Brian Vickers Surprises with Top 5 Food City 500 Finish in Return to Sprint Cup

Brian Vickers showed how much he missed racing on Sunday.

The 28-year-old NASCAR driver’s career looked in jeopardy early in the season.  In his most recent success, though, Vickers proved he’s far from finished.

Going into the 2012 Food City 500, he talked to the media about his hunger to return to the track saying (via USA Today):

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“I just want to go racing.  Honestly, what’s the worst that can happen?  I’m not going to have a job?  For me, it’s just go out there and have fun and just enjoy the experience.  I’ve been through this a couple times now where I don't know if I’m going to race again.”

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I think Vickers is going to race again.

In his first competition of the Sprint Cup Series season, he finished fifth at Bristol Motor Speedway.  Vickers even led 125 laps of the contest despite starting 25^th.  The finish was actually the best of his 10-year career.

After Red Bull Racing suspended operations, Vickers was left unemployed.  The Daytona 500 passed him by and he still was without work.  Michael Waltrip Racing gave Vickers another shot, though, signing him to a deal for six races.

And after his first, MWR couldn’t possibly be more pleased.

Vickers hasn’t won a Sprint Cup race since the 2009 Carfax 400, but if his 2012 debut is any indication on how his current campaign will go, that will change sooner rather than later.  The driver out of North Carolina is finally back and in the Food City 500, he looked better than ever.

David Daniels is a featured columnist at Bleacher Report and a syndicated writer.

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