Brian Vickers

Brian Vickers started Kart Racing at the age of 11. He had always been a keen student and studies had been an important part of his life. But for Brian, racing never came in at second.

He started Kart racing in 1994 and in his first four years in the sport, Brian won the World Karting Association's National Karting Championships three times. He won the North Carolina State Kart Championships four times out of four in the same time period. In 1998, Brian decided to shift to the Allison Legacy series. His performances were, once again, breathtaking as he took five wins in his rookie season.

He was progressing really quickly and by the time he was 16, Brian was participating in the NASCAR Late Model Stock Car's short track series, in 1999. In 2000, Brian was part of the USAR Hooter's ProCup and in his very first season, he scored two wins and 14 top-ten finishes to become the Rookie of the Year. At a time when most guys his age were busy with other distractions, Brian was making his debut at the NASCAR Nationwide Series. He spent most of 2000 in getting used to the difference in the NASCAR level.

He finished second at the USAR Hooter's ProCup series in 2001 with a phenomenal pair of wins, 11 top-five finishes and 14 top-ten standings. He was looking really good at the USAR level and the result was that he got more exposure at the NASCAR Nationwide Series. He got 21 races for 2001 and put in some extremely strong performances including a top-10 placed finish.

In 2002, Vickers was graduating from High School and as a result, probably had too many things on his mind. He missed his prom night as he was out racing at the Bristol Speedway. He qualified for the race at Charlotte on a particular Friday; flew back home for his graduation ceremony; and then flew back again in time for the race on Saturday. Such was his commitment to his studies as well as racing. In 2003, he became the youngest driver to win the Nationwide Series of NASCAR. He had 3 wins, 13 top-five finishes and 21 top-ten finishes on his way to the title at the age of 20.

He began his life at the NASCAR Sprint Cup series in 2003 with 5 races for a feeler of the whole series. He had incredible qualifying sessions with four top-5 qualifications in his 5 races. His best finish was a 13th place at Phoenix in a season where after just 5 races, he finished at 49th place. In 2004, he made major improvements as he got an entire season of racing. His 25th place finish had 11 top-five qualifications, which was turning out to be his major strength. He finished 7th at Atlanta-his best for the season.

In 2005, the 22 year-old was in blazing form. He reached the podium once for a third place finish and also got a second place at the Pocono Raceway. He was in wonderful form as he ended the season in 17th place. But things were just looking upwards as in 2006, he finished 15th. He got his maiden Sprint Cup win as well in the season, at Talladega.

The bubble burst in 2007 when Brian failed to qualify for 13 events in the season. He could only manage 38th place, which was extremely disappointing by his high standards. For someone who has always tried to be the best at what he does, 2008 will be another chance for Brian Vickers to prove his mettle out on the tracks and chances are that the young American will surely produce another season worthy of an A-grade.