Michael McDowell has never won a NASCAR Nationwide Series race but he will be one of the drivers to beat this weekend at the Iowa Speedway. A regular on the Sprint Cup Tour, Sunday’s race will be McDowell’s first for Joe Gibbs Racing and he will be driving the number 18 Pizza Ranch Toyota which Kyle Busch has piloted to five wins already this season.

McDowell says he felt like it was some kind of prank on him, but says it will be fun to drive the car. McDowell has run well at the Iowa Speedway. He finished second and fourth in two ARCA Series events and also finished eighth in the 2009 Nationwide Series race.

He says it has been a few years since he has been in a competitive program where he can win races. McDowell says this is the perfect weekend to drive a car for the first time. McDowell says this is one of the races where they get an extra test day with extra practice.

McDowell has made nine starts in the Sprint Cup Series this season and says his team is letting him skip this week’s race to drive at Iowa.