Colin Braun Bio
Colin James Braun, born on September 22, 1988, is an American racing driver competing in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. He currently drives the No. 60 Meyer Shank Racing Acura ARX-06 alongside co-driver Tom Blomqvist in the series’ top GTP category. Braun is a four-time winner of the Rolex 24 at Daytona, having taken class victories in 2014, 2015, 2020, and 2023, with his most recent triumph also standing as an overall win. Earlier in his career, he was recognized as the 2008 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Rookie of the Year while driving for Roush Fenway Racing.
Early Life and Background
Colin James Braun was born on September 22, 1988, in Ovalo, Texas. He grew up in a small West Texas community that, despite its size, helped launch him toward an early path in motorsports. Braun began racing quarter midgets at the age of six, and by eight he had gone international, competing for factory kart racing teams in countries such as Monaco, Spain, France, and Japan. These early experiences abroad helped him develop the technical fluency and race craft that have defined his professional career.
At the age of fourteen, Braun moved from karts to cars. He won championships in the Formula Renault TR 1600 series and the Formula TR 2000 Pro Series, establishing himself as one of the promising young drivers in North American road racing. His combination of speed and maturity drew the attention of established sports car teams and, eventually, NASCAR’s developmental ranks. Braun later settled in Charlotte, North Carolina, the heart of American motorsports, where he continues to reside.
Path to NASCAR
Braun’s progression to NASCAR came through a driver development contract with Roush Fenway Racing signed in 2007. That same year, he made his stock car debut in the ARCA RE/MAX Series at Gateway International Raceway, finishing 13th. He also entered the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (then known as the Craftsman Truck Series) with Roush Fenway, posting a 34th-place finish in his first start before being named the full-time driver of the No. 6 Ford for the following season.
His early NASCAR tenure was defined by rapid learning. Driving the No. 6 Con-way Ford F-150 with veteran crew chief Mike Beam, Braun earned three top-five and eight top-ten finishes in 2008. He captured the Raybestos Rookie of the Year award, becoming the sixth Roush Fenway Racing driver to claim the rookie title in the truck series. He also made five NASCAR Nationwide Series starts that season, including one top-five finish and two poles, foreshadowing his future versatility across racing disciplines.
Colin Braun Career
Early Career (2006-2007)
At sixteen, Braun made his road racing debut in the Rolex 24 at Daytona with Team 16, sharing a Porsche 996 GT3 with future NASCAR driver Brad Coleman. The following year, he became the youngest Daytona Prototype driver in history at seventeen, driving an Essex Racing Ford Crawford. In 2006, he joined Krohn Racing’s No. 75 team alongside Jörg Bergmeister and became the youngest winner of a major auto race on North American soil with his victory at the Brumos Porsche 250 in Daytona. He also became the youngest driver ever to stand on the podium at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, finishing second in class in a Ferrari F430.
He stayed with Krohn Racing for 2007, partnered with Max Papis, and the team finished in the top five in points despite a suspension for an incident at Watkins Glen. That same year, his stock car future began taking shape when he signed a development deal with Roush Fenway Racing. The dual-track career path positioned Braun as one of the rare drivers capable of excelling in both open-style prototypes and closed-cockpit stock cars.
NASCAR Truck Series Breakthrough (2008-2009)
Braun’s first full-time NASCAR season came in 2008 in the Camping World Truck Series. He won the Raybestos Rookie of the Year award, posting three top-five and eight top-ten finishes. The award marked the sixth time a Roush Fenway driver had earned the honor in the truck series, and it signaled Braun’s arrival as a legitimate contender in NASCAR’s developmental ranks. He supplemented his truck schedule with five Nationwide Series starts, recording one top-five finish and two pole positions.
In 2009, Braun earned his first career Truck Series pole at Daytona and led the opening laps of the season opener, eventually finishing ninth. On June 13, he scored his lone Truck Series victory at Michigan International Speedway, a milestone that cemented his reputation as a rising talent. Although his tenure in the series was winding down, the Michigan win remains a career highlight from his NASCAR years.
NASCAR Nationwide Series (2010-2011)
Promoted to the Nationwide Series in 2010, Braun drove the No. 16 Ford for Roush Fenway Racing with Con-way as his primary sponsor. His rookie year was difficult; he made 24 starts with five top-ten finishes but also suffered seven DNFs. Midseason, he was pulled from the car for races lacking sponsorship, and by December 1, 2010, Braun was released by Roush as the team focused its Nationwide program on Carl Edwards, Trevor Bayne, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. He returned to NASCAR briefly in 2011 with Billy Ballew Motorsports at Michigan, while also beginning a sports car career pivot with Robertson Racing in the American Le Mans Series.
CORE Autosport Era (2012-2022)
On January 21, 2012, Braun announced he would leave NASCAR to drive for CORE Autosport in the American Le Mans Series. Partnered with team owner Jon Bennett, he helped CORE win the ALMS Prototype Challenge Teams Championship. The following year, he expanded into the Rolex Sports Car Series with Doran Racing in a Ford Dallara to explore the Daytona Prototype category, then returned to CORE for the full ALMS season. On October 9, 2013, Braun joined Michael Shank Racing at Daytona to set a new track speed record on the oval course, reaching 222.971 mph in a twin-turbocharged Ford V-6 powered Daytona Prototype, shattering the previous 1987 mark of 210.364 mph.
From 2014 through 2015, Braun and Bennett dominated the new United SportsCar Championship Prototype Challenge class, winning back-to-back PC Drivers’ and Team Championships along with the Tequila Patrón North American Endurance Cup. They captured the season-opening Rolex 24 at Daytona in 2014 and added the 12 Hours of Sebring to their trophy case. After IMSA eliminated the PC class in 2017, Braun transitioned to GTD competition in a Porsche 911 GT3 R, then moved to the Prototype class in 2018 driving an LMP2-spec car. That season, Braun and Bennett finished just four points shy of the overall IMSA championship as the only private, non-factory funded team in the category. In 2019, CORE moved to DPi competition with a Nissan Onroak DPi, where Braun continued setting track records at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park.
After Bennett’s retirement announcement, Braun joined DragonSpeed for the 2020 Rolex 24, helping the team win the LMP2 class. He then returned to CORE for the 2021 LMP3 program, winning the 12 Hours of Sebring and Road America, and capped his CORE tenure in 2022 with the IMSA LMP3 championship, his third title with Bennett, including a fifth career victory at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park. When Bennett announced the closure of CORE Autosport in November 2022, Braun’s decade-plus partnership with the team came to a close.
Meyer Shank Racing Era (2023-Present)
Following CORE’s closure, Braun joined the Meyer Shank Racing (MSR) roster for the 2023 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season, co-driving the new Acura ARX-06 LMDh with Tom Blomqvist in the hybrid-powered GTP class. The pairing proved immediately successful, with the No. 60 Acura earning the pole for the 61st running of the Rolex 24 at Daytona. Braun and Blomqvist, joined by Helio Castroneves and Simon Pagenaud, won the race overall by 4.190 seconds, giving Braun his fourth Rolex 24 class victory and first overall triumph. The partnership has continued to anchor MSR’s flagship GTP program into 2024 and beyond.
Driving Style and Strengths
Braun is widely regarded as a precise, technically gifted endurance racer with exceptional feel for prototype machinery. His road course background, sharpened through years in the Rolex 24, 12 Hours of Sebring, and 24 Hours of Le Mans, allows him to manage tire wear, fuel, and traffic over long stints. His calm demeanor and detailed feedback have made him a trusted partner for co-drivers and engineers, particularly in the Pro-Am environment with Jon Bennett, and now in the GTP era alongside Tom Blomqvist at Meyer Shank Racing.
Notable Races and Milestones
Braun’s signature venues are Daytona International Speedway, where he has won the Rolex 24 four times (2014, 2015, 2020, 2023), and Canadian Tire Motorsports Park, where he has earned five career wins across multiple classes. He holds the Daytona oval speed record at 222.971 mph and has set multiple track records at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park. His three consecutive 12 Hours of Sebring wins with Bennett (2014, 2021, and class victories in other years) further cement his legacy as one of the most accomplished American endurance drivers of his generation.
Colin Braun Career Wins
Across NASCAR, the American Le Mans Series, and the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, Colin Braun has built a versatile, championship-caliber resume. He is a four-time Rolex 24 at Daytona class winner, a three-time 12 Hours of Sebring class winner, and a three-time IMSA Prototype Challenge or LMP3 champion (2014, 2015, 2022) with Jon Bennett at CORE Autosport. His lone NASCAR national series victory came at Michigan International Speedway in the Camping World Truck Series in 2009.
IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Highlights
Braun is a three-time IMSA Prototype class champion, winning the PC Drivers’ Championship in 2014 and 2015 and the LMP3 championship in 2022. He won the 2023 Rolex 24 at Daytona overall with Meyer Shank Racing, adding to his 2014, 2015, and 2020 class victories in the iconic endurance classic. He has also captured major endurance wins at the 12 Hours of Sebring and the Tequila Patrón North American Endurance Cup.
Other Wins and Performances
Beyond IMSA, Braun has competed in the American Le Mans Series, the Pirelli World Challenge, the Global Rallycross Lites category, and GT World Challenge America with CrowdStrike Racing and George Kurtz. Together, they posted multiple podiums and wins at venues including Virginia International Raceway, Road America, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and Watkins Glen, finishing runner-up in the Pro-Am Drivers’ Championship in 2020.
Colin Braun Family
Family Background and Racing Lineage
Public information about Braun’s parents and immediate family is limited. He is a self-made talent who progressed from quarter midgets and international karting to professional racing through a combination of personal initiative and family support during his childhood in Ovalo, Texas. His long-term co-driving partnership with Jon Bennett at CORE Autosport was among the most stable team-driver pairings in modern American sports car racing.
Personal Life
Braun resides in Charlotte, North Carolina, the hub of American motorsports. He is active on social media, including his accounts on X (Twitter), Facebook, and Instagram, where he shares updates from the road and inside the garage. Details regarding his marital status, spouse, or children are not publicly confirmed.
2025 Season Performance
Colin Braun enters 2025 continuing his role as a co-driver of the No. 60 Meyer Shank Racing Acura ARX-06 in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GTP class, alongside Tom Blomqvist. The pairing, which delivered the overall Rolex 24 at Daytona win in 2023, remains a centerpiece of MSR’s flagship factory-supported Acura LMDh effort. The team is expected to be a consistent contender in the GTP title fight and a leading challenger in the marquee endurance events.
Heading into the season, the hybrid-powered Acura ARX-06 platform has continued to evolve, with Braun and Blomqvist’s extensive shared seat time providing a technical advantage in race setup and stint management. MSR has strengthened its endurance lineups with experienced co-drivers for the four extended-distance rounds, putting the team in a strong position at the Rolex 24 at Daytona, the 12 Hours of Sebring, the Six Hours of The Glen, and Petit Le Mans. The 2025 calendar also includes additional sprint rounds at venues such as Long Beach, Laguna Seca, and Road America.
With three IMSA championships and four Rolex 24 class wins already on his resume, Braun’s outlook for 2025 is centered on contending for the overall GTP title and adding to his endurance racing legacy. If MSR and Acura can sustain their qualifying pace and execute cleanly across the season, Braun and Blomqvist are well-positioned to be among the championship favorites when the checkered flag falls at Road Atlanta in October.