The wait is finally over! After what felt like an eternity, the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium has kicked off, and we couldn’t be more excited. This race marked the first time since 1971 that the Cup Series raced at this iconic short track, and NASCAR even dropped a documentary to keep the hype alive. But for some folks, especially those die-hard short-track and Modifieds fans, “The Clash” meant a whole lot more. Why? Because one of Bowman Gray’s legends was making his Cup debut. Look at this storyline: a 12-time Modifieds champion at Bowman Gray, going head-to-head with the best of the Cup Series.

The stage was set: A short-track legend up against a group of seasoned stock car drivers. It doesn’t get much better than that, right? Now that the heat races are done, the 49-year-old Meyers has opened up about his Cup run.

Burt Meyers takes away a lot of learnings…

If you’re not familiar with William Burton Meyers (aka Burt), here’s the lowdown. He made history back in the day as the youngest-ever winner at Bowman Gray (he was just 23). Fast forward 26 years, and he’s got 19 career wins under his belt, along with two NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour championships (2010 and 2016). His family is intertwined with the track’s history—his grandfather, Billy Meyers, was actually called “Mr. Bowman Gray.” So, yeah, the Meyers family legacy is pretty much built into the track.

Fast forward to today, and Burt Meyers is piloting the #50 car for Team AmeriVet in the Cup Series. In case you missed it, the format for “The Clash” had four heat races, with the top-5 from each race advancing to the final. Meyers ran in Heat 3 and ended up finishing 8th out of 9 drivers. But while the results weren’t exactly what he was hoping for, he’s still pretty positive about the whole experience. Post the race, he said, “We made leaps and bounds from where we were earlier tonight. We are a half a second faster than when we unloaded. That’s major. When you think about the guys up front they never really picked up.”

And don’t forget, this wasn’t Meyers’ only race that day. He also finished 2nd in the Modifieds race at Bowman Gray, so it’s clear the man still knows how to get it done on his home turf. But the jump to the Cup Series is no small feat. The Next-Gen car is a whole different animal compared to the Modifieds, and Team AmeriVet is a smaller team that doesn’t race every week. If you recall, Ty Dillon (Charlotte) and Jeb Burton (Phoenix) drove for them in the 2024 Cup Season. But for Meyers, the progress was still something to be proud of.“They (Cup drivers) stayed fast but they never picked up. For us to take a small team and my limited experience and gain half a second from when we started out, I think that speaks volumes.”

Also, Meyers isn’t out yet. The heat races picked the top 20 drivers among the 23-car lineup. Ahead of the main event, a 75-lap race will decide the 21st and 22nd spots. Awarded to the top two finishers. The third and final spot will go to the Cup Series driver with the highest finishing rank in the 2024 Cup Season. So it would be fun to see how Burt Meyers does in that race, now that he’s got a little hand of the car. But It won’t be easy; he’ll have to fight his long-time Modifieds rival, Tim Brown.

The Burt Meyers vs. Tim Brown showdown

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If Heat 3 didn’t already have enough drama, here’s the cherry on top: Tim Brown, another BGS legend, was right there with Meyers. Brown, the winningest driver at Bowman Gray with 12 Modified championships and over 100 victories, also made his Cup debut in the #15 car for Rick Ware Racing. Brown finished 9th, just behind Meyers, and you can bet that both of them were eyeing each other the whole race. And Meyers was proud of finishing above his rival.

In the interview, he said, “I mean, just between me and Tim, there is a battle within a battle. We wanted to beat each other. We’ll we still didn’t accomplish our goals which is getting in the feature. We will regroup tonight get with Tony a little bit.” It would be fun to see this rivalry again in the 75-lap race. And if you haven’t already seen them battle on the track, see the 2014 Modifieds race.

It’s shaping up to be an epic rivalry, especially when you consider their history. But for Brown, getting the chance to race in the Cup Series is a dream come true. He’s been chasing this moment for years, and at one point, he had almost given up on it. Brown had previously said, “I’ll be honest with you, once I turned about 30 years old, I gave up on my lifelong dream of being a Cup driver. Just because I had seen that transition to where you either had to be 12 or 13 years old and get signed or you had to have big money to pay an owner to let you drive, so I had already given up on that dream.” Let’s hope he gets to race in the main event.

So, with a few spots still up for grabs in the 75-lap race, the question is—can Burt Meyers and Tim Brown land those spots? It’s tough to say, especially with heavy hitters like Kyle Larson and Ryan Blaney also gunning for them. But one thing’s for sure: this is one storyline we’ll all be watching closely. What do you think? Can Meyers and Brown pull it off, or are Larson and Blaney too strong to beat? Drop your thoughts in the comments below!