Michael Self is poised to earn the overall victory at Iowa this week after being the highest-finishing K&N Pro Series West driver at the track last August. Photo – Getty Images/NASCARHomeTracks.com
Michael Self is focused on taking the next step this week when the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East and NASCAR K&N Pro Series West head to Iowa Speedway for the Casey’s General Stores 150 on Friday, June 7.
The first of two combination races this season at Iowa between the K&N Pro Series East and West, Self is looking at the Casey’s General Stores 150 as an opportunity for a breakthrough on behalf of his peers from the West Coast. In seven previous combo races at Iowa, a K&N Pro Series West driver has yet to come away with the event’s overall victory.
The K&N Pro Series East and West teams compete alongside each other for the overall checkered flag and race finish in the combination race format, but they are scored respective to their series when it comes to championship points. The highest-finishing East and West driver each receives a win for their own series, but only the overall race winner gets to celebrate in Iowa Victory Lane, and that driver has represented the East each and every time since the inaugural event in 2007.
Self, from Park City, Utah, was the highest-finishing K&N Pro Series West driver the last time the two series converged in Newton last August for one of his four career West victories. This time around, he wants to be the first to the checkered flag.
“That’s exactly what our goal is (overall race win),” Self said. The [West] win last year was pretty big for us. We were quick. We weren’t in the top-five level or top-three level with the East guys, but we’ve worked on our program quite a bit.”
Although the overall wins haven’t come for the West representatives at Iowa to-date, Self is encouraged by how they perform when the East teams go to Phoenix International Raceway for the West points races. The performance of the West teams in the inaugural non-points UNOH Battle At The Beach on the short track at Daytona International Speedway this past February also gives Self confidence. West driver Cameron Hayley captured the victory and five of the top-ten finishers were West cars.
“We run so strong with the East guys at Phoenix, and we ran so strong at Daytona,” Self said. “It’s really time to go back to Iowa and prove that we’re all together now.”
Self isn’t satisfied to just rise with the West tide. The winner last time out in stand-alone K&N Pro Series West action on the road course at Brainerd International Raceway, Self feels his No. 21 Golden Gate Racing team is making the necessary strides to rise to the next level.
“We’ve stepped up our big track program quite a bit I feel, and I’m very, very confident going into this race,” Self said. “We’re taking the cars out that we won with Phoenix and Iowa at [last year]. We’re going to go in there and focus on that overall win.”
*By Jason Cunningham and Kevin Green and originally published at NASCARHomeTracks.com on June 3, 2013
Michael Self is our next guest on Fan4Racing Fan2Fan NASCAR Talk, this Monday, June10th at 8:30pm ET. Fans are encouraged to call 347-996-5176 for Q&As with Michael Self.
