by Bill Wright
KNOXVILLE, Iowa (May 18, 2024) – Garet Williamson posted his first ever 410 sprint car win at the Knoxville Raceway Saturday, holding off Aaron Reutzel at the line. The win came aboard the Fischer Motorsports #23 and was worth $6,000 for the Columbia, Missouri native. Nathan Mills also won his first career feature in the 360 class in exciting fashion in his family #24N, and J Kinder won in the Pro Sprints class for the sixth time in his career, and for the first time since he won a 305 track title in 2014.
The 20-lap 410 main event got off to a rocky start. Chris Martin got sideways and upside down, with Jack Potter and Scotty Johnson trying to avoid and suffering the same fate. All were o.k., but finished. Tasker Phillips spun on the restart before things got going.
Williamson led from outside row one early, ahead of Jamie Ball, Austin McCarl, Reutzel and Matt Juhl. McCarl used the low side to move by Ball on lap seven for the second spot. Williamson was lapping traffic on the eighth circuit, when Dusty Zomer entered the top five.
Reutzel was also on the move at the halfway point, taking third from Ball before Kelby Watt came to a stop, bringing out the final caution with nine laps to go. Williamson led McCarl, Reutzel, Ball and Zomer back to green.
Carson McCarl entered the top five by getting by Zomer with seven to go. Meanwhile, Reutzel was hooked up late, sneaking by Austin McCarl for second entering turn one with three to go. As Williamson approached traffic again the final two laps, Reutzel closed quickly and made a last bid for the win. Williamson slid across the middle of turn three and won the drag race to the checkers. Austin McCarl was third, ahead of Ball and Carson McCarl. Zomer, Brian Brown, Chase Randall, Juhl and Lynton Jeffrey rounded out the top ten. Austin McCarl set quick time, and Watt, Jeffrey and Randall won heats. JJ Hickle and Justin Henderson were both involved in a scary crash to start the third heat. Both were o.k.
“I heard (Reutzel) coming,” said Williamson of late in the race. “I got to traffic…I got through one good and I could hear him coming. I figured I better go through the middle, because I’d been running the bottom really hard. I got wide and slid myself in three and four and tried to be wide. I knew he’d do the same to me. I tried to protect and this win…I’ve dreamed of this since I was a kid. It’s special to win at this place!”
Corey Timmerman got upside down before a lap was complete in the 18-lap 360 A main. Nate Mills led the pace from the pole early over Tyler Groenendyk, Clint Garner, Alex Hill and Ryan Giles. Chase Randall entered the top five early on, and found his way by Hill on the high side to capture fourth before a flat right rear tire caused Ryan Leavitt to come to a stop seven laps in.
After one more lap was in the books, Tyler Lee turned over in turn one. He was uninjured. Mills led the field back to green, ahead of Groenendyk, Garner, Randall and Hill. Hill briefly got back by Randall, but surrendered that spot again.
Up front, Mills was keeping his line. Randall made a last ditch effort from the fourth spot, climbing to second on the last lap, but Mills would not be denied his first ever Knoxville win. Randall, Groenendyk, Clint Garner and Hill followed. Jamie Ball, Riley Goodno, Giles, Kade Higday and Terry McCarl completed the top ten. Giles set quick time over the 36-car field, while Tasker Phillips, Timothy Smith, Jack Anderson and Ben Brown won heats. Tuesday Calderwood claimed the B.
“It’s unreal!” said Mills of his first win. “I couldn’t do it without everyone behind me. It’s been a long time, it’s been frustrating, and I’m glad we got the win. I kind of figured lapped traffic was going to be tough, so I was kind of glad to see (the cautions). On those restarts, I was afraid of the car going away a little bit. I just pulled the wing back a little bit, and I was glad to have the clean air. The track was really juiced up.”
Fourth starting J Kinder got around the front row at the outset of the 15-lap Pro Sprints feature and led Tyler Groenendyk, Casey Friedrichsen, Mike Mayberry and AJ Johnson early. With just a lap in the books, Chase Young and Jeff Wilke came together, ending their nights. Johnson went from fifth to third on the restart, trailing Kinder and Groenendyk.
Back in the pack, Rob Kubli was moving as well, claiming fourth from Friedrichsen on lap four, and third from Johnson on the low side on lap six. At that point, Chase Fischer tipped over in turn four, bringing the red with nine to go. He was unhurt.
The restart, and another one for a stopped Brandon Worthington with five to go, did nothing to slow down Kinder who won ahead of Groenendyk, Kubli, Johnson and Friedrichsen. Mike Mayberry, Toby Mosher, hard-charger Josh Jones, Koddy Hildreth and Bob Hildreth rounded out the top ten. Matt Allen set quick time on the night, while Friedrichsen and Johnson were the heat winners.
“For the first couple nights, I was ready to go back home and race 305’s,” said Kinder in Victory Lane. “We changed some parts that Mike Mayberry actually told me to change, and I guess that was it. We won points back in 2014 here, and I was really wanting to do it again, but after two DNF’s I don’t know that it’s going to happen. If we keep doing this, we’ll see what happens at the end of the year.”
Join us Saturday, May 25 for Dennison Racing Tees/Jersey Freeze Night! All three sprint car classes will again be in action, with the MSTS 360’s on hand shooting for a possible $9,000 for a driver sweeping Jackson (Friday) and Knoxville. For more information on the Knoxville Raceway, visit us online at www.KnoxvilleRaceway.com!
410 Results
Time Trials (Qualifying Order), 2 laps: 1. 88, Austin McCarl, Altoona, IA (9), 15.760; 2. 27W, Emerson Axsom, Franklin, IN (7), 15.808; 3. 5, Justin Henderson, Tea, SD (10), 15.859; 4. 4W, Jamie Ball, Knoxville, IA (6), 15.905; 5. 87, Aaron Reutzel, Clute, TX (21), 15.906; 6. 21, Brian Brown, Grain Valley, MO (1), 15.926; 7. 23, Garet Williamson, Columbia, MO (13), 16.057; 8. 27, Carson McCarl, Altoona, IA (22), 16.108; 9. 25, Matt Juhl, Tea, SD (12), 16.165; 10. 1, Tasker Phillips, Pleasantville, IA (4), 16.191; 11. 3J, Dusty Zomer, Sioux Falls, SD (28), 16.213; 12. 20, AJ Moeller, Rockwell City, IA (14), 16.232; 13. 44, Chris Martin, Ankeny, IA (20), 16.250; 14. 2, Lynton Jeffrey, Sydney, NSW, Aust. (15), 16.255; 15. 51B, Joe B. Miller, Millersville, MO (2), 16.276; 16. 1K, Kelby Watt, Adel, IA (17), 16.283; 17. 35, Zach Hampton, Plainfield, IN (16), 16.324; 18. 2KS, Chase Randall, Waco, TX (23), 16.325; 19. 45X, Jace Park, Overland Park, KS (8), 16.377; 20. 19, Hunter Schuerenberg, Sikeston, MO (19), 16.393; 21. 3P, Sawyer Phillips, Pleasantville, IA (29), 16.402; 22. 22, Riley Goodno, Knoxville, IA (27), 16.425; 23. 6W, Dustin Selvage, Indianola, IA (11), 16.483; 24. 7, JJ Hickle, Quilcene, WA (26), 16.561; 25. 15, Jack Potter, Raymore, MO (3), 16.619; 26. 95, Tyler Drueke, Eagle, NE (5), 16.652; 27. 15JR, Cole Mincer, Burlington, IA (18), 17.135; 28. 9H, Landon Hansen, Newton, IA (25), 17.263; 29. 44X, Scotty Johnson, Melcher-Dallas, IA (24), 17.360.
Heat one (started), 8 Laps, 2:18.7: 1. Kelby Watt (1); 2. Garet Williamson (4); 3. Austin McCarl (6); 4. Chris Martin (2); 5. Jamie Ball (5); 6. Tasker Phillips (3); 7. Riley Goodno (8); 8. Jace Park (7); 9. Jack Potter (9); 10. Landon Hansen (10)
Heat two (started), 8 Laps, 2:18.2: 1. Lynton Jeffrey (2); 2. Dusty Zomer (3); 3. Zach Hampton (1); 4. Carson McCarl (4); 5. Emerson Axsom (6); 6. Aaron Reutzel (5); 7. Dustin Selvage (8); 8. Tyler Drueke (9); 9. Scotty Johnson (10); 10. Hunter Schuerenberg (7)
Heat three (started), 8 Laps, 2:19.1: 1. Chase Randall (1); 2. Joe B. Miller (2); 3. Matt Juhl (4); 4. AJ Moeller (3); 5. Sawyer Phillips (7); 6. Brian Brown (5); 7. Cole Mincer (9); 8. Justin Henderson (6); 9. JJ Hickle (8)
A main, 20 Laps, NT: 1. Garet Williamson (2); 2. Aaron Reutzel (6); 3. Austin McCarl (4); 4. Jamie Ball (1); 5. Carson McCarl (7); 6. Dusty Zomer (8); 7. Brian Brown (9); 8. Chase Randall (13); 9. Matt Juhl (5); 10. Lynton Jeffrey (10); 11. Emerson Axsom (3); 12. Sawyer Phillips (18); 13. Tasker Phillips (15); 14. Joe B. Miller (12); 15. Dustin Selvage (21); 16. Jace Park (19); 17. Riley Goodno (20); 18. Chris Martin (16); 19. Zach Hampton (17); 20. Tyler Drueke (24); 21. Cole Mincer (22); 22. Kelby Watt (11); 23. AJ Moeller (14); 24. Jack Potter (25); 25. Scotty Johnson (26) DNS – Hunter Schuerenberg, Justin Henderson, JJ Hickle, Landon Hansen. Lap Leader: Williamson 1-20. Hard-charger: S. Phillips
360 Results
Time Trials (Qualifying Order), 2 laps: 1. 2M, Ryan Giles, Grimes, IA (1), 16.070; 2. 4W, Jamie Ball, Knoxville, IA (35), 16.224; 3. 22X, Riley Goodno, Knoxville, IA (29), 16.333; 4. 2KS, Chase Randall, Waco, TX (18), 16.344; 5. 17, Tyler Groenendyk, Oskaloosa, IA (4), 16.365; 6. 77X, Alex Hill, Six Nations, ONT, Ca (11), 16.414; 7. 01, Terry McCarl, Altoona, IA (19), 16.419; 8. 24N, Nathan Mills, Bondurant, IA (2), 16.426; 9. 40, Clint Garner, Sioux Falls, SD (24), 16.441; 10. 87, Aaron Reutzel, Clute, TX (25), 16.485; 11. 22, Ryan Leavitt, Knoxville, IA (9), 16.495; 12. 99, Tony Rost, Omaha, NE (8), 16.500; 13. 24, Kade Higday, Pleasant Hill, IA (34), 16.537; 14. 53, Joe Beaver, Knoxville, IA (23), 16.565; 15. 4, Cam Martin, Ankeny, IA (22), 16.582; 16. 4C, Tuesday Calderwood, Goodyear, AZ (7), 16.595; 17. 4G, Cole Garner, Sioux Falls, SD (28), 16.603; 18. 86, Timothy Smith, Rocheport, MO (33), 16.625; 19. 7, Tyler Lee, Cedar Rapids, IA (6), 16.635; 20. 20T, Corey Timmerman, Burlington, IA (14), 16.638; 21. 1TAZ, Tasker Phillips, Pleasantville, IA (36), 16.718; 22. 6N, Darin Naida, Adrian, MI (31), 16.729; 23. 7A, Jack Anderson, Newton, IA (27), 16.747; 24. 7B, Ben Brown, Marshall, MO (17), 16.779; 25. 33, Alan Zoutte, Knoxville, IA (12), 16.820; 26. 6AJ, AJ Moeller, Rockwell City, IA (30), 16.885; 27. 22M, Rees Moran, Tulsa, OK (32), 16.888; 28. 5A, Alex Vande Voort, Knoxville, IA (13), 16.917; 29. 2J, Zach Blurton, Great Bend, KS (26), 16.935; 30. 3R, Russell Potter, Boonville, MO (10), 17.184; 31. 98P, Miles Paulus, Marshall, MO (16), 17.322; 32. 14, Aidan Zoutte, Knoxville, IA (3), 17.328; 33. 83, Kurt Mueller, Reynolds, IL (20), 17.435; 34. 17N, Nathan Anderson, Newton, IA (5), 17.569; 35. 38, Logan Alexander, Lacona, IA (15), 18.282; 36. T4, Tyler Graves, Chariton, IA (21), NT.
Heat one (started), 7 Laps, 2:01.2: 1. Tasker Phillips (1); 2. Kade Higday (3); 3. Clint Garner (4); 4. Cole Garner (2); 5. Ryan Giles (6); 6. Tyler Groenendyk (5); 7. Zach Blurton (8); 8. Kurt Mueller (9); 9. Alan Zoutte (7)
Heat two (started), 7 Laps, NT: 1. Timothy Smith (2); 2. Jamie Ball (6); 3. Darin Naida (1); 4. Joe Beaver (3); 5. Alex Hill (5); 6. Nathan Anderson (8); 7. Russell Potter (7); 8. Aaron Reutzel (4) DNS – AJ Moeller
Heat three (started), 7 Laps, 2:04.0: 1. Jack Anderson (1); 2. Cam Martin (3); 3. Ryan Leavitt (4); 4. Tyler Lee (2); 5. Terry McCarl (5); 6. Riley Goodno (6); 7. Rees Moran (7); 8. Miles Paulus (8); 9. Logan Alexander (9)
Heat four (started), 7 Laps, 2:05.9: 1. Ben Brown (1); 2. Chase Randall (6); 3. Tony Rost (4); 4. Nathan Mills (5); 5. Corey Timmerman (2); 6. Alex Vande Voort (7); 7. Tuesday Calderwood (3); 8. Aidan Zoutte (8); 9. Tyler Graves (9)
B main (started), 10 Laps, 3:06.2: 1. Tuesday Calderwood (1); 2. Tyler Lee (2); 3. Corey Timmerman (4); 4. Zach Blurton (7) / 5. Darin Naida (3); 6. Miles Paulus (11); 7. Alex Vande Voort (5); 8. Alan Zoutte (9); 9. Aidan Zoutte (10); 10. Nathan Anderson (8); 11. Kurt Mueller (13); 12. Tyler Graves (14); 13. Logan Alexander (12); 14. Russell Potter (6) DNS – Rees Moran, AJ Moeller
A main, 18 Laps, NT: 1. Nathan Mills (1); 2. Chase Randall (7); 3. Tyler Groenendyk (2); 4. Clint Garner (3); 5. Alex Hill (4); 6. Jamie Ball (8); 7. Riley Goodno (5); 8. Ryan Giles (6); 9. Kade Higday (11); 10. Terry McCarl (9); 11. Ben Brown (18); 12. Cam Martin (13); 13. Cole Garner (19); 14. Zach Blurton (22); 15. Tasker Phillips (15); 16. Ryan Leavitt (10); 17. Tuesday Calderwood (21); 18. Jack Anderson (17); 19. Timothy Smith (14); 20. Tyler Lee (20); 21. Joe Beaver (16); 22. Tony Rost (12); 23. Corey Timmerman (23) DNS – Aaron Reutzel. Lap Leader: Mills 1-18. Hard-charger: Blurton.
Pro Series Results
Time Trials (Group Qualifying): 1. 17, Matt Allen, Norwalk, IA (5), 17.404; 2. 26, Chase Young, Des Moines, IA (1), 17.683; 3. 88, J Kinder, Linn, MO (7), 17.685; 4. 0, Mike Mayberry, Fremont, IA (11), 17.787; 5. 2, Casey Friedrichsen, Arthur, IA (14), 17.991; 6. 7, Rob Kubli, Milo, IA (2), 18.037; 7. 55, Toby Mosher, Osceola, IA (10), 18.049; 8. 8J, AJ Johnson, Oskaloosa, IA (12), 18.062; 9. 71, Brandon Worthington, Indianola, IA (6), 18.159; 10. 22, Chase Fischer, Jefferson City, MO (8), 18.313; 11. 41, Jeff Wilke, Knoxville, IA (3), 18.367; 12. 12K, Koddy Hildreth, Zearing, IA (4), 18.621; 13. 02S, Josh Jones, Knoxville, IA (15), 18.884; 14. 55KC, Bob Hildreth, Iowa Falls, IA (13), 19.508; 15. 12P, Ryan Navratil, Des Moines, IA (9), NT
Heat one (started), 6 Laps, 1:55.1: 1. Casey Friedrichsen (4); 2. J Kinder (5); 3. Brandon Worthington (2); 4. Jeff Wilke (1); 5. Matt Allen (6); 6. Ryan Navratil (8); 7. Toby Mosher (3); 8. Josh Jones (7);
Heat two (started), 6 Laps, 1:54.8: 1. AJ Johnson (3); 2. Chase Fischer (2); 3. Mike Mayberry (5); 4. Rob Kubli (4); 5. Koddy Hildreth (1); 6. Chase Young (6); 7. Bob Hildreth (7);
A main (started), 15 Laps, NT: 1. J Kinder (4); 2. Matt Allen (2); 3. Rob Kubli (7); 4. AJ Johnson (5); 5. Casey Friedrichsen (3); 6. Mike Mayberry (1); 7. Toby Mosher (11); 8. Josh Jones (15); 9. Koddy Hildreth (12); 10. Bob Hildreth (14); 11. Ryan Navratil (13); 12. Brandon Worthington (9); 13. Chase Fischer (8); 14. Chase Young (6); 15. Jeff Wilke (10). Lap Leader: Kinder 1-15. Hard-charger: Jones.