Linda Braun Honored at New Hampshire Motor Speedway

We've seen a lot of black cars at New Hampshire Motor Speedway over the years. Most notable is the black No. 45 Dodge that Kyle Petty runs as a tribute to his son Adam, who died at the Speedway in May 2000.

Likewise, the Nationwide Series has seen a lot of unsponsored cars this season, from teams like Davis Motorsports, Specialty Racing, and even perennial contenders Fitz Motorsports.

This weekend, Braun Racing chose to enter two black, unsponsored cars in honor of one of their own. Linda Braun, the mother of team owner Todd Braun, known around the garage as Mama B, passed away Wednesday afternoon.

Jason Leffler's No. 38 Toyota and Denny Hamlin's No. 32 Toyota were seen in practice with nothing but their numbers and the Nationwide and Sunoco contingency decals. Hamlin's No. 32 bore its traditional yellow in practice, but was set to be repainted black before the race.

The team hopes to score two great finishes in honor of their matriarch. Since joining the No. 38 team in 2006, Leffler has finished 14th and 12th in two starts at New Hampshire. In 2004, while driving for Haas CNC Racing, he finished third at the one-mile oval.

In three Nationwide Series races at New Hampshire, all with Joe Gibbs Racing, Hamlin has finished third, third, and fifth. In the Sprint Cup Series, Hamlin has one win and three top-10s in four starts. His worst finish at New Hampshire was a 15th last fall.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made on behalf of Linda Braun to the Dove House Children's Advocacy Center. The Dove House supports child victims of sexual abuse and their non-offending family members in the Iredell and Alexander counties of North Carolina. The organization first was conceived in the spring of 2001 and opened its doors in September 2002

Dove House Children's Advocacy Center

PO Box 825

328 E. Broad Street

Statesville, NC  28687

Voice: 704-883-9814

Fax: [phone]

Website: www.DoveHouse.u  

Photo credit: Phil Cavali, TheHotLap.com