Tyler Carpenter won on opening night of this year’s Gateway Dirt Nationals, successfully defending his title from 2019 – the last time the event was ran.
But social media was buzzing in anticipation, waiting for Carpenter – who’s known for his fiery post-race interviews – to get on the microphone.
He didn’t disappoint.
“Gordy (Gundaker) can kiss my ass,” Carpenter told Blake Anderson on the FloRacing broadcast when asked about his rival that he had just beaten. “He’s just one of them guys. Like the rest of y’all – keyboard warriors – that’s why its written on my spoiler. This race is for all you pussies. We’re here. We’re in victory lane. I’m gonna earn myself a truck ride and y’all is gonna have to watch it.”
The highlight of the race was how Carpenter navigated lapped traffic.
He got Ricky Thornton Jr. frustrated after a wreck ended the night for the No. 20RT.
“Here’s the way I see it,” Carpenter said on the incident. “You don’t come here to make friends. I don’t want to make no dog-gone enemies, but I don’t come here to make friends. I’d be daggone if I gave up this race due to lapped traffic.”
He was referring to the accident in the video below:
Insanity. 👀@GatewayDirt | #DirtInDecember pic.twitter.com/gsmzqcdUU3
— FloRacing (@FloRacing) December 3, 2021
Thornton Jr. went on to call Carpenter the R-Word before retiring from the race and ended up finishing P17 in a 20-car field.
Carpenter meanwhile, kept the wins at The Dome at America’s Center coming, and he might leave the night as the favorite to win on Saturday (and he’d earn a NASCAR Trucks ride if he got that spot, too).
“I love it man, I love being the face of this place,” Carpenter said on FloRacing. “Its an equalizer – I can’t run with these guys, I can’t even sniff their ass on one of them big tracks. It aint because I ain’t got the capability, I can wheel just as good as any of these guys. I’m here, where, if you want to earn it you bust your ass and you go get it.”
Tyler’s full interview can be seen below.
— NoTalentBirdTyper (@hungryamerican) December 3, 2021
Gateway Dirt Nationals Night 1
Late Model Results
1. Tyler Carpenter
2. Bob Gardner
3. Tanner English
4. Kyle Hammer
5. Shannon Babb
6. Jason Feger
7. Tanner Collins
8. Blair Nothdurft
9. Ryan Montgomery
10. Jeffrey Ledford
11. Scott Bell
12. Jayme Zidar
13. Dewayne Kiefer
14. David Webster
15. Jason Zobrist
16. Brandon Sheppard
17. Ricky Thornton Jr.
18. Trevor Gundaker
19. Rachel Carpenter
20. Scott Bloomquist
