Aaron Reutzel won his second feature of the season at Knoxville Saturday (Ken's Racing Pix) (Video Highlights from DirtVision.com)
Carson McCarl Wins Eventful 360 Feature; Chris Walraven On Top in Pro Sprints
by Bill Wright
KNOXVILLE, Iowa (July 25, 2020) – Aaron Reutzel claimed his second feature of the year at Knoxville Raceway Saturday on Jersey Freeze/Dennison Racing Tees Christmas in July Night. The Clute, Texas native dominated most of the way in the feature, nabbing the $4,000 paycheck aboard the Baughman/Reutzel Motorsports #87. Carson McCarl claimed his fourth career 360 feature, and also took the point lead in that class. Chris Walraven’s win with the Pro Sprints presented by Pace Performance was also the fourth in his career in that class.
Ian Madsen took Guy Forbrook’s #5 into the early lead in the 20-lap 410 feature with Austin McCarl and Reutzel in tow. McCarl was fast on the cushion, and circled the leader to take the point on lap two. Lynton Jeffrey stopped with ignition issues three laps in, bringing caution.
The restart was a crazy three-wide battle for the lead in turn two. When things washed out, Reutzel led Madsen and McCarl on lap four. McCarl was able to wrestle second from Madsen, but the latter battled back to reclaim the spot a lap later. McCarl would again get by on lap seven, while Brian Brown took fourth from Gio Scelzi. Scelzi was also not done, retaking the spot on lap nine, while Rico Abreu trailed him into fifth at the halfway point.
Meanwhile, Reutzel was pulling away from those who were battling, entering lapped traffic on lap ten, and opening a 3.4 second lead by lap twelve. Scelzi came alive late, passing Madsen for third on lap 14, and rocketing by McCarl for second on the white flag lap.
Reutzel could not be stopped, however, winning by over three seconds, ahead of Scelzi, McCarl, Madsen and Abreu. Brown, Terry McCarl, Trey Starks, hard-charger Cory Eliason and Sam Hafertepe Jr. rounded out the top ten. Reutzel set quick time over the 31-car field, and Hafertepe, Tasker Phillips and Eliason won heat races. Sawyer Phillips won the B main.
“It was another great run for our team here at Knoxville,” said Reutzel in Victory Lane. “We strive on trying to be good here. We try to be good in qualifying, because that’s where it’s at at this place. We just keep coming here trying things, and we keep learning every time here. This place pays a lot of money to be good at, so we’re trying to be really good here. We’ve hit on something.”
With 45 360 sprints in the field, things would prove entertaining again in that class. Pole-sitter Joe Beaver led the 18-lap feature early, over Dylan Westbrook and Carson McCarl. McCarl used the low side to jet by Westbrook for second, and set his sights on the leader. He passed Beaver to lead lap three in the same fashion.
Behind McCarl, Beaver and Westbrook, Kerry Madsen got by Scott Bogucki for the fourth spot. Eight laps in, the first of several cautions came out for Lee Grosz, who suffered a flat left rear tire. On the restart, Madsen shot by Westbrook for third, while Bogucki did the same to take fourth. The caution flag flew again ten laps in.
This time it was Westbrook, who moved into third, while Brooke Tatnell cracked the top five. Aaron Reutzel came to a stop a lap later to bring another yellow. When Beaver got over the turn two cushion on the restart, Westbrook took second. With five laps to go, Ricky Montgomery spun. That negated a move by Madsen that saw him jump from fifth to third.
The restart went well for Tatnell, who gained third. Madsen took fourth, and with three to go, Dominic Scelzi was into the top five. The final yellow flag flew for Chase Randall with three to go. Contact from another car robbed Clint Garner of his top ten run at that point.
Madsen gained second, but McCarl was never phased on his way to victory. Madsen was second, and Westbrook crossed third. Unfortunately, the Canadian was disqualified for an illegal tire, moving Scelzi to third, followed by Tatnell and Bogucki. Jamie Ball, Calvin Landis, Lynton Jeffrey, Josh Higday and Matt Moro completed the top ten. McCarl and Tatnell set quick time in their respective groups, while Garner, Landis, Beaver and Moro were heat winners. Danny Sams III won the C main, and Kelby Watt claimed the B. Brad Comegys and Sams both got upside down at the start of the B, but both walked away.
“The first yellow came out, and we had just started to get to traffic,” said McCarl in Victory Lane. “I thought I wouldn’t have much traffic to deal with, and then it was yellow after yellow after yellow. But my car felt so good on the bottom, especially up in three. I could really honk it as much as I wanted to. I knew if I hit my marks in one and two, and didn’t let Beaver or one of those guys hit their marks I would be fine. There was a lot of tough cars tonight, with Reutzel and Madsen and Dominic here. To get the job done feels even more special tonight.”
Chris Walraven seemed to cruise to his fourth career win with the Pro Sprints. The week prior, he had led much of the way before being overtaken. It didn’t happen this time. Brandon Worthington trailed him much of the way, but lapped traffic would play a factor.
Walraven entered lappers with seven to go, and Worthington followed. Devin Wignall took advantage, getting by Worthington and bringing Devin Kline with him. Walraven was unphased out front, beating Wignall, Kline, Evan Epperson and Worthington. Jeff Wilke, Matt Johnson, Matt Stelzer, Mike Johnston and Mike Mayberry completed the top ten. Wilke and Johnson were heat winners.
“After last week, we led about half the feature, and I was scared to death I’d make another mistake around a lapped car,” said Walraven. “Thank goodness everything worked out alright this week.”
Saturday, August 1, is Weiler Night featuring the All Star Circuit of Champions. The 360’s will also be in action in their last tune-up for the MyPlace Hotels Knoxville 360 Nationals presented by Great Southern Bank August 6-8. For more information, visit www.KnoxvilleRaceway.com or check out Knoxville Raceway’s Facebook and Twitter.
410 Results
Time Trials (Qualifying Order), 2 laps: 1. 87, Aaron Reutzel, Clute, TX (28), 15.873; 2. 18, Gio Scelzi, Fresno, CA (3), 15.911; 3. 44S, Trey Starks, Puyallup, WA (4), 16.217; 4. 21, Brian Brown, Grain Valley, MO (21), 16.238; 5. 5, Ian Madsen, St. Marys, NSW, Aust. (5), 16.246; 6. 4, Terry McCarl, Altoona, IA (15), 16.278; 7. 17A, Austin McCarl, Altoona, IA (26), 16.335; 8. 2M, Kerry Madsen, St. Marys, NSW, Aust. (14), 16.347; 9. 7, Justin Henderson, Tea, SD (24), 16.407; 10. 24, Rico Abreu, St. Helena, CA (12), 16.454; 11. 56N, Davey Heskin, St. Michael, MN (1), 16.454; 12. 2KS, Brooke Tatnell, Sans Souci, NSW, Aust. (10), 16.500; 13. 15H, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Sunnyvale, TX (8), 16.503; 14. 9, Kasey Kahne, Enumclaw, WA (20), 16.540; 15. 09, Matt Juhl, Tea, SD (25), 16.546; 16. 83, Lynton Jeffrey, Sydney, NSW, Aust. (19), 16.567; 17. 7TAZ, Tasker Phillips, Pleasantville, IA (16), 16.577; 18. 49, Josh Schneiderman, West Burlington, IA (17), 16.579; 19. 99, Skylar Gee, Leduc, ALB, Can. (6), 16.594; 20. 35, Skylar Prochaska, Lakefield, MN (29), 16.674; 21. 26, Cory Eliason, Visalia, CA (18), 16.676; 22. 3P, Sawyer Phillips, Pleasantville, IA (13), 16.739; 23. 55M, McKenna Haase, Des Moines, IA (22), 16.994; 24. 44, Chris Martin, Ankeny, IA (23), 17.012; 25. 27, Tucker Klaasmeyer, Paola, KS (31), 17.275; 26. 22X, Riley Goodno, Knoxville, IA (30), 17.276; 27. 15, Bobby Mincer, Burlington, IA (27), 17.288; 28. 50, Mike Ayers, Waukee, IA (7), 17.662; 29. 56, Joe Simbro, Pleasantville, IA (2), 17.896; 30. 9W, Glen Saville, Razorback, NSW, Aust. (11), 18.062; 31. 14K, Tori Knutson, Monticello, MN (9), 18.476
Heat one (started), 8 Laps, 2:15.3: 1. Sam Hafertepe Jr. (2); 2. Austin McCarl (4); 3. Lynton Jeffrey (1); 4. Rico Abreu (3); 5. Aaron Reutzel (6); 6. Brian Brown (5); 7. Skylar Gee (7); 8. Sawyer Phillips (8); 9. Tucker Klaasmeyer (9); 10. Mike Ayers (10); 11. Tori Knutson (11)
Heat two (started), 8 Laps, 2:17.3: 1. Tasker Phillips (1); 2. Kasey Kahne (2); 3. Davey Heskin (3); 4. Gio Scelzi (6); 5. Ian Madsen (5); 6. Kerry Madsen (4); 7. Skylar Prochaska (7); 8. Riley Goodno (9); 9. Joe Simbro (8) DNS – McKenna Haase
Heat three (started), 8 Laps, 2:15.2: 1. Cory Eliason (7); 2. Josh Schneiderman (1); 3. Matt Juhl (2); 4. Brooke Tatnell (3); 5. Justin Henderson (4); 6. Terry McCarl (5); 7. Bobby Mincer (9); 8. Trey Starks (6); 9. Chris Martin (8); 10. Glen Saville (10)
B main (started), 10 Laps, 2:56.7: 1. Sawyer Phillips (2); 2. Chris Martin (3); 3. Bobby Mincer (6); 4. Skylar Prochaska (1); 5. Tucker Klaasmeyer (4); 6. Riley Goodno (5); 7. Mike Ayers (7); 8. Joe Simbro (8); 9. Tori Knutson (10); 10. Glen Saville (9) DNS – McKenna Haase
A main (started), 20 Laps, NT: 1. Aaron Reutzel (3); 2. Gio Scelzi (4); 3. Austin McCarl (2); 4. Ian Madsen (1); 5. Rico Abreu (10); 6. Brian Brown (5); 7. Terry McCarl (8); 8. Trey Starks (7); 9. Cory Eliason (18); 10. Sam Hafertepe Jr. (6); 11. Brooke Tatnell (15); 12. Justin Henderson (11); 13. Tasker Phillips (13); 14. Kerry Madsen (14); 15. Josh Schneiderman (17); 16. Matt Juhl (16); 17. Skylar Gee (20); 18. Sawyer Phillips (21); 19. Lynton Jeffrey (19); 20. Davey Heskin (9); 21. Chris Martin (22); 22. Kasey Kahne (12); 23. Skylar Prochaska (24); 24. Bobby Mincer (23). Lap Leaders: I. Madsen 1, A. McCarl 2-3, Reutzel 4-20. Hard-charger: Eliason.
360 Results
Time Trial Group One (started), 2 laps: 1. 27, Carson McCarl, Altoona, IA (17), 16.885; 2. 2MX, Kerry Madsen, St. Mary's, NSW, Aust. (18), 16.905; 3. 87, Aaron Reutzel, Clute, TX (14), 16.935; 4. 83J, Lynton Jeffrey, Prairie City, IA (23), 16.939; 5. 41S, Dominic Scelzi, Fresno, CA (6), 17.004; 6. 5J, Jamie Ball, Knoxville, IA (8), 17.084; 7. 47X, Dylan Westbrook, Scotland, ONT, Can. (12), 17.098; 8. 66, Ricky Montgomery, Denver, CO (15), 17.122; 9. 24, Garret Williamson, Columbia, MO (9), 17.167; 10. 70, Calvin Landis, Knoxville, IA (21), 17.184; 11. 40, Clint Garner, Sioux Falls, SD (13), 17.188; 12. 4J, Lee Grosz, Harwood, ND (7), 17.234; 13. 77X, Alex Hill, Six Nations, ONT, Can. (1), 17.344; 14. 115, Nick Parker, Tucson, AZ (5), 17.400; 15. 23, Devon Dobie, Wapakoneta, OH (11), 17.489; 16. 22K, Kaleb Johnson, Sioux Falls, SD (10), 17.511; 17. 81E, Eric Bridger, Winterset, IA (22), 17.669; 18. 66D, Chase Dunham, Leipsic, OH (4), 17.743; 19. 88, Kyle Offill, Tracy, CA (19), 17.920; 20. 24D, Danny Sams III, North Port, FL (3), 17.933; 21. 33, Alan Zoutte, Knoxville, IA (2), 17.958; 22. 41D, Dan Henning, Columbia, IA (16), 18.185; 23. 1A, John Anderson, Des Moines, IA (20), 18.719
Time Trial Group Two (started), 2 laps: 1. 14, Brooke Tatnell, Sans Souci, NSW, Aust. (21), 16.839; 2. 35, Josh Higday, Des Moines, IA (9), 16.996; 3. 83, Rob Kubli, Milo, IA (1), 17.126; 4. 28, Scott Bogucki, McLaren Vale, SA, Aust. (13), 17.128; 5. 52, Blake Hahn, Sapulpa, OK (5), 17.181; 6. 5H, Michael Faccinto, Hanford, CA (14), 17.231; 7. 53, Joe Beaver, Knoxville, IA (18), 17.394; 8. 9, Chase Randall, Waco, TX (15), 17.409; 9. 1B, Sawyer Phillips, Pleasantville, IA (17), 17.411; 10. 15, Christian Bowman, Altoona, IA (2), 17.417; 11. 1K, Kelby Watt, Adel, IA (12), 17.427; 12. 2M, Matt Moro, Polk City, IA (4), 17.463; 13. 22, Ryan Leavitt, Knoxville, IA (7), 17.480; 14. 24N, Nathan Mills, Bondurant, IA (3), 17.549; 15. 8L, Tom Lenz, Marion, IA (10), 17.601; 16. 95, Matt Covington, Glenpool, OK (8), 17.610; 17. 75X, JT Imperial, Mesa, AZ (19), 17.633; 18. 76, Brad Comegys, Bondurant, IA (11), 17.731; 19. 81A, Chris Morgan, Topeka, KS (20), 17.923; 20. 11B, Ben Woods, Newton, IA (16), 18.476; 21. 5M, Collin Moyle, Knoxville, IA (6), 18.743; DQ (Illegal Tire) 6, Frank Rodgers III, Lucas, IA (22).
Heat one (started), 7 Laps, 2:01.5: 1. Clint Garner (1); 2. Dylan Westbrook (3); 3. Aaron Reutzel (5); 4. Dominic Scelzi (4); 5. Carson McCarl (6); 6. Garret Williamson (2); 7. Eric Bridger (9); 8. Devon Dobie (8); 9. Kyle Offill (10); 10. Alan Zoutte (11); 11. John Anderson (12); 12. Alex Hill (7)
Heat two (started), 7 Laps, 2:02.2: 1. Calvin Landis (2); 2. Lee Grosz (1); 3. Jamie Ball (4); 4. Kerry Madsen (6); 5. Lynton Jeffrey (5); 6. Kaleb Johnson (8); 7. Ricky Montgomery (3); 8. Danny Sams III (10); 9. Nick Parker (7); 10. Dan Henning (11); 11. Chase Dunham (9)
Heat three (started), 7 Laps, 2:02.9: 1. Joe Beaver (3); 2. Brooke Tatnell (4); 3. Sawyer Phillips (2); 4. Rob Kubli (5); 5. Kelby Watt (1); 6. Ryan Leavitt (7); 7. JT Imperial (9); 8. Tom Lenz (6); 9. Collin Moyle (10); 10. Chris Morgan (8) DNS – Blake Hahn
Heat four (started), 7 Laps, 2:02.7: 1. Matt Moro (1); 2. Scott Bogucki (5); 3. Josh Higday (6); 4. Christian Bowman (2); 5. Michael Faccinto (4); 6. Nathan Mills (7); 7. Chase Randall (3); 8. Matt Covington (8); 9. Brad Comegys (9); 10. Ben Woods (10); 11. Frank Rodgers III (11)
C main (started), 8 Laps, NT: 1. Danny Sams III (3); 2. Kyle Offill (1); 3. Ben Woods (2); 4. Frank Rodgers III (6) / 5. John Anderson (8); 6. Dan Henning (7); 7. Collin Moyle (4); 8. Alan Zoutte (5) DNS – Blake Hahn
B main (started), 10 Laps, 3:05.5: 1. Kelby Watt (2); 2. Garret Williamson (3); 3. Ricky Montgomery (1); 4. Alex Hill (5); 5. Kaleb Johnson (11); 6. Ryan Leavitt (4); 7. Nick Parker (7); 8. Matt Covington (10); 9. Nathan Mills (6); 10. Tom Lenz (8); 11. Devon Dobie (9); 12. Eric Bridger (13); 13. Kyle Offill (18); 14. Ben Woods (19); 15. JT Imperial (12); 16. Chase Dunham (15); 17. Frank Rodgers III (20); 18. Chris Morgan (16); 19. Brad Comegys (14); 20. Danny Sams III (17)
A main (started), 18 Laps, NT: 1. Carson McCarl (4); 2. Kerry Madsen (6); 3. Dominic Scelzi (11); 4. Brooke Tatnell (7); 5. Scott Bogucki (3); 6. Jamie Ball (9); 7. Calvin Landis (15); 8. Lynton Jeffrey (13); 9. Josh Higday (5); 10. Matt Moro (16); 11. Joe Beaver (1); 12. Kelby Watt (21); 13. Michael Faccinto (12); 14. Sawyer Phillips (14); 15. Lee Grosz (19); 16. Garret Williamson (22); 17. Rob Kubli (10); 18. Alex Hill (24); 19. Christian Bowman (18); 20. Ricky Montgomery (23); 21. Clint Garner (17); 22. Chase Randall (20); 23. Aaron Reutzel (8); DQ (illegal tire, crossed third) Dylan Westbrook (2). Lap Leaders: Beaver 1-2, C. McCarl 3-18. Hard-charger: Watt.
Pro Series Results
Heat one (started), 6 Laps, 1:51.7: 1. Jeff Wilke (1); 2. Devin Wignall (3); 3. Chris Walraven (4); 4. Joel Thorpe (7); 5. Mike Mayberry (5); 6. Matthew Stelzer (6); 7. Tyler Barrick (2); 8. Jaslyn Jones (8)
Heat two (started), 6 Laps, 1:53.9: 1. Matthew Johnson (1); 2. Brandon Worthington (2); 3. Devin Kline (3); 4. Evan Epperson (4); 5. Mike Johnston (6); 6. Chase Young (5); 7. Matt Allen (7)
A main (started), 15 Laps, 4:51.2: 1. Chris Walraven (1); 2. Devin Wignall (4); 3. Devin Kline (7); 4. Evan Epperson (8); 5. Brandon Worthington (2); 6. Jeff Wilke (6); 7. Matthew Johnson (5); 8. Matthew Stelzer (11); 9. Mike Johnston (9); 10. Mike Mayberry (10); 11. Chase Young (12); 12. Tyler Barrick (15); 13. Jaslyn Jones (14); 14. Joel Thorpe (3); 15. Matt Allen (13). Lap Leader: Walraven 1-15. Hard-charger: Kline.