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Brandon Sheppard Charges From 18th to Fifth in Topless 100
Rocket1 Racing Turns Focus to Busy Iowa Slate
SHINNISTON, W. Va. (Aug. 17, 2026) — Brandon Sheppard capped a rollercoaster weekend at Batesville Motor Speedway with a hard-fought top-five finish in Saturday’s Topless 100 finale.
After a pair of flat tires derailed his Friday preliminary, Sheppard rallied from 18th to fifth in the 100-lap main event, passing 13 cars along the way.
“I am proud of our guys,” Sheppard said. “That’s how racing goes sometimes. Friday was rough on tires for everybody, but we were fast on Saturday thanks to my crew. We have a lot to build on from this weekend and I am excited to get back at it this week in Iowa.”
The doubleheader weekend in Arkansas opened Friday with the 40-car field split into groups for preliminary competition. Sheppard won his heat race and was running second in the feature when a lap-19 flat tire sent him to the pits. Another flat two laps later forced him back down pit road, but Sheppard rallied to salvage a ninth-place finish.
With Friday’s results setting the starting lineup for Saturday’s $50,000-to-win Topless 100, Sheppard was forced to race his way into the finale through a B-Main. He did just that in convincing fashion, winning the 15-lap consolation event before charging from 18th to fifth in the 100-lap finale.
Sheppard maintains a 95-point advantage over Hudson O’Neal atop the latest Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series championship standings.
For the latest news, results, championship standings, and more about the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series presented by FloRacing, visit www.LucasDirt.com.
Sheppard and the Rocket1 Racing team will quickly turn their attention to Iowa, with competition resuming Tuesday at Marshalltown Speedway as part of the FloRacing Night in America tour. The remainder of the team’s week follows:
Aug. 18 – Marshalltown Speedway: FloRacing Night in America
Aug. 19 – Mason City Motor Speedway: FloRacing Night in America
Aug. 21-22 – Maquoketa Speedway: World of Outlaws
Additional event information is available at www.FloSeries.com and www.WorldofOutlaws.com.
Rocket1 Racing would like to thank all of their marketing partners, which include Valvoline, Seubert Calf Ranches, Collins Brothers Towing of St.Cloud, Rocket Chassis, Ace Metal Works, Durham Racing Engines, Five Star RaceCar Bodies, Gunter’s Honey, Performance Grading, Stiles Marine & Maintenance, Hoosier Racing Tire, Fox Racing Shox, Keyser Manufacturing, Petroff Towing, On Time Body & Graphic, Franklin Enterprises, Bubba Army, Sweet Manufacturing, Sunoco Race Fuels, Accu-Force Shock Service, ATL Fuel Cells, Aurora Rod Ends, Barnes Dry Sump Oil Systems, Bazell Race Fuels, Beyea Custom Headers, Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, Brinn Transmissions, Sharp Advantage Safety Products, CP Carrillo, Dohm Cycles, Fibreworks Composites, Hardrock Powder Coating, Howe Racing Enterprises, Jones Racing Products, Kenny’s Components, MSD, E3 Spark Plugs, Tel Tac, Performance Bodies, Peterson Fluid Systems, Powers Performance, Performance Rod & Custom, QuickCar Racing Products, MatMan Designs, Allgaier Performance Parts, Rocket Pre-Owned Motors, Show Trucks Unlimited, Simpson, Stealth Carburetors, Strange Oval, Suave Talk, Total Power Valvoline Pro-V Racing, Walker Performance Filtration, Wiles Driveshafts, Wilwood Brakes, Winters Performance Products, Wrisco Aluminum, Xceldyne Valvetrain, and MyRacePass Marketing Services.
For the latest news and team updates, visit Rocket1 Racing’s official website at www.Rocket1Racing.com. Fans can also stay connected by subscribing to the official Rocket1 Racing mailing list at https://pages.insightly.services/Rocket1Racing.
PR Contact:
Jeremy Peters (jeremy.peters@myracepass.com)
Rocket1 Racing Turns Focus to Busy Iowa Slate
SHINNISTON, W. Va. (Aug. 17, 2026) — Brandon Sheppard capped a rollercoaster weekend at Batesville Motor Speedway with a hard-fought top-five finish in Saturday’s Topless 100 finale.
After a pair of flat tires derailed his Friday preliminary, Sheppard rallied from 18th to fifth in the 100-lap main event, passing 13 cars along the way.
“I am proud of our guys,” Sheppard said. “That’s how racing goes sometimes. Friday was rough on tires for everybody, but we were fast on Saturday thanks to my crew. We have a lot to build on from this weekend and I am excited to get back at it this week in Iowa.”
The doubleheader weekend in Arkansas opened Friday with the 40-car field split into groups for preliminary competition. Sheppard won his heat race and was running second in the feature when a lap-19 flat tire sent him to the pits. Another flat two laps later forced him back down pit road, but Sheppard rallied to salvage a ninth-place finish.
With Friday’s results setting the starting lineup for Saturday’s $50,000-to-win Topless 100, Sheppard was forced to race his way into the finale through a B-Main. He did just that in convincing fashion, winning the 15-lap consolation event before charging from 18th to fifth in the 100-lap finale.
Sheppard maintains a 95-point advantage over Hudson O’Neal atop the latest Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series championship standings.
For the latest news, results, championship standings, and more about the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series presented by FloRacing, visit www.LucasDirt.com.
Sheppard and the Rocket1 Racing team will quickly turn their attention to Iowa, with competition resuming Tuesday at Marshalltown Speedway as part of the FloRacing Night in America tour. The remainder of the team’s week follows:
Aug. 18 – Marshalltown Speedway: FloRacing Night in America
Aug. 19 – Mason City Motor Speedway: FloRacing Night in America
Aug. 21-22 – Maquoketa Speedway: World of Outlaws
Additional event information is available at www.FloSeries.com and www.WorldofOutlaws.com.
Rocket1 Racing would like to thank all of their marketing partners, which include Valvoline, Seubert Calf Ranches, Collins Brothers Towing of St.Cloud, Rocket Chassis, Ace Metal Works, Durham Racing Engines, Five Star RaceCar Bodies, Gunter’s Honey, Performance Grading, Stiles Marine & Maintenance, Hoosier Racing Tire, Fox Racing Shox, Keyser Manufacturing, Petroff Towing, On Time Body & Graphic, Franklin Enterprises, Bubba Army, Sweet Manufacturing, Sunoco Race Fuels, Accu-Force Shock Service, ATL Fuel Cells, Aurora Rod Ends, Barnes Dry Sump Oil Systems, Bazell Race Fuels, Beyea Custom Headers, Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, Brinn Transmissions, Sharp Advantage Safety Products, CP Carrillo, Dohm Cycles, Fibreworks Composites, Hardrock Powder Coating, Howe Racing Enterprises, Jones Racing Products, Kenny’s Components, MSD, E3 Spark Plugs, Tel Tac, Performance Bodies, Peterson Fluid Systems, Powers Performance, Performance Rod & Custom, QuickCar Racing Products, MatMan Designs, Allgaier Performance Parts, Rocket Pre-Owned Motors, Show Trucks Unlimited, Simpson, Stealth Carburetors, Strange Oval, Suave Talk, Total Power Valvoline Pro-V Racing, Walker Performance Filtration, Wiles Driveshafts, Wilwood Brakes, Winters Performance Products, Wrisco Aluminum, Xceldyne Valvetrain, and MyRacePass Marketing Services.
For the latest news and team updates, visit Rocket1 Racing’s official website at www.Rocket1Racing.com. Fans can also stay connected by subscribing to the official Rocket1 Racing mailing list at https://pages.insightly.services/Rocket1Racing.
PR Contact:
Jeremy Peters (jeremy.peters@myracepass.com)