Brian Brown – Speedy in Ohio!
(Bill W) July 16, 2012 – Brian Brown and the Casey’s General Stores/FVP #21 team impressed in their visit to Ohio last week. Despite a tangle at the Brad Doty Classic, they came back with a fifth place run at Eldora, before suffering mechanical issues in the King’s Royal. A busy week is planned again, with four events planned in the Upper Midwest.
Last Wednesday, Limaland Motorsports Park in Lima, Ohio hosted the Brad Doty Classic. “We were tickled to death to get to Lima to the Brad Doty Classic,” says Brian. “Brad is a living legend. It was something we really were circling on the calendar this year. We didn’t get off to a good start. I got stuck in behind a slower car in hot laps and didn’t get the laps I needed to.”
After registering 20th quick, Brian was able to salvage a Dash start by charging from fifth to second in a tough heat race. “We just missed it a little bit qualifying,” he says. “It was good to miss and still be 20th out of 50 cars, but we didn’t hit it right. We had to get going in the heat to make the Dash. We were able to get by Joey (Saldana), Brad Sweet and Shane Stewart to get to second. That was huge for our confidence.”
After finishing tenth in the Dash, Brian started in the same spot in the feature. It didn’t last long. “On the second lap of the A, Brad Sweet, another car and I went three-wide,” he says. “Brad’s left rear hit my right front and spun me around. That collected Paul McMahan, which was bad for him. It ruined his night too. We left knowing we had a good car.”
Despite limited experience at Eldora Speedway located near Rossburg, Ohio, Brian started well in the “Knight Before the King’s Royal” on Friday. “I had only raced at Eldora twice,” he says. “That was for the Ollie’s 360 Challenge a couple years ago, and with Lonnie (Parsons) in 2003 when I really didn’t have any experience. We were able to qualify seventh and go from third to second in the heat.”
After a sixth place run in the Dash, Brian was able to maintain and pick up a fifth place finish. “We ran thirty good laps and got some good experience,” he says. “It felt good to run up against the fence there. I had been there a lot as a kid, and to be able to go and run and get a top five with the Outlaws was great. I’m just really proud of our team.”
The $50,000 to win King’s Royal was next Saturday night. “We drew a good number to qualify, but it ended up hurting us,” says the Grain Valley, Missouri driver. “The track actually got better as we went. We ended up being 16th quick.”
The heat race started well, but Brian had to hold onto third in the end. “We ended up putting a slider on Sammy to take the lead,” he says. “He didn’t give us much room on the front straightaway completing lap one. He gave me the option to lift or crash, basically. We chose to lift.”
Starting sixteenth, Brian surged forward until his mechanical issues sidelined him. “We were able to get up to tenth or eleventh about ten laps in,” he says. “At that point, we had ignition problems that ended our night. In the whole scheme of things, it wasn’t the finish we wanted, but to run that well is a huge confidence booster going into the ‘Month of Money’. Our confidence is sky high. We’ll run three or four races this week and keep our momentum up.”
Action with the JSTS 360 series is planned in Sioux Center, Iowa Wednesday, Redwood Falls, Minnesota Thursday, and Fairmont, Minnesota on Friday. The team will come south on Saturday to the Knoxville Raceway where they may pull double duty.
Category: Brian Brown, Driver Updates, News
