Bryan Clauson
Clauson with his dog Chevy at the2015 Indianapolis 500
Born	Bryan Timothy Clauson (1989-06-15)June 15, 1989 Carmichael, California, U.S.
Died	August 7, 2016(2016-08-07) (aged 27) Lincoln, Nebraska, U.S.
Achievements	3-timeUSAC NationalMidget Series Champion (2010, 2011, 2015) 3-timeUSAC National Drivers Champion (2010, 2011, 2012) 2-timeTurkey Night Grand Prix Winner (2009, 2010) 2-timeUSAC NationalSprint Car Series Champion (2012, 2013) Non-winged Driver of the Year (2013)[1] Chili Bowl winner (2014) 3 timeBelleville Midget Nationals Champion (2009, 2010, 2015)Indycar Series Nation Fan Favorite driver (2016) National Sprint Car Hall of Fame (2018)
NASCARO'Reilly Auto Parts Series career
26 races run over 2 years
2008 position	27th
Best finish	27th (2008)
First race	2007Emerson Radio 250 (Richmond)
Last race	2008Ford 300 (Homestead)
Wins Top tens Poles 0 2 1
IndyCar Series career
3 races run over 3 years
2015 position	39th
Best finish	33rd (2012)
First race	2012Indianapolis 500 (Indianapolis)
Last race	2016Indianapolis 500 (Indianapolis)
Wins Podiums Poles 0 0 0
Statistics up to date as of August 8, 2016.

Bryan Timothy Clauson (June 15, 1989 – August 7, 2016)^[2] was an American professionalauto racing driver, best known for his achievements indirt trackopen-wheel racing, such asUSAC Silver Crown, Midget and Sprint cars. Clauson was increasingly seen competing with theWorld of Outlaws (WoO) sprint cars in his last couple of years. Clauson also competed in theNASCAR Nationwide Series,Indy Lights, andIndyCar Series and was a development driver forChip Ganassi Racing.

In 2016, Clauson attempted to compete in 200 races including theIndianapolis 500,World of Outlaws sprint cars, wingless sprint cars, andmidget cars. On August 6, 2016, Clauson was involved in a midget car crash atBelleville High Banks Speedway inBelleville, Kansas, and died the following night.

In 2018, Clauson was elected into theNational Sprint Car Hall of Fame. The facility also built the Bryan Clauson Tower with fan donations overlooking turn 2 at the famedKnoxville Raceway. TheIndianapolis Motor Speedway's new infield dirt track conducts a 39-lap USAC Midget race in his memory starting in 2018.

Born inSacramento, California, Clauson made hisUSAC National Sprint Series debut just two days after his sixteenth birthday on June 17, 2005, atLimaland Motorsports Park,Ohio, garnering a third place podium finish. On October 8, 2005, Clauson won theOpen Wheel Oktoberfest Midget race atColumbus Motor Speedway, Ohio, becoming the youngest driver in USAC history to win a National feature event, aged 16 years, 3 months and 23 days. On August 12, 2006, Clauson recorded a historic USAC Sprint/Midget doubleheader "sweep" atSalem Speedway,Indiana, winning both the thirty-lap Midget race and 50-lap Sprint race held the same night, only the 24th such sweep in USAC history.

On August 31, Clauson scored his first career ARCA win at theGateway International Raceway. Two months later he began competing in theNASCARBusch Series, driving the No. 41MemorexDodge Charger forChip Ganassi. He competed full-time during the 2007 season in the USAC National Sprint and Midget Series as part of theKeith Kunz Motorsports stable.

Despite his move to NASCAR, Clauson returned to his dirt-track roots on January 12, racing in theChili Bowl, an indoor Midget race in Tulsa, Oklahoma, featuring some of the top names in racing, such asJeff Gordon,Tony Stewart,Kasey Kahne,Jason Leffler,Gary Scelzi,Cruz Pedregon,Bobby Santos III,Brett Hearn andTim McCreadie. After starting the feature mid-pack, he finished fourth overall.

In2008, Clauson started the season in the No. 41Polaroid/TexacoHavoline Dodge for Ganassi in the Nationwide Series, but was replaced byKyle Krisiloff. He then drove the No. 40 Fastenal entry for Ganassi, filling in for Dario Franchitti in select races. He won his 1st pole at Daytona in July, but was replaced full-time by Franchitti the week after.

He was set to make his Cup debut at theBank of America 500 atLowe's Motor Speedway driving the No. 40Target/MotorStorm: Pacific RiftDodge but qualifying was rained out and the team, which did not have enough owner points, did not qualify. His second attempt at his Cup Series debut ended the same way at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Qualifying was rained out for the race on October 26, 2008; he would have driven the No. 40Guitar Hero World TourDodge. In his first actual attempt at Texas, Clauson failed to qualify.

Clauson was supposed to drive the No. 40 in the Nationwide Series full-time in 2009, but the team shut down after the team merged withDale Earnhardt, Inc. and CGR's Nationwide program was shut down,^[3] The No. 40 car's sponsor, Fastenal, would also leave the team forJR Motorsports. Clauson was not able to find a ride with another NASCAR team for 2009, and he did not end up returning to the sport at all after his release from Earnhardt Ganassi, so he returned to dirt racing. He won theTurkey Night Grand Prix in November.

Clauson joined the Tony Stewart Racing Silver Crown team in USAC 2010. During this season he was successful in winning the USAC National Midget championship for his team, as well as the first-ever USAC National Drivers championship. Clauson earned a $300,000 scholarship to compete in all sixIndy Lights oval races in 2011.^[4]

Clauson ran the2012 Indianapolis 500 withSarah Fisher Hartman Racing, but finished thirtieth with mechanical problems.

Clauson won the USAC Sprint Car Championship in 2012, and repeated in 2013.^[5]

Following the 2013 season, Clauson replacedJerry Coons Jr. in the Joe Dooling/Rusty Kunz number 63 Westin Packaged Meats Esslinger powered Midget. On January 18, 2014, he won theChili Bowl Nationals at theTulsa Expo Center,^[6] while teammateMichael Pickens, driving the number 63 Dooling Machine, Esslinger powered midget, flipped with eleven to go. Later that year, the Gold Crown Nationals atEldora Speedway were postponed after a 5-hour rain delay, the next day they resumed racing and he led all 25 laps of the race for his first Gold Crown Midget win, holding off Christopher Bell in the No. 71 KKM midget.

Clauson returned to the Indy 500 in2015, driving for theKV Racing Technology/Jonathan Byrd's Racing team, finishing 31st after an accident while moving out of the way for a faster car.^[7] He also competed in the "Kokomo Classic" atKokomo Speedway later that evening, where he finished 2nd to Kevin Thomas, Jr. in a photo finish.^[8]

Clauson was attempting to compete in two-hundred races in 2016 which is being billed as "The Chasing 200 Tour, Circular Insanity".^[9] The tour included the100th Indianapolis 500, USAC Midget and Sprint cars,World of Outlaws (WoO) sprint cars, and wingless sprint cars.^[9] He normally ran about 150 shows per year; he hoped to double up by racing some 360 wingless sprint car class cars at 410 (WoO / USAC) winged sprint car events.^[9] Clauson traveled the country living out of a mobile home.^[9] The IndyCar Series announced during its series banquet on October 4, 2016, that Clauson was named INDYCAR Nation Fan Favorite driver as voted on by the fans.^[10]

Wikinews has related news:

• Midget car racer Bryan Clauson dies aged 27

On August 6, 2016, Clauson was competing in the Belleville Nationals midget race – his 116th race of the year – when he was involved in an accident in which he flipped his car after making contact with a lapped car and was hit by another.^[11] He was taken toBryan Medical Center West and was in critical condition upon arrival.^[12] Clauson died at the hospital the following evening.^[13]

Tony Stewart remarked, "It sucks when it's anybody in racing. It's hard when you lose them, but it's even worse when they're somebody as close to you as Bryan was. I feel for Bryan's parents and his sister, and I hope to be able to see them soon, but just thinking about them more than anything right now."^[14]

Clauson was a registered organ donor, which contributed to five lives being saved.^[15][16] Shortly after his death, Clauson's parents established an organ donation registration campaign. Named 'Chasing 200,' by the time of Clauson's memorial service on August 24, more than 750 people had registered, after which the campaign expanded its goal to 2000 registrants. A month after Clauson's passing, more than 3750 people had registered, making it one of the largest donation campaigns in recorded history; at that time, it was believed their future donations would contribute to saving an estimated 18,800 lives.^[16]

Various tributes from the racing community were made in honor of Clauson. For the Xfinity Series race atMid-Ohio Sports Car Course, drivers ran a BC decal on the A-post of their cars,^[17] while race winnerJustin Marks dedicated his victory to Clauson.^[18] The following week, at the Cup Series'Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race,Ricky Stenhouse Jr. ran a Fastenal scheme modeled after Clauson's 2008 Nationwide Series car, Stenhouse finished in a then career-best 2nd place.^[19] And on May 28, 2017, at the 100 lap of the Indianapolis 500 race, the video board located at the start-finish line displayed a commemorative green image with the legend #BCFOREVER on it.

The Bryan Clauson Classic, known as the Driven2SaveLives BC39 presented by NOS Energy for commercial reasons, is held during the NASCAR meeting at theIndianapolis Motor Speedway. This event promotes organ donation through registration, and carries his car number, 39, as the race distance.^[20] It is a two-nightUnited States Auto Club NOS Midget Championship race.^[20] Originally run for the 25th Brickyard 400, the event was moved to the week after the NASCAR meeting in 2021 in order to avoid a date clash with the Knoxville Nationals. The race is now a September race.

In 2018, Clauson was elected on the first ballot into theNational Sprint Car Hall of Fame.

On May 19, 2021, theNTT IndyCar Series announced that the driver who qualifies on pole for the inauguralBig Machine Music City Grand Prix inNashville, Tennessee, will receive the Bryan Clauson Trophy, awarded to highlight the event's partnership with Tennessee Donor Services to raise awareness for organ and tissue donation. The race sponsor, Big Machine Label Group, was Clauson's sponsor.^[21]

Clauson attendedNoblesville High School inNoblesville, Indiana. He is survived by his parents Tim and Diana Clauson and sister Taylor. He left behind his fiancée Lauren Stewart and their dogs, Chevy and Stewart.

(key)

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time.Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time.Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Wikimedia Commons has media related toBryan Clauson.

• Official website
• Bryan Clauson driver statistics at Racing-Reference

• 1989 births
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• IndyCar Series drivers
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• Sportspeople from Carmichael, California
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