August 12, 2023 | By Bill Wright

Reutzel Cruises to “Hard Knox Night” Win to Earn Berth in Saturday’s Championship

Photo by Paul Arch

Knoxville, IA — Four drivers locked themselves into Saturday night’s 62nd NOS Energy Drink Knoxville Nationals Presented by Casey’s finale by topping a 78-car field on “Hard Knox Night” at the Knoxville Raceway. Aaron Reutzel led flag to flag to earn his eighth career 410 feature. Reutzel, second place David Gravel, third place Scott Bogucki and fourth place Davey Heskin all earned $4,000, but will also see a minimum of $15,000 for starting Saturday’s finale in the 21st through 24th spots. Parker Price-Miller was fifth and earned $5,000, but will head to an eleventh place starting spot in Saturday’s B main.

Reutzel’s early lead came ahead of Bogucki, Jamie Ball, Ryan Timms and Brandon Wimmer. On lap two, Gravel shot from sixth to third to gain an all-important transfer position to Saturday’s feature, while Wimmer moved into fourth, getting by Ball on lap four. Balog slowed at that time while running sixth, but re-blended into the starting order. On lap seven, he would suffer a flat right rear, collecting Sye Lynch and Shane Golobic. Only Golobic would continue.

Gravel passed Bogucki for second on the restart. Price-Miller found some momentum at the halfway point, shooting on the low side from seventh to fifth on lap 13. A slider in turn four on Wimmer, garnered him the fourth spot with ten to go. Reutzel entered traffic on lap 19. Heskin found things to his liking on the bottom groove at about the same time, passing Wimmer for fifth.

Heskin reeled in Price-Miller and passed him on the low side of turn four for fourth with three to go. Up front, Gravel gained on Reutzel at the checkers, finishing just a tenth of a second behind him. Reutzel, Gravel, Bogucki and Heskin were followed by Price-Miller and Brent Marks. Wimmer, Timms, Justin Henderson and Cory Eliason rounded out the top ten. Reutzel and Bogucki set quick time over their respective groups. Gravel, Price-Miller, Eliason, Chris Windom, Tim Kaeding and Justin Sanders were heat race winners. Marks and Lynch won B mains. Skylar Prochaska claimed the C. Gage Pulkrabek and Sam Hafertepe Jr. were flip victims in hot laps. Both were done for the night, as was Bill Wagner, who was involved in another flip in practice involving Sanders. No one was injured.

“Friday’s not the way we want to get locked in,” said Reutzel in Victory Lane. “It was unfortunate what happened, but my guys fought hard. We put another car together and we’re locked back into the Nationals. That’s what it’s all about. It’s basically a $19,000 win (Saturday’s feature pays $15,000 to start). That’s what we’re here for.”

“When they till the top here, it gets so easy to run,” said Gravel. “You’re just running qualifying laps at that point. Once I found that lane halfway through, I picked up my pace a little bit. Three and four was starting to get some character. I think in a longer race, it will get a little more technical. Aaron set a torrid pace. I’m just happy to get in the show. We’ve been fast, and we had a fast enough car to win on our prelim night…that’s racing sometimes.”

“For me personally…I don’t have the words,” said Bogucki of transferring to Saturday’s feature for the first time. “I came over here ten years ago as a crew guy, and saw this as a dream. We missed it by one car two or three times…same thing Wednesday night. After last week, it’s nice to rebound back. About two laps in, we had a good racecar. We were pacing Aaron, and then he was getting away a little bit. We got free at the end.”

“Damn, it feels good to make that thing!” said an emotional Heskin, who will be making his fourth start, but first since 2012. “You try for so many years, and it’s such a mental game here trying to keep yourself up. We started rolling the middle there. It just feels so good. We blew our motor (Wednesday) and watched from the grandstand. Watching from the outside, kind of gives you perspective. To lock ourselves in is big!”

Join us Saturday, August 12 for the finale of the 62nd NOS Energy Drink Knoxville Nationals Presented by Casey’s! For more information on the Knoxville Raceway, visit us online at www.KnoxvilleRaceway.com!

62nd NOS Energy Drink Knoxville Nationals Presented by Casey’s “Hard Knox Night” Results

Time Trial Group 1 (started), 2 laps: 1. 8, Aaron Reutzel, Clute, TX (3), 15.425; 2. 7TW, Brandon Wimmer, Fairmount, IN (17), 15.442; 3. 5T, Ryan Timms, Oklahoma City, OK (21), 15.479; 4. 2, David Gravel, Watertown, CT (30), 15.510; 5. 21H, Brady Bacon, Broken Arrow, OK (31), 15.574; 6. 19, Brent Marks, Myerstown, PA (34), 15.589; 7. 52, Blake Hahn, Sapulpa, OK (12), 15.591; 8. 9P, Parker Price-Miller, Kokomo, IN (2), 15.594; 9. 49X, Tim Shaffer, Aliquippa, PA (19), 15.600; 10. 5C, Dylan Cisney, Port Royal, PA (29), 15.652; 11. 22K, Kaleb Johnson, Sioux Falls, SD (8), 15.690; 12. 11, Cory Eliason, Visalia, CA (13), 15.721; 13. 17W, Shane Golobic, Fremont, CA (28), 15.722; 14. 1C, Brenham Crouch, Lubbock, TX (26), 15.734; 15. 12X, Ayrton Gennetten, Gravois Mills, MO (5), 15.738; 16. 24T, Christopher Thram, Sanborn, MN (7), 15.754; 17. 17AU, Jamie Veal, Warrnambool, VIC, Au (25), 15.756; 18. 4J, Kevin Thomas Jr., Cullman, AL (11), 15.756; 19. 1M, Don Droud Jr., Lincoln, NE (18), 15.769; 20. 11N, Harli White, Lindsay, OK (10), 15.775; 21. 13JT, Mark Dobmeier, Grand Forks, ND (14), 15.795; 22. 3P, Sawyer Phillips, Pleasantville, IA (24), 15.866; 23. 20G, Noah Gass, Mounds, OK (37), 15.870; 24. 16, Brooke Tatnell, Sans Souci, NSW, Aust. (39), 15.881; 25. 20, AJ Moeller, Rockwell City, IA (20), 15.890; 26. 1A, Chase Dietz, York, PA (36), 15.891; 27. 70, Kraig Kinser, Bloomington, IN (32), 15.896; 28. 16A, Colby Copeland, Roseville, CA (15), 15.906; 29. 50YR, JJ Hickle, Quilcene, WA (9), 15.925; 30. 44P, Skylar Prochaska, Lakefield, MN (38), 15.928; 31. 3Z, Brock Zearfoss, Jonestown, PA (22), 15.963; 32. 17X, Terry McCarl, Altoona, IA (6), 16.039; 33. 6, Bill Rose, Plainfield, IN (16), 16.050; 34. 35, Zach Hampton, Plainfield, IN (35), 16.132; 35. 44, Chris Martin, Ankeny, IA (27), 16.169; 36. 35B, Austin Bishop, Elverson, PA (4), 16.322; 37. 121, RJ Johnson, Tampa, FL (23), 16.462; 38. 65, Jordan Goldesberry, Springfield, IL (1), 16.537; 39. 4K2W, Matt Wasmund, Jackson, MN (33), 16.657

Time Trial Group 2 (started), 2 laps: 1. 10, Scott Bogucki, McLaren Vale, SA, Aust. (2), 15.508; 2. 4W, Jamie Ball, Knoxville, IA (21), 15.736; 3. 42, Sye Lynch, Apollo, PA (25), 15.799; 4. 17B, Bill Balog, Hartland, WI (28), 15.841; 5. 1, Justin Henderson, Tea, SD (14), 15.952; 6. 2M, Davey Heskin, St. Michael, MN (12), 15.966; 7. 6B, Clint Garner, Sioux Falls, SD (8), 15.976; 8. 7S, Robbie Price, Cobble Hill, BC, Can. (7), 15.978; 9. 24H, Kade Higday, Pleasant Hill, IA (5), 15.995; 10. 4CW, Chris Windom, Canton, IL (4), 16.003; 11. 3, Tim Kaeding, San Jose, CA (15), 16.019; 12. 39M, Justin Sanders, Aromas, CA (13), 16.031; 13. 27, Carson McCarl, Altoona, IA (9), 16.043; 14. 18T, Tanner Holmes, Jacksonville, OR (22), 16.047; 15. 22, Riley Goodno, Knoxville, IA (6), 16.110; 16. 26, Zeb Wise, Angola, IN (20), 16.119; 17. 45, Rusty Hickman, Bendigo, VIC, Aust. (26), 16.137; 18. 2K, Lynton Jeffrey, Sydney, NSW, Aust. (39), 16.151; 19. 101, Kalib Henry, Sacramento, CA (11), 16.152; 20. 1K, Kelby Watt, Adel, IA (31), 16.200; 21. 10V, Cap Henry, Bellevue, OH (24), 16.203; 22. 25, Lachlan McHugh, Gold Coast, QLD, Aust. (27), 16.205; 23. 83T, Tanner Carrick, Lincoln, CA (3), 16.271; 24. 21T, Cole Macedo, Lemoore, CA (38), 16.338; 25. 91, Kyle Reinhardt, Neptune City, NJ (32), 16.353; 26. 1X, Jake Bubak, Arvada, CO (17), 16.366; 27. 2KK, Kevin Ingle, Huron, SD (29), 16.380; 28. 105, Cody Ihlen, Pipestone, MN (16), 16.431; 29. W19, Trent Pigdon, Cardup, WA, Aust. (35), 16.477; 30. 95, Matt Covington, Glenpool, OK (36), 16.603; 31. 15JR, Cole Mincer, Burlington, IA (34), 16.612; 32. 37, Ayden Gatewood, Caruthersville, MO (33), 16.670; 33. 6X, Frank Rodgers III, Lucas, IA (30), 17.345; 34. 9H, Landon Hansen, Newton, IA (19), 17.464; 35. G5, Gage Pulkrabek, East Grand Forks, MN (1), NT; 36. 56, Joe Simbro, Pleasantville, IA (10), NT; 37. 78, Bill Wagner, Reeder, ND (18), NT; 38. 55T, McKenna Haase, Des Moines, IA (23), NT; 39. 15H, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Sunnyvale, TX (37), NT

Heat one (started), 8 Laps, 2:28.1: 1. David Gravel (3); 2. Dylan Cisney (1); 3. Aaron Reutzel (4) / 4. Shane Golobic (5); 5. Blake Hahn (2); 6. Christopher Thram (6); 7. Colby Copeland (10); 8. Sawyer Phillips (8); 9. Brock Zearfoss (11); 10. AJ Moeller (9); 11. Don Droud Jr. (7); 12. RJ Johnson (12) DNS - Zach Hampton

Heat two (started), 8 Laps, 2:32.1: 1. Parker Price-Miller (2); 2. Brandon Wimmer (4); 3. Kaleb Johnson (1) / 4. Jamie Veal (6); 5. Brady Bacon (3); 6. Noah Gass (8); 7. JJ Hickle (10); 8. Brenham Crouch (5); 9. Chase Dietz (9); 10. Harli White (7); 11. Chris Martin (12); 12. Terry McCarl (11); 13. Jordan Goldesberry (13)

Heat three (started), 8 Laps, 2:47.5: 1. Cory Eliason (1); 2. Ryan Timms (4); 3. Tim Shaffer (2) / 4. Brent Marks (3); 5. Ayrton Gennetten (5); 6. Brooke Tatnell (8); 7. Kraig Kinser (9); 8. Mark Dobmeier (7); 9. Kevin Thomas Jr. (6); 10. Skylar Prochaska (10); 11. Austin Bishop (12); 12. Bill Rose (11); 13. Matt Wasmund (13)

Heat four (started), 8 Laps, 2:23.8: 1. Chris Windom (1); 2. Bill Balog (3); 3. Scott Bogucki (4) / 4. Kyle Reinhardt (9); 5. Lachlan McHugh (8); 6. Clint Garner (2); 7. Zeb Wise (6); 8. Kalib Henry (7); 9. Cody Ihlen (10); 10. Cole Mincer (11); 11. Landon Hansen (12); 12. Carson McCarl (5) DNS - Bill Wagner

Heat five (started), 8 Laps, 2:19.6: 1. Tim Kaeding (1); 2. Jamie Ball (4); 3. Justin Henderson (3) / 4. Robbie Price (2); 5. Tanner Holmes (5); 6. Tanner Carrick (6); 7. McKenna Haase (12); 8. Jake Bubak (9); 9. Kelby Watt (7); 10. Ayden Gatewood (10); 11. Trent Pigdon (8) DNS - Rusty Hickman, Gage Pulkrabek

Heat six (started), 8 Laps, 2:32.6: 1. Justin Sanders (1); 2. Lynton Jeffrey (6); 3. Davey Heskin (3) / 4. Sye Lynch (4); 5. Kade Higday (2); 6. Cap Henry (7); 7. Matt Covington (10); 8. Riley Goodno (5); 9. Kevin Ingle (9); 10. Frank Rodgers III (11); 11. Cole Macedo (8) DNS - Joe Simbro, Sam Hafertepe Jr.

C main (started), 10 Laps, NT: 1. Skylar Prochaska (1); 2. Brock Zearfoss (3); 3. Matt Covington (2); 4. Terry McCarl (5); 5. Zach Hampton (8); 6. Austin Bishop (11); 7. Chris Martin (10); 8. McKenna Haase (14) / 9. RJ Johnson (12); 10. Landon Hansen (9); 11. Cole Mincer (4); 12. Frank Rodgers III (7); 13. Matt Wasmund (15); 14. Jordan Goldesberry (13); 15. Bill Rose (6); DNS - Ayden Gatewood, Gage Pulkrabek, Joe Simbro, Bill Wagner, Sam Hafertepe Jr.

B main one (started), 12 Laps, NT: 1. Brent Marks (2); 2. Brady Bacon (1); 3. Shane Golobic (4) / 4. Ayrton Gennetten (6); 5. Blake Hahn (3); 6. Christopher Thram (7); 7. Brenham Crouch (5); 8. Sawyer Phillips (13); 9. Harli White (11); 10. Noah Gass (14); 11. JJ Hickle (20); 12. Mark Dobmeier (12); 13. Zach Hampton (23); 14. Kraig Kinser (18); 15. Chris Martin (24); 16. Don Droud Jr. (10); 17. Colby Copeland (19); 18. Matt Covington (22); 19. Brooke Tatnell (15); 20. Skylar Prochaska (21); 21. Chase Dietz (17); 22. AJ Moeller (16); 23. Kevin Thomas Jr. (9); 24. Jamie Veal (8)

B main two (started), 12 Laps, 3:38.3: 1. Sye Lynch (1); 2. Zeb Wise (7); 3. Robbie Price (3) / 4. Tanner Holmes (5); 5. Clint Garner (2); 6. Kelby Watt (9); 7. Jake Bubak (15); 8. Brock Zearfoss (19); 9. Lachlan McHugh (11); 10. Kade Higday (4); 11. Riley Goodno (6); 12. Kyle Reinhardt (14); 13. Cap Henry (10); 14. Kalib Henry (8); 15. Cole Macedo (13); 16. Tanner Carrick (12); 17. McKenna Haase (22); 18. Terry McCarl (20); 19. Austin Bishop (21); 20. Cody Ihlen (17); 21. Trent Pigdon (18); 22. Kevin Ingle (16); DNS - Carson McCarl, Rusty Hickman

A main (started), 25 Laps, NT: 1. Aaron Reutzel (1); 2. David Gravel (7); 3. Scott Bogucki (2); 4. Davey Heskin (10); 5. Parker Price-Miller (9); 6. Brent Marks (19); 7. Brandon Wimmer (3); 8. Ryan Timms (5); 9. Justin Henderson (8); 10. Cory Eliason (17); 11. Zeb Wise (22); 12. Kaleb Johnson (15); 13. Brady Bacon (21); 14. Jamie Ball (4); 15. Tim Kaeding (14); 16. Justin Sanders (16); 17. Tim Shaffer (11); 18. Lynton Jeffrey (18); 19. Chris Windom (12); 20. Dylan Cisney (13); 21. Robbie Price (24); 22. Shane Golobic (23); 23. Bill Balog (6); 24. Sye Lynch (20). Lap Leader: Reutzel 1-25. Hard-charger: Marks.