Tyler Courtney began racing a Quarter Midget in 2007, at the age of seven. Courtney raced at the rank for a handful of years and moved on to the Micro Sprint level where he raced for another seven years. In 2010, Courtney - soon to be given the nickname "Sunshine" - began what would be two very influential and important years with Bryan Clauson Racing Incorporated. In 2011, Courtney competed in his first Chili Bowl Midget Nationals with BCI and his start in the B-Main on Saturday night earned him Rookie of the Year honors. Courtney credits his early opportunities in the sport to his friend and mentor, Bryan Clauson. Clauson helped Courtney get his foot in the door, but he also gave him the encouragement and knowledge he needed to excel when those opportunities arose.
In 2012, Courtney raced for a number of different Midget owners and teams before starting his own Sprint Car team at the end of the year. Starting his own team paid off as Courtney found victory lane for the first time in his career at Lincoln Park Speedway. Although his season was short, Courtney impressed enough people to earn the 2012 Hoosier Auto Racing Fans (HARF) Rookie of the Year award.
Courtney's first full year in a Sprint Car came in 2013. He competed with the USAC National Sprint Car Series for the first time, finishing 9th in national points, and was awarded the Rookie of the Year award. Courtney picked up his first Winged Sprint Car win in the same year driving for Danny Smith at Atomic Speedway in Ohio.
The next couple years were a blur of different cars and different owners with no real stability for Courtney, but he kept after pursuing his dream of being a professional racecar driver.
Fast forward to 2016, when Courtney earned a ride with Topp Motorsports. Topp Motorsports gave Courtney the opportunity to race a Sprint Car (Winged and Non-Wing) full time. The team experienced much success their first year together and it was capped off with a win during Indiana Sprint Week at Gas City I-69 Speedway. At the end of the 2016 season, Courtney was chosen to drive a Midget with the newly formed Clauson-Marshall Racing team.
In 2017, Courtney will return to his roots and compete in all three USAC National Series' and contend for two championships. He will return to race for Topp Motorsports in the No. 23c Sprint Car. Courtney, with the Topp Motorsports team, looks forward to continuing their success in the USAC National Sprint Car Series. This is the first year the Topp Motorsports team will contend for a USAC championship. Alongside the USAC Sprint Car Series, Courtney has joined the Clauson-Marshall Racing team to compete on the USAC National Midget tour in the No. 7BC Midget. The No. 7BC team has had early success winning the Junior Knepper 55 at the end of 2016, and winning a preliminary night at the 2017 Chili Bowl Midget Nationals. Also in 2017, Tyler will be racing a partial schedule with the USAC Silver Crown Series; running the dirt races for Wisconsin's Hans Lien in his all black No. 97. When an open weekend arises, you can find "Sunshine" in a Winged Sprint Car with Topp Motorsports or in the Clauson-Marshall Racing Midget at various events across the country!