(WOMR file photo)
Every since Brendan Gaughan’s near championship season in the Truck Series in 2003, driving his family owned race team, he has not really found a home, nor the success enjoyed in that particular season. Notwithstanding the lack of success since 2003, Gaughan has had a cup of coffee at the Sprint Cup level with Penske Racing, had a mediocre season in the Nationwide Series with Rusty Wallace Racing a couple of years ago, and last year a reasonably decent year running part-time, in both the Nationwide and Truck series with Richard Childress Racing.
Earlier this week Richard Childress Racing announced that Gaughan will return to the Camping World Truck Series full-time driving the #62, Gaughan family sponsored, South Point Hotel and Casino Silverado. Brendan will reunite with crew chief Shane Wilson to run a full season and compete for the 2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship.
Driving for RCR in 2012, Gaughan the Las Vegas native, competed in eight NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races (three top-five and five top-10 finishes), and 10 NASCAR Nationwide Series races. He has competed in six full seasons in the Camping World Truck Series since he made his series debut in 1997. In 195 races, Gaughan has earned eight victories, 67 top-10 finishes and three pole awards.
He is also scheduled to run two races on the 2013 Nationwide Series schedule, at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (March 9) and Road America (June 22).
Gaughan and Wilson first teamed up in 2000, running four Camping World Truck Series races that year and three more in 2001, earning a third-place finish at Mesa Marin Speedway in Bakersfield, Calif. They ran a full season in 2002, winning both races (June 7 and Sept. 13) at Texas Motor Speedway, and finishing 11th in the driver championship point standings.
The next year was a breakout season for the duo, winning six races, earning 18 top-10 finishes and three pole awards on the way to a third-place finish in the driver championship point standings. Together they made the move in 2004 to a full season the Sprint Cup Series, earning one top-five and two other top-10 finishes. The #62 South Point Hotel & Casino team will begin the 2013 Camping World Truck Series season with the owner points earned by RCR’s #22 entry in 2012.(Richard Childress Racing PR)
As usual, the “off-season” is not really a time off! Those drivers without a ride, as well as all of the race teams, are busy scrambling to line up rides, sponsors packages, and the like, in order to drive through the tunnel at Daytona and compete in just 79 days 4 hours and 8 minutes!
TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!
