VERNON, N.Y. — In what was perhaps his most dramatic victory of the season, Matt Sheppard topped the 3 Bastards Brewing Modified feature on Friday night for the fifth time this season on Mastrovito Hyundai First Responders Night.
Sheppard outdueled Billy Decker in a three-lap dash to the finish to take home the win.
“I put two of the best corners together of the entire race,” Sheppard explained of his pass for the win. “Just got lucky I was able to squeeze back by Billy (Decker) and get the win.”
The win for Sheppard was the 65th win of his Utica-Rome Speedway career, again breaking the tie and putting him atop the all-time win list at the ‘Home of Heroes.’
Justin Wright and Willy Decker occupied the front row when the race began, while Sheppard fired off from the 11th starting position.
Wright would race out to the lead early, leaving behind an epic five-car battle for the runner-up spot.
Willy Decker, Alan Barker, Alex Yankowski, Billy Decker, and Sheppard went at it for the first half of the race, knifing through traffic as well, for the runner-up spot.
Sheppard, who settled in sixth for several laps, went to work on the 10th circuit of the race. Sheppard used the outside to go around both Billy Decker and Yankowski to take fourth.
Two laps later, Sheppard had taken third away from Willy Decker, all the meanwhile, Billy Decker hung right with Sheppard as they navigated to the front of the feel.
At the halfway mark, Sheppard had raced around Barker and began to chip away at Wright’s three second advantage over the rest of the field.
Wright’s lead was all but gone with eight laps to go, as he began to struggle with heavier lap traffic and Sheppard and Decker quickly made up the deficit.
Sheppard and Decker would both get by Wright before a yellow came out with six laps to go.
When racing resumed, Decker rolled around the outside groove and snatched the lead away from Sheppard.
“I made a good corner in one and two and he just drove around me,” Sheppard said. “He really surprised me.”
Decker led, but another yellow would fly with three laps to go, giving Sheppard the only reset he would need.
Sheppard hooked the bottom in the first two corners and held off Decker from there for the win.
Decker would settle for his second straight runner-up finish in the Jeremy Smith Racing No. 91 and Wright rounded out the podium with his best finish of the year.
Despite a flat left front tire, Yankowski finished fourth and Barker completed the top five.
Matt Janczuk claimed his fourth Worthington Industries Crate 602 Sportsman victory of the season.
Josh Coonradt topped what was the race of the night in the Next Generation Graphix Pro Stocks division.
Zack Welch rolled the inside groove to perfection for his third triumph of the season with the Fastline Performance Limited Sportsman.
Kyle Coley (DOHC) and Bruce Liddle (SOHC) were victorious with the Fonda Fair Four Cylinders, both getting their first win of the season.
A.J. Albreada and Chase Spoor were both first time winners this season with the Senior Services Inc. All-Star Slingshots (Albreada) and Junior Slingshots (Spoor) on the inner oval.
Feature Finish (30 Laps)
MATT SHEPPARD, Billy Decker, Justin Wright, Alex Yankowski, Alan Barker, Pat Ward, Willy Decker, Andy Bachetti, Michael Trautschold, Alan Johnson, Alex Payne, Ron Holmes, Jeremy Slosek, Brian Calabrese, Kurtis Hohensheldt, Tim Mayne, Jim Walsh, Rocky Warner, Brad Poppleton, JaMike Sowle, Bobby Hackel IV, Addison Bowman, Aaron Jacobs.