KANKAKEE, Ill. — July 12, 2013 — Bobby Pierce, much like his previous two wins, kept his car glued to the bottom of the track all night as he stormed from his row six starting position to claim his third win of the 2013 DIRTcar Summer Nationals “Hell Tour” on Friday night at Kankakee County Speedway.
Pierce, of Oakwood, Ill., started 11th, five rows behind the pole-sitter Matt Miller, of Whitehouse, Ohio. Miller, who has not won a “Hell Tour” event since 2008, was clearly in charge the first half of the feature. Pierce, locked to the bottom, needed 24 laps to reel in Miller before passing him for the lead with a little over half of the race to go. Pierce went on to lead the rest of the way and capture the $10,000 checkered flag in the 20th race of the 2013 “Hell Tour” schedule at Kankakee County Speedway.
“I didn’t think I was gonna be able to do it from 11th,” said Pierce, a 16-year-old who continues his strong points year as he currently sits fourth in the standings with a week to go. “But I was watching the track and seen that the bottom was really coming in a lot. I knew that I was good down here last year when I got second so I just had to keep doing the same thing over and over again and hitting my marks.”
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Brian Shirley, Ryan Unzicker and Brandon Sheppard rounded out the top five. Shannon Babb, who entered the night as the hottest driver on the tour with five victories and closing the gap to points leader Sheppard for the championship, was running second early on but a mechanical issue with his car forced him out of the race after 13 laps.
Heat race winners included Shannon Babb, Matt Miller and Torin Mettille.
The DIRTcar Summer Nationals Hell Tour continues on Saturday night at 34 Raceway in Burlington, Iowa.
DIRTcar Summer Nationals Statistical Report; Kankakee (Ill.) County Speedway; July 12, 2013
A-Main (50-laps): 1. Bobby Pierce ($10,000), 2. Matt Miller, 3. Brian Shirley, 4. Ryan Unzicker, 5. Brandon Sheppard, 6. Torin Mettille, 7. Frank Heckenast Jr, 8. Mike Spatola, 9. Dustin Griffin, 10. Allen Murray, 11. Tim Lance, 12. Jay Morris, 13. Jason McBride, 14. Todd Frank, 15. Steve Thorsten, 16. Glen Thompson, 17. Kevin Weaver, 18. Aaron Ricketts, 19. Shannon Babb, 20. Herb Reich, 21. Tanner English, 22. Steve Kester, 23. Steve Dimmick, 24. Kent Robinson.
| Pos. | Car | Name | Points |
| 1 | B5 | Brandon Sheppard | 1305 |
| 2 | 24 | Ryan Unzicker | 1244 |
| 3 | 32 | Bobby Pierce | 1242 |
| 4 | 18 | Shannon Babb | 1237 |
| 5 | 20 | Dustin Griffin | 927 |
| 6 | 77 | Jason McBride | 883 |
| 7 | B12 | Kevin Weaver | 815 |
| 8 | 81 | Randy Korte | 808 |
| 9 | 11 | Tyler Reddick | 791 |
| 10 | 48 | Tim Lance | 618 |
2013 DIRTcar Summer Nationals ‘Hell Tour’ Schedule
| Day | Date | Track | Location | Winner |
| Wed. | June 12 | Brownstown Speedway | Brownstown, IN | Dennis Erb, Jr. |
| Thurs. | June 13 | Off | ||
| Fri. | June 14 | Cedar Lake Speedway | New Richmond, WI | Brian Birkhofer |
| Sat. | June 15 | Cedar Lake Speedway | New Richmond, WI | Canceled/Rain |
| Sun. | June 16 | Wilmot Speedway | Wilmot, WI | Kevin Weaver |
| Mon. | June 17 | Off | ||
| Tues. | June 18 | Off | ||
| Wed. | June 19 | Spoon River Speedway | Canton, IL | Brandon Sheppard |
| Thurs. | June 20 | Belle Clair Speedway | Belleville, IL | Brandon Sheppard (2) |
| Fri. | June 21 | Tri-City Speedway | Pontoon Beach, IL | Chris Simpson |
| Sat. | June 22 | Fairbury Speedway | Fairbury, IL | Ryan Unzicker |
| Sun. | June 23 | I-96 Speedway | Lake Odessa, MI | Shannon Babb |
| Mon. | June 24 | Peoria Speedway | Peoria, IL | PPD/Rain July 15 |
| Tues. | June 25 | Off | ||
| Wed. | June 26 | Clarksville Speedway | Clarksville, TN | Brandon Sheppard (3) |
| Thurs. | June 27 | Clayhill Motorsports Park | Atwood, TN | Brandon Sheppard (4) |
| Fri. | June 28 | Paducah International Raceway | Paducah, KY | Billy Moyer |
| Sat. | June 29 | Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 | Pevely, MO | Postponed/Rain |
| Sun. | June 30 | Lincoln Speedway | Lincoln, IL | Bobby Pierce |
| Mon. | July 1 | Off | ||
| Tues. | July 2 | Quincy Raceways | Quincy, IL | Shannon Babb (2) |
| Wed. | July 3 | Jacksonville Speedway | Jacksonville, IL | Shannon Babb (3) |
| Thurs. | July 4 | LaSalle Speedway | LaSalle, IL | Bobby Pierce (2) |
| Fri. | July 5 | Fayette Co. Speedway | Brownstown, IL | Ryan Unzicker (2) |
| Sat. | July 6 | Highland Speedway | Highland, IL | PPD/Rain Aug. 25 |
| Sun. | July 7 | Tri-State Speedway | Haubstadt, IN | Shannon Babb (4) |
| Mon. | July 8 | Off | ||
| Tues. | July 9 | Florence Speedway | Union, KY | Scott Bloomquist |
| Wed. | July 10 | Terre Haute Action Track | Terre Haute, IN | Canceled/Rain |
| Thurs. | July 11 | Macon Speedway | Macon, IL | Shannon Babb (5) |
| Fri. | July 12 | Kankakee County Speedway | Kankakee, IL | Bobby Pierce (3) |
| Sat. | July 13 | 34 Raceway | Burlington, IA | |
| Sun. | July 14 | Vermilion County Speedway | Danville, IL | |
| Mon. | July 15 | Peoria Speedway | Peoria, IL | |
| Tues. | July 16 | Off | ||
| Wed. | July 17 | Brushcreek Motorsports Park | Peebles, OH | |
| Thurs. | July 18 | Off | ||
| Fri. | July 19 | Attica Raceway Park | Attica, OH | |
| Sat. | July 20 | Oakshade Raceway | Wauseon, OH |
The DIRTcar Summer Nationals “Hell Tour” is brought to fans across the country by many important partners including: Arizona Sport Shirts (Official Apparel Company), Hoosier Racing Tires (Official Racing Tires), Racing Electonics (Official Communication), Vicci (Official Uniform), VP Racing Fuel (Official Racing Fuel); in addition to these fine Contingency Sponsors: Beyea Headers, Butlerbuilt, Cometic Gasket, Comp Cams, Dominator Race Products, Edelbrock, Chevy Performance Parts, Integra Shocks, Intercomp, JE Pistons, JRI Shocks, Klotz Lubricants, MSD Performance, Petroff Towing, Quartermaster, Superflow Dynos, UNOH (University of Northwestern Ohio), and Wrisco Aluminum.