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Matt Brazeau is one of many hard working drivers who have started out racing in the entry level divisions hoping to have some fun and get some racing experience. Matt drives his No. 1 blue and green 1997 Ford Escort in the competitive 4 cylinder class at both Flat Rock and Toledo Speedways. 2009 has been a success as he has already been in victory lane a few times at Toledo.  I had the pleasure to sit down with him at Flat Rock to discuss his season so far and what his plans are for the future.

The 26 yr. old Brazeau lives in Swanton, Ohio and currently works as a diesel mechanic. His career goal in the near future is to start a business cleaning and renovating foreclosed houses. I asked him how he got his start racing. "My dad went to Toledo with his dad just to watch from the stands. He started taking me, and I decided I wanted to get a car and give it a try."

He tried a Sportsman car that he got from his Uncle Jim, but decided to take a step back and start in an entry level class. "It was really important to me to start at the bottom, get some experience and earn my dues. My goal is to win a championship in this class and then I hope to move up to Late Models in a couple years."

The thing that impressed me most about Matt was all the hard work and effort he puts in to compete at both tracks. He is a one man show at the track with no help of any kind. "My dad helps me out every now and then, but I pretty much do it all on my own. I had to figure out the set ups myself, with trial and error, until I figured out what worked. I am also working on a 1999 Pontiac Sunfire right now, so I have a 2nd car to run. That way I can get one set up for Toledo on Friday and the other one for Flat Rock on Saturday. It will be nice to have a backup car just in case." Does he enjoy racing more at one track vs. the other? "Not really, the inner track at Toledo is a lot smaller, so that makes it a driver's track. You really have to drive the car at Flat Rock. Using the hard street tires on these front wheel drive cars like we do can make it a challenge sometimes."

When asked about his hero growing up, he was quick to say "Mark Martin. He races everyone so clean and respectful all the time. I like to race everyone clean as well. Everyone here works so hard on their cars; we all really need to respect each other out there on the track. I treat everyone like I would want to be treated." When asked what part of racing he enjoys the most he said, "I really like just getting out there and passing other cars."

After speaking with Matt for a while, I walked away really impressed with his attitude. He is focused and takes his racing seriously, but also wants to make sure he has paid his dues as a racer before moving up, and is very respectful of both his fellow competitors and the sport as a whole. This is the first year I have been able to watch the 4 cylinder division, and the hard racing they do every week has really been exciting and a lot of fun to watch.