100th running in 2016
The race was the 116th of the year for Clauson as part of a campaign known as the Circular Insanity Tour, in which he attempted to run 200 races in 2016. Entering the Belleville Nationals, he had won 27 feature races. He was a three-time USAC National Midget and two-time USAC National Sprint Car champion with over 170 wins in USAC-sanctioned events, including a Chili Bowl Nationals win in 2014. He competed in stock car racing, driving in NASCAR and the ARCA Racing Series, winning a race in the latter. He ran 26 Busch Series (now Xfinity Series) races in 2007 and 2008 for Chip Ganassi Racing, recording a best finish of fifth at Kentucky Speedway in 2008. In 2008, he attempted three Sprint Cup Series races for Ganassi, but failed to qualify for all three. Clauson also ran three Indianapolis 500 events, one of which included the 
, where he finished 23rd.
Midget car racer Bryan Clauson dies aged 27