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| O’Neal Sweeps Brownstown Speedway’s C.J. Rayburn Memorial |
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| BROWNSTOWN, IN (September 25, 2026) – Hudson O’Neal returned Friday night to the track where he began his racing career and led wire-to-wire to win the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series C.J. Rayburn Memorial at Brownstown Speedway. In addition to the $10,000 winner’s purse, O’Neal earned a $5,000 bonus from Big River Steel, bringing his total winnings to $15,000 for SSI Motorsports. O’Neal completed a clean sweep of the night and cut Brandon Sheppard’s championship points lead to 25 heading into Saturday night’s $50,000-to-win Jackson 100. Sheppard passed Ricky Thornton Jr. with 10 laps remaining to finish second. Thornton rounded out the Big River Steel podium in third. Josh Rice and Brandon Overton completed the top five. O’Neal visited Wieland Victory Lane for the 40th time in his Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series career. The 26-year-old Martinsville, Indiana, native recorded his ninth career win at Brownstown, where he began racing 10 years ago. “It means a lot to win this race. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a big race or a local race; it just seems to mean a little more. I grew up racing here, and it’s been a few years since I have won here. So it’s pretty cool to be standing back up here on this stage. It’s a good time to start doing it, too. We have a tight points battle. It’s coming down to the wire, so finding some speed at the right time of the year is really important for us,” said the 2019 Jackson 100 winner. “C.J. Rayburn meant so much to my dad (Don O’Neal) throughout his career, even at the end. My dad credited C.J. for a lot of his career. So it’s pretty cool to win this and put my name on this trophy. Knowing my dad, it probably means a little bit more to him as well. Hopefully we can get our second Jackson win tomorrow.” Sheppard entered the weekend with a 55-point lead over O’Neal, but O’Neal trimmed 30 points from that advantage Friday night. “I felt like we had a pretty good car there. I felt pretty balanced. The later the race went, the better I was getting. Hudson kind of found a line that I was running late in lapped traffic, and he was diamonding off between a few of those guys. So, I don’t know if there was anything I could do to pass him. Congrats to him. He did a good job. It was a fun race. The track was pretty tricky there. We are 50/50 in that type of track condition here.” Thornton, who has won two of the last three Jackson 100s, ran second until 10 laps remained and finished third. “I felt like I had about 12 laps to do something. Congrats to Hud. His stuff was good, and he could get through traffic a little bit better than we could. We have a lot to work on for tomorrow.” O’Neal’s winning Todd and Vickie Burns/SSI Motorsports Longhorn Chassis is powered by a Cornett Racing Engine and sponsored by Big River Steel, Wheeler Metals, Sub-Surface of Indiana, Merrill Bonding, Professional Concrete Cutting and Drilling, O’Neal’s Salvage and Recycling, Lineal Contracting, Sunoco Race Fuels, Beeman Lumber, Indiana USSSA Fastpitch Softball, Seven Spurs Ranch, Penske Racing Shocks, Dicky’s Doghouse, and Lucas Oil Products. Jonathan Davenport, Devin Moran, Clay Harris, Max Blair, and Mike Marlar completed the top 10. Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Race Summary 5th Annual CJ Rayburn MemorialFriday, September 25, 2026Brownstown Speedway | Brownstown, IN Allstar Performance Time TrialsFast Time Group A: Hudson O’Neal | 13.635 seconds (Overall)Fast Time Group B: Jonathan Davenport | 13.782 seconds Penske Shocks Heat Race #1 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 71-Hudson O’Neal[1]; 2. 11-Josh Rice[3]; 3. 12J-Jason Jameson[2]; 4. 3S-Brian Shirley[4]; 5. 157-Mike Marlar[5]; 6. 76S-Shelby Miles[7]; 7. D48-Derek Groomer[9]; 8. 18L-Trevor Landrum[8]; 9. 17SR-Brody Smith[6]; 10. 42-Terry Casey[10] Summit Racing Products Heat Race #2 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 1-Brandon Sheppard[2]; 2. 111-Max Blair[3]; 3. C7-Adam Stricker[1]; 4. 8-Dillon McCowan[6]; 5. 60-Dan Ebert[4]; 6. 93F-Carson Ferguson[5]; 7. 11C-Tyler Collins[7]; 8. 4-Cody Mahoney[8]; 9. 22X-Matt Boknecht[9]; 10. 1CJ-Justin Shaw[10] Cool-It Thermo-Tec Heat Race #3 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 49-Jonathan Davenport[1]; 2. 6-Clay Harris[2]; 3. 22F-Chris Ferguson[7]; 4. 20-Tyler Neal[4]; 5. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[8]; 6. 17SS-Brenden Smith[6]; 7. S21-Seth Daniels[5]; 8. P3-Steve Peeden[9]; 9. JD3-Jack Dossey III[10]; 10. 71D-Don O’Neal[3] Simpson Race Products Heat Race #4 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[1]; 2. 76-Brandon Overton[2]; 3. 99-Devin Moran[4]; 4. 40B-Kyle Bronson[8]; 5. 32-Chad Stapleton[6]; 6. 15R-James Rice[5]; 7. 58-Garrett Alberson[3]; 8. 21R-Colby Reed[9]; 9. (DNS) 1G-Devin Gilpin Fast Shafts B-Main Race #1 Finish (10 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 157-Mike Marlar[1]; 2. 93F-Carson Ferguson[4]; 3. D48-Derek Groomer[5]; 4. 60-Dan Ebert[2]; 5. 11C-Tyler Collins[6]; 6. 17SR-Brody Smith[9]; 7. 76S-Shelby Miles[3]; 8. 18L-Trevor Landrum[7]; 9. 42-Terry Casey[11]; 10. 1CJ-Justin Shaw[12]; 11. 4-Cody Mahoney[8]; 12. (DNS) 22X-Matt Boknecht UNOH B-Main Race #2 Finish (10 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[1]; 2. 17SS-Brenden Smith[3]; 3. S21-Seth Daniels[5]; 4. 32-Chad Stapleton[2]; 5. 58-Garrett Alberson[6]; 6. 15R-James Rice[4]; 7. JD3-Jack Dossey III[9]; 8. P3-Steve Peeden[7]; 9. 21R-Colby Reed[8]; 10. (DNS) 71D-Don O’Neal; 11. (DNS) 1G-Devin Gilpin 5th Annual CJ Rayburn Memorial | Feature Finish (40 Laps):Pos – Start – Car # – Competitor – Hometown – Earnings1 – 1 – 71 – Hudson O’Neal – Martinsville, IN – $15,0002 – 3 – 1 – Brandon Sheppard – New Berlin, IL – $5,6003 – 4 – 20RT – Ricky Thornton Jr – Chandler, AZ – $3,5004 – 5 – 11 – Josh Rice – Crittenden, KY – $2,8005 – 8 – 76 – Brandon Overton – Evans, GA – $2,5006 – 2 – 49 – Jonathan Davenport – Blairsville, GA – $2,3007 – 12 – 99 – Devin Moran – Dresden, OH – $2,2008 – 6 – 6 – Clay Harris – Jupiter, FL – $2,1009 – 7 – 111 – Max Blair – Centerville, PA – $2,05010 – 17 – 157 – Mike Marlar – Winfield, TN – $2,00011 – 15 – 8 – Dillon McCowan – Urbana, MO – $1,60012 – 19 – 93F – Carson Ferguson – Lincolnton, NC – $1,40013 – 9 – 12J – Jason Jameson – Lawrenceburg, IN – $1,20014 – 21 – D48 – Derek Groomer – Bloomington, IN – $1,00015 – 11 – C7 – Adam Stricker – Batavia, OH – $95016 – 10 – 22F – Chris Ferguson – Mt. Holly, NC – $92517 – 13 – 3s – Brian Shirley – Chatham, IL – $90018 – 24 – 60 – Dan Ebert – Lake Shore, MN – $87519 – 23 – 58 – Garrett Alberson – Las Cruces, NM – $85020 – 20 – 17SS – Brenden Smith – Dade City, FL – $82521 – 14 – 20 – Tyler Neal – Paragon, IN – $80022 – 16 – 40B – Kyle Bronson – Brandon, FL – $80023 – 25 – 11C – Tyler Collins – North Vernon, IN – $80024 – 22 – S21 – Seth Daniels – Jackson, OH – $80025 – 18 – 99JR – Frank Heckenast Jr – Frankfort, IL – $800 Race Statistics Entrants: 39Bilstein Shocks Pole Sitter: Hudson O’NealMD3 Lap Leaders: Hudson O’NealHellraizer Jacks Halfway Leader: Hudson O’NealWieland Feature Winner: Hudson O’NealMargin of Victory: 1.057 secondsHellraizer Jacks Cautions: n/aMyRacePass Series Provisional: Garrett Alberson; Dan EbertFast Time Provisional: n/aEmergency Provisionals: n/aTrack Provisional: Tyler CollinsBig River Steel Podium Top 3: Hudson O’Neal, Brandon Sheppard, Ricky Thornton, Jr.Penske Shocks Top 5: Hudson O’Neal, Brandon Sheppard, Ricky Thornton, Jr., Josh Rice, Brandon OvertonBehrent’s One-Lap-to-Go Top 3: Hudson O’Neal, Brandon Sheppard, Ricky Thornton, Jr.PEM 4th Place Feature: Josh RiceDiversified Machine 5th Place Feature: Brandon OvertonWilwood Brakes 7th Place Feature: Devin MoranWehrs Machine 11th Place Feature: Dillon McCowanVelocity Manufacturing 13th Place Feature: Jason JamesonXS Power Batteries 15th Place Feature: Adam StrickerHoker Trucking Hard Charger of the Race: Mike Marlar (Advanced 7 positions)MD3 Most Laps Led: Hudson O’Neal (40 Laps)Sunoco Race Fuels Race for Gas Highest Finisher: Hudson O’NealMidwest Sheet Metal Spoiler Challenge Point Leader: Brandon SheppardO’Reilly Auto Parts Rookie of the Race: Josh RicePro Fabrication Headers Fastest Lap of the Race: Ricky Thornton, Jr. | Lap 3 | 15.328 secondsFK Rod Ends Hard Luck Award: Frank Heckenast JrVictory Fuel Power Move of the Race: Brandon SheppardOuterwears Crew Chief of the Race: Jason DurhamARP Engine Builder of the Race: Cornett Racing EnginesMiller Welders Chassis Builder of the Race: Longhorn ChassisDirt Draft Fastest in Hot Laps: Mike Marlar | 13.2684 secondsTime of Race: 10 minutes 52 seconds Big River Steel Championship Standings Presented by ARP:Pos – Car # – Competitor – Hometown – Points – Earnings1 – 1 – Brandon Sheppard – New Berlin, IL – 6535 – $273,5002 – 71 – Hudson O’Neal – Martinsville, IN – 6510 – $259,7003 – 99 – Devin Moran – Dresden, OH – 6395 – $313,0744 – 76 – Brandon Overton – Evans, GA – 6060 – $158,6005 – 20RT – Ricky Thornton Jr – Chandler, AZ – 6020 – $243,1256 – 111 – Max Blair – Centerville, PA – 5905 – $153,1257 – 11 – Josh Rice – Crittenden, KY – 5640 – $193,2758 – 3s – Brian Shirley – Chatham, IL – 5550 – $109,8009 – 58 – Garrett Alberson – Las Cruces, NM – 5505 – $119,92510 – 6 – Clay Harris – Jupiter, FL – 5250 – $102,475 |