THE BAND IS BACK: Dennis Erb Jr. Gets First World of Outlaws Win of 2020 at Eriez

For the first time since November 4, 2017, Dennis Erb Jr. of Carpentersville, Ill. is once again a World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series winner.

After surviving a seemingly never-ending war with Brandon Sheppard for the second spot, “The One Man Band” found a whole new gear in his Rocket Chassis No. 28 over the final stages of Saturday’s 50-lapper at Eriez Speedway. Catching local favorite and race-long leader, Boom Briggs of nearby Bear Lake, Pa., Erb capitalized on Boom’s lap 41 mistake to assume command of the race lead and then drove off into the Eria, Pa. night with a dominating 3.081-second victory.

The sixth-career World of Outlaws triumph for Dennis Erb Jr. and his lone crew member, Heather Lyne, makes them one-for-one in Eriez Speedway competition with a win in their debut at the 3/8th-mile track. Snapping an 82-race winless drought, it’s Erb’s first win of the season and his first with the series since November 4, 2017 at The Dirt Track at Charlotte.

“The longer that race was going, the better I was,” noted Erb on his progress. “I had a harder tire than those guys, so the car kept steering better and better, and I could charge the corner harder. He was loose and left the lane open there, so I had to capitalize on it. All three of us had a really great race together. This is my first time here and they gave us a good race track. Looking forward to the next time.’

Starting the show with his 36th career World of Outlaws Fast Time Award, Brandon Sheppard was the top gun in qualifying at 15.998 seconds, but the early highlight of the night came when local heroes and nearby Bear Lake, Pa. relatives Chub Frank and Boom Briggs went 1-2 in the second group of qualifying. The stout foursome of Sheppard, Erb, Frank and Briggs kept it rolling with Team Drydene heat race wins leading them to the Morton Buildings redraw.

Taking the pole position, Erb had the catbird seat for the start of the 50-lapper, but it was Boom jumping to the early lead from his outside. A series of cautions just shy of the midway point created repeated restarts with drivers front-to-back struggling to find consistency or momentum with several stoppages.

Getting a longer run through the second half, Dennis Erb Jr. emerged from a three-way war with himself, Brandon Sheppard and Boom Briggs to take the lead in the closing laps. Capitalizing on Boom’s slip off turn four on the 41st circuit, Erb pulled underneath, alongside, and then drove by to beat him to the line for the top spot.

From there, the Carpentersville, Ill. native drove away to a dominant 3.081-second victory at the checkered flag.

Following Erb to the stripe was Boom Briggs with a second-place finish, matching his career-best performance with the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series. It wasn’t that elusive first-career win on home turf he and the fans wanted so badly, but it was a stellar ending to a rollercoaster weekend for the Bear Lake, Pa. native son.

“At 9:00am this morning, there wasn’t even a rear clip on this car, so hats off to my amazing crew,” Briggs said on his whirlwind weekend. “I got my lear rear too cold there at the end and Dennis had the harder right front on. I just couldn’t steer that good and I got too tight after the last caution. When I saw Dennis underneath me, I couldn’t turn down across his nose, he’s raced me clean all year long, so I had to do the same. Hats off to Heather and him, I actually got him to smile now.”

Rounding out the podium was Brandon Sheppard of New Berlin, Ill. in third, who extended his championship points lead following a weekend swing with wins at Lincoln and Williams Grove along with his third-place at Eriez. 20-year old Ashton Winger continued his excellent Rookie of the Year campaign with Hard Charger honors for his 15th-to-fourth run aboard the Rocket Chassis No. 12. Closing out the top five was “A-Train” Alex Ferree of Saxonburg, Pa., who picked up his first World of Outlaws top five finish since August of 2006 at Lernerville Speedway.

A trio of full-time Outlaws charged from mid-pack to earn top ten finishes with Cade Dillard of Robeline, La. guiding the MB Customs No. 97 from 12th-to-sixth; Chase Junghans of Manhattan, Kans. piloting the Shop Quik, Rocket No. 18 from 16th-to-seventh; and Ricky Weiss of Headingley, Man. driving the Drydene Performance Products No. 7 from 18th-to-eighth. A pair of Pennsylvanian’s concluded the top ten with Chub Frank of Bear Lake finishing ninth and David Scott of Garland coming home tenth.

With eight points-paying races remaining in the 2020 campaign, Brandon Sheppard continues to lead the chase for his third career World of Outlaws championship aboard the Rocket1 Racing No. 1. Trailing B-Shepp is currently Ricky Weiss (-284), Cade Dillard (-318), Darrell Lanigan (-370), Chase Junghans (-386), Dennis Erb Jr. (-472), Ashton Winger (-516), Scott Bloomquist (-588), Boom Briggs (-864), and Brent Larson (-936).

The World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series will take next weekend off before resuming the run to World Finals with a September doubleheader. It all starts on Friday, September 4 with the series’ fourth appearance at Lavonia (Ga.) Speedway, followed by a Saturday, September 5 stop at Lancaster (S.C.) Motor Speedway for the second time in series history.

Morton Buildings Feature (50 Laps) – 1. 28-Dennis Erb [1][$10,000]; 2. 1J-Boom Briggs [2][$5,000]; 3. 1-Brandon Sheppard [4][$3,000]; 4. 12-Ashton Winger [15][$2,500]; 5. 4-Alex Ferree [6][$2,000]; 6. 97-Cade Dillard [12][$1,700]; 7. 18-Chase Junghans [16][$1,400]; 8. 7-Ricky Weiss [18][$1,300]; 9. 1x-Chub Frank [3][$1,200]; 10. 4s-David Scott [11][$1,100]; 11. X3-Wyatt Scott [20][$1,050]; 12. 29V-Darrell Lanigan [10][$1,000]; 13. B1-Brent Larson [21][$950]; 14. 44-Dave Hess [5][$900]; 15. 9k-Mike Knight [14][$850]; 16. 76-Steve Kania [17][$800]; 17. 33-Chris Hackett [22][$770]; 18. 19-Bob Dorman [24][$750]; 19. 0-Scott Bloomquist [23][$730]; 20. 53-John Volpe [9][$700]; 21. 32-Bobby Pierce [8][$700]; 22. 111L-Matt Lux [7][$700]; 23. 12B-Andy Boozel [19][$700]; 24. 2v-Chad Valone [13][$700]. Lap Leader(s): Briggs 1-40; Erb 41-50. Hard Charger: 12-Ashton Winger[+11]

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World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Models
Saturday, August 22, 2020
Eriez Speedway
9821 Sampson Road
Erie, Pennsylvania 16509 

Series Racing
World of Outlaws Late Model Series

To Win Amount
$10,000.00

Event Schedule
Schedule of Events
1. World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Hot Laps (6:30pm)
2. World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Qualifying - 2 Cars/2 Laps
3. Opening Ceremonies (7:00pm)
4. Econo Mod Heats - 8 Laps
5. World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Heats - 8 Laps
6. Econo Mod LCS - 8 Laps (if needed)
7. World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Redraw
8. World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model LCS - 10 Laps
9. Econo Mod Feature - 25 Laps
10. World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Feature - 50 Laps
11. Chargers Feature - 15 Laps
*All times Eastern

Rescheduled from Sunday to Saturday
Options And Prices
You can purchase tickets at the track on the day of the event. The track is a cash only operation; currently they do not accept credit/debit cards.

Grandstand Type
Bleachers - bench seating

Family Section Location
n/a

Handicapped Seating Location
Top Row of frontstrech

Pit Age Requirement
NO age restriction for pits. 17 and under must be accompanied by a parent/ guardian.

Parking Cost
free

Handicapped Parking Location
In front of main Gate

Camping Availability
onsite, non-electric

Camping Cost
free

To Win Amount
$10,000.00

Type of Grandstand
Bleachers - bench seating

Stadium Seating
Allowed

Handicapped Seating
Top Row of frontstrech

Handicapped Parking
In front of main Gate

Pit Age Limit
NO age restriction for pits. 17 and under must be accompanied by a parent/ guardian.

Personal Coolers
Yes, cooler 14" or smaller are allowed. No glass bottles & No Alcohol. Alcohol must be purchased inside the track.

Alcohol Sales
The track sells beer and some malt beverages. As a result no alcohol may be brought into the stands from outside the track, due to PA liquor license.

Smoking Policy
none

Family Section
n/a

Parking Cost
free

Camping Availability
onsite, non-electric

Camping Cost
free

Eriez Speedway
9821 Sampson Road
Erie, Pennsylvania 16509 

Track Phone
(814) 825-5661

Track Email
[email protected]

Track Type
0.375; Semi Banked Clay Oval

Late Model Track Record
14.522 seconds by Josh Richards

Closest Airport
Erie Int.

Other Airport
Buffalo Int.

Track Map

Competitor Downloads
 https://www.dirtcarmembers.com/downloads.php

Competitor Info
Tire Rules:
ALL FOUR (4) CORNERS: HOOSIER 1300/1325 AR 44/48
RIGHT REAR OPTION: HOOSIER 1425 AR 49
GROOVING AND SIPING IS ALLOWED

Technical/Safety Rules:
Will be under the guidelines of the 2020 World of Outlaws Rulebook
Heat races, Last Chance Showdowns, and Feature you will get one (1) pound lap.(Not in Qualifying)

Event Format:
1-20 Entries = Overall Qualifying | Two Heats | All Cars Transfer | Top 2 from each heat redraw
21-24 Entries = Overall Qualifying | Three Heats | All Cars Transfer | Top 2 from each heat redraw
25-27 Entries = Overall Qualifying | Three Heats | Top 6 Transfer | Top 2 from each heat redraw | One LCS | Top 4 Transfer
28-47 Entries = A/B Group Qualifying | Four Heats | Top 4 Transfer | Top 2 from each heat redraw |Two LCS | Top 3 Transfer
48+ Entries = A/B Group Qualifying | Six Heats | Top 3 Transfer | Heat Race Winner Redraws | Three LCS | Top 2 Transfer

Radio Frequencies:
Driver Radio: 454.0000