NASCAR Tech Graduate Brandall Brown Is Living His Dream at 22

Since he was a kid (arguably not very long ago), Brandall Brown has had a one-track mind set on racing.

Growing up in the small town of Tallapoosa, Georgia, Talladega Superspeedway was practically in Brandall’s backyard, and he dreamed of making the NASCAR track his home.

“Racing was something that always attracted me,” he says. “I knew it’s what I wanted to do.”

Despite his family’s initial doubt and the challenges of COVID-19, Brandall landed his dream job on one of NASCAR’s most successful race teams in 2020 ... at age 22.

See how he made it happen so young through sheer willpower, dedication and help from a hands-on education at NASCAR Technical Institute.24

It All Started on the Racetrack

Brandall got his first hands-on experience with racing on the dirt track scene in high school.

“I went to Talladega with a buddy of mine who raced. I got to be in the pits with him and get my feet wet,” says Brandall, who was also enrolled in his high school’s automotive program.

Brandall knew a career at the racetrack was what he wanted and he began searching for the right opportunity to help make it a reality.

“I Googled ‘how to get into NASCAR’ and NASCAR Tech popped up. So I knew that’s where I was going,” he says.

Getting His Family On Board Wasn’t Easy

Brandall’s family had other ideas about his future, however.

“My mom and dad … mainly, my mom wanted me to go to a four-year university and be an engineer or an architect. She always pushed that route on me,” he says. “But I told her I was racing. Racing was my thing, and I was going to do it.”

Without any doubt in his mind, Brandall moved to North Carolina and started school at NASCAR Tech in 2018, just three days after he graduated high school.

Landing a Job With His Dream Team

Brandall started in the Automotive Technology program at NASCAR Tech and also began working part-time.

He spent the first four months washing cars at a Ford dealership when a position opened up at Hendrick Motorsports, a race team that currently has 286 NASCAR Cup Series wins.

“If I could pick any race team, Hendrick was the No. 1 place I wanted to be,” Brandall says.

He got the job in the pit department in September 2018. His duties included driving the pit car for practice, and gluing and stacking tires. Getting this job was a clear sign to Brandall and his parents that he was on the right path.

“Once I got on part-time, my mom was on board with the process,” he says.

Education Helped Fuel His Success

Brandall worked steadily at Hendrick and in school, advancing to the NASCAR specialized training program.

“All of my knowledge and being hands-on was from NASCAR Tech,” Brandall says. His favorite class — the Spec Engine course with instructor Darrell Hoffman — helped set him up to achieve even more success at his job.

In the exclusive class for honor students, Brandall learned the ins and outs of NASCAR engines and even helped build one.

“I was the only one in my class that got in the Spec Engine program, so it was just me and the instructor one-on-one. I learned so much from him,” he says, adding, “It really set me up to succeed in what I do now.”

Brandall graduated from NASCAR Tech in September 2019. After four months and three strenuous interviews, he landed a full-time position at Hendrick as an engine tuner. He had realized his dream!

COVID-19 Throws a Wrench

Brandall was preparing for the race season in Daytona when COVID-19 changed everything. “I went to four races, flew into Atlanta, then everything shut down for months,” he says. When Brandall came back to work in May, his job had changed dramatically.

He went from tuning engines at the race track to working on them in the shop at Hendrick home base in North Carolina. Despite the changes, Brandall remained focused on his original goal: to get back to the racetrack.

“Being hands-on with the car when I was tuning then seeing it on the track — that meant a lot to me. That’s what I’ve wanted to do,” he says.

Getting Back On Track

With races starting back up, Brandall is transitioning back to his position as a full-time engine tuner on the track, where he will prepare engines for each day of racing.

And while he will literally be living his dream, Brandall has his sights set on even more.

“I want to be a champion as a mechanic,” he says, adding, “I want to win a championship on the road as an engine tuner.”

Ready to Start Your Journey Here?

Thanks to the education and experience he gained at NASCAR Tech, Brandall Brown was prepared to pursue his career in the racing industry.6

His advice to anyone in a similar situation is simple: You can do it. “You can do anything you want to do as long as you’re headstrong and you want to do it and have the right work ethic.”

NASCAR Tech’s Mooresville, North Carolina, campus is the only campus in the country to offer NASCAR-endorsed training, including the 15-week NASCAR Technology and Pit Crew program. Those who complete the Automotive Technology program at NASCAR Tech or a Universal Technical Institute campus are eligible to apply.

Find out more by visiting our program page or by requesting more information here.