CONCORD, N.C. — Bryant Paver’s phone lit up with yet another suggestion from his employee Garet Williamson in late 2019.
The Micro-Sprint racer out of Columbia, Mo., was hungry. He spent chunks of free time searching online for racing equipment and sending options to Paver hoping he’d take the bait. Williamson craved just one shot behind the wheel of a sprint car. A foot in the door. It’s what he’d always wanted to do in life.
Finally, Paver bit.
A Facebook post advertised a 360 sprint car ready for the track. Car. Engine. Spare parts. Trailer. Everything needed to go racing. So, that’s what they did. Paver purchased the operation. Williamson mounted his seat. The next weekend Williamson debuted with the American Sprint Car Series at Lake Ozark Speedway.
“I’d always pestered him about getting a sprint car,” Williamson recalled. “Luckily enough, he did. Our first race was an ASCS National show at Lake Ozark, my first time running a sprint car. We went out and won the Heat Race. I think we were running eighth in the A (main), and the rear-end blew apart, I think. We bought it off Facebook Marketplace. It was a race-ready operation.
“We had no idea what we were doing. I was like, ‘Yeah, I don’t know, I think you’re supposed to run the valves and stuff on these the next day.’ Nobody had any idea what to do. No idea about shocks, nothing. We had not a clue what we were doing and were really good the first night. I have no idea how.”
Fast forward six years, and Williamson is fresh off cementing himself as the 2025 Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year with the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series.
The same fire that carried Williamson to finding his way into a sprint car never left. Fueled by dreams of joining The Greatest Show on Dirt, Williamson made a name for himself in the Midwest as Paver built up a team.
Eventually, longtime supporters of the sport, Curt and Devin Fischer, decided to construct a new sprint car team with the intent to compete at the sport’s highest level. They hired Williamson to drive the Fischer Motorsports No. 23 for a pick-and-choose schedule in 2024. Then, Williamson’s dream came true this year as they hit the road with the World of Outlaws.
“He (Williamson) took off for Australia last winter and told Dennis Moore Jr., ‘I want to go to the World of Outlaws, and I know there’s no chance of Curt taking me there at this point in time, but sooner or later I’m going to make the Outlaws,’” Curt Fischer recalled. “I called him up one night and said, ‘I hope you’re ready because you’re going to the Outlaws.’”
The Fischers were rewarded with a standout season from Williamson. Seven rookies joined the tour in 2025, and Williamson bested them all. He collected seven top fives, 26 top 10s, and qualified for a dozen Dashes en route to standing atop one of the most competitive rookie classes ever assembled.
It’s a testament to Williamson’s unrelenting work ethic. Family finances didn’t afford endless opportunities growing up. Youthful success in Micros proved he possessed talent. He got his shot in sprint car racing, and he continues to make the most of it every day.
“It’s crazy,” Williamson said. “If you would’ve told me six years ago or even two years ago that I’d be racing with the World of Outlaws and be rookie of the year for 2025, I would’ve told you that you were crazy. But my girlfriend has been with me basically since the start. I’ve always told her, and she’s kind of always known that this is what I want to do. She’s one of the people who’s really known how much I’ve really wanted this, to be an Outlaw driver. There’s really been no other choice.
“So, yeah, it’s cool. I try not to think about it and get caught up in it because it’s easy to do. I’m just really thankful for the opportunities I’ve had and the people I’ve been presented in my life. Each person has played a huge role in my life no matter if they’re still part of my career or not. It’s crazy to think six years ago is kind of when I started. We’ve come a long way.”
Curt Fischer admits he was nervous at times throughout the campaign. Winning the Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year is no easy task, even during a normal season, let alone when an unparalleled number of worthy competitors sign up to battle for it. Williamson trailed Chris Windom through the early part of the summer but grabbed the top spot in August and never looked back.
“Garet came to me one night, and he said, ‘You said you’d take me to the Outlaws. I promise you I’m going to win the rookie of the year,’” Fischer said. “And then, all of a sudden, three or four or five more guys jumped on the boat, and I’m like, ‘Uh oh.’ But he was just bound and determined before the season got started that one way or another, he was going to win that thing.
“The crew chief, Chad Cypert, he kept saying, ‘Curt, just quit talking about points until after the (Knoxville) Nationals.’ And it’s just like after the Nationals, this kid came alive. The whole team came alive and just went like a house on fire. We were just so impressed with what they did.”
The record books will forever display Williamson’s name under one of the sport’s most coveted awards. Winning a championship may be the more difficult task, but you only get one shot at rookie of the tear. Come up short, and that’s it. No trying again next year.
That box is checked, but Williamson isn’t spending much time celebrating. He’s already focused on getting better. A title is his ultimate goal, and focusing on what’s already accomplished won’t lead him to the top. The race-ready operation on Facebook opened the door to sprint car racing, and he’s not leaving anytime soon.
“I want to dedicate the rest of these years to grinding it out. I want to be a World of Outlaws champion,” Williamson said. “You see the guys like David (Gravel). They dedicate their time and their life into this sport to hopefully get a championship or be successful or be remembered as one of the good guys in the sport. That’s my goal with racing. I want to be remembered as someone that put in the effort, got better, and maybe one day be a champion.”
