(Gary Pigg Photography)
Oklahoma City, OK | March 27, 2018 - It was the ultimate act of selflessness from Tyler Courtney, as he took into account the best interest of young Zeb Wise ahead of his own at I-44 Riverside Speedway on Saturday night. Following a bitter series of unfortunate events that took away Wise's chance at his first National Midget victory on Friday and then eliminated him from Saturday's race in the C-Main, "Sunshine" decided to scratch from his fourth-place starting spot and hand over the reins of the No. 7BC to Wise. Tagging the tail of the feature in 24th, Wise quickly adapted to Courtney's Driven 2 Save Lives, Indiana Donor Network No. 7BC entry and ensued to drive through the field for an incredible sixth-place finish with the POWRi National Midget League.
"Obviously, as a competitor, it was tough to give up my seat for the feature, but it was a decision I felt very strongly about," noted Courtney. "The kid had worked so hard all weekend and didn't have anything to show for it, and yes, I know that is how racing goes and he will have more weekends like that along the way. That being said, I still felt like he needed one more shot to get something out of the weekend, because we went down there for him to get ready for Kokomo in a couple of weeks. He made my decision worth it with his drive in the feature."
Beginning on Friday night with the "Turnpike Challenge" opener at Oklahoma City's I-44 Riverside Speedway, both Clauson-Marshall Racing entries worked their way into the 30-lap feature as Zeb Wise rolled out on the outside pole and Tyler Courtney started 13th. After an opening lap incident sent Courtney to the work area and eventually to the tail, Wise got things rolling as he jumped into the early lead. Leading the first 17 laps aboard his Angola Collision Services, Priority Aviation No. 39BC, Wise appeared to be a formidable choice for the win, until a mechanical issue sent him to the infield while battling for the lead. The tough night for CMR continued just laps later as Tyler Courtney relinquished his charge through the field when he too was forced into the infield.
Returning on Saturday with hopes of a better night, Courtney started the night off strong with a dominant heat race victory from fourth. Wise was poised to do the same from second, but while extending his lead, another mechanical issue haunted the No. 39BC and sent Wise to the infield. After pulling out the back-up car to try and make a run through the alphabet soup, Wise's hopes were soon dashed as he failed to successfully fire at the start of the C-Main and once more, dropped to the infield, this time ending his weekend.
However, after Wise's heartbreak continued and his night was canned in the C-Main, "Sunshine" made a quick decision to offer his ride to his 15-year old teammate. With the main purpose of the OKC trip being Wise's readiness and preparation heading into the USAC doubleheader at Kokomo, the elder CMR competitor never hesitated in offering the young racer his feature spot.
Tagging the tail of the 30-lap feature in the 24th starting spot, Wise would have to be quick on adjusting to what is normally Courtney's Driven 2 Save Lives, Indiana Donor Network No. 7BC. Beginning his march to the front of the field, Wise slid high and cut low left and right, as he sliced and diced his way through the heart of the stacked field. Working into the top ten on lap 17, Wise continued to storm forward and by the time the checkered flag finally dropped, the Angola, Indiana native had hustled his way past 18 drivers as he finished sixth-from-24th in the POWRi Midget main event.
"After the C-Main I was devastated that my night was over so early, especially since we were so fast on Friday," stated Wise. "Then Sunshine told me that he was going to sacrifice his fourth-place starting spot for me to race. Tyler has been with me since the start of my midget career, and having him at the racetrack, and to do something like that, amplifies my love of being his teammate. When I was rolling out, I really wasn't sure where this 24th starting spot would take us, but to take home a sixth-place finish definitely made it a night I will never forget."
On tap next for the Fishers, Indiana based group will be a return to USAC National Sprint Car racing as Tyler Courtney and the Clauson-Marshall-Newman Racing team head for Lawrenceburg Speedway on Saturday, March 31st. For the Clauson-Marshall Racing midget trio of Courtney, Wise and Justin Grant, they will next hit the track in three weeks for a USAC National Midget doubleheader at Kokomo Speedway on April 13th and 14th.
EVENT RESULTS:
Zeb Wise - 3/24: Heat Race: DNF (2), C-Main: DNF (2), A-Main: 6th (24).
Tyler Courtney - 3/24: Heat Race: 1st (4), A-Main: Scratched (4).
Zeb Wise - 3/23: Heat Race: 1st (5), A-Main: DNF (2).
Tyler Courtney - 3/23: Heat Race: 4th (7), B-Main: 1st (2), A-Main: DNF (13).
UPCOMING EVENTS:
CMNR - 3/31: USAC National Sprints at Lawrenceburg Speedway in Lawrenceburg, IN.
CMR - 4/13: USAC National Midgets at Kokomo Speedway in Kokomo, IN.
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 Zeb Wise competing on the national level, the outstanding group will be chasing their first title together in season two. After a successful freshman campaign, the team will also 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.