“We kind of bounce off of each other,” Tasker Phillips said. “We kind of just leave each other alone, but if we see someone needs a hand, we’re in there. We’re two very different people. My biggest flaw is, I can find where the car works, but it may take me a lap or two. That’s tough at Knoxville in the 410s. Sawyer is kind of a control freak, but he’s smart. It takes a while sometimes for him to figure it out, but once he does, he’s consistent every week. Once he finds that feel, he’s tough for everyone to deal with.”
Twenty-five-year-old Sawyer Phillips was in the pits working early.
“There’s a 10-year difference between Rager and me,” Sawyer Phillips related. “He started at 16, so when I was 6 or 7, I was always around it helping with tires and odds and ends. It wasn’t forced on me or anything, it was my decision on whether to do it or not.
“I looked up to my brothers, but I looked up to everyone at Knoxville. It’s crazy to think I grew up watching these drivers and now I’m racing with them. When you get your butt kicked, sometimes you have to remember how long those guys have done that.”
While Rager and Tasker Phillips had wins in the 305 class at Knoxville, Sawyer excelled in the 360 division, running five full seasons.
“I ran 360s two or three years longer than they did,” he explained. “The last two years were really fun. I won three races in 2017, and the next year was even better, I just never won a race. I think in weekly racing, we ran 70 percent in the top five (finishing fourth in points). In 2019, we moved to the 410.”
After two top-10 seasons in the 410s, Sawyer Phillips added corporate backing from Ruan, a privately held transportation company.
“My father-in-law Mark Core is a hell of a marketer,” he said. “He’s the one that landed Arnold Motor Supply for us for a few years, and then some of the videos we did with Wade Aunger brought Ruan in and got them interested. They were able to see what kind of person I am and what kind of operation we run.”
Sawyer Phillips is both a mechanic and driver.
“I’m essentially my own crew chief,” he said. “I have some help to do the maintenance stuff, but I can do the adjustments. Dad sets the fuel for the car.”
All three Phillips brothers have gotten it done in different ways, and through the years have been an integral part of the fabric of the Knoxville Raceway community. It’s no surprise all three excelled at wrestling in high school. Now, all three have families and farms to tend.
Rager Phillips’ pride in his brothers is evident.
“Tasker has really come on since Nationals last year. But he’s a little more, ‘By gosh, by golly,’ than Sawyer. He’s going to sleep the same whatever happens. I don’t get to the track every night, but I sure follow what’s going on. I’m busy chasing kids and farming now.”
This story appeared in the July 12, 2023 edition of the SPEED SPORT Insider.
