Timms Wards Off Reutzel For Knoxville 360 Nationals Crown

Ryan Timms, now just two days past his twentieth birthday, joined some elite company Saturday night holding off a late charge from Aaron Reutzel to win his first Knoxville 360 Nationals championship. And, with his win in the 2025 Knoxville 410 Nationals, Ryan joins Danny Lasoski and Sammy Swindell as the only drivers to score a victory in both of Knoxville's premier events.

Ryan Timms - Barry Johnson photo

Timms would jump to the lead at the first drop of the green flag only to have the caution wave before one lap could be scored due to Daison Pursley's spin on the back stretch. During that caution the lone rookie that qualified for the finale, sixteen-year-old Austin Wood came to the work area to change a flat tire and he would rejoin the field for the second try at a start.

This one would see outside pole starter Aaron Reutzel race to the lead before the start was called back for the second row being too ragged. The third time was a charm and Timms would vault to the lead and go to the top side to ride the cushion. James McFadden would get to second for the first few circuits and by the time Reutzel clawed his way back to second, Timms would have a full straightaway advantage.

Lapped traffic is the great equalizer though and as Timms found most of them to be running in the lower lines, it would still allow Reutzel to close the gap getting to within a couple of car lengths with ten laps to go in what would be a non-stop thirty lapper. Ryan would again stretch the lead, but with just three laps to go he now had five cars racing for position in front of him, running both high and low on the half-mile.

As the leaders raced into turn one for lap twenty-nine Timms would try to squeeze under a lapper that was coming down the track and when he had to check up, the hard charging Reutzel drilled him squarely on the rear push bar. This would rejuvenate Timms' momentum while choking off Reuztel's and for a moment it looked like Tyler Courtney might be able to sail around them both on the back straightaway. 

Aaron Reutzel - Barry Johnson photo

With the white flag waving Reutzel was coming for the lead again and as the leaders exited turn four for the final time it was a drag race to the checkers with Timms taking the win by a car-length over Reutzel with Courtney right there as well to join the podium. Kyle Larson, who had started seventh, would finish in the fourth position with McFadden holding down fifth. Brian Brown would slip from third to sixth, Thursday's preliminary night winner Giovanni Scelzi would go seventh, Chase Randall finished eighth, Justin Henderson was ninth and Corey Day came from sixteenth to tenth.

Defending 360 Nationals champion Rico Abreu would win the B-Main then move from twenty-first to twelfth as the Hard Charge of the event.

Barry Johnson photo

The predominately high side ride by Ryan Timms was reminiscent of his dominating victory during the 2025 Knoxville Nationals where he did not face a late challenge as he did here tonight. With the momentum of these two Nationals victories, and the fact that he has been a weekly competitor here at Knoxville over the past two seasons, the young driver from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, has to be tagged as the favorite when the granddaddy of them all gets underway here next Wednesday.

Danny Lasoski won the 360 Nationals in 1995 and the 410 Nationals in 1998, 2001, 2003 and 2004.

Sammy Swindell won the 410 Nationals in 1983 and the 360 Nationals in 2016 at the age of 60.

It was just five years ago when we were watching this young phenom, Ryan Timms, compete at Knoxville for the first time after he was winning at other tracks who did not have as strict of age limits. Perhaps another young driver to keep your eye on in the years to come is Braxton Flatt from Monmouth, Illinois. The thirteen-year-old scored his first full-sized winged sprint car victory tonight in the weekly 305 class at 34 Raceway west of Burlington.

The Capitani Classic will unleash the 410's here at Knoxville on Sunday night while I look forward to the opportunity to be on the mic at the Benton County Speedway in Vinton. Thanks for checking in on the Back Stretch!