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Brian Vickers Is Among Most Snake-Bitten Drivers In NASCAR

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News of the latest setback in a career full of them came down on Monday as Michael Waltrip Racing announced that driver Brian Vickers will miss the start of the 2015 season after undergoing surgery to repair a hole in his heart last weekend. It was the second time Vickers has undergone surgery for the same hole, having had a patch inserted previously in 2010. Vickers said his latest health scare stemmed from his body’s rejection of that patch.

“Late last week I knew something wasn’t right, so I went to the hospital to be checked out. Following several tests, it was discovered that my body was rejecting an artificial patch that was inserted in 2010 to fix a hole in my heart,” Vickers explained in a statement. “Saturday, I had to have corrective surgery to repair the hole and now I am beginning the recovery process.”

Many athletes and teams deal with injuries on a daily basis, but few if nearly any reach the severity of what Vickers has endured over the past few years all while fighting to remain on the Sprint Cup level. The hole in his heart was discovered in 2010, and at the same time Vickers was dealing with blood clots in his lungs and legs midway through the season while driving for Red Bull racing.

That year followed arguably his most successful season in NASCAR in 2009, in which he qualified for the Chase for the Sprint Cup and finished 12th. He also earned the first and only victory for Red Bull Racing with a win from the poll at Michigan, prompting a multi-year extension from the company.

But when it seemed like Vickers was finally fulfilling his potential, he lost more than half of the 2010 season due to the aforementioned blood clots. After being cleared to race again before the 2011 season, the bad luck came on the track with Vickers limping to a 25th place finish and Red Bull disbanded, leaving Vickers without a ride.

In the following two seasons, Vickers ran part-time for MWR and picked up a win at New Hampshire in 2013 before it was eventually announced he would take over as the full-time driver of the No. 55. He finished this season 22nd in points as he and teammate Clint Bowyer struggled to find speed.

Now, just when he had regained a full-time seat, Vickers’ future is in question again due to unlucky, health-related issues. If and when Vickers does come back in 2015, he will almost certainly need a win to qualify for his second Chase. Right now, it seems karma owes him at least as much.

Ryan Pritt is a NASCAR writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on twitter @RPritt, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.

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