Chuck Bown

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Chuck Bown
Born (1954-02-22) February 22, 1954 (age 70)
Portland, Oregon, United States
Achievements 1990 NASCAR Busch Series Champion
Awards 1977 NASCAR Winston West Series Most Popular Driver
NASCAR Cup Series career
73 races run over 16 years
Best finish 38th – 1979
First race 1972 Winston Western 500 (Riverside)
Last race 1996 Coca-Cola 600 (Charlotte)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 4 1
NASCAR Xfinity Series career
187 races run over 11 years
Best finish 1st – 1990
First race 1986 Goody's 300 (Daytona)
Last race 1999 Textilease/Medique 300 (South Boston)
First win 1986 Oxford 250 (Oxford)
Last win 1993 Advance Auto Parts 500 (Martinsville)
Wins Top tens Poles
11 73 11
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series career
35 races run over 2 years
Best finish 9th – 1997
First race 1997 Chevy Trucks Challenge (Orlando)
Last race 1998 Sam's Town 250 (Las Vegas)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 13 1

Richard Charles "Chuck" Bown, Jr. (born February 22, 1954 in Portland, Oregon) is a former NASCAR champion. His last ride came in 1999. He currently lives with his wife in Asheboro, North Carolina. He is the brother of former fellow NASCAR competitor Jim Bown.

1970s

Bown made his NASCAR debut in 1972 in the Winston Cup Series. At the age of seventeen, he ran the Winston Western 500 at Riverside International Raceway the #27 Plymouth owned by his father Dick. Bown started 22nd but finished 32nd that day after crashing on lap 88. Bown made 2 more starts in the #27 that year, with his best finish being fourteenth at the second Riverside race.

In 1973, Bown returned to the Winston Cup Series driving his father’s #03 Rose Auto Wrecking sponsored Dodge, finishing in the top-10 for the first time in his career at the Tuborg 400 at Riverside. In 1974, Bown again competed in the three California races on the Winston Cup Series schedule, the two events at Riverside as well as at Ontario Motor Speedway. His best finish was 20th. In 1976, Bown began driving for Gerald Cracker, driving the #01 Lakes Drywall sponsored Chevrolet in four races, and the #03 at Riveside, where he had his best finish. Bown was named the Most Popular Driver of the Year in the NASCAR Winston West Series in 1977. In 1979, Bown drove Jim Testa’s #68 Kings Inn/Kings Mountain Truck Plaza Buick and Boy Scout Special Chevrolet in 7 Winston Cup events. He scored a 7th-place finish in the Daytona 500 and a 6th-place finish in the Firecracker 400. He drove eleven races for the next two years for different owners, but did not reach the top-ten.

1986–1993

In 1986, Bown returned to NASCAR, running in the Busch Series. His first start came at the Goody's 300, where he started 28th but finished 40th after wrecking his #67 Buick early in the race. He made his only other start of the year at the Oxford 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway, where he's started 13th and won his first career Busch race. The following season, Bown ran three races in the #7/56 Pontiac, but did not finish a race.

In 1989, Bown ran his first full season in Busch driving the #63 Nescafé Pontiac at Lanier Speedway and at South Boston Speedway. He finished the season with 5 top-5s and 12 top-10s wound up ninth in the championship standings. The following year, Bown won six races and four poles. He had a total of thirteen top-fives and won the Busch Series championship over Jimmy Hensley by 200 points. That same season, he returned to the Cup series, running three races in the #97 Kellogg's Pontiac for Tex Powell, his best finish 23rd at the Atlanta Journal 500.

In 1991, Bown won three times and garnered four poles, but dropped 4th in the Busch Series points. He made one Winston Cup start driving Cale Yarborough’s #66 TropArtic Pontiac at North Wilkesboro Speedway where he finished 26th. The following season, Bown failed to win a race and had only five top-five finishes, and dropped to eleventh in the standings. In 1993, Bown won his final career pole at Richmond International Raceway and won his final race at Martinsville Speedway. He recorded 5 top-5s and 13 top-10s en route to a fourth place points finish. He made one Winston Cup start driving the Roulo Brothers' #39 Pedigree Chevrolet at Phoenix, finishing 24th.

Final years

File:Chuck Bown Roush Racing Ford Watkins Glen 1997.jpg
Bown's 1997 truck

In 1994, Bown moved back up to the Cup series, driving the #12 ReLife/Straight Arrow Ford Thunderbird for Bobby Allison. He won the pole for the Food City 500, setting a new track record. He was seriously injured in a wreck at Pocono Raceway which sidelined him for the season.

Bown returned to racing in 1995 in four Busch races, finishing ninth at Charlotte Motor Speedway in the #05 Key Motorsports Ford. He competed in nine Cup races in the #32 Fina/Lance Snacks Chevrolet Monte Carlo for Active Motorsports, his best finish a 21st at Charlotte. In 1996, Bown drove for a variety of teams in the Busch Series, his best finish 21st at Darlington Raceway. He drove the Sadler Brothers Racing’ #95 Shoney’s Inns Ford in three Winston Cup Series events but only finished one race.

In 1997, Bown began racing in the Craftsman Truck Series, driving the #99 Exide Ford F-150 for Roush Racing. Despite not winning a race, he had four top-fives and finished ninth in the standings. The next season, Bown qualified on the pole at the season opener at Walt Disney World Speedway, but finished 25th. After that race, he was released from Roush due to downsizing. He movted to the #57 CSG Motorsports Ford driving in six events before being released. He ended the season driving the #67 Hill Machinery Chevrolet Silverado in a pair of races, finishing seventeenth at Phoenix.

In 1999, Bown returned to Hensley to drive their #63 Exxon Superflo Chevrolet. Despite a seventh-place finish at Charlotte, Bown was released from the team halfway into the season, and soon retired.

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Winston Cup Series

Daytona 500 results
Year Team Manufacturer Start Finish
1979 Testa Racing Buick 28 7
1980 Oldsmobile 15 35
1991 Tex Racing Chevrolet DNQ
1994 Bobby Allison Motorsports Ford 37 23
1996 Sadler Brothers Racing Ford DNQ

Busch Series

Craftsman Truck Series

Awards

Bown was inducted in the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame in 2009 along with Wayne Spears, Doug George, and Rick Carelli.[32]

References

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External links

Sporting positions
Preceded by NASCAR Busch Series Champion
1990		 Succeeded by
Bobby Labonte
Preceded by NASCAR Winston West Series Champion
1976		 Succeeded by
Bill Schmitt
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