4/11/2026
Brandon Sheppard Controls Illini 100 Prelim Night at Farmer City Raceway
Collects $12,000, Adds Third-Place Finish in Saturday’s Finale
SHINNISTON, W. VA. (April 13, 2026) — Brandon Sheppard’s command of Farmer City Raceway continued this past weekend, as the Illinois native powered to a preliminary feature victory during the Illini 100 weekend.
The five-time World of Outlaws Late Model Series champion backed up fast-time honors with a dominant, flag-to-flag performance in both his heat race and the 40-lap feature, driving the Rocket1 Racing / Valvoline / Seubert Calf Ranches No. 1 Late Model to his fourth victory of the 2026 season.
“Getting to the lead on the start was going to be key, for sure,” Sheppard said. “Hoffman’s been good all year, man. I know how important it is to be able to get out front and be able to run that line in [Turns] 1 and 2 and then go to the top in [Turns] 3 and 4. Knew if he was going to get the lead, he’d be hard to pass.”
The doubleheader weekend in Illinois began with Sheppard setting the tone during Thursday’s practice session, posting the overall fastest lap. He carried that momentum into Friday, topping the charts in qualifying before completing the sweep with a dominant feature victory—marking the 89th World of Outlaws win of his career.
On Saturday, Sheppard earned a spot in the $25,000-to-win Illini 100 finale with a heat race victory. He led laps 22 through 41 in the 60-lap main event before ultimately settling for a third-place finish, joining race winner Bobby Pierce and runner-up Nick Hoffman on the podium.
Complete results from the doubleheader weekend in the Land of Lincoln can be found at www.WorldofOutlaws.com.
Rocket1 Racing and Sheppard return to Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series (LOLMDS) competition in two weeks as the tour heads east for a three-race swing. The stretch begins Friday, April 24 at Georgetown Speedway in Delaware, continues Saturday at Pennsylvania’s BAPS Motor Speedway, and concludes Sunday at Hagerstown Speedway in Maryland. Sheppard currently sits sixth in the latest LOLMDS point standings.
Additional event details are available at www.LucasDirt.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: Josh James Artwork