Ryan Timms, fresh off his history-making triumph at Knoxville Nationals in August as the youngest winner since Kenny Weld in 1964, has already caught the attention of some of the sport’s biggest names. Among them is 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson, who recently offered glowing praise for the teenager’s rise.
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Appearing on the Stacking Pennies podcast, Larson said, “He has been killing it this year. Their car is really, really good too. That was awesome to see him. I can’t imagine being 18 or whatever he is and winning 190,000 dollars and winning the biggest race of the year and then back it up…”
The #5 HMS driver added, “I think that was cool too, that his team was really prepared and confident. But he is good. I have no clue if he wants to get to NASCAR, anything like that. The money he is getting is so much better in dirt racing, like I think a lot of those guys are like Why…”
Timms has blazed a trail distinct from his father’s, venturing into sprint cars despite growing up around Late Model racing. As a child, he admitted he was more drawn to Late Models, even calling them way “cooler” at the time. But once his father put him behind the wheel of junior sprints, he quickly embraced open-wheel racing, realizing that sprint cars would be his future.
That decision set him on a rare path in dirt racing. Typically, sons follow directly in their father’s footsteps, but Timms chose a different lane and found success early. He began racing at just 8 years old in 2015 on micro-sprint tracks in Oklahoma. By 2017, he had already emerged as one of the top open-wheel prospects in the nation, clinching the junior sprint portion of the Tulsa Shootout on New Year’s Eve.
Now, with sprint cars providing both financial security and personal satisfaction, it’s unclear whether NASCAR will ever be on his radar. What is certain, though, is that fans would relish seeing a driver of Timms’ caliber bring his talent to stock cars. For now, his heart lies in dirt, and his success suggests that’s where he’ll continue to make his mark.
