Tyler Courtney Set for Chili Bowl Action Tonight, Defending His 2017 Preliminary Victory!
(Collin Markle Photography)
Tulsa, OK | January 9, 2018 – Returning to the United States from a multi-week adventure in New Zealand, Tyler Courtney flew into Tulsa, Oklahoma yesterday with Golden Driller dreams on his mind. A preliminary night winner from one year ago and sixth-place finisher in Saturday’s finale, the Indianapolis, Indiana native is back at the Tulsa Expo with hopes of duplicating that success on a much bigger scale this year. Piloting the NOS Energy Drink, Driven 2 Save Lives No. 7BC entry, “Sunshine” will compete in Tuesday’s preliminary night as he aims for a career-year at the illustrious Chili Bowl Midget Nationals.
“I’m feeling pretty confident going into today,” noted Courtney. “I actually missed the first set of practice yesterday due to a flight cancellation in Auckland. That put us behind the eight ball a little bit, but having seven teammates and a great crew makes my job a little easier with showing up late and hopping in the car. We’re running tonight though, so hopefully we can start on a good note with pill draw. Biggest thing is going to be getting through our heat race, that is arguably the most important race of the night, if not all week. Once we get through there we can kind of set the tone for the night and focus on locking-in for Saturday.”
On the heels of a successful freshman campaign with Clauson-Marshall Racing in 2017, Courtney is coming off a season that saw him record five victories and a sixth-place finish in the USAC National Midget point standings. Opening his year with a Chili Bowl preliminary victory, Courtney rose to the occasion with USAC triumphs at Montpelier, IN, Bloomington, IN and Springfield, IL, while also scoring a POWRi win in Wheatland, MO.
Making his seventh appearance at the Chili Bowl Midget Nationals, Courtney will be chasing his second-career feature start while aiming to improve his only, but best finish of sixth in 2017. Throughout his first five attempts in Tulsa, “Sunshine” showed speed and excellence on the 1/5th mile bullring, but tough luck on his preliminary nights almost always relegated him to the B, C and D-Mains on Saturday. During his Chili Bowl debut with CMR last year, however, Courtney broke through in a huge way as he scored Tuesday’s preliminary victory and placed sixth in Saturday’s 55-lap championship feature.
Strapping into to the seat of the NOS Energy Drink, Driven 2 Save Lives No. 7BC once more, Courtney will attempt to defend last year’s preliminary victory as he competes on Tuesday night alongside Clauson-Marshall Racing teammate, Gio Scelzi. Recently announced as the USAC National Sprint Car driver for Clauson-Marshall-Newman Racing, some Chili Bowl success and possibly an elusive Golden Driller would be quite the way to kick start 2017 for Courtney and CMR.
Beginning on Monday, January 8th with a practice day, the 32nd annual Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Midget Nationals will continue with preliminary nights from Tuesday-Friday with Saturday’s 55-lap main event crowning a new Chili Bowl champion. Stay tuned to the Clauson-Marshall Racing networks throughout the week as we highlight BC’s Dream Team, a stout group of eight competitors vying for a Golden Driller.
CHILI BOWL HISTORY:
2017: Saturday (6th in A-Main) --- Preliminary (1st in A-Main)
2016: Saturday (9th in C-Main) --- Preliminary (20th in A-Main)
2015: Saturday (9th in D-Main) --- Preliminary (24th in A-Main)
2014: Saturday (9th in C-Main) --- Preliminary (24th in A-Main)
2012: Saturday (18th in D-Main) --- Preliminary (22nd in A-Main)
2011: Saturday (16th in B-Main) --- Preliminary (14th in A-Main)
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 Jan 09, 2018
- Article Date: 1/9/2018