Brent Crews is set to make his much-anticipated NASCAR O’Reilly Parts Series debut this weekend at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, representing Joe Gibbs Racing in the No. 19 Young Life Toyota GR Supra. With determination and excitement, Crews enters this major milestone in his career, fueled by his passion for racing and years of preparation—both on and off the track.
Brent Crews Embraces His NASCAR Debut Experience
Crews spoke to reporters on Friday, expressing both gratitude and excitement ahead of his first NASCAR O’Reilly Parts Series race. He highlighted the years of work that culminated in his opportunity with Joe Gibbs Racing, a leading team in motorsport, and described the thrill of achieving a lifelong ambition at the iconic Circuit of the Americas.
“Thank you guys for having me. It’s exciting, it’s something I’ve dreamed about my whole life ever since I’ve started racing. I’m just grateful and blessed to be here. God has worked in so many amazing ways in my life to be in this position. I’m excited to represent Young Life and tell that story further down the road this weekend. Excited to be racing with Joe Gibbs Racing. I got to race with them last year in the ARCA races and we had a lot of success there. Just kind of feeling full circle and real now. Just starting to sink in today honestly, because we had a lot of preparation with SIM. I think we had close to seven hours of SIM this week, which is amazing to be able to work with my team and having them right there. If felt as close to real life as you can get. Finally feeling surreal today, and I’m just ready to get going.”
— Brent Crews, Driver
Tracing the Path from Early Racing Days to the NASCAR Stage
Reflecting on his journey, Crews recounted how his introduction to motorsport originated from his desire to compete individually, transitioning from traditional team sports such as soccer and football. His stepfather Matt encouraged him to try go-karting, which at first, Crews found challenging and overwhelming. However, renewed exposure and the thrill of competition soon drew him deeply into the world of racing. Crews detailed the significant role of family and mentorship, particularly his early connections with Coach Joe Gibbs and Ty Gibbs at the go-kart track.
“I grew up playing soccer and football just as a regular normal kid, and I just hated losing, and would get so upset when my teammates didn’t care about winning or anything along those lines. And my stepdad Matt, who I call Dad still to this day, he was like, do you want to go play a sport where it’s just you versus everyone else? At the time, I was a four or five year old kid and he was like, sure. So, he took me to the go kart track and I actually hated it. The first time I was at the track I was going to the Motorplex, I ran 22 laps. I didn’t know how to pull off the track and I stopped on the front stretch and got out and I quit for six months. And that was kind of where it all started. It started snowing in North Carolina one winter and he asked if I wanted to go do some donuts, and I said sure. I fell in love with it ever since. He asked if I wanted to go to the go kart track again and I went and I didn’t know how to pull in the pits, but it was so much fun. So we started racing. I started racing more go kart races and I think a year goes by and we found ourselves at the go kart track three to four days a week during the week and after school. And we met Coach (Gibbs) at the go kart track. Ty (Gibbs) was always out there with Coach Gibbs and I was always out there turning laps and my Dad was just watching right by the bleachers and Coach was watching there too. Coach said to my Dad, ‘I see you are out here every week, do you guys know anything about dirt racing, have you been to Millbridge Speedway?’ My Dad was like, ‘I have no idea, I’ve never hear of that. And Coach was like, you should come out tomorrow night, Ty’s racing’. So my Dad took me out there and I thought dirt racing was super exciting and a lot of fun. He got me a little box stock, I would have been seven or eight years old at the time. We started running practice laps there and started racing it and I fell in love with dirt racing too. I don’t like one more than I like the other, they have pros and cons. They’re both super exciting, but that was the first time we ever met Coach. And a little rewind to that too, was kind of how I fell in love with racing, I was a big Julio Jones fan. I love the number 11. The first go kart race I ever went to, Denny Hamlin was on the pole and he was number 11 and I was like, that’s my guy. And I always rooted for Denny growing up. Still do, just because of the number 11. It was just a full circle moment, getting to meet Coach and rooting for Denny, having no idea the race team had anything to do with it and now I’m here racing for Joe Gibbs Racing.”
— Brent Crews, Driver
Role Models and Inspirations Shaping Crews’ Racing Passion
Crews acknowledged the athletes who have inspired him, notably Atlanta Falcons football star Julio Jones. The driver cited his admiration for Jones’ energy, skills, and jersey number—elements that became personal symbols throughout his journey.
“That’s a great question. I was an Atlanta Falcons fan for no reason. I grew up in Hickory, North Carolina and I was just a huge football fan in general, I didn’t have a specific team. I just cared about the players, and Julio was always the most exciting to watch as a kid. He was big, tall, fast and explosive. I just rooted for him. And then he was number 11, so I loved the number 11 because of him. I had a big poster of him in my room, and I just fell in love with the Falcons and that number and everything about that.”
— Brent Crews, Driver
Preparation and Training for a New Challenge
In advance of his debut at Circuit of the Americas, Crews dedicated extensive hours to simulator training with Joe Gibbs Racing, specifically targeting the demands of the O’Reilly Series car. This preparation reflects the technological advances in motorsport and underscores his commitment to readiness.
“So our SIM is really, really close at GT-12 in Salisbury. Working with the ARCA team with that, I felt like we got it to where I would go run four or five hours of SIM during the week and I would get to the racetrack and it was really, really close. My respect for the all the people that work on the SIM stuff, on that side of things is at a very high level and I trust it completely. I feel like when I go in there and I slide around in the SIM, I feel like it’s really close to real life. We did a lot of SIM for Rockingham too, preparing for my first test. We had that test a couple of weeks ago, and I felt like the SIM correlated really close. That’s kind of my thought process there. The O’Reilly car slides a lot more than we see on Sunday’s with the new Cup cars. But I feel like it’s similar to ARCA on that side of the spectrum.”
— Brent Crews, Driver
Building Toward a Future in NASCAR
Brent Crews’ entrance into the NASCAR O’Reilly Parts Series at Austin’s Circuit of the Americas concludes one chapter and opens another in the story of a young driver who channeled childhood competition, meaningful mentorships, and personal inspiration into a professional racing career. As he takes the track for Joe Gibbs Racing, the anticipation is high—not only for his debut but for how his story will evolve within the sport. Fans, teams, and fellow competitors will watch closely to see how this blend of preparation, passion, and personal history shapes his performance and future in NASCAR racing.
