RANCHO SANTA FE, California – Brandon Miller is hoping for success in the second NASCAR Featherlite Southwest Series race of the 2001 season, the Coors Light 125, which takes place this Saturday, March 24th, at the 3/8-mile Cajon Speedway in El Cajon, California. Miller, the youngest driver on the NASCAR tour, will be piloting the #68 Ford Taurus, sponsored by Oakley, Inc.
Miller continues to fight for “Rookie-of-the-Year“ status in the ultra-competitive NASCAR Featherlite Southwest Series tour. “The competition in this series is very tough, as I found out at the first race this year in February at Phoenix International Raceway,” said Miller. “All of us at Brandon Miller Racing have been working and testing since Phoenix to insure our success in the 2001 racing season.”
Miller hails from Rancho Santa Fe, California, a suburb of San Diego, and considers Cajon Speedway, which is about 15 miles outside of San Diego, his “local” track. Brandon has spent much time watching and testing at Cajon Speedway, which is known as the “fastest 3/8 mile paved oval in the West.” “Hopefully, my familiarity with the track will help this weekend,” Miller adds. “We’re ready to perform for our hometown crowd.”
About Brandon Miller Racing A lifetime race fan born into a racing family, Brandon Miller began his driving career at the tender age of 11, when he first started racing go-karts. Just six months later, he won his first race, and within the next six years, he won the U.S. Junior Shifter Kart Nationals twice.
Brandon raced karts in Europe against such formidable competitors as current Formula 1 pilots Jenson Button and world champion Michael Schumacher. At 17 years old, Brandon made the move to auto racing, first with the Barber Dodge open-wheels series, then finding a home driving Late Model stock cars.
In the 1999 and 2000 racing seasons racing Late Model stock cars in the southwest, Brandon finished in the top ten 18 times and won three races, one against 1999 Winston Cup Rookie of the Year Tony Stewart. The 2001 season began with a flurry of activity for Brandon Miller Racing with the purchase of new racing cars, a custom-built shop on the grounds of Mesa Marin raceway in Bakersfield, California, and the addition of a highly experienced crew chief, Russ Pursley. “We stepped up our program immediately to run the 2001 NASCAR Featherlite Southwest Series by adding an exceptional crew chief like Russ Pursley to our team,” said Miller. “We’ve also got plans to run some ASA and Late Model races this year when our schedule allows.”
Miller entered 2001 with extensive testing on Mesa Marin’s ½ mile oval and the first Featherlite race of the season at Phoenix. “I’m enjoying racing this season so far,” said Miller. “The NASCAR Featherlite Southwest Series Tour is the next logical step towards Craftsman Truck, then onto NASCAR Winston Cup.”
