5/13/2013
Sprint Source
Brian Brown – Bid for WoO Win Comes up Just Short at Knoxville!
(Bill W) May 13, 2013 – Brian Brown and the Casey’s General Stores/FVP #21 team will have to wait a little while to get that first win with the World of Outlaws, but they could hold their head’s high after a strong third place run Saturday night at the Knoxville Raceway. This weekend, finds the team tentatively with the ASCS National Series in Cameron, Missouri on Friday, as well as pulling double duty with the 360 and 410 at Knoxville on Saturday.
Last Friday, was the “FVP Outlaws at Elko” event at the Elko Speedway in Minnesota. You had a good time meeting some folks from FVP in the days leading up to it.
It’s always good to get up there close to our FVP headquarters in Eagan, Minnesota. We had a couple of open houses at a couple of the Factory Motor Parts locations. I always enjoy not only visiting with their customers and employees, but telling them about our team…walking them through the trailer and showing them things about sprint car racing.
Did you feel any heat to perform on Friday with FVP being the title sponsor of the event?
There was a little bit of added pressure there with FVP being the presenting sponsor. I truly believe right now they are doing more for this sport than just about anyone.
Unfortunately, you missed the heat invert by qualifying 19th, and that makes it tough.
We just weren’t really great all night long. We unloaded kind of average really. I don’t think we made the adjustments we needed to between hot laps and qualifying. Once we missed the heat invert and qualified 19th, it made it an uphill battle.
You were sixth in the heat, and then won the B. You pulled off the track early in the feature. Why was that?
We were the best we were all night long in the B, really. We were buried starting 19th in the A. The car wasn’t reacting back there in traffic like we needed it to. It wasn’t good enough to move forward in my opinion, so we called it a day and headed for Knoxville.
Despite coming out late (28th), you registered the third quick time of the night in a stacked 51-car field.
My Charlie Garrett engines ran well, and along with our Maxim chassis, that is the biggest part of our program right now. I’ve said it a hundred times, but everything we do is focused on the Nationals, and you have to lay down a good lap in qualifying.
I don’t think anyone was stronger in the heat race. You started fourth, and ended up winning it, pulling away from everyone.
I was a little worried about being third quick. Ideally you want to be in the top two or starting on the front row of the heat with the Outlaws (11th-20th on Saturday), but it worked out. Winning it from row two was awesome. We’ve been able to come out of that spot three out of the last four nights (including the previous weekend’s events at Eldora) and get a top two finish to get in the Dash. We’re being really aggressive in our heats and getting going. Again, it’s the Knoxville Nationals mentality, when you need to go eighth to fourth.
You also started fourth in the Dash. You rode in second behind Tim Kaeding for a while before passing him and pulling away again. Were you thinking about just finishing second and starting outside row one for the feature?
Unfortunately, the driver isn’t always that smart! We try to win everything, especially in front of the hometown crowd. We really didn’t change anything, and the car got better and better. I don’t think we’ve had that good a car in a long, long time.
It seemed you were really good early in the feature. The car had worked so well in the heat and Dash. I suppose you don’t want to mess with it much.
It can work against you. It makes you less aggressive with setup when things are going that well. You don’t want to mess it up, especially with the Outlaws. As good as we were in the heat and the Dash, we didn’t want to mess with it. We were really good the first eight to ten laps, but it did go away. I didn’t feel as good on the bottom. (Craig) Dollansky got by us, and I was racing with him. I got a big dirt clod to the side of the helmet. It actually knocked off the post that holds my tear-offs.
You dropped back to second and then third when (Donny) Schatz went by. Then Kaeding got you for fourth.
I ran what seemed like the next hundred laps with no tear-offs trying to race through traffic. We had the closed red with seven or eight to go, and I asked the Outlaws if I could change helmets for safety concerns, and they didn’t think it was necessary. I cleaned it up as best I could and went back at it.
You took advantage of the double-file restart and surged to second right away, but another red came out.
We restarted fourth there. I made as many adjustments as I could with the wing. We went from fourth to second there, and at that point, I really felt we had an opportunity to win. Then the red came out, and they went back to the previous lap’s order. We had the open red, and everyone had a chance to work on their cars. At that point, with a single-file restart, we ended up third.
How much of a hindrance was the helmet?
At the end of the day, you can make 35 excuses why you didn’t win, but we got beat by better racecars. Donny Schatz and Craig Dollansky were first and third at the Nationals last year. Those guys are always going to be tough. Donny Schatz showed why he’s the best in the world, and the best at Knoxville. I think it just makes us hungrier to buckle down at Knoxville for the rest of the summer. We’re going to put our nose to the ground. We need to be good for fifty laps in August.
You are right there on the big tracks right now.
But our small track program isn’t where it needs to be. As far as our half-mile program, I don’t feel like there’s anyone better than us. When we get those guys on the ropes, we need to put the nail in the coffin. There will come a time. Believe me; I want to beat these guys as badly as anyone in the world. You can’t dwell on that, and forget how good our team is doing right now, though.
What are you planning on for this weekend?
We’re looking at possibly Cameron (US36 Raceway) with the ASCS National group on Friday, and we’re planning on running both cars at Knoxville Saturday. Our next test with the Outlaws at Knoxville comes up in a month, so we need to go to work on how we’ll beat the 15.
Brian’s Mom, Grandma and Wife Featured on KCCI’s Sports Extra!
Check out a special Mother’s Day edition of KCCI’s Sports Extra featuring Sandy and Heather Brown, and Barbara Lasoski…
Follow Brian on the Web, Twitter and Facebook!
Follow Brian at his website located at www.BrianBrownRacing.com!
Also keep up with FVP, Casey’s and Brian on Facebook and Twitter at the following links…
Twitter Links – @BrianBrown21, @FVPRacing, @CaseysGenStores
Facebook Links
Brian Brown Racing – www.facebook.com/pages/Brian-Brown-Racing/200630163294222
Casey’s General Stores – www.facebook.com/pages/Caseys-General-Stores/112073528804354
FVP Racing - http://www.facebook.com/FVPRacing?ref=ts&fref=ts
Other Web site info
Casey's: www.caseys.com
FVP: www.fvpparts.com
Brown’s Bits
Brian is definitely knocking on the door for his first WoO win at Knoxville. Dating back to the beginning of 2012, in WoO events he has scored a 4th (April 2012), 3rd (June 2012) and 2nd (Knoxville Nationals 2012) in addition to his third place finish last weekend.
About Casey’s General Stores
Casey’s General Stores is a Fortune-500 company (NASDAQ CASY) operating nearly 1700 convenience stores in 11 states through the Midwest. Known for its “Homemade-To-Go” pizza, sandwiches, donuts and bakery items, Casey’s strives to consistently deliver quality gas, fresh kitchen-prepared food, clean environments and friendly service at every retail location. Casey’s is currently the 12th largest c-store chain and sixth largest pizza chain in the United States.
About FVP
We are very excited to introduce our new line of automotive chemicals, oils and fluids to our product offering. These new products will be available at many retailers across the country. We continue to offer a full line of high quality oil, air, cabin air and fuel filters, plus a complete line of high quality batteries for multiple applications including cars, trucks, SUV’s, commercial and other specialty vehicles. All products are made to OE manufacturer fitment specifications. FVP products are engineered to provide our customers with quality products that are equal or superior in performance to the major national brands at a competitive price. To learn more about our FVP products or to find out where you can have FVP products installed in your vehicle, visit us at www.FVPparts.com! FVP…The Confident Solution
SPLASH
In addition to our line of seasonal safety products, we are very excited to introduce a full line of SPLASH Wiper Blades. Our SafeView Performance Blades fit 95% of the vehicles on the road with quick and easy installation for everyone. The AccuVision Beam Blade offers memory curve steel, which provides uniform pressure for a clear wipe, without the streaks. Look for these great new SPLASH products! Whether it’s keeping your windshield clean or free of ice, protecting your RV, boat or pool from freezing in the winter, or your sidewalk safe to walk on, SPLASH Products are what you need! Check out our new SPLASH website at www.SPLASHWash.com! SPLASH…SEE SAFELY!
Marketing Partner of the Week – Champion Racing Lubricants (Champion Racing 20W50 Motor Oil)
Visit Champion’s new web page at www.ChampionsUseChampion.com! Champion Racing 20W50 Motor Oil is the one that started it all by beating the competition in providing more horsepower, torque, and anti-wear additives than many of the more well known brands of racing oil. Champion Racing 20W50's premium ZDDP anti-wear protection is among the highest in the industry. Champion's exclusive shear stabilizer delivers better film strength and piston ring seal at peak temperatures. Champion Racing 20W50 also delivers more foot-pounds of torque with higher compression than any competitor's brands.
Benefits include:
• Provides exceptional low coefficient of friction
• Offers film strength and viscosity stability of thicker mono-grades at higher temperatures
• Provides upper cylinder anti-wear protection
• Increases high-temp oil pressure and compression
• Formulated for flat tappet, roll over cams and bearings in turbo and super-charged racing engines
• Lowers engine temperature
• Compatible with petroleum and other synthetics
Associate Marketing Partner of the Week – Winters Performance Products
Brian says – “We’ve used Winters Rear-ends since we started, along with their drivelines and stops. In fact, the majority of our parts are Winters components. They do a great job, and we are happy to be a part of their operation.”
Winters builds products for the entire racing industry. Their products can be found in NASCAR, Dirt and Pavement Modifieds and Late Models, Bonneville Land Speed Trial Cars, Pulling Tractors, Pike’s Peak Hill Climbers, Off Shore Boats, Dragsters, Midget and Dwarf Cars and 305, 360 and 410 sprint cars. Their products are distributed worldwide through a large dealer network. Winters, located in York, Pennsylvania, has a quality workforce of around 70 helping in the growth and success of the company. Visit them online at www.WintersPerformance.com!
Brian Brown Racing would like to thank Casey’s General Stores, FVP, Searsboro Telephone Company, Impact Signs Awnings Wraps / impact4800.com, Champion Brands, SPLASH, Ditzfeld Transfer, Maxim Racing, Smiley’s Racing Products, Weld Wheels, Housby Trucks, www.RateWin.com, Arctic Cat, K&N Filters, Hostiowa.net, FSR Race Products, TI64, Fuel-Safe Tanks, Awesome Racewear, Wolfe Eye Clinic, Bell Helmets, CP Pistons, Carrillo Rods, Vortex Wings, Penray, All Pro Cylinder Heads, Butler Built Seats, AkzoNobel Sikkens, AllDayParts.com, Tru Square, Jack Links, Deli Express, Snap-On Tools, Rod End Supply, KSE Racing Products, Winters Performance Products, Santomauro Racing Products, Cometic Gaskets, Kaeding Performance, Donovan, Magtech, ISC Racers Tape, Kinsler Fuel Injection, Racing Optics, Mothers Wax, Don's Truck Wash, Gardner Farms, Hoosier Tires, GoPro, XYZ Machining, Brown and Miller Racing Solutions, Peterson Fluid System, Red Devil Brakes, Schoenfeld Headers, ADD, 6B Apparel, Zips Energy Seeds, Bosch, NGK, Garrett Racing Engines, MSD and WSIB Insurance for all their support!
Attached: Brian at Knoxville (John Lee – High Fly’N Photos)
Article Credit: Bill Wright
Submitted By: Admin Account
