Iowa track has new prez before Cup Series debut

NEWTON, Iowa — Eric Peterson has been named president of Iowa Speedway as the track prepares for its first NASCAR Cup Series race in June, NASCAR announced Thursday.

Peterson, who replaced David Hyatt, has been NASCAR’s West Region senior director for corporate sales and has held various sales roles since joining International Speedway Corporation and Kansas Speedway in 2010.

“Eric has a strong Midwest work ethic and an incredible passion for our sport,” said Chip Wile, NASCAR senior vice president and chief track properties officer. “He also has a proven track record of developing relationships with major national and local brands, making him the ideal choice to lead the top professional sports venue in the state of Iowa.”

The ARCA Menards Series opens the Cup Series weekend on June 14 and will be followed by the NASCAR Xfinity Series race June 15. The Iowa Corn 350 is June 16.

“I’ve been incredibly fortunate to work on several initiatives at Iowa Speedway in recent years, and I’ve come to love and appreciate what Iowa Speedway means to Newton and the entire state,” Peterson said.

Iowa Speedway is about 30 miles east of Des Moines.