Casey Mears taking the long road back to the front

  Todd Warshaw/Getty Images for NASCAR

Casey Mears won the Coca-Cola 600 while driving for 

Hendrick Motorsports in 2007. He will be driving for 

Germain Racing at Auto Club Speedway on Sunday.

Casey Mears reached the pinnacle of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series when he won the Coca-Cola 600 in 2007 with Hendrick Motorsports.
He has raced for Richard Childress and Chip Ganassi in addition to Rick Hendrick since joining the Cup series in 2003.
Now he is racing a part-time schedule for Germain Racing in the No. 13 Geico Toyota.
He said he feels fortunate to be racing in Cup at this stage of his career. He likes his crew and his team. He also looks back on his career as a series of changes that were out of his control.

"It’s racing at the end of the day," said Mears, a driver from Bakersfield. "There are so many different variables that can make or break you in the sport. Unfortunately, I’ve been on the backside of it a couple times."

Go to ESPNLA.com for more on Mears as he prepares for Sunday's Cup race at Auto Club Speedway.