By Caleb Whisler, Staff Writer
It has been a whirlwind of a week for Zane Smith as he makes his NASCAR Camping World Truck Series debut with DGR-Crosley at Gateway Motorsports Park.
Smith currently races for MDM Motorsports in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menard’s on a weekly basis. At Gateway, the young driver begins the process of making his way through the ranks of NASCAR with his Truck start.
The process to race with DGR-Crosley this weekend began on Tuesday after receiving a text around 4:00 p.m. ET. As soon as he saw the text, the NASCAR Next star began the process of getting everything in line to race.
“It was as last-minute as it possibly could be. I found out about it on Tuesday. I did all my drug test, physical, concussion test, get a NASCAR license, and everything you could think of in pretty much a day and a half,” Smith told Kickin’ The Tires.
For Smith, this opportunity to race in one of NASCAR’s national divisions is one that could not have been possible without people behind him.
“I don’t think we could have made it happen without all the people behind me. It’s the same guys I have always had. They are really good people who have allowed me to continue to go up the ladder. Hopefully, I can prove something tonight,” Smith continued.
As a young star coming through the ranks, Smith wants to use this opportunity to prove that he should be racing in the national series.
When it comes to MDM Motorsports, the misconception is that they are angry that Smith is racing against a competitor in ARCA; however, the complete opposite occurred. Smith was pumped that MDM was supportive through the whole process.
“They were pumped for me. They actually made a lot of it happen because of the seat in that truck. My backup car was in the hauler and they unloaded it to get the seat out. It was one heck of a process. It’s awesome they helped with the program,” Smith stated.
With being in a new vehicle, Smith wants to learn anything and everything he can during the race. The main goal is to take everything in so that he is more prepared for down the road.