Rusty Wallace’s Iowa Speedway may be 948 miles from Max Gresham’s home in Milner, Ga. But for the driver of the No. 8 Made in USA Brand (MIUSA) Chevrolet, it’s just like being at home.
Gresham has enjoyed plenty of success at the 7/8-mile short track, including a 2010 victory in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East.
He also has a third-place finish at Iowa Speedway in the 2009 NASCAR K&N Pro Series West, a second-place finish as part of his NASCAR K&N Pro Series East championship season in 2011, and a 10th-place finish in the 2010 ARCA Racing Series race.
The 20-year-old driver will return to Iowa with Sharp-Gallaher Racing for Sunday’s Fan Appreciation 200 presented by New Holland. Race time is 2 p.m. Eastern Time on FOX Sports 1. The race will also be broadcast on the Motor Racing Network (MRN) and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
“You can tell a racer designed Iowa Speedway,” Gresham said. “Rusty (Wallace) did a fantastic job with it. It has the competitiveness of a short track and the speed of a speedway. It’s one of my favorite places.”
Sunday’s main event will be the second NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) race at the track for Gresham and his Made in USA Brand team. He finished 15th there in July after starting 18th.
“We rely heavily on Max when we go to Iowa,” crew chief Chris Showalter said. “He has a great feel for that race track. He knows what he wants there. If we give him a truck he likes, we know he’s going to give us a great finish.”
The Sharp-Gallaher Racing team will be using chassis No. 59. It’s a Chevrolet that used to be part of Kevin Harvick Inc.’s inventory and it has a winning pedigree, with Clint Bowyer driving it to a victory at the Kansas Speedway in 2011.
With eight races remaining on the truck series schedule, Gresham is eager to finish the season strong, and he knows there is no better track than Iowa Speedway to kick-start the stretch in the final three months.
“Racing is all about momentum,” Gresham said. “We’ve had a solid season so far, but everyone at Sharp-Gallaher Racing is committed to taking it to the next level. For me, it’s just like going home, so there’s no better place to start the next level than at Iowa.”
Max Gresham PR
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