In 2001, more than fifteen years ago, Jake Knowles made his racing debut as part of the cruiser class at Dixie and Rome Speedways. He finished second in points for the year in a Cadillac cruiser. Sitting alongside a driver who would steer and operate the brakes, Jake maintained control of the gas.
The following year, his father's 1996 Jig-A-Lo leaf spring car became his first real race car. In that car, he not only finished third in points for the year, but also won the Sportsman race in the Hardee's Shootout at Dixie Speedway where he qualified on the pole and led every lap.
In 2003, Jake won 5 races in the first 6 months, making it a year to remember. In compliance with Dixie Speedway's rules, he was obligated to start in the rear, at sixth, until he could win another race. So, what did he do? He won two more races and the track championship. Jake went on to win the Alabama State Race in Phoenix City. Later that year he finished eighth at Atomic Speedway, and fifth at North Georgia Speedway; both of which he had never raced before.
Knowles adopted another one of his father's cars in 2004, a 2001 Warrior Chassis, to drive in the Limited Late Model Division. During that time, he won eight feature events and the track championship for his division at Dixie and Rome Speedways.
He continued in the Limited Late Model division and won his first race of the 2005 season. After being contacted by Mike Stewart, Jake decided to participate in the crate motor race, Prelude to the Dream, at Eldora Speedway in Ohio. Driving Stewart's car, he won the first heat race, started on the pole for the feature, and won the big race. After such an accomplishment, Knowles moved forward into a great season driving for Mike Stewart.
2006 ended Jake's run with Stewart and marked the beginning of a five-year racing span with longtime friend and Cleveland Speedway owner Monty Morrow. He raced the Advanced Tennessee Thunder Series, finished fourth in the O'Reilly Southern All-Stars, and finished second in the Rookie of the Year chase. Unfortunately, due to scheduling conflicts between the two races, Knowles was not able to compete for either title.
One year he took home a feature win at Rome Boss as well as two other feature wins. In another, he claimed his first win for both the Lucas Oil Dirt Series and the Southern Regional Racing Series at Cleveland Speedway, won at Green Valley Speedway, and again at Dixie Speedway. He then spent two weeks in South Africa at the Worchester Motor Club Oval Track where he had two heat wins and a feature win in one night.
In his final year with Morrow, Jake took another trip to South Africa, where he raced against his father for the first time. Within his three weeks in Cape Town, he won two out of three main events, and placed second in the other. He also had two second place, one third place, and two fifth place heat wins and received the Fan's Choice Award. Once back in the states, he gained four more feature wins, two of which were in the Super Late Model division, and the others in the
Limited Late Model division.
In 2011 Jake bought a Rocket Chassis and a Race Engine Design motor to start his own team. The year was challenging and his strength was tested, but he pushed through to win two Super Late Model races. Eventually a good friend of his, Chad Smith, gave him the opportunity to run his Steel Head motor which he used to win four different races.
Knowles became somewhat of a mentor to Smith's young son as they all travelled around the southeast participating in the Southern AllStars Series, the Southern National Series, and some other local events in 2012. During this year, he also made it on his third trip to South Africa, where he won two races.
The following year held many victories for Knowles, winning the prestigious Gobbler at the Cleveland Speedway and competing in 37 events with twenty-six top ten finishes and two wins for the year.
By 2014 he received sponsorship from Smith for his own car and competed for the Chevrolet Performance 525 Series points title. He was second in points throughout the year up until the final race when he was passing for the lead and his motor broke, leaving him third in points for the year. Additionally, Knowles had seventeen top ten finishes out of nineteen races and one win.
In 2015, Jake teamed up with Matt and Larry Wester and began racing their Super Late Model car while he continued to race his car in the Chevrolet Performance Series. He finished the year at sixth place in points, with twenty-two top ten finishes in thirty-six races and one win.