Fast Facts Redux: Brian Vickers

Brian Vickers at Daytona - Feb. 2016
credit: NASCAR Media

In this past weekend’s Sprint Cup Series race at Martinsville Speedway, Brian Vickers picked up his best finish since July 2014, coming home seventh in his subbing role for Tony Stewart. Learn more about this North Carolina native in this week’s Fast Facts reboot, originally published in Dec. 2012.

• Brian Lee Vickers was born Oct. 24, 1983 in Thomasville, North Carolina. He began racing go-karts in 1994, winning 80 races and three championships in the World Karting Association over the span of three seasons. He moved up to the Allison Legacy Series in 1998, winning five races, and the NASCAR Dodge Weekly Racing Series in 1999.
• In 2000 and 2001, Vickers raced in the USAR Pro Cup Series (now the CARS X-1R Pro Cup Series). He won Rookie of the Year on the strength of two wins in 2000 and finished second in points with five wins in 2001.
• Vickers made his top-tier NASCAR debut in 2001 in the Busch Series (now Xfinity Series) in a family-owned car, running 25 races for the team between 2001 and 2002; his best finish was seventh (Richmond – 2002). In 2003, he was hired by Hendrick Motorsports to run the No. 5 in the series, going on to win the championship and become the youngest champion in the Busch Series at age 20 (this record was later eclipsed). Vickers also competed in five Cup Series races for Hendrick in 2003 before making the jump to full time in the Cup Series in 2004.
• Vickers left Hendrick Motorsports for Red Bull Racing after the 2006 season, spending five years with the team before it closed up shop at the end of the 2011 season. Vickers missed most of the 2010 season after blood clots were discovered in his legs and around his lungs. The issue would also plague him in 2013 and again in 2015; he also missed races early in 2015 due to complications from corrective surgery to repair a hole in his heart.
• Following his stint with Red Bull, Vickers raced for Michael Waltrip Racing and Joe Gibbs Racing in the Cup Series; he also raced for JGR in the Xfinity Series in 2013, finishing 10^th in points.
• In 318 Cup Series races (through the 2015 season), Vickers has three wins, 77 top 10s and 12 poles. In 148 Xfinity Series races (through 2013), he has three wins, 78 top 10s and four poles. In 2012, Vickers also competed in the 6 Hours of Spa and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
• In addition to racing, Vickers has worked on NASCAR on NBC as an analyst and serves as a spokesman for Xarelto.
• Find out more about Vickers at his website, www.brianvickers.com.