyle Bronson - Brandon, FL - $2,700
5 - 21 - 71 - Hudson O'Neal - Martinsville, IN - $2,500
6 - 3 - 11 - Josh Rice - Crittenden, KY - $2,300
7 - 13 - 32 - Bobby Pierce - Oakwood, IL - $2,200
8 - 2 - 58 - Garrett Alberson - Las Cruces, NM - $2,100
9 - 1 - 44M - Chris Madden - Gray Court, SC - $2,050
10 - 7 - 9H - Nick Hoffman - Mooresville, NC - $2,000
11 - 8 - 17M - Dale McDowell - Chickamauga, GA - $1,600
12 - 12 - 1T - Tyler Erb - New Waverly, TX - $1,400
13 - 19 - 111 - Max Blair - Centerville, PA - $1,200
14 - 17 - 10 - Garrett Smith - Madison, GA - $1,000
15 - 18 - 8S - Brian Shirley - Chatham, IL - $950
16 - 24 - 8 - Dillon McCowan - Urbana, MO - $925
17 - 23 - 6 - Clay Harris - Jupiter, FL - $900
18 - 20 - 76 - Brandon Overton - Evans, GA - $875
19 - 25 - 22 - Daniel Hilsabeck - Earlham, IA - $150
20 - 9 - 93F - Carson Ferguson - Lincolnton, NC - $825
21 - 14 - 60 - Dan Ebert - Lake Shore, MN - $800
22 - 5 - 49 - Jonathan Davenport - Blairsville, GA - $800
23 - 16 - 95 - Boom Briggs - Bear Lake, PA - $800
24 - 15 - 22F - Chris Ferguson - Mt. Holly, NC - $800
25 - 22 - 17SS - Brenden Smith - Dade City, FL - $800
dirt track racing advertisement
Race Statistics
Entrants: 50
Bilstein Shocks Pole Sitter: Chris Madden
MD3 Lap Leaders: Chris Madden (Laps 1-14), Brandon Sheppard (Lap 15), Chris Madden (Laps 16-17), Brandon Sheppard (Laps 18-36), Ricky Thornton Jr (Laps 37-40)
Hellraizer Jacks Halfway Leader: Brandon Sheppard
Wieland Feature Winner: Ricky Thornton Jr
Margin of Victory: 1.065 seconds
Hellraizer Jacks Cautions: Chris Ferguson (Lap 14), Dan Ebert (Lap 37)
MyRacePass Series Provisional: Clay Harris; Dillon McCowan
Fast Time Provisional: n/a
Emergency Provisionals: Daniel Hilsabeck
Track Provisional: n/a
Big River Steel Podium Top 3: Ricky Thornton Jr, Brandon Sheppard, Devin Moran
Penske Shocks Top 5: Ricky Thornton Jr, Brandon Sheppard, Devin Moran, Kyle Bronson, Hudson O'Neal
Behrent's One-Lap-to-Go Top 3: Ricky Thornton Jr, Brandon Sheppard, Devin Moran
PEM 4th Place Feature: Kyle Bronson
Diversified Machine 5th Place Feature: Hudson O'Neal
Wilwood Brakes 7th Place Feature: Bobby Pierce
Wehrs Machine 11th Place Feature: Dale McDowell
Velocity Manufacturing 13th Place Feature: Max Blair
XS Power Batteries 15th Place Feature: Brian Shirley
Hoker Trucking Hard Charger of the Race: Hudson O'Neal (Advanced 16 positions)
MD3 Most Laps Led: Brandon Sheppard (20 Laps)
Sunoco Race Fuels Race for Gas Highest Finisher: Ricky Thornton Jr
Midwest Sheet Metal Spoiler Challenge Point Leader: Brandon Sheppard
O'Reilly Auto Parts Rookie of the Race: Josh Rice
Pro Fabrication Headers Fastest Lap of the Race: Chris Madden | Lap 4 | 15.685 seconds
FK Rod Ends Hard Luck Award: Dan Ebert
Victory Fuel Power Move of the Race: Ricky Thornton Jr
Outerwears Crew Chief of the Race: Justin Tharp
ARP Engine Builder of the Race: Cornett Racing Engines
Miller Welders Chassis Builder of the Race: Longhorn Chassis
Dirt Draft Fastest in Hot Laps: Kyle Bronson | 15.0703 seconds
Time of Race: 18 minutes 2 seconds
Big River Steel Championship Standings Presented by ARP:
Pos - Car # - Competitor - Hometown - Points - Earnings
1 - 1 - Brandon Sheppard - New Berlin, IL - 7,155 - $291,100
2 - 71 - Hudson O'Neal - Martinsville, IN - 7,090 - $272,900
3 - 99 - Devin Moran - Dresden, OH - 7,080 - $381,174
4 - 20RT - Ricky Thornton Jr - Chandler, AZ - 6,695 - $270,725
5 - 76 - Brandon Overton - Evans, GA - 6,565 - $168,975
6 - 111 - Max Blair - Centerville, PA - 6,500 - $174,125
7 - 11 - Josh Rice - Crittenden, KY - 6,255 - $220,975
8 - 3s - Brian Shirley - Chatham, IL - 6,095 - $169,650
9 - 58 - Garrett Alberson - Las Cruces, NM - 5,960 - $127,825
10 - 40B - Kyle Bronson - Brandon, FL - 5,700 - $97,975
11 - 6 - Clay Harris - Jupiter, FL - 5,685 - $109,775
12 - 93 - Carson Ferguson - Lincolnton, NC - 5,665 - $103,975
13 - 60 - Dan Ebert - Lake Shore, MN - 5,565 - $152,175
14 - 8 - Dillon McCowan - Urbana, MO - 5,480 - $120,450
15 - 22 - Daniel Hilsabeck - Earlham, IA - 4,900 - $67,850
16 - 17SS - Brenden Smith - Dade City, FL - 4,520 - $54,025
17 - 93L - Cory Lawler - Hanover, PA - 4,220 - $34,475
For the most up-to-date news, updates, results and behind-the-scenes information, follow
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.
