KNOXVILLE, IA (May 23, 2026) – Good luck stopping Aaron Reutzel and Ridge and Sons Racing right now.
The combination entered Saturday’s Stars and Stripes Salute opener at Knoxville Raceway as one of if not the hottest team in the sport of Sprint Car racing. They’d clicked off five wins in their last seven races with finishes of fourth and second in the other two. The one thing missing from the run? A victory with the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series.
Well, the No. 87 team made sure to change that in dominant fashion Saturday night.
The Clute, TX native started on the outside of the front row and rocketed by polesitter Donny Schatz to take control of the race. Reutzel wasted no time growing the advantage as the early portion of the 25-lapper unfolded. Lapped traffic posed little threat as Reutzel sliced his way through the slower cars while Schatz and Rico Abreu slugged it out for second. Schatz secured the spot and tried to put together a late run, but it was too little, too late as Reutzel wheeled his way to Victory Lane.
“I was hoping I could get a full car length on him so I could close the bottom,” Reutzel said of the start. “I thought for sure I had enough where I didn’t need to block him in the Dash, and typical Donny he just went blowing by me. I made sure to close the door on him that time. It was tough. Traffic was tough.”
The hot streak is now at six triumphs in the last eight races for Reutzel. With Knoxville earning him another $20,000, he’s nearly at $200,000 in earnings already in 2026. The eighth World of Outlaws victory of Reutzel’s career ties him with Jimmy Sills and Cody Darrah for 56th all-time. His win total at “The Sprint Car Capital of the World” is up to 28 combining 410 and 360 Sprint Car competition.
Donny Schatz came out on top of a fierce battle with Rico Abreu to claim the runner-up spot, giving the 10-time champion four podiums in 2026 in the CJB Motorsports No. 15.
Abreu brought the Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing No. 24 home third for his fifth consecutive podium finish.
David Gravel and J.J. Hickle completed the top five.
NIGHTLY NOTES
Garet Williamson earned his second Race//Ready Hottest Lap of the Night in the last three races.
Aaron Reutzel set Simpson Quick Time in Honest Abe Roofing Qualifying.
Heat Races belonged to Aaron Reutzel (NOS Energy Drink Heat One), David Gravel (TheGreatestStoreonDirt.com Heat Two), Sheldon Haudenschild (WIX Filters Heat Three), and Austin McCarl (Golf Cart Services Heat Four).
The SPA Technique #1 Redraw went to Donny Schatz.
Schatz also topped the Toyota Dash.
Justin Henderson won the Micro-Lite Last Chance Showdown.
Carson Macedo marched from 22nd to ninth to earn the KSE Racing Products Hard Charger.
Sheldon Haudenschild was the Tub O’ Towels Seventh Place Finisher.
Emerson Axsom was the Five Star Bodies Rookie of the Race.
Aaron Reutzel clocked the ACME Trading Company Fast Lap.
The Smith Titanium Brake Systems Break of the Race went to Spencer Bayston.
UP NEXT: The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Cars complete the Stars and Stripes Salute with a $20,000-to-win visit to Brandon, SD’s Huset’s Speedway on Sunday, May 24. For tickets, CLICK HERE.
Where can you watch every World of Outlaws race? Live on DIRTVision.
Where can you see the World of Outlaws in 2026? Click to see the full schedule.
FEATURE RESULTS:
NOS Energy Drink Feature (25 Laps): 1. 87-Aaron Reutzel[2]; 2. 15-Donny Schatz[1]; 3. 24A-Rico Abreu[6]; 4. 2-David Gravel[5]; 5. 2M-JJ Hickle[4]; 6. 23-Garet Williamson[3]; 7. 18-Sheldon Haudenschild[8]; 8. 83-Michael Kofoid[12]; 9. 41-Carson Macedo[22]; 10. 7BC-Tyler Courtney[17]; 11. 21-Brian Brown[10]; 12. 71-Parker Price Miller[11]; 13. 55-Kerry Madsen[16]; 14. 11-Justin Henderson[21]; 15. 1S-Logan Schuchart[20]; 16. 2C-Cole Macedo[15]; 17. 10-Ryan Timms[24]; 18. 17-Spencer Bayston[13]; 19. 28-Jace Park[9]; 20. 7S-Chris Windom[18]; 21. (DNF) 27C-Carson McCarl[23]; 22. (DNF) 27-Emerson Axsom[14]; 23. (DNF) 15H-Sam Hafertepe Jr[19]; 24. (DQ) 88-Austin McCarl[7]
For complete results, CLICK HERE.
ARTICLE: https://worldofoutlaws.com/sprintcars/on-a-heater-aaron-reutzel-stays-hot-with-dominant-knoxville-victory/
EVENT INFO: https://worldofoutlaws.com/schedule/event-info/?event=4549495
TRACK INFO: https://worldofoutlaws.com/sprintcars/tracks/?track=Knoxville%2BRaceway
FAN 101: https://about.worldofoutlaws.com/
