Tyler Courtney Earns Seventh All Star Victory Of ’21 In Ron Ditzfeld Memorial At State Fair

Story By: TYLER ALTMEYER / ALL STAR CIRCUIT OF CHAMPIONS – SEDALIA, MO – For the seventh time in 2021, Indianapolis, Indiana’s Tyler Courtney is a FloRacing All Star Circuit of Champions presented by Mobil 1 main event winner, doing so in Missouri State Fair Speedway’s Ron Ditzfeld Memorial on Thursday, July 29.

The victory, a $10,000 score for the young man they call Sunshine, was accomplished from the inside of row two, taking command for the first on lap eight after battling by fellow All Star full-timer and recent high school graduate, Zeb Wise.

Although faced with a handful of cautions during his tenure, as well as a few peaks of the nose by Kerry Madsen, Sunshine held strong, followed at the line by Madsen, Ayrton Gennetten, Justin Peck, and Kasey Kahne.

“The boys got this Turbo car rolling tonight. They didn’t stop working the whole time. We were kinda off at the beginning, but we got better every time we hit the track. I can’t thank these fans enough for sticking it out today in this heat. These fans are what make all of this possible,” Tyler Courtney said, driver of the Clauson Marshall Racing, NOS Turbo, No. 7BC sprint car. “We’re rolling into the biggest two weeks of the year at Knoxville, and we get to race there on Saturday, so hopefully we can keep this momentum going. The Nationals is just a whole different ball game. You have to be on your ‘A’ game as soon as you step in that place.”

Angola, Indiana’s Zeb Wise, who started the 30-lapper from the pole position, led the first seven circuits around State Fair Speedway’s sprawling halfmile, uninterrupted until faced with a gaggle of slower cars at the start of lap eight.

During Wise’s attempt to dive below a lapper, Courtney, who had been solidly in second since lap one, made his move, ultimately pulling even with Wise by the exit of turn two, all before using the bottom groove to pull ahead of Wise at the exit of turn four. Madsen, aboard the Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing No. 14, also snuck by Wise in traffic, locking down second on lap nine.

Unfortunately for Wise, his potential top-five was cut short on lap 15, eventually ending his night on the hook after getting upside-down and leaving the park; he was OK.

Madsen tried his best to get by Courtney during each of the ensuing single-file restarts, four to be exact, but Courtney’s momentum on the top was too strong.

“I kept stumbling on those last few restarts, so I knew Kerry was going to get a good run. I just tried to take any air that I could off of him and get back to the curb as quickly as I could,” Courtney continued. “Kerry is obviously a really good racer and that 14 car has been really fast here the last month or so. I knew it was going to be all about the starts.”

Jumping north into the Hawkeye State, the All Star Circuit of Champions will conclude their Midwest showcase with a pair of stops in Iowa kicking off Friday, July 30, at the 34 Raceway in West Burlington, followed by a visit to the world-famous Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville on Saturday, July 31. Awarding a total winner’s share equaling $13,000, the Iowa doubleheader will feature a $6,000 payday at 34 Raceway, followed by a $7,000 payday at Knoxville.

Contingency Awards/Results: Missouri State Fair Speedway | Thursday, July 29, 2021:
Event: Ron Ditzfeld Memorial | $10,000-to-win
Entries: 23
C&R Racing Hot Laps: Brian Brown | 17.401
Dixie Vodka Fast Qualifier: Ayrton Gennetten | 16.873
Ford Performance Heat #1 Winner: Tyler Courtney
All Pro Aluminum Cylinder Heads Heat #2 Winner: Kyle Reinhardt
Hunt Brothers Pizza Heat #3 Winner: Brian Brown
Kear’s Speed Shop Dash presented by Elliott’s Custom Trailers and Carts Winner: Zeb Wise
FloRacing A-Main Winner: Tyler Courtney (7)
Hercules Tires A-Main Hard Charger: Skylar Gee (+11)

Qualifying

Group (A)
1. 3-Ayrton Gennetten, 16.873; 2. 9T-Kasey Kahne, 16.909; 3. 14-Kerry Madsen, 16.921; 4. 11-Spencer Bayston, 16.967; 5. 10-Zeb Wise, 16.988; 6. 21-Brian Brown, 17.014; 7. 7BC-Tyler Courtney, 17.025; 8. 47N-Marcus Dumesny, 17.033; 9. 26-Cory Eliason, 17.039; 10. 13-Justin Peck, 17.054; 11. 91-Kyle Reinhardt, 17.058; 12. 5-Paul McMahan, 17.070; 13. 4-Cap Henry, 17.163; 14. 24-Rico Abreu, 17.172; 15. 7B-Ben Brown, 17.253; 16. 25-Austin McCarl, 17.254; 17. 17B-Bill Balog, 17.282; 18. 22-Riley Goodno, 17.295; 19. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg, 17.303; 20. O7-Skylar Gee, 17.310; 21. 20G-Noah Gass, 17.453; 22. 14E-Kyle Bellm, 17.664; 23. 18T-Tanner Holmes, 17.751

Heat #1 – Group (A) (8 Laps) – Top 8 Transfer
1. 7BC-Tyler Courtney [2]; 2. 13-Justin Peck [1]; 3. 3-Ayrton Gennetten [4]; 4. 4-Cap Henry [5]; 5. 11-Spencer Bayston [3]; 6. 25-Austin McCarl [6]; 7. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg [7]; 8. 14E-Kyle Bellm [8]

Heat #2 – Group (A) (8 Laps) – Top 8 Transfer
1. 91-Kyle Reinhardt [1]; 2. 47N-Marcus Dumesny [2]; 3. 9T-Kasey Kahne [4]; 4. 10-Zeb Wise [3]; 5. 24-Rico Abreu [5]; 6. 17B-Bill Balog [6]; 7. O7-Skylar Gee [7]; 8. 18T-Tanner Holmes [8]

Heat #3 – Group (A) (8 Laps) – Top 8 Transfer
1. 21-Brian Brown [3]; 2. 5-Paul McMahan [1]; 3. 26-Cory Eliason [2]; 4. 14-Kerry Madsen [4]; 5. 22-Riley Goodno [6]; 6. 7B-Ben Brown [5]; 7. 20G-Noah Gass [7]

Dash #1 (6 Laps)
1. 10-Zeb Wise [1]; 2. 3-Ayrton Gennetten [2]; 3. 7BC-Tyler Courtney [3]; 4. 14-Kerry Madsen [4]; 5. 21-Brian Brown [5]; 6. 9T-Kasey Kahne [6]; 7. 11-Spencer Bayston [8]; 8. 91-Kyle Reinhardt [7]

A-Main (30 Laps)
1. 7BC-Tyler Courtney [3]; 2. 14-Kerry Madsen [4]; 3. 3-Ayrton Gennetten [2]; 4. 13-Justin Peck [10]; 5. 9T-Kasey Kahne [6]; 6. 5-Paul McMahan [11]; 7. 11-Spencer Bayston [7]; 8. 26-Cory Eliason [12]; 9. O7-Skylar Gee [20]; 10. 4-Cap Henry [13]; 11. 21-Brian Brown [5]; 12. 24-Rico Abreu [14]; 13. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg [19]; 14. 25-Austin McCarl [17]; 15. 18T-Tanner Holmes [23]; 16. 17B-Bill Balog [18]; 17. 91-Kyle Reinhardt [8]; 18. 47N-Marcus Dumesny [9]; 19. 20G-Noah Gass [21]; 20. 22-Riley Goodno [15]; 21. 10-Zeb Wise [1]; 22. 14E-Kyle Bellm [22]; 23. 7B-Ben Brown [16] Lap Leaders: Zeb Wise (1-7), Tyler Courtney (8-30)