Brandon Sheppard Racing joins forces with Riggs Motorsports
Per FB:
Excited for the next chapter in my career and ready to put the work in. Can't thank Scott and Jason Riggs enough for their partnership in this joint-venture as we work to build a team that competes at the highest level of Dirt Super Late Model racing. I feel like it took a lot of years of grinding and a lot of great people who helped me get to this point, and for you all I am forever grateful. And most importantly, I'm appreciative for my entire family who have supported me through this whole process. Dad, Grandpa, my Wife Mikala, Jase, Addison, Baylor...love you all. All family, all in. 💪🏻🤘🏼
Lots of big announcements and more details to come, including updates on the new facility we are building here in Berlin, but for now check out the full release below. ⬇️
𝐒𝐡𝐞𝐩𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐑𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐑𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐬 𝐌𝐨𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐬 𝐀𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐦 ‘𝐒𝐡𝐞𝐩𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐑𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐬 𝐑𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠’ 𝐉𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐕𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐓𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓.
4-𝑻𝒊𝒎𝒆 𝑾𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝑶𝒖𝒕𝒍𝒂𝒘 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒎𝒑𝒊𝒐𝒏, 𝑩𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒐𝒏 𝑺𝒉𝒆𝒑𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒅, 𝒕𝒐 𝒑𝒊𝒍𝒐𝒕 ‘𝑩5’ 𝒂𝒔 𝑪𝒐- 𝑶𝒘𝒏𝒆𝒓/𝑫𝒓𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒂𝒍𝒐𝒏𝒈𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆 𝑺𝒉𝒆𝒑𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒅 𝑱𝒓., 𝑱𝒂𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝑹𝒊𝒈𝒈𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑱𝒂𝒄𝒌 𝑹𝒊𝒈𝒈𝒔.
𝐍𝐄𝐖 𝐁𝐄𝐑𝐋𝐈𝐍, 𝐈𝐋 (𝐎𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟎, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟐) - After the conclusion of last weekend’s Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Dirt Track World Championships and a historic run as the Rocket1 House Car Driver, Brandon Sheppard and Scott Riggs announced today the formation of a joint-ownership venture between Riggs Motorsports and Sheppard Racing which will carry a 4-car stable through the end of the 2025 season.
Following Sheppard’s September announcement to vacate his seat as Driver for the iconic Mark Richards Racing Rocket1 entry, Brandon, his Father, Steve Jr., and Grandfather, Steve Sr., began forming a strategy to compete on a full series circuit in 2023.
“Honestly, the week the press release came out to announce I was coming back home to drive was super chaotic.” said Sheppard. “The fan and family support was incredible, but at the same time I knew it was a big business opportunity because of the number of phone calls that came from inside the industry wondering if and how they could be involved. When you’ve worked with the best – guys like Mark [Richards] and Steve [Baker] and the Rocket1 team, I think people are excited to jump onboard and support knowing you have high expectations to continue to win at the highest level.”
In the weeks following his announcement, and as conversations between the Sheppard’s and outside teams continued to evolve, one of those race teams who saw an opportunity to transcend beyond a ‘driver-for-hire’ relationship was Riggs Motorsports Owner, Scott Riggs. “When Brandon announced his desire to race from home because of his family, Jason and I began talking about combining resources to give both teams a better shot at what it takes to win a National Tour.” said Riggs. “I have watched Brandon Sheppard since he was 15 years old grow to become one the best dirt late model drivers in the country and we believe in his vision to build a successful racing program. Jason, Courtney, Tara and myself are all thrilled to be able to partner along-side the entire Sheppard family, and we look forward to a great relationship both on and off the track.”
The newly-formed SRR has committed to running the B5 car full-time in a national touring series during the 2023 season, but will wait to make the decision on which exact series until after the 2023 Florida Speedweeks. Whereas, fellow drivers Steve Sheppard Jr. (5S), Jason Riggs (81), and Jack Riggs (81J) will compete on a more limited schedule throughout the joint venture. Last season saw Sheppard collect 4 wins during Florida Speedweeks, the first occurring at Alltech Raceway with 3 more to follow at East Bay Raceway Park.
After finishing second in the 2022 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series points during a tightly contested battle with Tim McCreadie, the outcome has lit a fire under Brandon for what he hopes to be an incredible season to come. “No one wants to finish 2nd in anything. We all work really hard to prove that we are the best, and I trust the people around me and my experience to get us back on top of the box and win these Series Championships.” said the former World of Outlaw Champion. “Equally as important, we want to build a program that is just as strong off the track representing our partners through social media and activations to promote the sport of dirt late model racing.”
The 2023 campaign will kick off with the Wild West Shootout in Vado, New Mexico beginning January 7, 2023. For more information an updates on Brandon Sheppard and Sheppard Riggs Racing, please visit www.sheppardracing.com, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok or Twitter.
********
MEDIA CONTACT:
Ben Shelton, My Race Pass, ben.shelton@myracepass.com
TEAM CONTACT:
Justin Cook, Justin Cook Management, justin@jcookmgmt.com