BROWNSTOWN, Ind. — Devin Moran captured his third consecutive Indiana Icebreaker on Saturday night at Brownstown Speedway.
The defending Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series National Champion earned $25,000 for his fourth series victory of the season. With the win, Moran now holds the series points lead heading into Sunday night’s race at Atomic Speedway.
Ricky Thornton Jr., the defending Jackson 100 champion at Brownstown, passed Max Blair late in the race to finish second.
Blair rounded out the podium after starting eighth. Josh Rice, in his first full season with the series, charged from 17th to finish fourth, while Brandon Sheppard completed the top five.
Sheppard, a two-time Indiana Icebreaker winner, jumped to the lead at the start of the 50-lap feature and led the opening 14 laps. Moran, who started outside the front row, moved into second on lap six and stayed within striking distance. Following a caution on lap 12, Moran closed in and overtook Sheppard three laps later, then led the remainder of the race.
Moran, now a 28-time winner in Lucas Oil Victory Lane, drove from the fourth starting position to secure the victory.
“You never really know where to be on the track sometimes,” Moran said. “I felt like I had a really good car on that first run and was closing in on Sheppard, but we never got to lapped traffic. On restarts, he was kind of gapping me, so I knew I needed to make a move there. Once I had open air, I felt like we were going to be fine. I could see Ricky looking underneath me on restarts, but that’s about it.”
“In turns three and four, the top was completely gone – it was up over the edge. In turns one and two, there was still a lot left if you entered just right. It was a little choppy, so if you hit it correctly, it might have been faster, but it was also very treacherous. Once I built a gap, there was no reason to take that risk.”
Thornton, who won in his last appearance at Brownstown last September, slipped past Blair in the closing laps to secure the runner-up finish.
“He (Moran) was really good – he could go wherever he needed to,” Thornton said. “I felt like I needed clean air and had to try something different. It seems like he has a lot more side bite than we do. Their program has been really strong the last couple of years, and now they’re clicking off wins. Hopefully we can improve tomorrow at Atomic.”
Blair, who held second from lap 33 until Thornton’s late pass, now has finishes of second and third in his last two Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series races.
“I felt like I had a good car today—one we could have won with,” Blair said. “I got to Devin and then just started making mistakes. I think I got out-experienced a little bit. We’ve got a strong race car, so hopefully we can keep the momentum going. I really think I had something for him. He made a great move in lapped traffic, splitting a couple of cars, and I felt like that was the turning point. I probably should have settled back in, but I kept pushing. It seems like Ricky has passed me late for a podium spot a few times this year.”
Results
29th Annual Indiana Icebreaker Feature Finish (50 Laps):
Pos – Start – Car # – Competitor – Hometown – Earnings
1 – 4 – 99 – Devin Moran – Dresden, OH – $26,300
2 – 1 – 20RT – Ricky Thornton Jr – Chandler, AZ – $11,300
3 – 8 – 111 – Max Blair – Centerville, PA – $6,900
4 – 17 – 11 – Josh Rice – Crittenden, KY – $4,900
5 – 2 – 1 – Brandon Sheppard – New Berlin, IL – $4,400
6 – 11 – 71 – Hudson O’Neal – Martinsville, IN – $4,100
7 – 6 – 76 – Brandon Overton – Evans, GA – $3,400
8 – 23 – 19M – Brenden Smith – Dade City, FL – $3,200
9 – 16 – 3S – Brian Shirley – Chatham, IL – $3,100
10 – 7 – 58 – Garrett Alberson – Las Cruces, NM – $3,000
11 – 20 – 89 – Mike Spatola – Manhattan, IL – $2,000
12 – 22 – 40B – Kyle Bronson – Brandon, FL – $2,800
13 – 3 – 6 – Clay Harris – Jupiter, FL – $2,700
14 – 18 – 93 – Carson Ferguson – Lincolnton, NC – $2,600
15 – 24 – 12J – Jason Jameson – Lawrenceburg, IN – $1,600
16 – 14 – C4 – Freddie Carpenter – Parkersburg, WV – $1,500
17 – 10 – 13 – Dallon Murty – Chelsea, IA – $1,500
18 – 5 – 60 – Dan Ebert – Lake Shore, MN – $2,400
19 – 9 – 93L – Cory Lawler – Hanover, PA – $1,500
20 – 12 – 8 – Dillon McCowan – Urbana, MO – $2,400
21 – 13 – 22 – Daniel Hilsabeck – Earlham, IA – $1,500
22 – 19 – 1G – Devin Gilpin – Columbus, IN – $1,500
23 – 21 – 11C – Tyler Collins – North Vernon, IN – $1,500
24 – 15 – 4G – Tripp Gerrald – Versailles, KY – $1,500
