Newton Snares POWRi Win On Final Lap at 34 Raceway

In three short weeks when we are closing out the 2026 season for the Mohrfeld Solar Sprint Invaders here I will probably be wishing that it was a bit warmer, but on this first Friday night of September it felt more like Arizona than southeast Iowa as the Honest Abe's Roofing POWRi 410 Sprint Cars rolled into 34 Raceway just west of Burlington. With a temp in the mid-90's I strategically waited to arrive at the track just as qualifying wrapped up and it was good to see a nice sized crowd on hand to view the action despite the heat.

Thirty winged 410 Sprint Cars filled the pits and it took me by surprise to see that Aussie wheelman Ryan Newton had set quick time despite being the 24th driver out to trip the clock. It is nice to see this series using a heat race invert of four with drivers then earning passing points to go along with points achieved in qualifying and when Newton failed to advance from his fourth starting spot in the first heat race, it would line him up in seventh for the twenty-five lap main event.

A pair of young rising stars Xavier Doney and Cameron Martin would earn the front row and they would run most of the opening lap side-by-side before Martin nosed ahead to lead lap one. Doney would then throw a slider in one and two and hold off Martin's crossover attempt to establish himself as the leader on lap two. The red flag would fly just two laps later when Colton Fisher missed the entry to turn three and went through a grinding series of end over end flips along the cement retaining wall. And then, to add more drama and concern, the engine compartment broke out into flames briefly before the safety team quickly took care of business. Thankfully Colton was soon able to crawl out of his mangled race car and return to the pits under his own power.

Once back to green Doney started to pull away and my eyes were on Ryder McCutcheon who came into the night as the POWRi series points leader with just a handful of events still on the schedule. This is my first time to see the young 15-year-old phenom from New Mexico in person and I was impressed as he was the first driver to make the bottom line work in turns one and two. He has started sixth and was now up to battle Martin for second and after several laps of challenging he would pick up the spot on lap ten just as Doney was starting to navigate lapped traffic.

McCutcheon was closing the gap and it would be completely erased on lap twelve when Martin slipped off the top of turns one and two and slid to a stop to bring out a caution. With restarts in rows of two using a choose cone, McCutcheon would now start to the outside of the leader and one more lap was scored before Austin McCarl coasted to a halt on the front stretch.

Once back to green this one looked like it would be decided between Doney and McCutcheon with Ryder showing his nose prompting Doney to go the bottom line as well. With the laps winding down and just five remaining, lapped traffic also running in that low line would come into play and suddenly there was Ryan Newton, running third, and using the cushion on both ends to close quickly.

Newton would take second from McCutcheon with two to go and as the white flag waved Doney chose to go to the top in turns one and two trying to get around the lapped car of Scotty Milan, and in doing so he would also shut the door on Newton. The headline "Lapped Car Saves Doney at 34" went through my mind as they went down the back stretch, but when Doney chose to go to the bottom behind the lapper entering turn three, I knew that I could scrap that one as Newton nailed the cushion with perfection and charged around the outside of Doney to steal the win. 

Ryan Newton - Brendan Bauman Photography

This is Ryan's second career win with POWRi and it definitely gave the hearty crowd a thrill! Doney admitted that he was a sitting duck in his post race interview not knowing how good the high line was at the end, especially in turns three and four while McCutcheon maintained his point lead with an impressive podium finish in third. Jace Park, the driver who made a name for himself on the opening night of the Knoxville Nationals a few weeks ago, had a solid night starting fifth and finishing fourth while Joe B. Miller was the hard charger coming from sixteenth to finish fifth. 

As if we didn't have enough young talent already on display tonight, 15-year-old Jett Barnes from Visalia, California, made his POWRi 410 debut and placed the Jason Meyer's owned #14 in sixth after starting from eighth. Creed Kemenah was seventh after starting eleventh, 18-year-old Cam Sorrels finished in eighth and John Barnard was ninth. I failed to mention that the first attempt at a start was waved off after Ayrton Gennetton slowed at the top of turn two. After a stop in the work area the three-time series champion would restart at the rear and race his way back up to tenth at the checkers.

The POWRi 410' now head to the Lake Ozark Speedway for a Saturday/Sunday twin bill along with the Heartland Modified Tour.

Mini Haulers would be the first of three features on the night and once they established their positions on the opening lap, the top four trucks would run the full twelve laps equidistant from each other by three to four truck lengths. It was actually kind of amazing how they maintained that formation throughout with Caleb Ealey posting his seventh win of the season. Dawson Tipps was the runner-up, Cody Webster finished third, Larry Hooper was fourth and Ethan Brown completed the top five.

It was a small, but talent laden roster of twelve IMCA Modified drivers that signed in, but after a huge plume of smoke in his heat race, Bill Roberts Jr. would not make the call for the final event of the night. Outside front row starter Shane Paris would hold the lead by a nose as lap one was scored and they would then stack 'em up four-wide for the lead in turn two.

Fourth-starting Jace Eckrich would emerge from that pack to take the point on lap two and he would then drive away to score a convincing victory in the non-stop twenty lap event. Currently third in the race for the National IMCA Modified Rookie-of-the-Year title, this win should get the second generation driver even closer to that goal. Mark Burgtorf and Chris Zogg waged a good battle for second with Zogg prevailing late. Brandon Banks finished in fourth while Charlie Mohr closed out the top five.

This would be race night number one of four on this Labor Day weekend for me as I now look forward to getting back on the mic with my colleague Bill Wright as the Sprint Invaders return to the West Liberty Raceway on Saturday night, and then on Sunday we make the trip down to the Quincy Raceways. Talk about two completely tracks on back to back nights, it will be fun to see who adapts the best as the Invaders are locked in a tight four way points battle with just five events remaining. Finally on Monday we will make our now annual trip to Boone to watch a full show of IMCA Late Models as well as a bunch of exciting qualifying action in the Sport Mods and the Hobby Stocks as the IMCA Super Nationals starts its week long run.

Look for us somewhere this weekend out on the Back Stretch!

All Iowa Points Heading Into "Specials" Season

Even though a check of the thermometer would tell you that we are in the dog days of summer, it is now September and the regular season, for the most part has come to an end. And with that, the now extended Fall season of special events that run all the way through October, and sometimes into November, will decide the All Iowa Points Champion in seven of the nine divisions.

Tommy Elston

In the Late Models, Nebraska driver Zach Zeitner is looking to repeat his AIP title from 2025, but he has recently been overtaken by the 2023 champion Tommy Elston in recent weeks with just five points separating the top two. Since they are slugging it out for the IMCA National title you can expect both to be in action whenever possible through September, so it actually might come down to when and if they race anywhere in October to determine the winner in our points system. 

Travis Denning is a distant third at this point, Drew Baker is the most improved driver in the class now ranked fourth after finishing in a tie for 32nd in 2025, while Curtis Glover currently ranks fifth.

All Iowa Points

Late Model

Pos. Driver Hometown Points

1 . Tommy Elston Keokuk 107

2 . Zach Zeitner Bellevue NE 102

3 . Travis Denning Sterling IL 76

4 . Drew Baker Omaha NE 69

5 . Curtis Glover Knoxville 62

6 . Jake Griffin Quincy IL 54

7 . Logan Veloz Colona IL 50

8 . Chad Simpson Mount Vernon 46

9 . C.J. Horn Cedar Rapids 44

10 . Jordan Krug Council Bluffs 43

The Modified points chase has been fun to watch with the current top five still within a reasonable thirty points of each other. Arizona transplant Chaz Baca is the leader going into this weekend as he would be a first-time All Iowa Points champion if he can hold off former champs Todd Shute and Jeremy Mills. That duo was at the top of the list at mid-season, but have now slipped to fourth and fifth respectively. Spencer Diercks is just eight points back of Baca in second while Jed Freiburger has been on a tear recently and is now third, just sixteen points from the top. 

Chaz Baca

All Iowa Points

Modified

Pos. Driver Hometown Points

1 . Chaz Baca Mesa AZ 141

2 . Spencer Diercks Davenport 133

3 . Jed Freiburger Dubuque 125

4 . Todd Shute Des Moines 112

5 . Jeremy Mills Clear Lake 111

6 . Harley Dais Winona MN 75

7 . Jace Eckrich Oxford 75

8 . Kollin Hibdon Waterloo 67

9 . Austen Becerra Carthage IL 66

10 . Jeff Larson Freeport IL 65

In the Stock Cars John Oliver Jr. looked like he was cinch to take his second straight and third overall All Iowa Points title, but Kelly Shryock has pulled to within twenty points of the lead as we head into the Fall. Travis Shipman is still in the hunt as well, but will need to run more than just USRA sanctioned events through September and October is he is going to overtake the top two. Former champion Derek Green stands fourth while Mike Albertson is having another solid season currently ranked fifth. 

John Oliver Jr.

All Iowa Points

Stock Car

Pos. Driver Hometown Points

1 . John Oliver Jr. Danville 149

2 . Kelly Shryock Fertile 129

3 . Travis Shipman Mason City 110

4 . Derek Green Granada MN 104

5 . Mike Albertsen Audubon 102

6 . Nathan Wood Sigourney 101

7 . Jordan Miles Bernard 96

8 . Kodey Miles Bernard 89

9 . David Brandies Wilton 76

10 . Dustin Griffiths Ottumwa 72

At one point this season Brayton Carter had more than a fifty point lead in the Limited Modified standings, but after taking some time off in late July and early August where got married among other things, "Speedy Bray" now finds himself down by four points to IMCA National title contender Jarrett Franzen. We know that Franzen will race hard through the end of the IMCA points season in September, but what will he do in October when Carter has traditionally had a lot of success at tracks that are relatively close to his Oskaloosa home?

If Carter prevails it will be his fourth straight and fifth overall All Iowa Points title while it would be the first for Franzen who has consistently been in the top ten in recent years. And you can't count out Willy Kirk who is also in the National title hunt and is just thirteen points behind Franzen here. Dylan Van Wyk could also be a spoiler with a strong specials season. 

Jarrett Franzen

All Iowa Points

Limited Modified

Pos. Driver Hometown Points

1 . Jarrett Franzen Maquoketa 150

2 . Brayton Carter Oskaloosa 146

3 . Willy Kirk Sloan 127

4 . Dylan VanWyk Oskaloosa 119

5 . Dan Hovden Decorah 115

6 . Mike Smith Lake City 111

7 . Taylor Skauge Caledonia MN 103

8 . Colton Livezy New Sharon 102

9 . Ben Moudry Hastings MN 97

10 . Dustin Kruse Brandon SD 88

11 . Will Wolf Lynnville 88

With a thirty-seven point edge going into September, Joshua Monson appears to be headed for his first All Iowa Points Hobby Stock championship, but Brandon Neilsen made a big run in the Fall last year to earn his first AIP title and he could always do it again. Will Smith has made a big run up to third as he was not even in the top ten at Memorial Day and you could say the same for both Parker Anderson and Carson Butt who are now fourth and fifth. 

All Iowa Points

Hobby Stock

Pos. Driver Hometown Points

1 . Joshua Monson Clear Lake 148

2 . Brandon Nielsen Spencer 111

3 . Will Smith Lake City 109

4 . Parker Anderson Welcome MN 102

5 . Carson Butt Preston 93

6 . Dustin Gulbrandson Hartford SD 92

7 . Braden Gifford Boone 89

8 . Jeremy Wegner Greattinger 87

9 . Karter Miles Bernard 84

10 . Randy Lamar Buffalo 80

Obviously the three drivers at the top of the Four Cylinder division are all focused on the IMCA National title at this point, so it will likely be the October results that end up determining the All Iowa Points champion for 2026. Levi Volkert leads the way for now with Michael Gardner seven points back and Tyler Fiebelkorn twelve points off the top. While it would be Gardner's second straight AIP crown, it would be the first for either Volkert or Fiebelkorn. Brooke Osler, Gilbert Aldape and Blake Fineran are the next group of three several points back from the lead trio. 

Levi Volkert

All Iowa Points

Four Cylinder

Pos. Driver Hometown Points

1 . Levi Volkert Correctionville 134

2 . Michael Gardner Des Moines 127

3 . Tyler Fiebelkorn Stuart 122

4 . Brooke Osler Milford 75

5 . Gilbert Aldape Sioux City 73

6 . Blake Fineran Norwalk 69

7 . Caine Mahlberg Dunlap 56

8 . Dillon Riehle Waukon 55

9 . Cristian Grady Cedar Rapids 51

10 . Johnny Thomas Beatrice NE 49

11 . Seth Meinders Ottumwa 49

Unlike the other six divisions, the three Winged Sprint Car divisions are down to a handful of events in each and the only one that is still up for grabs is the 360 division where defending AIP champion Tasker Phillips holds a narrow eight and nine point edge over the brothers Martin, Chris and Cam. J.J. Hickle can still make a run from fourth if he ventures out of his Knoxville base to run some of the September events as well. 

Tasker Phillips

All Iowa Points

360 Sprint

Pos. Driver Hometown Points

1 . Tasker Phillips Pleasantville 36

2 . Chris Martin Ankeny 28

3 . Cam Martin Ankeny 27

4 . J.J. Hickle Quilcene WA 24

5 . Ryan Timms Oklahoma City OK 21

6 . Clint Garner Sioux Falls SD 19

7 . Kade Higday Knoxville 19

8 . Josh Schneiderman West Burlington 12

9 . Sawyer Phillips Pleasantville 12

10 . Cam Sorrels Hallsville MO 11

11 . Tyler Courtney Indianapolis IN 11

In the 410's Ryan Timms has locked in his second straight All Iowa Points championship and in the 305's Lee Goos Jr. has dominated through 2026 to earn his fifth straight AIP honors.

Ryan Timms

All Iowa Points

410 Sprint

Pos. Driver Hometown Points

1 . Ryan Timms Oklahoma City OK 86

2 . Austin McCarl Altoona 46

3 . Sheldon Haudenschild Wooster OH 39

4 . David Gravel Waterford CT 29

5 . Kyle Larson Elk Grove CA 26

6 . J.J. Hickle Quilcene WA 23

7 . Buddy Kofoid Penngrove CA 19

8 . Rico Abreu St. Helena CA 19

9 . Brent Marks Myerstown PA 18

10 . Aaron Reutzel Clute TX 17

All Iowa Points

305 Sprint

Pos. Driver Hometown Points

1 . Lee Goos Jr. Hartford SD 97

2 . Brandon Bosma Rock Rapids 46

3 . Jeff Wilke Knoxville 43

4 . Andrew Sullivan Arnolds Park 39

5 . Tyler Drueke Eagle NE 36

6 . J Kinder Iberia MO 34

7 . Gaige Weldon Hinton 27

8 . Nick Barger Madison SD 27

9 . Trevor Serbus Olivia MN 26

10 . Aydin Lloyd Brandon SD 24

The full standings for all nine divisions of the All Iowa Points can be found on the Points page of Positively Racing where they are updated weekly. 

Putting A Wrap On The 65th Knoxville Nationals

I have had a few people ask me why I have not yet written a story on the final two events of the 65th Knoxville Nationals, so here you go.

The rain also changed my plans for the weekend, in what turned out to be in a good way, as this was also my 45th class reunion and when Friday's show rained out just before 7 p.m., I hustled back to Mount Pleasant and was able to take part in the final hour or two of the Friday night activities. I would then miss the rescheduled Friday show, instead walking around a rain soaked golf course with good friends and my original plan of attending the Saturday evening reunion for an hour before racing back to Knoxville to catch the Championship feature was then altered with the rain as well.

It was great to spend more time with my classmates and as the party was starting to wind down, I started the drive to Knoxville just before 9 p.m. in a heavy thunderstorm. I arrived at Knoxville just before cars hit the track for hot laps and due to the rain I was able to watch the entire Saturday night program. While it was an unexpected blessing for me, I was definitely not the only one who took advantage of the rain delay.

By now you all know the story as Kyle Larson was able to finish sixth in the Richmond NASCAR race and then fly back to Knoxville to win his fourth Knoxville Nationals title. There is a reason that Bill W's story on the Knoxville Raceway website was Kyle Larson "Jets" To Fourth Knoxville Nationals Win In Six Years! as his flight from Richmond to Pella was the most newsworthy aspect of the fifty-lap main event. Larson started from the pole and immediately left the field in his wake. The first half of the 50-lap feature ran non-stop with Larson lapping cars all the way up to thirteenth, something that we will discuss in more detail later on, and on the restart for the second twenty-five, plus following each of the two cautions in the race, he would block the slider line into one and then drive away with ease.

The domination came as no surprise as we could see it on his qualifying night where he got off to a slow start in his heat race and then passed four cars in ten laps without any help from a caution, or drivers falling out in front of him. Then, in the feature, Kyle started from eighth and picked his way through the field to take the win. Nobody else even came close to this performance during the week. I have seen some claims that this Richmond to Knoxville "double" solidifies him as the best race car driver ever. Really? I guess that he had already proven that to me in the past, so no need for any additional proof, although it would have been much cooler if he had won Richmond and then blown off the post race commitments to high tail it back to Knoxville. 

That would have been awesome!

The NASCAR race is scheduled on top of the Saturday night of the Nationals in 2027 as well and hopefully the one argument that can be put to rest is, "why is he even racing on a qualifying night when he can't be there on Saturday?? All he is doing is taking away a spot in the feature for somebody else!" Just goes to show that you never know what might happen and yes, he did take away a second start in the Knoxville Nationals by Trevor Canales, so maybe he will get that chance again next year.

Some other notes from the Championship feature.....

Sheldon Haudenschild made some of the most noise of the week with his exciting third-to-first charge to win Wednesday's qualifier, but do you realize that it was own mistake that played a role in getting him to his runner-up finish? Read the Notes portion of my story from Wednesday for the details and ask young Logan Julien how much different his Nationals might have been.

I was most impressed with Kasey Kahne who had to be the surprise of the week joining the championship podium in third. It is always fun to look back at the little things that take place to either make or break a driver's Knoxville Nationals effort and drawing the #1 pill for qualifying is always a big plus. Kasey then took advantage of the Lynton Jeffrey and Sammy Swindell incident on the opening lap of his heat race to move up a row where, to his credit, he raced his way up fourth. As the high point driver come feature time he lined up eighth and, unlike Larson on Thursday, he was not able to move forward, but he did hold his own to finish eighth and start the championship race from row two. He would slip back to fourth late in the race, but then rallied back to finish third, an impressive showing for the driver who was an eighteen-year-old rookie when I announced here in 1998.

I became more of a fan of James McFadden with his personality shining through at Wednesday's post-race press conference. He would start from third making it a clean sweep of the top four by the first two rows.

Logan Schuchart came from twelfth to sixth in the first half of the race and then gained one more spot to complete the top five. David Gravel gained two positions in the first half, and two in the second half to finish in sixth. Buddy Kofoid and Parker Price-Miller were next in line while Brent Marks made another impressive run coming from eighteenth to finish ninth. To do that he had to stay ahead of Larson as the final car on the lead lap just as the caution waved for the mid-race break. Chase Dietz would post his best Nationals finish in tenth. Tanner Holmes caught a lot of attention coming from 24yh to 11th at the break, but he would stall out right there for eleventh at the checkers.

Kudos to everybody at Knoxville for battling the weather that was a threat all week getting all four shows in before many have no choice, but to hit the road on Sunday. It is easy to second guess, but I have to think that even the team knows that they perhaps threw in the towel a little too early on Friday night as the persistent sprinkles stopped within an hour after making the call. Nobody likes a day race and the Friday "Hard Knox" format is so solid now that it deserves more of a chance even if it takes us into the wee hours of the morning to get it in. Donny Schatz would likely agree.

With another flag-to-flag run in the championship feature and the fact that just five of the top twenty qualifiers on Wednesday and Thursday were able to beat the invert and transfer from their heat races, "changing the format" is once again a big topic of discussion. Some argue that the A-Main should go back to thirty or thirty-five laps to eliminate the mid-race break, and while I am in that camp I will say that it would not have made a difference this year. Kyle Larson would have won no matter how many laps were run, but it is a good point that the mid-race break takes the leader out of traffic and gives him the opportunity to fine tune an already fast car.

I'm fine with keeping it at fifty laps, but with a couple of things to consider. First involves the drivers that get lapped in the first half of the race. Larson seemed to be on a mission to put as many cars as he could a lap down before the break and he did so with eleven drivers no longer having a legitimate chance to win, or even advance into the top ten without attrition following the break. These included such hard chargers as Rico Abreu, Tyler Courtney and Corey Day. The restart following the break is in the order of racing position so the fourteenth place car at the time, who I believe was Rico, is now starting right behind Brent Marks who had been just ahead of him on the track when the caution waved, but now Rico would have to pass Marks, and anybody else ahead of him on the restart TWICE to gain a position.

Perhaps one "format change" would be to give those drivers their lap back for the start of the second half of the race?

One other tweak to the fifty lap format could be this. Larson was obviously running a fast pace in the first half lapping cars left and right, I do not believe that he changed a tire at the break so again just acknowledging that no format change would have made a difference in the winner this year, but in order to make it more of a tire conservation race how about a new rule that if you change a tire at the break, you go to the back of the line of the drivers on your lap. Talk about spicing up the action during the break as drivers and crews would be watching the front runners to see if they were going to give up track position or not before they themselves decide what to do. Add in my change with the lappers mentioned above and now you would have drivers such as Tanner Holmes and Brent Marks making a tire change since they would not be giving up track position and could now have an advantage on the drivers in front of them who did not change a tire. 

I for one am still in favor of the eight car inverts on the qualifying nights as I feel that it does offset some of the advantage that drivers have when they draw a low number for qualifying. Take Carson Macedo as an example as he comes out 37th in the qualifying order on Thursday night and is only able to muster the 32nd best qualifying lap. If you change the invert to six it takes him off the front row of his heat that he wins and then goes on to start 15th and finish seventh in the feature, to a fourth row starting spot in the heat where chances are that he doesn't transfer and he has to hope for the Friday format that gets wiped away by the rain. As it plays out Macedo lands in the B-Main on Saturday  where he finishes second to start 22nd in the finale and he is tenth at the break before popping a motor late. 

Keep the eight car inverts, take a look at that Saturday feature field and tell me who didn't belong there. The format works from the standpoint of delivering action for the fans while still allowing for the cream to rise to the top.

As always the highlight of the Nationals for us is the reunion of friends and family that we sometime only see once a year here in Knoxville. To Jack and Suzanne, thank you for feeding us not only with your great food, but also with your fantastic stories. And to the Nachbor family, Knoxville would not be the same without you from the camper, to the grill and in the stands. Keith, Sam, Jeff and Ethan we will look forward to the same time, same place in 2027 and hopefully Sean will be back as well. And finally, the friendship and hospitality of Barry, Stephanie and Aidan Johnson who allow Johnny V and I to have a great place to stay nearby the action is such a blessing. Is there a one hundred dollar bill now hidden somewhere in the house? Thank you so much!

Thanks for another round of memories with the 65th Nationals Knoxville Raceway, we will see you again soon!

Larson To The Front At Thursday's Knoxville National Qualifier

Kyle Larson gave race fans a sign of what was ahead during the fourth heat race as he got off to a slow start from the outside of row four and then steadily picked his way past some good cars  before driving by Clint Garner for the fourth and final transfer spot for Thursday night's main event at the 65th Knoxville Nationals. No other driver had been able to do that this week as only five of the top twenty qualifiers, the drivers who started their heat race from row four needing to get to the top four, got the job done. The other four would pick up two or more positions on the opening lap and then have nine more times around the historic half-mile to make their moves. So, when I was asked who would win during the night's four-wide parade lap, there was no doubt that it would be Kyle Larson. 

Just one lap would go in the books before Kaleb Johnson got sideways in turn four collecting both Carson McCarl and Matt Juhl with the contact sending Johnson for a rollover. All three cars would be done for the night.

Garet Williamson - Barry Johnson photo

Once back to green Garet Williamson and Austin McCarl would resume their battle for the lead with Williamson setting a quick pace before Austin was able to drive to the front on lap seven. Williamson came right back though to resume his lead on lap nine just before Tasker Phillips spun in turn two while racing in sixth. Larson, who had started eighth as the high point qualifier, was now up to third for the restart and he would quickly dispatch McCarl before setting his sights on Williamson who had stretched his lead out to a half straightaway.

Kyle Larson takes second from Austin McCarl - Barry Johnson Photo

That advantage would steadily fade though as Larson reeled him in and with seven laps to go Kyle would driver under Williamson in turn one to take the point. Hold on though, just as Larson made his move the caution waved and it was explained that someone had gotten out of shape, but had recovered by the time the yellow lights came on. Even the announcing trio of John Gibson, Tony Bokhoven and Blake Walker could not identify who that someone was as they reviewed instant replays, so perhaps chalk this one up as a "phantom" caution. 

It did put Williamson back in front for the restart though knowing that Larson had easily passed him on the inside, so Garet immediately went to the bottom of turn one and successfully blocked his challenger. He would continue to hold off the inevitable for two more laps before a red flag flew when Tasker Phillips took a high flying end over end ride in turns one and two. Thankfully Tasker was able to get out of the car under his own power.

On this restart Williamson again went to the bottom while Larson took to the top and once he got it wound up he would sail around Williamson for the lead with four to go. Behind them Brent Marks was making his move as the driver who had started the race in row six, and who had lined up sixth on this restart was making some moves of his own driving past McCarl, Parker Price-Miller and Buddy Kofoid to get to third as the checkers waved over Larson, Williamson and Marks. Kofoid would finish fourth with McCarl fifth and PPM in sixth. Carson Macedo made up for a poor qualifying effort early in the night by driving from fifteenth to seventh in the feature, Aaron Reutzel was unusually quiet on the night coming from thirteenth to eighth, Logan Schuchart won the B-Main and then charged from twenty-first to ninth while Spencer Bayston improved four spots to tenth.  

Brent Marks (19) around the outside of Carson Macedo (41) and Spencer Bayston (17) - Barry Johnson photo

There has been plenty of talk about Kyle Larson competing this week knowing that he has a Saturday night conflict with the NASCAR Cup race at Richmond and after the race he made it quite simple stating that this is what his car owner Paul Silva and crew member Trevor Canales do for a living and the Knoxville Nationals is a high paying race. The winner's purse tonight plus the guaranteed $15,000 for locking into the Championship race was the best that he could do given the circumstances and that was the goal coming in. "I'm happy to get Trevor his second start in the Knoxville Nationals", Kyle said post race as the Silva team had a similar scenario several years ago when his driver at that time Rico Abreu was committed to a NASCAR Truck race. Kyle then stated that he hopes the NASCAR race runs off quickly so that he can then settle in and watch the stream of the Nationals saying that he almost enjoys being a Sprint Car fan as much as does driving one. 

Hard to argue with that.

Thursday Notes.....The draw for qualifying order was again very important as the top five of Tanner Thorson, Tyler Courtney, Xavier Doney, Larson and Daryn Pittman came out 7th, 6th, 1st, 5th and 27th respectively......Parker Price-Miller slipped past pole-sitter Levi Hillier on lap nine to claim the fourth and final transfer spot in heat one......Courtney had a run off the bottom of turn four coming to the checkers, but Kaleb Johnson slammed the door on him and held on for fourth in heat number two,,,,,Brent Marks made a late pass of Carson McCarl to win the third heat, but even with his drive to the podium in the feature he will start from the outside of the front row in Saturday's B-Main.....Pittman made some early moves to go from eighth to fourth in the final heat race, but he then had to hold off a late charge from Kerry Madsen to keep the transfer.....There were two separate incidents on the first try at a start of the B-Main. Contact up front would send the right front of Cale Thomas up the outside guardrail where he was fortunate to not go flipping and as he slowed in turn one it was chaos in turn two as several cars spun and made contact with Chase Randall getting upside down. Tyler Courtney was one of those involved and after repairs in the work area he would go from his original starting spot on the front row to the rear of the field for the second try. This time Daison Pursley would flare out too early from his starting position and as the caution came out for his jumped start, Pursley would get sideways in turn one causing more carnage down on the berm......Once the race was finally underway it was a good one with most eyes on Courtney who was charging through the field trying to get to fourth before the twelve laps were completed. He would get to within two car lengths of the fourth running Skyler Gee with three laps to go, but Xavier Doney and Pursley were right there as well and as those three engaged in a torrid battle for fifth in the closing laps, Gee was able to pull away and make the show as the final starter.

The first eight rows of the Championship race is slated to lineup like this:

Kyle Larson - Sheldon Haudenschild

James McFadden - Kasey Kahne

Buddy Kofoid - Justin Henderson

Parker Price-Miller - Daryn Pittman

Chase Dietz - David Gravel

Rico Abreu - Logan Schuchart

Garet Williamson - Cole Macedo

Corey Day - Brian Brown

Rain that was forecast to build over south central Iowa around 7 p.m. did not materialize until overnight and as we look at Friday that nasty "R" word seems to be more prevalent. Hopefully the Dunkins will be given the window of opportunity that we need in order to race this evening as four more Championship race qualifiers will be determined for the 65th Knoxville Nationals.

Brent Marks - Barry Johnson photo

Sheldon By A NOS As 65th Knoxville Nationals Opens With A Thriller

There was drama before Wednesday night's feature even took the parade lap and, at the end, race fans saw one of the most thrilling finishes ever in the sixty-five years of the NOS Energy Drink Knoxville Nationals presented by Casey's.

The initial drama came when defending Nationals champion Ryan Timms, who was scheduled to start ninth in the twenty-five lap main event, was not able to make the call when his crew was unable to get the fuel plate back on the car. As the rest of the field slowly made their way around the track for several laps, the team was finally able to get the plate back in place and as they pushed the car back to be picked up by one of the Knoxville Raceway four-wheelers to be brought around to staging, they were still trying to get as much fuel into the car as possible. In fact, one crew member remained on the car as it was being pushed to finish the fueling and when he completed the task let's just say that his dismount was less than perfect, landing face first on the paved pit area.

There is always a possibility of seeing a "first time" occurrence when you are at a race track, and this was definitely one of those, but I have to believe that after this incident there will be a new rule stating that no crew members can remain on the car as it is being pushed to staging.

It had already been announced that Timms would have to start at the rear for being late to staging, but he quickly drove up to the fifth row just as the field went into their four-wide salute to the fans. And during those laps it was noted that a magnetic flashlight was still attached to the back of the roll cage, with the light still on, so he would have to return to the work area to have it removed. At that time he was again told that he would be starting from the back and after picking up a few positions early in the race, Timms would be the first car to drop out of the event and was credited with a 24th-place finish.

Barry Johnson photo

In the meantime young Jace Park had taken the lead from the pole position and as he pulled away from the field many in the large opening night crowd had to be wondering who this was in the plain white, unsponsored car #28. Racing here weekly in 2026 from his hometown in Overland Park, Kansas, and with guidance from fellow Kansas City area veteran Brian Brown, Park is currently fifth in the point standings at Knoxville and he was on a rail tonight running the top on both ends. 

Behind him James McFadden, who started sixth, had now worked his way up to second and was starting to reel in your leader through traffic before the lone caution of the race waved when the powerplant in Emerson Axsom's #27 went up in smoke and then a single burst of flames on lap fourteen.

Following the restart Park would lead one more lap before McFadden powered by on the inside to take the point. Rather than fade away though, Park made a believer out of us by coming right back after McFadden and when James sensed him coming back on the outside, he moved up the track to block only to have Jace then go low and regain the lead with five laps remaining.

James McFadden - Barry Johnson photo

If you could pull your eyes away from this battle for a split second you would have seen that about a straightaway behind them Sheldon Haudenschild had just prevailed in his battle with Cole Macedo for third and he would now try to reel in the lead duo in just a handful of laps.

McFadden would come charging back at Park again on the bottom to take the lead under the white flag as Park again nailed the cushion in one and two to get a big run down the back straightaway and with a slower car just ahead of them they drove deep into turns three and four looking for the win. The crowd roared though as Haudenschild closed quickly and as McFadden slid up exiting turn four to close the door on Park, Sheldon came off the bottom like a rocket and in the drag race to the line it would be Haudenschild taking the thrilling victory by just six one thousandths of a second over McFadden. Park would be just a smidge over a tenth of a second back in third in what will go down as one of the best finishes in Knoxville Nationals history. 

Sheldon Haudenschild - Barry Johnson photo

Cole Macedo finished fourth, Chase Dietz had his best Knoxville outing ever in fifth, Justin Henderson finished in sixth, Sye Lynch started second and finished seventh while the quick qualifier on the night, Kasey Kahne finished where he started in eighth. Sawyer Phillips had a good outing in ninth and Jy Corbett established himself as the top Rookie of the Nationals by taking tenth. 

Wednesday Notes.......The first car out for qualifying, Kasey Kahne set quick time and the rest of the the top five Rico Abreu, Emerson Axsom, David Gravel and Corey Day were 15th, 22nd, 6th and 2nd in the order respectively......As they have been for many years now the top eight were inverted in each heat with only the top four transferring to the A with only two of the top ten accomplishing that feat.....The first was Kahne who was aided by a couple of incidents at the start of heat one. Lynton Jeffrey was lined up on the outside of row one, but when he swung out wide toward the cushion before getting to the start line, the start was waved off and Jeffrey was docked a row due to a new rule calling for the drivers to stay side-by-side instead of fanning out. On the second try at a start seventy-year-old Sammy Swindell who is making his 50th and final run here at the Nationals, made contact with Jeffrey at the exit of turn two sending both cars sideways with Sammy going for a series of nasty barrel rolls down the back stretch. Thankfully one of my all-time favorites was able to climb from the beat up car uninjured and word is that he will be back to try it again on Friday. On this third start Kahne would now start sixth and he would get to fourth early and then hold off Tanner Holmes to move on to the feature. Also on that third start, James McFadden would quickly go from third to first and then drive away for an easy victory..... The second heat saw the top four starters finish in the top four with Rico Abreu coming up one spot short in fifth.....One of the reasons that I do these notes is to make myself look back and see how if just one little thing had happened differently earlier in the night, how much it would have changed the outcome in the end. This was the case in heat race number three as Jace Park fought off both Emerson Axsom and Donny Schatz mid-race to hang on to the fourth and final transfer spot eventually landing him on the pole of the main event. Axsom would later transfer out of the B-Main and he would drive from 22nd to 13th before his engine let go in the feature.....Sheldon Haudenschild would be the only other driver beside Kahne to come from a fourth row start and transfer from his heat race, but that fourth heat started off with a caution when Sheldon bounced off the berm entering turn one and made contact with the fifth starting Logan Julien. With Julien then spinning and being dinged for the caution, Haudenschild moved to the outside of row three for the restart where he then thrilled the crowd with a big run up to second at the checkers.....The crowd on the back stretch had a thrill on the opening lap of the fifth heat race as drivers were three wide for the lead and three wide for fourth. Ryan Timms, who had started fourth, would then take the lead and drive away for a nearly a half lap victory.......The stacked B-Main turned out to be a bit of a snoozer as the top four drivers finished exactly where they started with Rico Abreu, Axsom, David Gravel and Corey Day making the transfer while several of the sport's biggest stars would be relegated to a spectator role for the remainder of the night.......During the post race press conference Haudenschild was asked what he thought about the drama at the start of the race and he summed it up by saying that if it had been him who had been struggling to get to the track that the race would have likely started without him.

Action continues on Thursday night where hopefully Mother Nature will be a race fan and, if she is, the fifty-two drivers scheduled to race will have a high bar to get over to create quite the buzz that this one did on Wednesday. Hope to see you here at Knoxville!