By Roby Helm
SWAINSBORO, GA – October 17, 2025 – Mark Ruel Jr. of Jacksonville, FL took the lead on lap six and never looked back to win the 25-lap United Sprint Car Series Outlaw Thunder Presented By Hoosier Racing Tire Feature Race on Friday night at Swainsboro Raceway.
Dale Howard of Byhalia, MS finished second to clinch the 2025 USCS National Championship along with the Southern and Mid-South Regions. Tyler Blankenship started ninth and finished third to claim the Wilwood Disc Brakes Hard Charger of the Race Award with a last lap pass on Lance Moss of Cherryville, NC, who had to settle for the fourth spot.
A pair of National Sprint Car Hall of Fame Inductees finished fifth and sixth. The 2022 USCS National Champion Danny Smith of Chillicothe, OH, took the fifth spot, and 16-time USCS National Champion Terry Gray of Bartlett, TN was sixth.
Trey Meredith of Dade City, FL, finished in seventh place, and Kelsey Ivy of Fremont, OH, ⁶took the eighth spot. Eric Gunderson of Calhoun, GA, came home in ninth and Tanner Witherspoon of Jacksonville, FL rounded out the top ten.
In preliminary action, Moss won the six-lap Hoosier Racing Tire Speed Dash to earn the Pole Position for the 25-lap Feature Race. The two eight-lap Heat-Races were won by Eric Riggins Jr. of Charlotte, NC in the Engler Machine & Tool First Heat, and Howard in the Butlerbuilt Second Heat.
Riggins took the lead at the start of the race from his outside front row starting spot followed by Ruel, Moss, Howard, and Gray. Howard passed Moss for the third spot on lap two. After starting third, Ruel passed Riggins for the lead on lap six.
The first of two caution flags came out on lap seven when Terry Witherspoon of Jacksonville, FL stalled in turn one. Ruel brought the field down for the restart, followed by Riggins, Howard, Moss and Gray. Blankenship raced his way into the top five by passing Gray on lap nine. Riggins spun out of the second spot in turn three on lap 14 to bring out the second caution flag.
Riggins called it a night, as Ruel now had Howard, Moss, Blankenship, and Gray behind him in the top five for the restart. With five laps to go, Ruel held a 1.818 second lead over Howard. Smith passed Gray to take over the fifth spot on lap 23, and Blankenship claimed the third spot with a last lap pass on Moss. Ruel took the checkered flag with a 1.825 second margin of victory.
The United Sprint Car Series Outlaw Thunder Tour Presented By Hoosier Racing Tire will return to Swainsboro Raceway on Saturday night for the 2025 season finale. For more information about USCS, visit their website at uscsracing.com and the series Facebook page, or call the USCS office at 770-865-6097.
United Sprint Car Series Marketing Partners are Engler Machine & Tool, Hoosier Racing Tire, Huggins Cams, Hero Graphics, DMI/Bulldog, Racing Electronics, JE Pistons, DHR Suspension, Wilwood Disc Brakes, AR Dyno Specialties, KSE Racing Products, PRO Shocks, Schoenfeld Headers, and Arizona Sport Shirts.
OFFICIAL RESULTS OF THE UNITED SPRINT CAR SERIES OUTLAW THUNDER TOUR PRESENTED BY HOOSIER RACING TIRE EVENT AT SWAINSBORO RACEWAY IN SWAINSBORO, GA ON 10/17/25:
FEATURE RACE – 25 Laps: 1. 83 Mark Ruel Jr., Jacksonville, FL (3); 2. 47 Dale Howard, Byhalia, MS (5); 3. 9 Tyler Blankenship, Bakersfield, CA (9); 4. 23 Lance Moss, Cherryville, CA (1); 5. 4 Danny Smith, Chillicothe, OH (4); 6. 10 Terry Gray, Bartlett, TN (7); 7. 11 Trey Meredith, Dade City, FL (8); 8. 201 Kelsey Ivy, Fremont, OH (10); 9. 7e Eric Gunderson, Calhoun, GA (6); 10. 99 Tanner Witherspoon, Jacksonville, FL (15); 11. 22 Shawn Murray, Jacksonville, FL (13); 12. 24 Eric Riggins Jr., Charlotte, NC (2); 13. 28 Jeff Willingham, Ripley, MS (11); 14. 43 Terry Witherspoon, Jacksonville, FL (12); 15. 00 P.J. Reutimann, Zephyrhills, FL DNS.
HOOSIER RACING TIRE SPEED DASH – 6 Laps: 1. Moss; 2. Riggins; 3. Ruel; 4. Smith; 5. Howard; 6. Gunderson.
HEAT RACES – 8 Laps:
ENGLER MACHINE & TOOL HEAT 1: 1. Riggins; 2. Gunderson; 3. Smith; 4. Meredith; 5. Ivy; 6. Blankenship; 7. Murray; 8. Ta. Witherspoon.
BUTLERBUILT HEAT 2: 1. Howard; 2. Moss; 3. Ruel; 4. Gray; 5. Willingham; 6. Te. Witherspoon; 7. Reutimann.