CONCORD, N.C. (September 17, 2012) – Although Friday’s Kentucky 201 will be just the second race for Max Gresham at Eddie Sharp Racing (ESR), the newly-formed relationship is hardly taking baby steps in the final three months of the 2012 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) season.
The driver of the No. 8 Made In USA Brand (MIUSA) Chevrolet Silverado confirmed that he already feels up to speed at ESR, and doesn’t consider the race at the Kentucky Speedway to be part of any learning curve.
“We are not going to Kentucky to figure a lot of things out,” Gresham said. “We’re going there to run in the lead pack and put ourselves in contention for a solid finish. We plan to unload the No. 8 Made In USA Brand Chevrolet fast.”
Gresham will make his second of five selected starts with ESR with this weekend’s race. The red, white, and blue team made its debut August 31 at the Atlanta Motor Speedway with a 22nd-place finish.
“The Atlanta race was a success because we all worked hard together to improve our team during the weekend,” crew chief Chris Showalter said. “By the end of the race, Max and I had a great understanding of each other and we were able to make huge gains with our truck.
“The next step is to build on that at Kentucky. We’re going to pick up where we left off at Atlanta.”
Gresham, the defending NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Champion, has experience at Kentucky – both on the 1.5-mile quad-oval and on the quarter-mile. He started 19th and finished 30th with engine failure at Joe Dennette Racing on June 28. He also has three top-five finishes in a Bandolero Bandit in 2005 and four top-10s in the U.S. Legends Cars International (USLCI) series in 2006.
Much like Atlanta, the key to success at Kentucky his getting the truck to rotate through the banking to generate speed down the straightaway runs.
“Kentucky is all about momentum,” the 19-year-old driver from Griffin, Ga., said. “You want to carry as much momentum off the corners as possible. We have a good idea how to do that, so we’re really confident about our approach. Even though it is our second race together, we’re not taking any baby steps. We’ve made huge gains in a very short time. I am very proud to be a part of this team”
Gresham has found success at every step during his young career. He won the 2006 Semi-Pro Legends National Championship. He completed all 1,705 laps a year ago to win the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East championship, capturing two wins, four poles, nine top-five and 11 top-10 finishes.
The Camping World Truck Series is his next big next step.
Gresham will return in the No. 8 Made in USA Chevrolet for races at the Martinsville Speedway on Oct. 27, Texas Motor Speedway on Nov. 2 and the season-finale on Nov. 16 at the Homestead-Miami Speedway.
About Eddie Sharp Racing
Eddie Sharp Racing (ESR) (TeamESR.com) is a championship winning racing team housed in a 45,000 square-foot facility in Denver, N.C. After getting its start in the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) Racing Series, ESR has accumulated upwards of 20 race wins, the 2009 ARCA Racing Series Championship, and countless top-five and top-10 finishes in just five years of competition. By 2010, ESR began to make the transition into the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) with a partial schedule before racing in the series full-time in 2011. By 2012, the team expanded to be a multi-truck team and secured its first victory in just the team’s 35th NCWTS race. Additionally, ESR continues to build its driver development program fielding various drivers in the ARCA Racing Series, the United Auto Racing Association (UARA) STARS Series and other late model events across the southeast.
