Casey Smith

The 2010 World Crown 300 event will mark the first trip to the revamped facility for Smith who raced at the same track than deemed the name Peach State Speedway. When Smith raced the half mile track it was an abrasive asphalt track that wore tires out easily and left competitors searching for grip. Now the track couldn’t be more different featuring brand new asphalt full of grip producing lightning fast lap times for the high horse powered super late models.

“I’ve heard a lot about Gresham; everyone says it’s a real fast track with lots of grip so it sounds like a fun place to race. Usually we would just focus on getting ready for the derby but with $20,000 up for grabs it’s worth the long trip from Texas,” said Casey. “We’ve had good cars this year that have been capable of winning races just something seems to not go our way and I have to settle for a top five. Hopefully these longer distance races will play more into my favor.”

Casey knows that his team will have his work cut out for him if he wants to be the dark horse winner. While many competitors have hit the track at least sometime in the last year for either a test or one of the various super late model events held at the track Casey will show up Thursday afternoon blind to what kind of setup the track will respond to.

“I know the track will take all the horse power you can throw at it and the groove seems to be more along the bottom but there is grip in the second groove or at least that’s what I’ve been told,” noted Smith. “I’ve ran pretty good the last few years at tracks that have fresh pavement like Mobile and Opp so I don’t think we’ll have a problem at all.”

For more information on Texas super late model driver Casey Smith including news, results, and more visit his website at www.caseysmithracing.com. For public relations and marketing related information contact Chris Ragle with Tex Motorsports Marketing at 940-393-3167.

- Tex Motorsports Marketing Press Release

Eddie Sharp Racing Logo

“I am extremely excited about the opportunity to run with Eddie Sharp Racing,” Fowler said. “I am graduating high school this weekend, and I am glad to finally be able to put 110 percent of my time into my racing. ”

The 17-year-old Georgia native grew up racing Bandolero and Legends Cars, winning feature events and titles at a young age. In 2006, Fowler competed for five championships in several Legends Car series’ around the Southeast. He won three championships and finished runner-up twice.

The 2007 season brought more success for Fowler, as he moved to the Georgia Asphalt Series Late Models. He finished the season with 14 top-10 finishes in 17 starts. He moved to the ASA Southeast Asphalt, scoring career-best second-place finishes at Lanier National Speedway and Peach State Speedway, where he also picked up a pole award.

Kyle Fowler

Fowler is set to run with ESR at Toledo Speedway on May 23 and Iowa Speedway on July 10. He will join Craig Goess, driver of the No. 81 Toyota of Greenville N.C. Toyota, in ESR entries at both races.

“I have been told by some very knowledgeable people that the ARCA Racing Series is where I need to race to help me further my career,” explained Fowler. “I can’t wait to get behind the wheel. I am looking forward to my first start in ARCA and working with everyone at Eddie Sharp Racing.”

Eddie Sharp, owner of Eddie Sharp Racing, anticipates the addition of Fowler to the ESR team. “I am thrilled to be working with Kyle,” said Sharp. “He possesses the type of talent and desire to race that I love to work with. I think it’s going to be a great experience for Kyle and ESR, and I know he will represent ESR well.”

Folwer, who will further his education at University of North Carolina at Charlotte, looks to move forward in his racing career as well. “Now that I have the opportunity to run with ESR, I know I will have the top-notch equipment and personnel, which I know I need to perform. I am looking forward to working with crew chief Kevin Caldwell, as his track record speaks for itself.”

Fowler and ESR will take to the track Sunday, May 23 at 2 p.m. for the Menards 200 at Toledo Speedway. Live scoring and timing will be available on ARCARacing.com.

About Eddie Sharp Racing

Eddie Sharp set up shop in 2005 after several years of transforming young, talented drivers into ARCA championship contenders. Today, Eddie Sharp Racing has evolved into the rite of passage for any serious upcoming driver with an ambition for professional stock car racing. Located in Denver, North Carolina just north of Charlotte, Eddie Sharp Racing occupies a top-notch facility that closely resembles a five-star NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team, both inside and out. The two ESR buildings each contain two teams where on any given day, championship contending cars are assembled, engines tuned and teams strategize to score the next race day victory.

- Eddie Sharp Racing Press Release

This weekend, Hogan will look to get his season righted at the newly renovated Gresham Motorsports Park. Hogan competed in the World Crown 300 last fall coming home with an eleventh place finish on the new lightning fast pavement at what used to be Peach State Speedway.

This weekend’s 125 lap event is the second on Hogan’s “pick and choose” 2010 racing schedule. However, after breaking on lap one at Lanier’s Speedfest, you could make an argument that this weekend’s event could be considered his season opener.

“We didn’t even get the oil warm at Speedfest,” said Hogan. “You could argue that Gresham will be the start of our 2010 season after our problems at Lanier. Gresham is a bad fast track, one you can’t make a mistake on or it will make you pay in a big way.”

Hogan is not joking about the speeds at Gresham. The track qualifying record was set there last fall at 16.158 seconds around the half mile oval by Chase Elliott. The race also had fourteen cautions. However, in contrast to the World Crown 300, there will only be 125 laps for competitors to work with, leaving the question many have pondered including that of Hogan; what kind of race will play out?

“It should be interesting what kind of race we have this weekend. I think track position will be huge in this race because it’s still a place that is developing into a second groove race track,” stated Jason. “We tested there last weekend and we had one of the fastest cars at the test which is pretty encouraging so we’ll just have to wait and see how it plays out.”

- Tex Motorsports Marketing Press Release

World Crown 300 Logo

Elliott, the 13-year-old son of NASCAR champion Bill Elliott, blistered the GMP oval with a lap of 16.178 seconds, (111.262 miles per hour), well below the previous late model stock car best of 16.830 when the track was still Peach State Speedway.

Elliott will lead a stellar 38-car field to the green flag Sunday as Jeff Choquette, Augie Grill, Austin Hill, T.J. Reaid, Ryan Sieg, Jerick Johnson, Taylor Satterfield, Jimmy Garmon and Chuck Barnes completed the top-10 qualifiers. In all, 48 drivers from 14 states attempted to make this year’s World Crown 300 classic with the first 30 starting spots guaranteed into the show on time. The remaining qualifiers – Tommy Joe Martins, Bubba Pollard, Chris Davidson, Johnny Brazier, Michael Lance and Brandon Johnson earned their way into the field through a last chance race while Dakota Stroup and Tim George Jr. made the race on a promoter’s option to set the field for the 2.

Also on Saturday, B.J. Thrasher grabbed World Crown 300 gold by taking the Mini-Stock division win while Todd Vanderford won the Iceman Late Model main event, Paul Antley grabbed the 75-lap Truck Series WC 300 headliner while Shawn Campbell took the checkered flag first in the Renegade event.

Gresham Motorsports Park Logo

General Admission seats are still available for the event and can be purchased at the gate for just $25. Sunday’s World Crown 300 will feature three 100-lap segments with controlled pit stops at laps 100 and 200.

Fans unable to attend the race can follow it live on the www.GreshamMotorsportsPark.com webcast of the event.

- Gresham Motorsports Park Press Release

Gresham Motorsports Park Logo

According to Gresham Motorsports Park General Manager, the Camping World Series East race will mark the return of NASCAR to the historic half-mile Georgia oval on Saturday, August 28, 2010.

“This is a great day for us,” said Elliott. “Gresham Motorsports Park opened as Jefco Speedway in 1967 and the first event was a NASCAR Sportsman (now Nationwide) race won by ‘Tiger’ Tom Pistone. Later, NASCAR greats Cale Yarborough and Bobby Isacc won what are now NASCAR Sprint Cup races here. To say we are elated to have a NASCAR event back on our schedule is an understatement.”

The previous incarnation of the NASCAR Camping World Series East division actually has competed at GMP. On July 24, 1968, Tiny Lund won a NASCAR Grand Touring Series at the then named Jefco Speedway. Lund would win another Grand Touring event – the Bulldog 400 – at Jefco on March 16, 1969.

In 2009, the NASCAR Camping World Series East contested 11 races including events at Watkins Glen International, New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Dover International Speedway and Iowa Speedway.

The GMP NASCAR event is just one of 12 high-profile oval track races the former Peach State Speedway will stage in 2010. Purchased by the Gresham family in January, the track was closed all season as the facility was leveled and replaced with a state-of-the-art facility. In addition to the complete makeover that included all new racing surfaces and lighting, a drive-thru Infield Tech Center, new grandstands, rest rooms and concession facilities were also constructed. The track is also one of the most technologically advanced in the country featuring 7-loop data/scoring capacity and wireless, remote control solar powered track safety lighting.

The announcement of the 2010 NASCAR Camping World Series East race was made at the 26th-Annual World Crown 300 this weekend – the inaugural event at the new Gresham Motorsports Park track.

- Gresham Motorsports Park Press Release

Max Gresham

“For my first real Super Late Model race, I was really pleased,” said Gresham. “To be as strong as we were, I couldn’t have asked for anything more. It was a big learning experience for me, getting used to driving those cars with the throttle. I’m disappointed we didn’t finish better. My guys deserved better.”

After turning in a sold practice time of 16.291 seconds – good enough for ninth on the speed sheets – Gresham piloted his Gresham Motorsports Park/World Crown 300 super late model to a lightening quick time of 15.782 seconds and the fourth starting position in the 27-car starting field.

“We really wanted to be in the Top-5 in qualifying because we didn’t want to run the last-chance race,” said Gresham. “That was huge for us. It allowed our team to get to bed early Friday night and be fresh for the race Saturday. We also didn’t have to use up our race car in the qualifying race. Qualifying well really helped us out a lot. I have to thank Gene (Gresham Motorsports crew chief Gene Roberts) for getting the car right for qualifying. It allowed me to go out there and get a good starting position for us.”

Gresham showed he belonged in the front of the pack running in the Top-5 throughout the first third of the race. Then, a mechanical malfunction made Gresham’s race more about surviving than winning.

“We had a real strong car,” Gresham stated. “Then we broke a power steering line and I had to drive the last 80 laps of the race without power steering. The car was hooked up, real fast, but I just couldn’t do anything with the car. I couldn’t react quickly enough if the car would get loose, so I just had to be patient and not force the issue. I just had to cruise and try to finish the race.”

The result was Gresham slightly off the winning pace, just enough to get him one lap down and 14th in the final running order.

“I certainly got a lot more respect for the old race car drivers who drove these things without power steering,” laughed Gresham. “I’d rather not do that again.”

Gresham will be looking for smoother sailing when he points his No. 7-11 racer toward Northeast Georgia and the World Crown 300 at Gresham Motorsports Park this Friday-Sunday, November 13-15.

The event at the totally refurbished former Peach State Speedway will get underway with Late Model practice Friday and conclude with the 300-lap World Crown event on the freshly minted GMP half-mile oval on Sunday at 2 p.m. Eastern Time.

To learn more about Max Gresham and Gresham Motorsports, please log on to www.greshammotorsports.com.

- Gresham Motorsports Press Release

Scheduled for Oct. 3, 2010, the race will be on the traditional fall weekend that for many years hosted NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Series from NASCAR’s inception in 1949 until the track closed after its fall race in 1996. Its two Cup dates were then moved to New Hampshire and Texas. But with the dawn of the 2010 racing season, the 0.625-mile track will again assume its rightful place in the stock car racing community.

“We are extremely pleased to be the first national touring racing series to return to the true roots of stock car racing,” USARacing Managing Partner Larry Camp said. “We know the people of Wilkes County and the surrounding area of North Carolina have missed stock car racing on this storied track.

“All of us at the USARacing Pro Cup Series are proud to be a part of this rebirth. Personally, I know the Staley family, Junior Johnson and the many stock car racing purists will mark Oct. 3, 2010, as a red letter day in the sport. I know Benny Parsons would be extremely proud of (his wife) Terri for helping return stock car racing to the county that he and his family so dearly loved.”

In addition to Mrs. Parsons, the new ownership group consists of Alton McBride Sr., Alton McBride Jr., Dave Ehret, John Burwell and Bosco Lowe.

With the addition of North Wilkesboro Speedway, the USAR Pro Cup Series schedule contains five tracks that played key roles in NASCAR’s first 50 years. The series travels to Hickory [N.C.] Motor Speedway on May 1, Rockingham [N.C.] Speedway on May 15, South Boston Speedway on June 12 and for the season finale on Nov. 6, and Bristol [Tenn.] Motor Speedway on Sept. 11. Gresham Motorsports Park, site of the USAR Pro Cup Series season opener on March 27 and a Championship Series race on Oct. 23, is on the site of the old Peach State Speedway in Jefferson, Ga., which hosted NASCAR Cup races in the late 1960s.

“We are very excited to add the historic North Wilkesboro Speedway to the 2010 USARacing Pro Cup Series schedule as this completes our 2010 schedule and adds another high profile venue to our already impressive list of quality and historic tracks,” Vice President and Series Director Jimmy Wilson said. “In addition to North Wilkesboro, we have solidified our date with Hickory Motor Speedway, moving it earlier in the season compared to years past. This is truly a schedule everyone can get excited over.”

The USAR Pro Cup Series 2010 schedule has the nation’s premier short-track circuit visiting a dozen venues in eight states. The series’ return to Bristol Motor Speedway, the reopening of North Wilkesboro Speedway, and a companion race with NASCAR’s Nationwide Series at Iowa Speedway on July 30 highlight the 16-race schedule that boasts a five-event Championship Series.

Joining Gresham Motorsports Park, Bristol Motor Speedway and North Wilkesboro Speedway as added venues for the 2010 season are New Smyrna Speedway in New Smyrna Beach, Fla., on April 17; Lake Erie Speedway in Erie, Pa., on June 26; and Salem Speedway in Salem, Ind., on July 10.

The USARacing Pro Cup Series, formerly Hooters Pro Cup, is owned by Interstate Investment Group and is based in Concord, N.C. IIG is comprised of Jack McNelly, Gary Kale, Carl Hubbard, Chip Lofton and Larry Camp, who serves as the managing partner. For more information on the USARacing Pro Cup Series, go to www.usarprocup.com.

- USARacing Pro Cup Series Press Release