5/5/2025
Bloomington Speedway
Braxton Cummings: Eyes on Tulsa
When it comes to his sprint car racing career Bedford’s Braxton Cummings notes “I guess I have been making circles for over ten years.” Records don’t lie. Then again, it really isn’t all that surprising. At the time of his birth his father Bub Cummings was well into his racing career and weeks after leaving the hospital in the arms of his proud parents Braxton was bundled up and on his way to Brownstown Speedway.
Like so many of his peers from the Limestone Capital of the World heading north to Bloomington Speedway on Friday night became a family tradition. His grandfather Terry Cummings had success behind the wheel of a kart but truly made his name as an engine builder. “I guess he didn’t have a lot of ambition to drive,” Braxton says, “but he started helping Dizz Wilson and later Karl Kinser with their engines.” If building engines is what you do, it would be hard to have a better endorsement than this on your resume.
As for his father, Bub Cummings didn’t stay in the bomber class forever. The next move in his driving career was abetted by a helpful nudge from a neighbor. “He got to drive a modified for Don Short,” Braxton recalls, “and he was impressive. Then papaw bought a motor from Don, and we went sprint car racing.” With eyes wide open and plenty of desire to give it a go Braxton first raced karts, primarily at county fairs. On the one hand it went well. He found victory lane a few times, but the entire experience was far less than satisfying. “You know how it is,” he says with a laugh, “you had to wreck to win and even if you didn’t get wrecked you still weren’t happy. Dad said we aren’t going to do that.” So, when could he race again? He says his father just said cryptically, “when it is your turn it will be your turn.”
Bub was still getting the job behind the wheel, and that delayed his son’s entry into professional racing. “I think dad was running really well,” he says, “and I don’t think he was ready to step to the side.” There was another consideration. His grandfather felt that one should be an adult before starting racing in earnest. It was a stance that may have caused Braxton to bristle at one point in his life, but now it is a perspective he understands and respects.
Given his constant presence at the track, no one was surprised when the desire to race still burned hot when he became of age. However, there was one surprise in store. While many figured that Braxton would mirror his father’s path and begin in a full-bodied car, in fact he jumped right into a sprint car.. It was a true trial by fire. In 2013 he made his first start at Paragon Speedway and quickly realized that the learning curve was steep. “My first night at Paragon dad told me don’t even touch the gas going down the frontstretch,” he says, “He said those guys are going to go down there and almost stop on the bottom, and if you aren’t careful you will run over them. So, I waited until I got to the flag stand, and I looked up and everyone was in the first turn. Well, I still managed to run over Arin McIntosh’s left rear and turn myself over. That happened in my first 100 feet of sitting in a sprint car. I was distraught and didn’t even want to finish the race. It was really just a Tommy tip over, so they pushed me back off and I finished the heat.” Still a bit upset with himself, he handed the car over to Bub to run the feature. His next trip to Brownstown Speedway went much better, so he thankfully entered the 2014 season with more confidence.
His first true season of sprint car racing was memorable. “I ran about 30 to 35 races that first full summer,” he says, “dad was still racing so I just tagged along everywhere he went. We missed some shows, but I won my first feature at Paragon. Paragon ran a different kind of program then, but guys like Jake Scott and Josh Cunningham were there. I was on top of the world.”
From that point on Bub knew what his son needed. He wasn’t going to be a one-track Johnny and to make sure that didn’t happen he took Braxton to Bloomington, Lincoln Park, Lawrenceburg and Haubstadt. Nothing beats seat time, and the chance to adjust to different places was also crucial to his development. “I leaned a lot on my dad,” Braxton says, “but he was still racing so he really didn’t get to watch me or coach me a whole lot. I had to do my best to figure out what worked. Once he basically retired I went from running 15th or 16th to consistently in the top 10. When he was able to really be more of a crew chief we got better, and we’re still getting better.”
The 2023 season was his best to date. He was a front-runner at Bloomington Speedway and topped the BOSS series at Montpelier Motor Speedway. “I had a real solid night,” he says, “We held off Ricky Lewis and that was really cool. It let me know that I can do this.” Once you have had a tastes of this kind of success you want more. Perhaps for that reason the 2024 season was a bit of a disappointment. “We were really good in 2023,” he says, “so I bought a new car, and I just couldn’t fine what it liked. Me and it just couldn’t get along. I should have beat Harley (Burns) one night. I would pass him and then I would jump the cushion. I would race back up to him and jump the cushion again. That really stung because I want to win at Bloomington really badly.”
Sometimes things don’t fall your way. “I wasn’t as busy last year,” he says, “we went to Disney for family time, and I tore some stuff up. It just wasn’t our year, so we just slowed down and took it for what it was and went on., but I am ready for this summer.”
He began the 2025 season by racing in his first Chili Bowl Nationals for owner Michael Koontz. The overall goal was clear before he headed to Tulsa. His interest was already piqued by the announcement of the Ford Performance Driving School Ticket to Tulsa promotion. He realizes that getting experience in 2025 would pay dividends if he was fortunate enough to earn a ride for the 2026 race. “I didn’t want to go down there and look like a clown,” he says, “This is a cool deal that Chase (Briscoe) put together. I wanted to go there and see what the building is like, and what it was like to drive a midget. I had never been in one before.” He told Koontz he could only promise that he would drive the wheels off the car. In the end he got the kind of experience he needed. “As similar as these car seem to a sprint car they are a lot different “he says, “You have to drive a midget really hard.”
He hopes to get a chance to do it again. If he can end up on top of the Ticket to Tulsa points in 2025 he thinks he can carry that momentum all the way to Oklahoma. To get the chance to do this means he will be more active this summer. Right now, he plans on racing 30 to 35 times, including some Indiana Sprint Week dates. There is a lot to balance. He is a fulltime machinist at Crane NSA, wife Kaity is a dental assistant, and the couple are busy raising 2 ½ year old Kaizer Lee. On top of all of this they are building a house. It’s funny how the real world can keep you anchored. This is a family racing operation. Sure, the goal is to win, but not at the expense of the most important things. His wife is right there doing what she can to help her husband excel. Then there is his father. “He is my number one guy,” Braxton says, “None of this would have been possible without him. When you have a father and son working together you butt heads occasionally, but we did that more in the past. As I have gotten older I see the big picture. We do this as a hobby and as a family. If we run 15th it isn’t the end of the world. We’re here to win, but we’re also here to have fun.”
He knows his team does not have the resources that one finds in full-time squads. However, he firmly believes now he can go toe-to-toe with the best in the business. Sure, if he won the lottery he could dream about contesting the full USAC slate. It is also a dream to have a new house, a supportive wife, and to watch your children grow and prosper. He’s anxious to get started and knows that the No Way Out is one of the first sprint car races in the region. Could he be ready to go? Yes. However, he has tickets to Monster Jam, and he can’t wait to watch his little son’s eyes light up on this family outing. That’s having your priorities straight.
Could little Kaizer Lee keep the family tradition going in the future? There is no way to make that prediction now. Are the signs there? “My boy is already sucked in on racing,” he says with a laugh, “I don’t know if there is any point in trying to point him in a different direction, and he is the king of the house right now.”
It seems everything is in place for Braxton Cummings to have a big year and reach victory lane at the Historic Bloomington Speedway. It would undoubtedly kick off a family celebration.
Tommy Kelly Kfmedia photo Cummings family collection
Article Credit: Patrick Sullivan
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