DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Brandon Brown drove into NASCAR’s home track and immediately saw his name everywhere. Banners. Yard signs. T-shirts. Flags waving atop row after row of flashy RVs.
“Hopefully, they know it’s for me and they’re pulling for me,” Brown said.
They’re not.
At least not completely.
One of the most unrecognizable drivers in NASCAR is in the clutches of a swirling culture war he never asked to be part of as he quietly pursued a racing career. Take a look around the Daytona International Speedway infield, and the “Let’s Go Brandon” flags that dot the landscape outnumber the ones for Earnhardt and Elliott – and embody the unofficial battle cry of the sport’s right-leaning fanbase.