Career
Pickens is a part-time auto racing driver part-time auto electrician. He mainly races midgets on the New Zealand national tour and winters in the United States racing in national-level Universal Service Administrative Company midget races during the middle of the year. In 2005, Pickens competed at the Chili Bowl midget car race at Tulsa, Oklahoma.
He was noticed by some key people at National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing NEXTEL Cup"s Roush Racing.
While not having prior experience on pavement, as there are no pavement ovals in New Zealand, Pickens did compete in the Roush"s Driver Development Competition Program in 2005. He made it to the final round of competition and was the last driver be cut.
That year he also finished second in the Australian Speedcar Championship at the Perth Motorplex. He would later finish 3rd in the 2011 Australian Championship in Lismore, New South Wales.
Michael"s regular rides in New Zealand are Don Kay’s Breka/Editor Pink Ford #54 Midget and Gerard Ness Schee #11C Sprint car and in Australia and the United States of America is Hawk Racing.
Foreign the 2010 - 2011 Michael"s regular Australian drive will be with Jack Berry"s Polar Ice Team, competing in the Queensland Polar Ice Series and the Speedcar Super Series with this team In the middle of the 2007 United States. season, he raced for Ken Hendricks’ American Speed Association Late Model Team, Urban Force Racing, mainly at Madison International Speedway. He left the team in July (being replaced by Dan Lensing) near the middle of the season, and began running a mixture of midget and pavement car races for various owners.
In the 2008 United States. racing season, he raced a midget car weekly at Angell Park Speedway and the #30 car in American Statistical Association Late Model Series events.