CMR Returns to Racing at Du Quin; Golobic & Grant Grab Top Fives, Courtney Thrills with Incredible Drive, Wise Continues to Shine, Stenhouse Back Behind the Wheel, and Scelzi Makes Team Debut!
(Ross Wece Photo)
Du Quoin, IL | December 17, 2017 – Competing in the final event of the 2017 season, the Clauson-Marshall Racing team loaded up with a stout count of six Stanton SR-11 powered Spike Chassis machines in the trailer and took off for Du Quoin, Illinois. Racing at USAC’s Junior Knepper 55 inside of the Southern Illinois Center, CMR was returning to a building that has seen a fair share of their success over the years. Entered in this year’s running with regulars Tyler Courtney, Shane Golobic, Justin Grant and Zeb Wise, those four were also joined by a returning Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and young Gio Scelzi in his CMR debut.
With five drivers in the 21-car feature field, the chaotic and action-packed night was far from over. Starting fourth and sixth in the 55-lap main event, Justin Grant and Zeb Wise both transferred to the feature through passing points as they each won a heat race and drove to the front of qualifiers. For Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Shane Golobic, their feature bids were earned through B-Main action, as the No. 17BC and No. 17W both were slated to start 18th and 20th. Rounding out the field in the 21st starting spot, Tyler Courtney earned a promoters provisional after he showed plenty of speed in preliminary action before being put into the wall and knocked out of the qualifier.
Making his debut with CMR, California’s Gio Scelzi showed plenty of potential in what was just his second-career race behind the wheel of a midget. The 15-year old rising star has already risen through the micro sprint ranks and won against the best-of-the-best in sprint car racing on the west coast. Ending his night in the B-Main, Scelzi put on a valiant effort as he worked his way up to the fifth spot and challenged for a transfer in the late running. Scelzi will be back with the Clauson-Marshall Racing stable in four weeks as he makes his Chili Bowl Nationals debut.
For the other five CMR competitors, the action was only heating up as a 55-lap feature on the 1/6th mile bullring labeled as the “Mini Magic Mile” was in store. Trouble struck early on as Ricky Stenhouse Jr., the 2015 winner of the Junior Knepper 55, saw his night come to a close on the seventh circuit. Making his way from 18th-to-11th, Stenhouse was on the move and charging towards the front before a mechanical issue ended his run with a 20th-place DNF.
With Justin Grant and Zeb Wise contending inside of the top five, Shane Golobic and Tyler Courtney were marching through the field together. As lap 20 of the 55-lapper hit, it was the CMR Development driver, Zeb Wise, who executed a spectacular move and moved from fourth-to-second. Wise’s run at the race leader would only be halted by his teammate, as Justin Grant snuck by Wise at halfway and took over the runner-up position. At that point, all eyes started shift towards “Sunshine,” as Tyler Courtney had slipped into the top ten and was on rail to the front.
By lap 35, Courtney, who started in the dead last position of 21st, had driven into the fifth spot and had his sights set on CMR teammates, Wise and Grant. With five laps left, the Indianapolis native roared into the third position and was set to mount a challenge for the victory. However, heartbreak struck on lap 51 as Courtney spun around to a stop just as he caught the race leaders. The late-race caution was extra tough on the CMR group as Zeb Wise, who was sitting in sixth, had cut a tire and tagged the tail of the field after heading to the work area.
The final caution of the night, however, brought a strong opportunity to Shane Golobic, as the driver of the Elk Grove Ford No. 17W had stormed from the tail to fifth. Sneaking into the top ten with nine laps left, Golobic turned in an extraordinary late-race charge after biding his time for much of the main event. Making the most of the four-lap dash, Golobic worked his way into third the position as the checkered flag dropped. Extending his incredible streak with the podium result, Golobic has now recorded a victory, two second-place finishes, and a third-place run in four Du Quoin attempts.
Joining Golobic inside the top five, Justin Grant guided his NOS Energy Drink No. 39BC to a fifth-place finish. After running in second and third for much of the race, Grant slipped back in the late-running, but never fell out of the top five all race long. The Ione, California native continued his own phenomenal streak involving indoor racing in a CMR ride. Since joining CMR in January, “JG” has recorded a Chili Bowl preliminary win, a third-place finish in the Chili Bowl main event, a victory at Du Quoin in March’s Shamrock Classic, and a third-place run in yesterday’s Junior Knepper 55 at Du Quoin.
Perhaps the most misleading result of the year came with Tyler Courtney’s 10th-place finish. After starting in 21st (dead last), “Sunshine” methodically guided the Driven 2 Save Lives, Indiana Donor Network No. 7BC through the field and was set to challenge for the win before his late-race incident. A Chili Bowl preliminary winner in his own right, Courtney will have a strong opportunity to avenge himself with the biggest race of the year in just under a month.
Another misleading finish came for Angola, Indiana’s Zeb Wise in the form of his 14th-place run. The 15-year old rising star contended at the front all race long and even challenged for the lead momentarily after sliding into the second spot. A cut tire with five laps remaining is what relegated Wise to the tail and ultimately gave him his 14th-place finish. The Turkey Night Grand Prix “Rookie of the Race” will not be in action at the Chili Bowl due to the 16-year old age limit, but Wise will return to micro sprint racing at the Tulsa Shootout in two weeks.
The Clauson-Marshall Racing group will head back to Indianapolis with a busy three weeks of preparing cars for the upcoming Chili Bowl Midget Nationals. Scheduled for January 8th-13th in Tulsa, Oklahoma, CMR is slated for an eight-car team. The full lineup is expected to be announced soon.
EVENT RESULTS:
Shane Golobic --- Heat Race: 4th, Qualifier: 6th, B-Main: 4th, A-Main: 3rd (20).
Justin Grant --- Heat Race: 1st, Qualifier: 3rd, A-Main: 5th (4).
Tyler Courtney --- Heat Race: 2nd, Qualifier: DNF, A-Main: 10th (21).
Zeb Wise --- Heat Race: 1st, Qualifier: 2nd, A-Main: 14th (6).
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. --- Heat Race: 6th, Qualifier: 6th, B-Main: 3rd, A-Main: DNF (18).
Gio Scelzi --- Heat Race: 5th, Qualifier: 7th, B-Main: 14th.
UPCOMING EVENTS:
1/8-13: Chili Bowl Midget National at Tulsa Expo Raceway in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
MEDIA LINKS:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ClausonMarshall/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ClausonMarshall
Website: http://www.clausonmarshallracing.com/
CLAUSON-MARSHALL RACING:
Race on. A saying that Bryan Clauson always related to his father Tim when our sport faced its darkest moments. It’s what racers do, we continue to race on. Following Bryan’s tragic passing in August of 2016, Tim Clauson and Richard Marshall never wavered when they formed Clauson-Marshall Racing. After unveiling a dream team at the 2017 Chili Bowl, CMR shifted focus to USAC. With a trio of Tyler Courtney, Justin Grant and Shane Golobic competing on the national level, along with Zeb Wise in the development ranks of POWRi Midgets and micro sprints, the future at Clauson-Marshall Racing looks brighter than ever. After a successful freshman campaign, the team will be expanding to sprint cars in 2018 as Ryan Newman joined in an ownership role to form Clauson-Marshall-Newman Racing. CMNR will tackle the 2018 USAC National Sprint Car slate with Tyler Courtney behind the wheel.
- Tim Clauson on Dec 18, 2017
- Article Date: 12/17/2017 by Brian Walker