9/20/2025
Brandon Sheppard Finishes Fourth in Knoxville Late Model Nationals
Rocket1 Racing Sets Sights on Upcoming Indiana Invasion
SHINNSTON, W.Va. (09/22/25) – Brandon Sheppard rebounded from early adversity at the Knoxville Late Model Nationals, closing out the weekend with a strong fourth-place finish in Saturday’s $75,000-to-win finale aboard the Valvoline / Seubert Calf Ranches No. 1 Rocket1 Racing / Ace Metal Works Super Late Model.
After a tough outing Thursday—when a flat tire forced him to pit on lap 17 while running third, resulting in a 16th-place finish—Sheppard showed steady improvement as the weekend progressed. He earned an eighth-place result in Friday’s preliminary feature, then charged to a top-five finish in Saturday’s 75-lap main event at the legendary half-mile Sprint Car Capital of the World.
“All in all, it was a pretty good weekend for us,” Sheppard said. “Thursday’s flat was definitely a bummer, but I’m happy with how we rebounded. The track crew had to deal with some rough weather heading into the weekend, so props to them—the track the past two nights was phenomenal. Huge thanks to my team and all our sponsors who support us week in and week out.”
The weekend tripleheader with the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series (LOLMDS) began with misfortune for Sheppard. While running third in Thursday’s preliminary feature, a flat right-front tire forced him to the pits on lap 17, resulting in a 16th-place finish in the rain-shortened 19-lap opener.
On Friday, Sheppard improved with an eighth-place run in the 25-lap prelim, accumulating enough points to secure a starting spot in Saturday’s headliner.
Rolling off ninth in the Knoxville Nationals finale, Sheppard powered forward five positions over the 75-lap distance to finish fourth. He trailed Hudson O’Neal, Ricky Thornton Jr., and Devin Moran across the line, with Daulton Wilson rounding out the top five.
Sheppard remains fifth in the latest LOLMDS championship standings.
Complete results and updated LOLMDS standings, visit www.LucasDirt.com.
Rocket1 Racing returns to action Wednesday at Tri-State Speedway in Haubstadt, Indiana, for the eighth round of the FloRacing Night in America presented by Kubota miniseries. The team will then head to the 46th annual Jackson 100 weekend at Brownstown Speedway, where LOLMDS competition continues Friday and Saturday.
Full event details are available at www.FloSeries.com and www.BrownstownSpeedway.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/Rocket1Racing.
Article Credit: Heath Lawson image
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