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(Bill W) July 19, 2010 – Brian Brown is back on top of the 410 point standings at Knoxville Raceway. The difference is a whopping one point in the season long battle with Don Droud Jr. The Grain Valley, Missouri driver finished second in Saturday night’s feature event as the FVP #21 performed well. This week, Brian will compete at the Crawford County Speedway in Denison, Iowa on Wednesday, before testing both the 360 and 410 classes at Knoxville on Saturday.
First off, Brian would like to send a message to fellow competitor Wayne Johnson, who underwent successful surgery to his leg on Sunday in Seattle, Washington. Wayne was in an accident on the second lap of the Fred Brownfield Memorial with the Lucas Oil ASCS National series at Grays Harbor Raceway. “I’d like to give my best to Wayne,” says Brian. “I’d like them to know that our team is really thinking of Wayne, (wife) Erin, and their girls.”
On Saturday, Brian qualified sixth in the 30-car field. “Qualifying is so big, and we were able to get a better time in than we had been,” he says. “I think we’re headed in the right direction, and that gives you some confidence heading into the night, instead of being down on yourself.”
Brian made it through his heat race with flying colors, finishing fourth. “We’ve really been working on the balance of the car to get me more comfortable,” he says. “We tried some things, and I think we’re definitely gaining some ground.”
The FVP machine started in the second row, and Brian maintained third place in the running order the first half of the main event. “We were running well in third there, and we had a caution on lap ten,” he says. “We were able to get by Max (Dumesny) on the restart, and it felt good. We were able to run the bottom some early, and the top late. The car felt comfortable.”
Johnny Herrera was out front, and he and Brian separated themselves from the rest of the field. “Johnny was setting a good pace, but we were able to stay with him,” says Brian. “With four or five laps to go, I think we were reeling him in a bit. With two to go, I thought I had a flat left rear tire. Another problem on the left rear changed the characteristics of the car. I don’t know that we would have won it, but maybe we could have made it closer.”
Brian finished ahead of Don Droud Jr. in the race, and took a one point lead in the season long point race. “It was a good point night for us,” he says. “I felt that’s what we needed to do to get back on track. Knoxville couldn’t have scripted this any better really. To have us divided by one point, and have the 360 points tied at the top are unbelievable. From here on out, every single point is important.”
Droud and the Sonner racing team are a tough opponent in the championship race. “Don, Don and Gilly are a great team, and they’re not going away,” says Brian. “They are going to make sure everything is ready to go, just like we are. We’re going to be doing our best.”
Brian has two wins in his career at the Crawford County Speedway. “It’s always good to go up to Denison,” he says. “There is great competition with the ASCS-Midwest group and there will be some extra money on the line. That big half-mile really suits my style, and we can learn things for Knoxville.”
The team will be in high gear at Knoxville with two cars to maintain. “If everything goes well, we’ll run both classes at Knoxville on Saturday,” says Brian. “We want to make sure we’re on with our 360 deal. It’s a lot different than the 410. A little bit less horsepower, and you’ve got different rear tires (Hoosier). We’d love to come out of there with a couple of wins.”
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