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Brian Shirley wins Lucas Oil MLRA finale at Tri-City

Brian Shirley picked up a thrilling $7,000 win on Saturday night at Tri-City Speedway in the Steve Lampley Motorsports No. 33 Midwest Excavating / XR1 Rocket Chassis Super Late Model. The Lucas Oil Midwest Late Model Racing Association (MLRA) triumph marked Shirley’s 10th victory of the season. (Todd Boyd photo)

His win came by a mere 0.123 seconds over a hard charging Frank Heckenast Jr.

“Once I got my rhythm going I felt like we were pretty good. And then I seen on that last restart and was like man--there was four to go and I seen that Gordy (Gundaker) was on the bottom,” Shirley shared in Victory Lane. “I kind of got a little timid and tried to hit my marks too much, and then I seen Frankie (Heckenast Jr.) must have gotten around him (Gundaker) and then I was a little nervous. I just knew on that final lap that we had to go in there and try and hit our marks the best.”

"I’ve got to thank Bob and Lisa Cullen for letting me come race when we have been trying to get ready for 2022. At the end of the day, it’s good to stay in the car and keep your feet wet. I greatly appreciate Steve Lampley for providing me with this car to drive. We should have our No. 3s ready to race in time for the World Finals at Charlotte.

After Mother Nature nixed Friday’s opener, Brian Shirley visited Tri-City Speedway (Granite City, Ill.) on Saturday afternoon for the Lucas Oil Midwest Late Model Racing Association (MLRA) season finale.

In a field of 25 entries, Brian qualified fourth fastest in his group before outdueling Frank Heckenast Jr. in his heat race to pick up the win. Fending off Heckenast’s late-race charge after a caution with four laps remaining, Shirley captured his 10th win of the season and a $7,000 payday. He finished ahead of Heckenast Jr., Gordy Gundaker, Garrett Alberson, and Tony Jackson Jr. to record his third career MLRA triumph.

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

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