CONCORD, N.C.: Ryan Timms knows all about starting strong, high expectations, and then the fall off. The latter is when drivers, even the best Sprint Car racing has to offer, sometimes start to question themselves.
When Timms burst on to the 410 Sprint Car scene, the potential and attention seemed limitless. He won four races in 2021 and gained national recognition one year later when he polished off a ninth-place finish and runner-up result in his first two World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series starts.
Since then, the Oklahoma driver has struggled a bit. There have been a few bright spots, but even Timms started to wonder what was going wrong after a sub-par 2023 season and some issues earlier this year.
Then came the turnaround. Timms hooked up with South Dakota car-owner Shane Liebig, and the combination has turned heads against some of the best drivers in the country … High Limit Racing, World of Outlaws, and otherwise.
It’s been so good that the team decided to continue its relationship next year. Timms will pilot the Liebig Motorsports entry for a 50-race schedule that will feature races against both national traveling series, Knoxville Raceway, Huset’s Speedway, and the Jackson Motorplex.
“I feel like I’ve always been in the same mental space,” Timms said. “I always go out there and try to perform to the best of my ability. That’s all you can do. There for a while, it just wasn’t working out. I just kept going at it, and my dad believed in me. He just told me to keep going after it and not to give up, and sure enough, we found a combo that works really well for us.
“It’s a big relief knowing that I have one of the best sprint cars out there right now. It makes it so much easier as a driver when you know that your car is capable of winning these races. When it’s all up to the driver, it makes it a lot easier. I do everything in my power, even when I’m not at the racetrack, to make sure I’m not leaving anything on the table.”
Continued Timms, “Being with Shan has worked great. He wants to win as bad as me, and I don’t think this is even 50 percent of what we can do. Give us a few races, and I think we can win some of these things, and I couldn’t be happier to be able to do that now.”
Timms, 18, debuted in the Liebig entry against the High Limit regulars at I-70 Motorsports Park on October 8. The result was a runner-up finish that got people talking around the water cooler on Monday morning.
Things ramped up even more over the next three nights. Timms and Liebig polished off a ninth-place run at Lucas Oil Speedway before towing to the High Limit finale at Texas Motor Speedway for finishes of third and fifth.
“Youth, excitement, and just drives the hell out of it,” said Liebig when asked about Timms Saturday night at The Dirt Track at Charlotte. “He doesn’t bitch about anything, and it’s been exciting.
“I started racing Sprint Cars when I was 16 in the Midwest, and I was very aggressive, in your face, and I just love seeing that with him. He’s a humble kid, and he’s just got so much talent. You just try to build that killer mentality into it. That’s what I hope to get into him so he can beat anybody.”
The success led to a trip to Concord, N.C., to square off against the World of Outlaws and other top drivers in the country. It was a solid effort, with Timms scoring a pair of top 10s in three main events, including a fourth-place finish in Saturday night’s finale.
In seven races with Liebig Motorsports, Timms has four top-five finishes and six top 10s. His average during the stretch was 6.7 … not bad considering the competition and being in new surroundings.
“I drove with Guy Forbrook, and he is friends with Shane,” Timms said. “He (Shane) was looking for a driver just for a couple of races. Guy suggested me, and I showed up in the hotel parking lot with my seat and helmet bag, and we put the seat in my car. I didn’t even know anybody’s name here or who the crew chief was, everybody’s roles, nothing.
“I was hoping to get a top five or top 10 at the first High Limit race I went to, and we finished second and were hunting down the leader. The following races, we had podiums, top fives, and top 10s. We decided to come down here, and it’s turned into what it is now.”
It seems what Timms and Liebig have is a formidable team that can run up front against all comers. And it doesn’t seem to matter where or when they show up at the racetrack. The speed is there.
Both Timms and Liebig have never raced at Texas Motor Speedway. The same can be said for The Dirt Track at Charlotte. Liebig also never raced at Lucas Oil Speedway … and yet, the performance was there.
Now, Liebig and Timms can go into the offseason with a firm plan and direction. And confidence is high for a pick-and-choose schedule that seems to be the right direction for a team in its first full year being together.
“We just decided that today,” Liebig said. “We’re all excited about it. I’ve done it forever … not as a car owner, but in it. It’s awesome. When you come here with a small team out of western South Dakota, do whatever people say you can’t do, beat guys you aren’t supposed to beat, that’s what gets me up every morning.”