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Austin McCarl Out Drags Madsen to the Line in Crazy Finish at Knoxville!

Photo: Saturday winners at Knoxville were Ryan Navratil (Pro), Austin McCarl (410) and Aaron Reutzel (360)

Austin McCarl Out Drags Madsen to the Line in Crazy Finish at Knoxville!
Aaron Reutzel Cruises to Another 360 Win; Ryan Navratil Scores First Career Win in Pros
by Bill Wright

KNOXVILLE, Iowa (July 13, 2024) – Austin McCarl won another incredible feature event Saturday with the 988 Lifeline 410’s at Knoxville Raceway on Van Wall Night at the Marion County Fair! After passing his brother Carson, he outdueled Kerry Madsen to the checkers to win his eighth career 410 feature here and $6,000 as well as a half beef aboard the Country Builders Construction #88. Aaron Reutzel was dominant in the 360 main event, leading all 18 laps and scoring his fifth win of the season, and the fourteenth in his career in that class, as well as a half a hog. Ryan Navratil became the tenth first-time feature winner at the Knoxville Raceway in 2024, when he made a late race pass in the Pro Sprint main to earn $800 and a quarter-hog.

Garet Williamson took off from the pole in the 20-lap 988 Lifeline 410 sprint main event, followed by Carson McCarl, Austin McCarl, Brian Brown and Madsen. Austin battled by Carson for second, while Madsen claimed fourth from Brown in the early stages. Carson battled back by his brother for the second spot in a good battle. Up front, Williamson was pulling away and heading for traffic four laps in when something broke on the car and sent him into a spin. He was done for the night.

Carson assumed the lead, ahead of his brother, Madsen, Brown and Jake Bubak. Brown was the next to see misfortune eight laps in when he spun, and collected last week’s winner, Scott Bogucki. Both were sidelined. That put Carson leading Austin, Madsen, Aaron Reutzel and Bubak back to green.

Austin sized Carson up and passed him on the high side of four at the halfway point. Two laps later, Chase Randall, who was running eighth, also had a malfunction and spun on the front stretch. Fortunately, the field took evasive action.

After that restart with eight to go, Madsen gained second from Carson McCarl on the fourteenth lap and reeled in the leader. On lap 19, he pulled in front of Austin in one and two and led until the front stretch. He repeated his maneuver in great racing in turns one and two on the final lap. He exited turn four low, while Austin ducked under and it was a drag race to the finish!

Austin would edge Madsen by .183 of a second at the checkers. Reutzel passed Carson for third on the last lap, and Emerson Axsom finished fifth. Bubak, Justin Henderson, Tanner Holmes, Sawyer Phillips and Tasker Phillips rounded out the top ten. Brown set quick time over the 38-car field Henderson, Holmes, Sawyer Phillips and Madsen won the heats. Jace Park took the B main.

“I was having a little deja vue with (Carson) and I going at it like we were a few weeks ago,” said Austin in Victory Lane. “I feel like we deserved this. We’ve been so close all year. I feel like we’ve had a really good car every week. This week I threw something at it. I tried it the second night of the Outlaw show, and maybe it wasn’t the track for it. I felt like this was. It paid off there. Obviously, moving down or whatever Kerry was doing (in turns one and two) was better. It’s hard to do that leading. The car felt so good, that I felt like if anybody could beat me, they were going to be very good, and Kerry was very good. That worked out how I planned it when we took the white. I just knew the race would be determined about how I got off of (turn) two there. I thought I came off really straight and hard on the cushion.”

Reutzel shot out to the lead in the non-stop 18-lap 360 feature immediately, ahead of Kaleb Johnson, Sawyer Phillips, Ryan Giles and Joe Beaver. Clint Garner entered the top five on lap three, but Chase Randall was charging from his starting spot in the seventh row, and took the spot from Garner at the halfway point.

At the same time, Reutzel was maneuvering traffic and extending his lead on Johnson. Randall snatched fourth from Giles on lap eleven, and five laps later, made a breathtaking double pass of Phillips and Johnson on the bottom of one and two in traffic to surge to second.

Up front, Reutzel maintained his advantage and won in the Ridge & Sons Racing #87 over Randall, Phillips, Johnson and Giles. Garner, Terry McCarl, Timothy Smith, Beaver and Jack Anderson completed the top ten. Sawyer Phillips registered quick time over the 39-car field, and Jamie Ball, Cole Garner, Ryan Leavitt and Tony Rost won the heats. Alex Hill claimed the B.

“It’s nice to hit the invert now and then,” said a happy Reutzel in Victory Lane.

Before a lap could be completed in the 15-lap Pro Sprints feature, Josh Jones lost his way down the backstretch. That collected Bob Hildreth, who took a wild ride into turn three. Both drivers walked away.

Devin Kline led from the pole early, ahead of Ryan Navratil, Mike Mayberry, Toby Mosher and AJ Johnson. Soon, Rob Kubli entered the top five, but otherwise, things stayed status quo.

After the halfway point, Navratil began reeling in the leader, and put on serious pressure, running the middle groove. On lap nine, he snuck around for the lead, but Kline didn’t budge and retook the spot, running the bottom on lap ten.

The next circuit, Navratil made the winning pass stick, and headed to the checkers for the first time in his career here, ahead of Kline, Mayberry, Kubli and Mosher. J Kinder, Chase Young, Brandon Worthington, Johnson and Jeff Wilke rounded out the top ten. Young set quick time, and Navratil and Wilke won the heats.

“I got another one in the book,” said Navratil of his maiden win. “Now I can say I’ve officially won in everything I’ve ever raced. That one topped it all. This place ain’t easy. If it was, everyone would do it. It’s not forgiving. It’s got its beasts, but you’ve got to tame the beast. This one feels good. This is dedicated to Adam Underberg, one of my sponsors who passed this year.”

Join us Saturday, July 20 for 3M Night! The 360 class will be battling for their share of over a $60,000 purse! The 988 Lifeline 410’s will also be back in action! For more information on the Knoxville Raceway and the Marion County Fair visit us online at www.KnoxvilleRaceway.com!

988 Lifeline 410 Results

Time Trials (Qualifying Order), 2 laps: 1. 21, Brian Brown, Grain Valley, MO (5), 15.854 ($100 from OpenWheel101.com); 2. 87, Aaron Reutzel, Clute, TX (4), 16.029; 3. 88, Austin McCarl, Altoona, IA (14), 16.037; 4. 55, Kerry Madsen, St. Marys, NSW, Aust. (13), 16.040; 5. 27B, Jake Bubak, Arvada, CO (6), 16.066; 6. 23, Garet Williamson, Columbia, MO (12), 16.078; 7. 27W, Emerson Axsom, Franklin, IN (10), 16.117; 8. 2, Lynton Jeffrey, Sydney, NSW, Aust. (2), 16.158; 9. 4W, Jamie Ball, Knoxville, IA (7), 16.229; 10. 27, Carson McCarl, Altoona, IA (29), 16.314; 11. 10, Scott Bogucki, McLaren Vale, SA, Aust. (26), 16.330; 12. 2KS, Chase Randall, Waco, TX (21), 16.358; 13. 12X, Roger Crockett, Broken Arrow, OK (20), 16.360; 14. 1, Tasker Phillips, Pleasantville, IA (3), 16.363; 15. 35, Zach Hampton, Plainfield, IN (8), 16.374; 16. 3J, Dusty Zomer, Sioux Falls, SD (30), 16.418; 17. 22X, JJ Hickle, Quilcene, WA (19), 16.438; 18. 15H, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Sunnyvale, TX (28), 16.487; 19. 09, Matt Juhl, Tea, SD (23), 16.495; 20. 45X, Jace Park, Overland Park, KS (17), 16.504; 21. 25, Justin Henderson, Tea, SD (33), 16.526; 22. 18T, Tanner Holmes, Jacksonville, OR (31), 16.549; 23. 3P, Sawyer Phillips, Pleasantville, IA (37), 16.561; 24. 11M, Brendan Mullen, Grand Forks, ND (16), 16.567; 25. 44X, Scotty Johnson, Melcher-Dallas, IA (1), 16.601; 26. 28, Brian Paulus, Six Mile, SC (9), 16.679; 27. 6, Clint Garner, Sioux Falls, SD (27), 16.706; 28. G5, Gage Pulkrabek, East Grand Forks, MN (32), 16.736; 29. 22, Riley Goodno, Knoxville, IA (34), 16.742; 30. 24T, Christopher Thram, Sanborn, MN (25), 16.744; 31. 15JR, Cole Mincer, Burlington, IA (22), 16.750; 32. 9H, Landon Hansen, Newton, IA (11), 16.789; 33. 44, Chris Martin, Ankeny, IA (36), 16.815; 34. 95, Tyler Drueke, Eagle, NE (18), 17.067; 35. 80P, Jacob Peterson, Hartford, SD (24), 17.235; 36. 78, Bill Wagner, Reeder, ND (15), 18.373; 37. 20, AJ Moeller, Rockwell City, IA (38), NT; 38. 6W, Dustin Selvage, Indianola, IA (35), NT

Heat one (started), 8 Laps, 2:15.0: 1. Justin Henderson (1); 2. Brian Brown (6); 3. Jamie Ball (4); 4. JJ Hickle (2); 5. Jake Bubak (5); 6. Roger Crockett (3); 7. Riley Goodno (8); 8. Chris Martin (9); 9. Scotty Johnson (7) DNS – AJ Moeller

Heat two (started), 8 Laps, 2:14.6: 1. Tanner Holmes (1); 2. Carson McCarl (4); 3. Sam Hafertepe Jr. (2); 4. Tasker Phillips (3); 5. Garet Williamson (5); 6. Tyler Drueke (9); 7. Christopher Thram (8); 8. Aaron Reutzel (6); 9. Brian Paulus (7) DNS – Dustin Selvage

Heat three (started), 8 Laps, 2:15.6: 1. Sawyer Phillips (1); 2. Scott Bogucki (4); 3. Matt Juhl (2); 4. Austin McCarl (6); 5. Emerson Axsom (5); 6. Zach Hampton (3); 7. Clint Garner (7); 8. Cole Mincer (8); 9. Jacob Peterson (9)

Heat four (started), 8 Laps, 2:15.4: 1. Kerry Madsen (6); 2. Chase Randall (4); 3. Jace Park (2); 4. Dusty Zomer (3); 5. Lynton Jeffrey (5); 6. Landon Hansen (8); 7. Brendan Mullen (1); 8. Gage Pulkrabek (7); 9. Bill Wagner (9)

B main (started), 12 Laps, 3:31.7: 1. Jace Park (3); 2. Roger Crockett (1); 3. Zach Hampton (2); 4. Clint Garner (5) / 5. Riley Goodno (6); 6. Chris Martin (10); 7. Scotty Johnson (7); 8. Tyler Drueke (9); 9. Brian Paulus (8); 10. Jacob Peterson (13); 11. Cole Mincer (11); 12. Bill Wagner (12); 13. Brendan Mullen (4) DNS – Landon Hansen, Christopher Thram, Gage Pulkrabek, AJ Moeller, Dustin Selvage

A main (started), 20 Laps, NT: 1. Austin McCarl (4); 2. Kerry Madsen (5); 3. Aaron Reutzel (8); 4. Carson McCarl (2); 5. Emerson Axsom (10); 6. Jake Bubak (3); 7. Justin Henderson (13); 8. Tanner Holmes (14); 9. Sawyer Phillips (16); 10. Tasker Phillips (15); 11. Matt Juhl (19); 12. Sam Hafertepe Jr. (17); 13. JJ Hickle (20); 14. Jace Park (21); 15. Jamie Ball (7); 16. Clint Garner (24); 17. Dusty Zomer (18); 18. Roger Crockett (22); 19. Lynton Jeffrey (12); 20. Zach Hampton (23); 21. Chase Randall (11); 22. Brian Brown (6); 23. Scott Bogucki (9); 24. Garet Williamson (1). Lap Leaders: Williamson 1-4, C. McCarl 5-9, A. McCarl 10-20. Hard-charger: Juhl.

360 Results

Time Trials (Qualifying Order), 2 laps: 1. 3P, Sawyer Phillips, Pleasantville, IA (3), 15.897; 2. 6N, Kaleb Johnson, Sioux Falls, SD (8), 16.131; 3. 2M, Ryan Giles, Grimes, IA (9), 16.233; 4. 87, Aaron Reutzel, Clute, TX (6), 16.275; 5. 86, Timothy Smith, Rocheport, MO (1), 16.279; 6. 2C, Hank Davis, Sand Springs, OK (11), 16.285; 7. 53, Joe Beaver, Knoxville, IA (13), 16.308; 8. 17, Tyler Groenendyk, Oskaloosa, IA (23), 16.334; 9. 40, Clint Garner, Sioux Falls, SD (7), 16.338; 10. 95, Matt Covington, Glenpool, OK (26), 16.342; 11. 4C, Tuesday Calderwood, Goodyear, AZ (10), 16.356; 12. 01, Terry McCarl, Altoona, IA (12), 16.382; 13. 77X, Alex Hill, Six Nations, ONT, Can. (2), 16.389; 14. 20T, Josh Higday, Des Moines, IA (4), 16.408; 15. 2KS, Chase Randall, Waco, TX (37), 16.420; 16. 7A, Jack Anderson, Newton, IA (16), 16.457; 17. 1TAZ, Tasker Phillips, Pleasantville, IA (15), 16.462; 18. 55B, Chase Brown, Yutan, NE (20), 16.496; 19. 6AJ, AJ Moeller, Rockwell City, IA (5), 16.552; 20. 99, Tony Rost, Omaha, NE (21), 16.582; 21. 4W, Jamie Ball, Knoxville, IA (30), 16.596; 22. 4G, Cole Garner, Sioux Falls, SD (31), 16.634; 23. 22, Ryan Leavitt, Knoxville, IA (32), 16.638; 24. 47, Brant O'Banion, Sioux Falls, SD (22), 16.793; 25. G5, Gage Pulkrabek, East Grand Forks, MN (18), 16.794; 26. 24N, Nathan Mills, Bondurant, IA (35), 16.840; 27. 5A, Alex Vande Voort, Knoxville, IA (36), 16.846; 28. 7B, Ben Brown, Marshall, MO (14), 16.881; 29. 33, Alan Zoutte, Knoxville, IA (33), 16.930; 30. 4, Cam Martin, Ankeny, IA (28), 16.958; 31. 14, Aidan Zoutte, Knoxville, IA (19), 17.127; 32. 3R, Russell Potter, Boonville, MO (17), 17.237; 33. 29, Emilio Hoover, Broken Arrow, OK (34), 17.264; 34. 38, Logan Alexander, Lacona, IA (27), 17.353; 35. 17N, Nathan Anderson, Newton, IA (38), 17.381; 36. 1A, John Anderson, Des Moines, IA (25), 17.392; 37. 8X, Micah Slendy, Sioux Falls, SD (29), 17.571; 38. 36, Jason Martin, Liberal, KS (24), NT; 39. 24, Kade Higday, Pleasant Hill, IA (39), NT

Heat one (started), 7 Laps, 2:00.4: 1. Jamie Ball (1); 2. Clint Garner (4); 3. Tasker Phillips (2); 4. Sawyer Phillips (6); 5. Alex Hill (3); 6. Timothy Smith (5); 7. Gage Pulkrabek (7); 8. Emilio Hoover (9); 9. Alan Zoutte (8); 10. Micah Slendy (10)

Heat two (started), 7 Laps, 2:03.0: 1. Cole Garner (1); 2. Josh Higday (3); 3. Chase Brown (2); 4. Matt Covington (4); 5. Kaleb Johnson (6); 6. Cam Martin (8); 7. Hank Davis (5); 8. Nathan Mills (7); 9. Jason Martin (10); 10. Logan Alexander (9)

Heat three (started), 7 Laps, 2:02.2: 1. Ryan Leavitt (1); 2. Chase Randall (3); 3. AJ Moeller (2); 4. Joe Beaver (5); 5. Ryan Giles (6); 6. Alex Vande Voort (7); 7. Tuesday Calderwood (4); 8. Aidan Zoutte (8); 9. Nathan Anderson (9) DNS – Kade Higday

Heat four (started), 7 Laps, 2:01.8: 1. Tony Rost (2); 2. Terry McCarl (4); 3. Jack Anderson (3); 4. Aaron Reutzel (6); 5. Brant O'Banion (1); 6. Tyler Groenendyk (5); 7. Ben Brown (7); 8. Russell Potter (8) DNS – John Anderson

B main (started), 10 Laps, 3:00.4: 1. Alex Hill (2); 2. Brant O'Banion (4); 3. AJ Moeller (3); 4. Cam Martin (7) / 5. Alex Vande Voort (5); 6. Ben Brown (8); 7. Jason Martin (15); 8. Emilio Hoover (13); 9. Tuesday Calderwood (1); 10. Nathan Mills (9); 11. Aidan Zoutte (10); 12. Micah Slendy (17); 13. Logan Alexander (16); 14. Nathan Anderson (14); 15. Gage Pulkrabek (6); 16. Russell Potter (12); 17. Alan Zoutte (11) DNS – John Anderson, Kade Higday

A main (started), 18 Laps, 5:25.5: 1. Aaron Reutzel (2); 2. Chase Randall (13); 3. Sawyer Phillips (4); 4. Kaleb Johnson (3); 5. Ryan Giles (1); 6. Clint Garner (5); 7. Terry McCarl (8); 8. Timothy Smith (7); 9. Joe Beaver (6); 10. Jack Anderson (16); 11. Hank Davis (10); 12. Jamie Ball (15); 13. Tyler Groenendyk (12); 14. Matt Covington (9); 15. Cole Garner (17); 16. Ryan Leavitt (19); 17. Tony Rost (14); 18. «Select Driver» (0); 19. Cam Martin (24); 20. Josh Higday (11); 21. Alex Hill (21); 22. Brant O'Banion (22); 23. Chase Brown (20); 24. AJ Moeller (23). Lap Leader: Reutzel 1-18. Hard-charger: Randall.

Pro Series Results

Time Trials (Group Qualifying): 1. 26, Chase Young, Des Moines, IA (3), 17.796; 2. 55, Toby Mosher, Osceola, IA (5), 17.809; 3. 8J, AJ Johnson, Oskaloosa, IA (1), 17.829; 4. 88, J Kinder, Linn, MO (7), 17.873; 5. 7, Rob Kubli, Milo, IA (6), 17.936; 6. 0, Mike Mayberry, Fremont, IA (11), 17.965; 7. 17, Matt Allen, Norwalk, IA (12), 17.977; 8. 7C, Devin Kline, Knoxville, IA (9), 18.059; 9. 12P, Ryan Navratil, Des Moines, IA (10), 18.186; 10. 41, Jeff Wilke, Knoxville, IA (8), 18.242; 11. 12K, Koddy Hildreth, Zearing, IA (2), 18.248; 12. 02S, Josh Jones, Knoxville, IA (13), 18.274; 13. 71, Brandon Worthington, Indianola, IA (4), 18.414; 14. 55KC, Bob Hildreth, Iowa Falls, IA (14), 18.474

Heat one (started), 6 Laps, 1:52.3: 1. Ryan Navratil (2); 2. Rob Kubli (4); 3. Koddy Hildreth (1); 4. AJ Johnson (5); 5. Matt Allen (3); 6. Brandon Worthington (7); 7. Chase Young (6)

Heat two (started), 6 Laps, 1:50.6: 1. Jeff Wilke (2); 2. Devin Kline (3); 3. Mike Mayberry (4); 4. Josh Jones (1); 5. Toby Mosher (6); 6. J Kinder (5); 7. Bob Hildreth (7)

A main (started), 15 Laps, 4:38.6: 1. Ryan Navratil (2); 2. Devin Kline (1); 3. Mike Mayberry (3); 4. Rob Kubli (6); 5. Toby Mosher (4); 6. J Kinder (9); 7. Chase Young (7); 8. Brandon Worthington (13); 9. AJ Johnson (5); 10. Jeff Wilke (8); 11. Matt Allen (10); 12. Koddy Hildreth (11); 13. Josh Jones (12); 14. Bob Hildreth (14). Lap Leaders: D. Kline 1-8, Navratil 9, Kline 10, Navritil 11-15. Hard-charger: Worthington.

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