When the Cup Series Next Gen cars roll into the Bowman Gray Stadium next month, it won’t be Denny Hamlin or Kyle Larson who is the favorite to win the Clash. It would rather be 53-year-old Tim Brown. The veteran has turned thousands of laps and won plenty of races at Bowman Gray, but he won’t share his experiences with his competitors in light of competition.
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He admitted to the press recently that plenty of Cup Series drivers he is friends with have been getting in touch with him, wanting to get him on their side as a driver coach. However, he has been unwilling to join them or part knowledge. He said, “I don’t even talk with those guys because we want to go run as good as we can and not help those guys out at all.”
Brown will be driving the No. 15 car for Rick Ware Racing in the Clash. He is employed full-time with the organization as a suspension and drivetrain specialist. What makes him an attractive prospect is his extensive experience driving in the Bowman Gray Stadium. He is the track’s most successful driver with 101 wins in Tour Type Modifieds.
He has also won 12 track championships and 146 pole positions. The opportunity to drive in the Cup Series is something that he never dreamt would come his way. And it wouldn’t have had it not been for the sanctioning body’s decision to move away from the L.A. Coliseum. The dominoes fell in the right place, and none benefitted more than Brown.
Brown is still speechless weeks after the announcement of his debut
Following the news breaking last month, Brown had tried maintaining his composure and not making a big deal out of things. But he hasn’t been able to help with things beginning to come to fruition. He said, “Anybody that knows me it’s very seldom that I’m ever speechless, but this has kind of made me speechless.”
It is just not him that this is special for. His family, Rick Ware Racing, and the entire short-track racing community take pride in the fact that one of their own will be in competition with the big dogs in the Cup Series and have a real shot at beating them. The cold weather will partner with Brown in this task.
The Madhouse will be an extremely cold avenue in February and present additional challenges to drivers. But with his experience driving there, Brown ought to be able to hold up better than his competitors. He will be the man to beat in the first race of the 2025 Cup Series season.
