By John Goolsby, Prep Sports Editor
The Trussville Tribune will provide extensive coverage of the Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix at Barber Motorsports Park in Leeds. IndyCar drivers Felix Rosenqvist, Santino Ferrucci, Scott McLaughlin, Indy NXT driver Lindsay Brewer and Birmingham’s own Michael Suco, Jr., a rookie in the USF Juniors series, will be spotlighted.
Contrary to what Wikipedia and the media will tell you, Lindsay Brewer is a racer who happens to be a model. Not a model that wants to drive a race car.
Lindsay Brewer – Juncos Hollinger Racing – By: Chris Owens
Brewer looks to continue to prove that when she races at Barber Sunday.
Brewer caught the racing bug at an early age. The Indy NXT by Firestone rookie got her first taste of speed when she attended a birthday party at 11.
“I loved it so much,” Brewer said. “It was honestly like love at first lap.”
“I always loved motorized vehicles, and I grew up playing Mario Kart.”
“I just always loved speed, and I just took to it naturally when I went to that go-cart track and kicked everyone’s butts,” she joked.
Lindsay Brewer as a young karter Credit: Brewer family
The Arvada, Colorado native embarked on a successful karting career in 2009. Brewer competed in the Rotax MiniMax series until 2011. She moved up to the Rotax Jr. Series from 2011-2013 and S2 SKU Shifter Karts from 2013-2015.
Brewer jumped to Legends in the 2015-2016 winter series and won the road course championship in 2016.
Brewer had an opportunity to test a USF2000 car but could not find the funding to put a program together.
“My family was like, ‘Look, we supported you in karting, but we can’t financially support cars. It’s just too much.’
Like many racers trying to make it, Brewer had to step back and regroup.
“I had to take five years off from 2016-2021.”
Brewer used her time away from racing wisely and graduated from San Diego State University with a Business Administration degree.
With school out of the way, Brewer refocused her efforts on racing.
“I have had to play catch up, which has been a bit difficult, and that’s why I think I haven’t had quite the results,” she said. “I’m 27, so I know I’m not old, but compared to the guys on my level, I am.”
Brewer secured a ride with Exclusive Autosport in the USF 2000 Pro championship for eleven races in 2022. In her first race with the team, she produced an eight-place finish at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s road course.
Brewer re-signed with Exclusive in 2023 and competed in all 18 races.
For 2024, Brewer signed with Juncos-Hollinger in the Indy NXT series and finished 15th in the season opener at St. Pete.
Lindsay Brewer – INDY NXT By Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg – By: Chris Owens
One area that Brewer knows she must improve in is her overall strength. “There’s no power steering, so for me at this track [Barber], I’m not able to carry enough speed through the corners because I can’t hold on to the wheel,” she said.
“My strength has improved tremendously from last year and even the beginning of the season to now,” she said. “I’ve been working hard driving shifter karts, being in the gym five days a week.”
Barber’s place on the schedule isn’t ideal for Brewer, who has been out of the car for six weeks since St. Pete, and presents a big challenge for the rookie.
“This track is probably the most physical track on the calendar,” she said. “My neck, my arms [are fatigued]. If I can get my strength up, I think my pace will improve dramatically.”
Brewer takes solace in that NXT sophom*ore driver Jamie Chadwick experienced a similar situation last year. Brewer is hoping that her improvement in strength will help her as it has Chadwick.
“That’s my biggest challenge and roadblock,” Brewer said. “It’s just so frustrating because I know I have the talent, but when your body [is struggling, it is not easy].”
“I’m trying my best, and I’ll get stronger,” she said.
Brewer’s social media presence is substantial, with over four million combined followers across multiple channels.
“I was at the right place at the right time when I went to San Diego State,” she said. “I was around a lot of friends who started documenting my life, and those photos started blowing up and circulating, and I was able to grow quite a bit of a following in college.”
Her online presence seemed to go to another level when she resumed her racing career.
“Once I started posting with racing my cars, that just exponentially grew.”
Brewer is pragmatic in her view of social media, her early role as an “influencer,” and how she can leverage it to continue working towards her dream of racing in the NTT IndyCar Series.
“I think it’s always going to be a part of me because it’s just a part of business,” she said. “Social media is the new marketing, so I think any sponsorship opportunity I have will involve my social media, and I love sharing that part with fans as well.”
Brewer keenly understands that as one of two females racing time in NXT, she is a role model to young girls.
Her advice to those girls like the 11-year-old Lindsay:
“I know this sounds cheesy, but if you put in the work, you can do anything you put your mind to,” she said. “And it doesn’t matter what field you’re in, whether you’re in racing, whether you’re in STEM, business, anything you want to do, anything male-dominated or non-male-dominated if you put your mind to it, you can achieve it.
Lindsay Brewer – INDY NXT By Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg – By: Chris Jones
The Children’s of Alabama Grand Prix takes place April 26-28. Race fans can purchase tickets at indyalabama.com or by calling 877-332-7804.
Tickets were sold in 41 states and 12 countries last year and the economic impact to the Birmingham area was between $18 and $27 million.
