Brian Vickers

The son of Clyde Vickers, president of one of the racing industry’s most respected parts manufacturers and distributors — CV Products - Brian has been exposed to racing nearly all his life.

Vickers began his major racing career competing in the NASCAR Weekly Racing Series in the Late Model Stock division in 1999 at North Carolina tracks such as Hickory Motor Speedway, Tri-County Motor Speedway and Caraway Speedway. He earned six victories and 11 poles that year. The following year, he was named the Hooters Pro Cup Rookie of the Year in 2000 after winning two races and finishing third in the points.

From there, he began his ascent up the NASCAR ladder, driving four NASCAR Busch Series races in 2001 and 21 in 2002.

Finally, in December 2002, Vickers joined Hendrick Motorsports to drive the No. 5 GMAC Financial Services Chevrolet full time.

The choice to put him in a car full time turned out to be very wise, as he claimed the Busch Series driver championship in his first full season of competition on the circuit. The Thomasville, N.C., native posted three victories, 13 top-fives and 21 top-10 finishes. He also started in the top 10 on 23 occasions - more than anyone else.

By winning the title at the age of 20, Vickers became the youngest champion in the modern-era history of NASCAR's top three divisions, supplanting Rob Moroso, who was 21 when he won the Busch Series title in 1989.

In 2004, Vickers drove the No. 25 Chevrolet in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series with sponsorship from GMAC Financial Services, where he finished 25th in the final standings in his rookie season.

The 2005 season saw plenty of promise for Vickers in the NEXTEL Cup, as he improved to 17th in the championship standings on the strength of five top fives and 10 top-10s.

After coming close in the past, Vickers finally won his first NEXTEL Cup race in 2006, winning the fall Talladega race under unusual circumstances – as he unintentionally bumped teammate Jimmie Johnson into race leader Dale Earnhardt Jr. late in the race, handing him the victory. Nonetheless, it was a fitting end to a season that saw him climb up to a career best 15th-place finish in the championship standings with one victory, five top fives, nine top-10s and one pole position.

Towards the end of the 2006 season, Vickers announced that he would leave Hendrick Motorsports at the end of the season and head over to the newly established Team Red Bull to drive the No. 84 Toyota Camry in 2007. He will have Doug Richert as his crew chief and line up alongside open wheel standout A.J. Allmendinger at the new outfit.