PITTSBORO, Ind. – Minnesota’s Brian VanMeveren and Wingo Brothers Racing are gearing up for a busy season of non-winged 410 sprint car competition.
VanMeveren tentatively has a 51-race schedule lined up, mostly consisting of USAC and Midwest Sprint Car Series events.
The 2018 season was VanMeveren’s rookie campaign in the non-winged 410 after graduating from the local UMSS non-winged series in Minnesota. VanMeveren competed at 12 different tracks in Indiana and said the biggest highlights from last year were the confidence he gained in the car and the new team he’s affiliated with.
“Mike and Jimmy Wingo of Wingo Brothers Racing were a huge help to me the last part of the season last year,” said VanMeveren. “They just made a few little adjustments to the car and gave me some driving advice. Having the Wingo Brothers’ support has definitely been the biggest thing I’ve gained over the last year. I’m really looking forward to working with them again this year.”
VanMeveren’s season will kick off March 22-23 at Brownstown (Ind.) Speedway with the $7,500-to-win No Way Out 40. VanMeveren will compete with the USAC National tour on March 30 at Lawrenceburg (Ind.) Speedway before heading to Kokomo (Ind.) Speedway for back-to-back shows on April 5-6.
“Really, I’m looking at it as a test-n-tune for Lawrenceburg,” said VanMeveren of his opening weekend at Brownstown. “Lawrenceburg is the first USAC show of the year and I’m primarily focusing on USAC this year. We’ve got another new car in the stable this year so we’ll be doing a few different things with the setup and engine package and shaking everything down.”
VanMeveren’s season last year was highlighted by strong qualifying efforts throughout the year, capped off by making the starting grid for the Kokomo Smackdown. VanMeveren said he’s looking to build upon last year’s success.
“I really want to be competitive and collect a few top 10 finishes in USAC. That’s really the goal,” he said.