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The best of the East and West met in their annual combination race at Iowa Speedway in May of 2012. (Rachel Long/NASCAR)

Setting the Scene: 2012 East-West Replay from Iowa

www.arcaracing.com April 2, 2020

By the time the NASCAR K&N Pro Series made its way to the heartland in May of 2012, it was already a season for the record books.

The Graham Tire 150, slated for Saturday, May 19, featured future NASCAR Cup Series drivers Ryan Blaney, Chase Elliott, Corey LaJoie, Kyle Larson, Daniel Suarez and Bubba Wallace; 2018 Truck Series champion Brett Moffitt; as well as NASCAR executive Ben Kennedy and action sports star Travis Pastrana.

The lineup was also featured future East and West champion Dylan Kwasniewski, along with a strong contingent of veteran short-track stars such as Greg Pursley, Eddie MacDonald and Derek Thorn.

RACING-REFERENCE: Iowa Speedway Race Results

Heading into Iowa, the pole sitter was 7-for-7 in the East and West.

Nelson Piquet Jr. became the first Brazilian to win an East series race, but the race was also notable for two drivers who didn’t win. Chase Elliott was spun from the lead just past halfway by Ryan Blaney, while Corey LaJoie suffered a cut tire late in the race that took him out of the lead.

Darrell Wallace Jr. made more history two weeks later at South Carolina’s Greenville Pickens Speedway, when he became the first African-American in series’ history.

Fast forward to Richmond International Raceway, where Brett Moffitt edged Elliott at the line by .011 seconds for the victory. The runner-up finish, though, allowed Elliott to take a four-point series championship lead over Ben Kennedy and nine over LaJoie.

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Meanwhile, out West, four different drivers had been to Victory Lane in four races.

David Mayhew took home the opener at Phoenix Raceway, while Derek Thorn mastered Arizona’s Havasu 95 Speedway. After Greg Pursley won on the road couse at Utah Motorsports Campus, then known as Miller Motorsports Park, his Gene Price Motorsports’ teammate Dylan Kwasniewski led every lap at California’s Stockton 99 Speedway.

The win gave Kwasniewski a six-point lead over Mayhew and 11 over Pursley. The year before, Kwasniewski had become the youngest race winner in West series history, and he was aiming to become the youngest series champion.

Iowa had already seen its share of notable winners in the Pro Series annual comination event, and 2012 marked the first time the two series would run at the “Fastest Short Track on the Planet” twice in a season.