Brian Vickers Fans - Frequently Asked Questions

Why did you “Take the Bull by the Horns”?

The bottom line was performance. There are tons of benefits to representing a company like Red Bull, but the true goal is to be competitive and wins races and championships like I’ve been fortunate to do throughout my career to date. With Team Red Bull and Toyota, I have the proverbial “clean sheet of paper” and an opportunity to be a key part of building a new, championship-caliber Cup team from the ground up. It’s a formula that has proven successful for some of the other top teams in our series and it will take time to get there, but I believe the long-term results will speak for themselves. We’ll see in the next few years.

How does the Toyota Camry handle differently from your previous racecar?

With all of the changes in the aero rules from NASCAR and the standardization of the body templates, there’s not as much of a difference as one might think. For an experienced driver, you can see and feel some subtle differences, but the most pronounced changes show up on the superspeedways. At tracks like Daytona and Talladega, the Camry’s handling in the draft is definitely different from what I’ve been used to with my Monte Carlos.

Do you prefer Red Bull or sugar-free Red Bull?

Red Bull.

What’s the most surprising thing you’ve learned about Red Bull since joining their program?

It’s probably just how unique their branding is. Everyone knows they’re a cool company, but it’s fascinating how they approach running their business and marketing Red Bull. A lot of companies say they are “unique” but Red Bull really “walks the walk.” On the business side, a lot of the same principles that have allowed them to become a global brand and the energy drink leader are being used at Team Red Bull. It truly is a company team and the coordination between Team Red Bull, RBNA (Red Bull North America) and (Red Bull’s worldwide hq) Austria is impressive. I think we’re a good fit for each other – really easy-going and laid back in our demeanor, but underneath that is a very strong desire to compete and be the best at what we do.

You have an entirely new crew to get to know – how is that going?

I’m really encouraged by what I’ve seen with my dialogue with Doug Richert (83 crewchief) so far. Doug is a veteran crewchief – he’s won a Cup championship in the past, won the most races two years ago with (Greg) Biffle, etc…, so the guy understands what it takes to win races and compete for championships. But I also think we’re going to be a good fit personality-wise. Doug is respected as one of the nicest guys in the garage and I just think our personalities suit each other well. It’s the same with our carchief – Craig Smokstad. Craig was my carchief when we won the Busch championship at Hendrick and like Doug, not only is he talented but we have similar personalities. As far as all the other crew members and the other Team Red Bull employees (140+ to date), Team Red Bull has worked very hard to hire the best people available and I’m just getting to know each person as the opportunity presents itself.

What do you think will be the biggest change from your previous team to Team Red Bull?

I think mainly the attitude and the organizational structure – the fact that Red Bull owns the team, sponsors the cars and brands the program. But I actually like that, because with Red Bull being the focus of the entire program, I think we’ll end up with a much more cohesive group of people. I only have one teammate now instead of three, but that may not necessarily be a negative depending on how well they work with you. Team Red Bull just looks at everything on and off the track and tries to differentiate themselves from the others, which makes it cool for the Red Bull fans. For example, instead of going to a studio in Charlotte and shooting the same canned press shots of me and the car like every other team, we flew to New York and shot outdoors in the city.

Tell us about your new teammate – AJ Allmendinger?

AJ is cool – we’re getting along well and I’m still getting to know him. He and I are definitely different in many respects, but I think we both are highly motivated to perform well for Team Red Bull and Toyota. I’m going to try to be as supportive a teammate as possible, whether with advice on handling things on or off the track. AJ is a veteran racer, but a NASCAR rookie, so he’ll run into the same learning curve we all do as rookies – learning about these cars, getting to know the other drivers and earning their respect, understanding the media and sponsor demands that come with being a NEXTEL Cup driver, etc… those are things that you just have to learn as you go, but anything I can do to support him and Team Red Bull during that process will be done.

How did you end up with car number 83 and AJ with car number 84?

83 is representative of the 8.3 fluid ounce size of the standard can of Red Bull and since I’m the veteran at Team Red Bull and signed with the team first, 83 is my number. I think Team Red Bull chose 84 for AJ’s team just to keep things similar.

Will you be running any Busch or Truck races in 2007?

I’m interested in running a select Busch schedule and a few of the Truck races that are companion events to the Cup schedule at the COT events, but we haven’t been able to work anything out yet. We had a few challenges; first, my company had several sponsors proposing to partner in some Busch and/or Truck races and those deals never materialized for whatever reason. Toyota also complicated things in the Busch Series because they waited so late to announce their team affiliations and then during the winter, several of those teams had sponsor or ownership issues. And on top of all that, my focus has been on helping get Team Red Bull and the 83 team ready for 2007. I plan to run at least one Busch race this season to maintain my past champion’s provisional eligibility, but nothing has been determined yet. Beyond that, people are working on maybe running some more Busch races later this season if sponsorship can be lined up and I would definitely like to run a Tundra at some point.

When will you be competing in Red Bull Flugtag?

(Laughing) – yeah, we talked about that one day in meeting with the marketing staff. It’s pretty wild. Apparently, it’s a lot harder than it looks. It would be interesting to see if our 83 team could put an entry together but I’m not sure NASCAR gives us enough free time in the schedule. Maybe after we start winning races, Red Bull will let us participate.

Do you really drive a Toyota Camry on the street?

Absolutely – that’s the rental car of choice at the racetrack each weekend, so I really do drive a Camry on and off the track. It’s a nice car – sporty enough for a young, single guy like me but also a great choice for the family. When I’m at home (which isn’t often), I also drive a Lexus GS Hybrid. It’s pretty amazing – you can’t even hear it running at idle on the battery system and I like that it is environmentally-friendly. Toyota offers a hybrid version of the Camry too. I’m also planning on getting a Tundra or Tacoma for my outdoor stuff – I just haven’t had time to go to the dealer and shop for one.