MARYVILLE, Tenn. — 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 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 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. “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.”
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.”
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
