NickHolt Posted July 20, 2012 Report Share Posted July 20, 2012 DIRTcar UMP Weekly Points Update: Summer Nationals Title Propels Shirley Into Late Model National Points Lead CONCORD, NC – July 20, 2012 – Brian Shirley has already put one major DIRTcar UMP Late Model championship in his back pocket this season. Now he’s in the driver’s seat for another. Thanks to a spectacular month of competition that ended with his first-ever DIRTcar Summer Nationals title, Shirley has vaulted to the top of the 2012 DIRTcar UMP Late Model national points standings. Shirley, 31, of Chatham, Ill., holds an edge of 107 points (2,364-2,257) over Shannon Babb of Moweaqua, Ill., who finished second in the Summer Nationals standings. Both drivers have Summer Nationals crowns on their resumes but have never won the DIRTcar UMP Late Model national championship. When the grueling Summer Nationals began its 32-day stretch of nearly nightly racing on June 13, Shirley sat 19th in the UMP Late Model national points standings. He soared up the rankings, however, after competing in 28 Summer Nationals events and recording five wins, 21 top-five and 22 top-10 finishes. Shirley’s Summer Nationals title was worth $25,000. Capturing the UMP Late Model national crown would add another $20,000 to his post-season take. Babb, 38, was not even in the top 20 of the national standings when the Summer Nationals kicked off, but he rose all the way to second on the strength of a ‘Hell Tour’ performance record showing four wins, 20 top-five and 26 top-10 finishes. Five of the top six drivers in the UMP Late Model national standings after Week 25 (races completed through July 15) competed in every Summer Nationals event. The highest-ranked non-Hell Tour regular is 1992 national champ Kevin Weaver of Gibson City, Ill., who entered 13 Summer Nationals shows and sits third in the national points battle, which is determined using drivers’ best 35 finishes/points nights. Jim Moon of Mt. Auburn, Ill., who led the UMP Late Model national standings entering the Summer Nationals, now sits ninth. Devin Gilpin of Columbus, Ind., meanwhile, continues to control the UMP Modified national standings, holding a 128-point lead (2,299-2,171) over Nick Allen of Wheatfield, Ind. Defending national champ Mike Harrison of Highland, Ill., is third, trailing Gilpin by 182 points. Allen has sliced Gilpin’s points lead nearly in half over the past month, but Gilpin has shown little signs of slowing down. He leads the circuit with 27 feature wins, with his latest coming on July 11 in a DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals event at Brushcreek Motorsports Park in Peebles, Ohio. Allen’s UMP Modified victory total sits at 14, including a July 14 score at Shadyhill Speedway in Medaryville, Ind. The UMP Modified points standings are determined using drivers’ best 30 finishes/points nights. Other divisional national points leaders through Week 20 are Nick Bauman of New Berlin, Ill. (Pro Late Models); Troy Clark of North Vernon, Ind. (Sportsman); Rob Lee of Sorento, Ill. (Limited Modifieds); Mike McKinney of Plainfield, Ill. (Stock Cars); Stephen Fohne of Troy, Ill. (Factory Stocks); and Jeremy Callahan of Mt. Vernon, Ill. (Sport Compacts). Log on to www.DirtCar.com for more information on DIRTcar Racing’s UMP circuit and to view complete points standings for all divisions, including the current State points rankings. The weekly DIRTcar UMP points update is powered by www.MotorStats.com. DIRTcar’s affiliation with the Durham, N.C.-based Web site is providing fans and competitors a more timely and detailed look at the points standings. National and State points standings for all divisions are typically updated by Thursday each week, and new features allow visitors to click on each driver’s name to see a complete race-by-race review of their finishes to date. DIRTcar Racing UMP National Points Standings (as of July 15, 2012): Late Models (rank/driver/races counted/points): 1. Brian Shirley 35 2364 2. Shannon Babb 35 2257 3. Kevin Weaver 35 2157 4. Ryan Unzicker 35 2136 5. Brandon Sheppard 35 2114 6. Jason Feger 35 2062 7. Rusty Schlenk 35 1977 8. Dewayne Kiefer 35 1941 9. Jim Moon 35 1930 10. Bobby Pierce 35 1909 11. Scott Schmitt 35 1869 12. Jason McBride 35 1856 13. Jon Henry 35 1820 14. Mike Spatola III 35 1796 15. Michael Kloos 29 1733 16. Dennis Erb Jr. 32 1689 17. Frank Heckenast Jr. 32 1508 18. Frankie Martin 27 1494 19. Brandon Thirlby 24 1393 20. Mike Hammerle 33 1380 UMP Modifieds (rank/driver/races counted/points): 1. Devin Gilpin 30 2299 2. Nick Allen 30 2171 3. Mike Harrison 30 2017 4. Dave Wietholder 30 2006 5. Jamie Lomax 30 1989 6. Jacob Poel 30 1903 7. Michael Long 30 1871 8. Trent Young 30 1861 9. Richie Lex 30 1816 10. Ray Bollinger 30 1810 11. Bradley Sterrett 30 1756 12. Collin Thirlby 30 1716 13. Doug Adkins 29 1708 14. Tyler Nicely 30 1702 15. Rusty Griffaw 29 1693 16. Kenny Wallace 25 1684 17. David Mielke 28 1646 18. Michael Bolyard 29 1642 19. Gabe Menser 30 1634 20. Brian Lynn 30 1611 Pro Late Models (rank/driver/races counted/points): 1. Nick Bauman 20 1405 2. Mark Oller 20 1334 3. Clayton Miller 20 1318 4. Evan Fink 20 1290 5. Evan Taylorn 20 1226 6. Aaron Heck 20 1201 7. Bobby Dauderman 18 1153 8. Bobby Martintoni 20 1109 9. Credence Mott 20 1081 10. Michael Zimmerman 20 1071 Sportsman (rank/driver/races counted/points): 1. Troy Clark 20 1405 2. Chad Jeseo 20 1365 3. Kenny Carmichael Sr. 20 1235 4. Roy Bruce Jr. 20 1217 5. Steve Hollars 20 1147 6. Jon Ripperda 17 1094 7. Wayne Carbo 20 1077 8. Troy Naeger 19 1030 9. Rob Yetman 17 965 10. Kenny Carmichael Jr. 20 964 Limited Modifieds (rank/driver/races counted/points): 1. Rob Lee 15 918 2. Brett Page 19 903 3. Haley Westerfield 20 815 4. Corey Kellems 20 743 5. Tyler Deibert 12 714 6. Len Garson 17 710 7. Curt Loddeke 15 703 7. Todd Bates 13 703 9. Rick Johnson 12 699 10. Mark Anderson 11 610 Stock Cars (rank/driver/races counted/points): 1. Mike McKinney 20 1364 2. AJ Wright 20 1341 3. John Farris 20 1318 4. Dan Dykman 20 1292 5. Josh Frye 20 1252 6. Mike Hodges 20 1242 7. Lee J Hall 20 1183 8. Mike Watson 20 1157 9. Don Hilleary 20 1140 10. Jerrad Krick 18 1127 Factory Stocks (rank/driver/races counted/points): 1. Stephen Fohne 20 1344 2. Dennis Bringedahl 20 1269 3. Josh Sternberg 20 1242 4. Jake Hewitt 20 1237 5. Josh Grabe 20 1218 6. Mike Epplett 20 1206 7. Spike Grega 20 1192 7. Mark Farber 20 1192 9. Dustin Mcclintock 20 1173 10. Dustin Pruett 16 1047 Sport Compacts (rank/driver/races counted/points): 1. Jeremy Callahan 20 1490 2. Jacob Rexing 20 1455 3. Blayne Ellis 20 1440 3. Zach Bollinger 20 1440 5. Evan Gaultney 20 1415 6. Vince Shehorn 20 1350 7. Tyler Benson 20 1318 8. David Bolyard 20 1304 9. Christian Lee 19 1206 10. Kenny Butterfield 19 1167 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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