18-Year-Old Gets Valuable Speedway Experience Ahead of Full-Time Season in NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series
MOORESVILLE, N.C. (Sept. 23, 2026) – Carson Brown comes into the ARCA Menards Series season finale Friday at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City balancing what matters now with what matters next.
In the short term, Brown is looking to secure his second straight ARCA win after a dominating victory last week at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway. In the long term, the 18-year-old aims to use the knowledge gained at the 1.5-mile, D-shaped oval to better prepare for next year, when he will drive the No. 2 Whelen Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing (RCR) in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series.
RCR signed Brown to a driver development contract earlier this year, and after wins and poles across ARCA and the ASA STARS National Tour, the organization took the development tag off the New London, North Carolina, native Aug. 26 and named him to its championship-winning O’Reilly Series program for 2027.
Time in ARCA has been crucial to Brown’s preparation, and Kansas represents another important step in building a strong baseline ahead of his rookie season in the stepping-stone division to the elite NASCAR Cup Series.
“I need more experience on big tracks where I can get a better feel for the tire, feel out the aero and really just get a good understanding of how everything works,” said Brown, who will drive the No. 28 Whelen Chevrolet for Pinnacle Racing Group (PRG) at Kansas.
Age limits have been Brown’s biggest impediment to gaining such experience. He needed to be 18 to compete on intermediate-style ovals like Kansas, and Brown didn’t hit that milestone until July 13. While there have been several ARCA races since Brown’s 18th birthday, Kansas is the first intermediate track he has been eligible to run.
“I know these tracks are where I need to get more experience, but I’ve just never been old enough. Finally, I am,” Brown said.
Intermediate tracks are where high speeds, aerodynamics and handling coalesce, forcing drivers to find a balance between raw speed and cornering ability. Feedback comes via the tires.
“You’re turning quite a bit at Kansas, so tires are probably the biggest thing to understand,” Brown said. “You want to know the slip angle of the tire, and that’s determined by the sidewall construction. But the only way you learn anything about that is to get out on the track and experience it firsthand. Heat buildup will also be something I need to get accustomed to, because that softens the tire, but how much?
“I feel like I’ve got a lot of time on short tracks and even bigger flat tracks, but banked speedways like Kansas are where I know I need more laps.”
With speeds eclipsing 170 mph at Kansas, aerodynamics also factor heavily into a car’s overall balance.
“Aero is something we deal with at every track, but it’s on a bigger scale at Kansas,” Brown said. “I want to learn how to work the air and what happens when I move around, especially in traffic. I want to understand how I can use it to my advantage and also not do something that will hurt my momentum.”
Brown has plenty of momentum coming into Kansas. He is a three-time ARCA winner, with two of those victories coming in his last three starts. Brown is also dominating the ASA STARS National Tour, where four wins and three second-place finishes have given him a commanding 176-point lead in the championship standings. To put an exclamation point on his Late Model prowess, Brown earned his maiden CARS Tour West win Aug. 15 at Evergreen Speedway in Monroe, Washington, leading every lap from the pole.
Brown has made 16 of 17 career ARCA starts for PRG, which aims to tap into that momentum at Kansas. In the championship owners’ standings, PRG is second, just 11 points behind Joe Gibbs Racing. Another strong run by Brown in Friday’s season finale could deliver a second straight owners’ title to PRG.
“It’s really cool to be able to factor into the championship,” Brown said. “I honestly haven’t chased points in ARCA because I’ve run a limited schedule that made sense in regard to my overall racing schedule. But Kansas is the last race and knowing that the owners’ title is something that’s a possibility, it’s really important to go out there and perform well.”
From his victory March 5 at Phoenix Raceway through last week’s win at Bristol, Brown has finished among the top-three 12 times, a run that also includes a win Sept. 6 at the DuQuoin (Ill.) State Fairgrounds.
“It’s been a good year – some wins and a really consistent run of podiums – but the process of it all and getting to learn the feel of this big, heavy stock car has been the best part,” Brown said. “There’s really nothing that prepares you for the upper NASCAR levels better than ARCA and time in the simulator. I feel like I’ve done both of those as much as I possibly could, and I’m just going to keep that same work ethic so I’m as prepared as I can be next year at Daytona.”
That preparation begins anew Friday at Kansas, with a 45-minute practice at 2 p.m. CDT/3 p.m. EDT followed by a 20-minute timed qualifying session at 3 p.m. CDT/4 p.m. EDT. The 100-lap race goes green at 7 p.m. CDT/8 p.m. EDT and will be broadcast live on FS1 and streamed on the FOX One app, with SiriusXM NASCAR Radio providing live audio coverage.
