Brian Vickers

Birthday: Oct. 24, 1983
Hometown: Thomasville, N.C.

YEAR-BY-YEAR CUP SERIES RECAP

2008 -- Finished 19th in series standings. ... Was runner-up at Pocono in June. ... Earned first NASCAR pole for Red Bull Racing Team at Michigan in August. ... Led more than 60 laps in both Charlotte races.

2007 -- Finished 38th in series standings. ... Best starting position was third at Talladega in October .... Failed to qualify for 13 events.

2006 -- Finished 15th in series points. ... Won first career race at Talladega in October ... Led 21 laps of Daytona 500 and finished seventh. ... Started and finished fourth in both races at Pocono. ... Started on the pole at Texas in November race.

2005 -- Finished 17th in series points. ... Season-best finish of second came on June 12 at Pocono. ... Won the pole for the July 17 event at New Hampshire. ... Finished third at Indianapolis.

2004 -- Finished 25th in series points. ... Won poles at Richmond in May and Fontana in September. Also had nine other top-five starts. ... Best finish was seventh at Atlanta in October race. ... Qualified sixth at Indianapolis.

2003 -- Finished 49th in series points. ... Made series debut at Charlotte in October, in Hendrick Motorsports No. 60 Chevrolet. ... Also made four starts in No. 25 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet to close out season. ... Qualified in the top five in four of the five races entered. ... Finished season-best 13th at Phoenix.

PREVIOUS RACING HISTORY

Joined Hendrick Motorsports in December 2002 and completed his first full season in the Busch Series in 2003. ... Earned one pole, three wins, 13 top-five and 21 top-10 finishes en route to series title at age 20, becoming the youngest national series champion in NASCAR history. ... Ran 21 Busch Series events in 2001, posting one top-10 finish. ... Made his Busch Series debut at The Milwaukee Mile in 2000. ... Finished second in USAR Hooter's ProCup Series in 2001 after collecting two wins, three poles, 11 top-fives and 14 top-10s. ... Named 2000 USAR Hooter's ProCup rookie of the year, posting two wins and 14 top-10 finishes. ... Began racing late model stocks in NASCAR short-track competition in 1999. ... Won five times in Allison Legacy Series in 1998. ... Four-time North Carolina state go-kart champion. ... Three-time World Karting Association national champion (1994-97). ... Began racing go-karts in 1994.

NOTEWORTHY

During 2002 Busch Series season, qualified for Charlotte's May race on a Friday, hurried home for Trinity (N.C.) High School graduation ceremonies, then returned to Charlotte in time to race Saturday afternoon. ... Earlier in the 2002 season, Vickers missed his high school prom because he was racing at Bristol. ... Had a 4.43 GPA in high school.