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Shirley grabs $5,000 in Slocum 50 prelude at 34 Raceway

For the second-straight week Brian Shirley parked his Bob Cullen Racing / Thomason Express No. 3s J&J Ventures & Gaming/ Hoker Trucking / XR1 Rocket Chassis / Durham Racing Engine Super Late Model in Victory Lane. (Mike Ruefer photo)

The latest conquest for the Illinois’ drive came on Friday night at 34 Raceway during the Prelude to the Slocum.

"This place (34 Raceway) hasn't been really good to me, so to show up here tonight and unload pretty fast, I just can't thank Aaron (Mitchell) enough. He has put in a lot of work," Shirley said in Victory Lane on Friday night at 34 Raceway. “I felt like my car was pretty good and I felt comfortable in it, so I just needed to make sure I hit my marks and I felt like I could bring it home."

Brian Shirley returned to action on Thursday evening at Davenport Speedway (Davenport, Iowa), competing on the 1/4-mile oval for the Lucas Oil Midwest Late Model Racing Association (MLRA) sanctioned contest. Drawing 40 cars, Shirley secured his spot into the $5,000-to-win A-Main with a 10-lap heat race victory. Holding his spot throughout the 40-lap affair, Brian notched a third-place finish, trailing Billy Moyer and Jason Papich across the line with Ashton Winger and Terry Phillips rounding out the Top-5.

The following night at 34 Raceway (West Burlington, Iowa), for the Prelude to the Slocum, Brian topped the 41-car field in time trials before picking up a heat race win. Dominating all 40 laps of the feature, Shirley led wire-to-wire to pick up the $5,000 prize. He took the checkers ahead of Bobby Pierce, Billy Moyer, Tony Jackson Jr., and Frank Heckenast Jr. to record his second win of the season.

On Saturday evening for the Slocum 50, Shirley finished third in his heat race, which positioned him ninth on the starting grid for the $10,555-to-win finale. Improving two spots in the 50-lap affair, Brian recorded a seventh-place finish.

“We would’ve obviously liked another win or two over the weekend, but overall it was still a really good weekend for our team,” Shirley said. “We’re looking forward to the upcoming weekend with the Lucas Oil series at Tri-City Speedway and Macon Speedway. We’ve got a lot of laps at both of these tracks, so hopefully we can use that knowledge to get to Victory Lane again.”

For complete results, please visit www.MLRARacing.com.

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