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Brian Brown – A Special Win!
(Bill W) May 31, 2010 – Brian Brown was able to capture what he describes as
his most special win this past weekend at the Knoxville Raceway. Sporting
the #77 in honor of his late competitor, Jesse Hockett, the Grain Valley,
Missouri driver battled for a win at Knoxville much to the delight of the
massive crowd that was gathered. The win was also timely in that the World
of Outlaws come to town Thursday through Saturday.
The rivalry between Brian and Jesse was a natural one in their proximity,
but there was always a level of respect for one another’s abilities. “We
weren’t the best of friends, but we weren’t enemies either,” says Brian.
“There were times we were friends, and times when things weren’t good
between us. The last year or so, we had gotten along really well. We
called each other or talked about setting the car up for certain tracks
whenever we could.”
Brian, five years older than Hockett, was able to see the determination turn
a weekend racer into a professional one. “It’s extremely unfortunate to
lose him at such a young age,” he says. “He resembles what sprint car
racing is all about. He was a small town kid who made it big, but never
forgot where he came from. I was honored that the family gave me the
blessing to carry his number last weekend. I was just worried I wasn’t
going to do it justice. The first two nights, I felt like I let them down a
little bit, so I was glad that it worked out at Knoxville.”
The night started with the seventh quick time of the night, despite coming
out second in the order. “If you’re not setting quick time with the local
shows, you definitely have concern for when the Outlaws come (June 5-7),”
says Brian. “I think the track actually may have gotten better as time
trials went on, so that is one good thing, but realistically, you need to be
qualifying good for when the Outlaws come. If you aren’t on, they will eat
you alive.”
Brian ran third in his heat race after starting fourth. “Mark (Dobmeier)
and I had a good battle,” he says. “He had motor problems earlier, and
started up front. We got to racing each other, and he ended up in front of
us. We weren’t on top of our game at that point.”
Ian Madsen shot out to an early lead in the main event with Brian in tow.
“Ian did a great job and got out there a little bit,” says the 2007 track
champ. “I was rolling the bottom in one and two, and I haven’t been running
down there much lately. It’s good to know I can still do it.”
A wake-up call came in the form of Josh Schneiderman. “We were
maintaining, when Schneiderman got by me, and I sat up in the seat a bit,”
says Brian. “I was able to get back up to Ian, but he was doing a good
job. I was fine riding there, because I knew traffic was coming, and I
didn’t want to push the issue too early.”
With just four laps remaining, a caution flag interrupted a battle for the
lead. “We had the caution, and I knew we were in good shape,” says Brian.
“We were able to get into the lead on the restart, and then we had that
yellow on the last lap. We had a good restart, and we were able to get the
win. It was special with the #77 on the car, that’s for sure.”
The weekend started in Nebraska on Thursday and Friday at I-80 Speedway near
Greenwood, and Junction Motor Speedway near McCool Junction. Brian started
eighth in his heat and ran third at I-80. “I’ve always loved going to
I-80,” he says. “It was great to get back there. It was good to get the
passing points to get in the draw, and you have to do that with ASCS.”
In the feature, Brian was able to get in the lead in the early going, but
eventually Shane Stewart would relegate him to second at the checkers. “I
was on the bottom, and I could hear Shane on the top,” he says. “I tried to
go up there and block, then I heard him on the bottom. When I went back
down, he drove around me on the top. He just had a faster car than we did
on that night, at least the last ten laps or so. Sometimes, you are just
second, and you have to deal with that.”
It was on to McCool Junction on Friday, and the same scenario played out,
relegating Brian to third. “We have been good in the heats (9th
to 3rd at JMS) with ASCS, and that has saved us,” he says. “We
were able to draw the front row outside for the feature, and we got out to a
lead. Ryan Roberts (winner) did a great job and was able to get by us, and
so did Shane (second). If we can stay in the top three, we’re going to win
our share.”
This weekend, it is back to business at Knoxville with the World of Outlaws
and several invaders coming in for the Mediacom Shootout Hall of Fame
Classic at Knoxville running Thursday through Saturday.
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