Iowa native Annett a big draw this week in Newton

Iowa Speedway officials are expecting their biggest crowd yet for the track's inaugural Nationwide Series race Saturday. Having Michael Annett in the field certainly won't hurt.

Annett, a native of Des Moines, will be among the fan favorites. Not only did Annett grow up about 30 miles west of Newton, but TMC Transportation, the trucking company owned by his father, Harold Annett, has given away at least 1,000 tickets for the race.

“It's going to be crazy,” Annett said.

Indeed it will - especially for a Nationwide rookie who spent much of his life working toward a hockey career.

Annett, 23, was born into a racing family. He attended his first race at Iowa's Knoxville Raceway, the unofficial world headquarters of sprint car racing, four days after he was born, and TMC was the owner and primary sponsor for sprint car star Sammy Swindell in the World of Outlaws series for several years.

But Harold grew weary of racing and got out of the sport in the early 1990s. The move left Michael, who had spent his early years dreaming of becoming a race car driver, looking for another sport to pour his energy into.

Nationwide U.S. Cellular 250 practice sessions are at 2:30 p.m. and 6 p.m. Friday at Iowa Speedway in Newton. Qualifying is noon Saturday with the race set for 3:30 p.m. ESPN2 is covering the qualifying, ESPN the race

Annett found that on the ice.

Annett and his mother drove up and down Interstate 80 - often passing the cornfield that became Iowa Speedway - playing in youth hockey tournaments across the Midwest. Annett showed skill as a defenseman and joined the Waterloo Black Hawks of the United States Hockey League, a top-flight junior circuit. In 2004, Annett was named the league's most improved player.

But Annett couldn't shake the racing bug. While his teammates sat around watching college hockey games and dreaming about the Frozen Four, Annett flipped the channel to NASCAR.

Annett hung up his skates after the 2005 USHL season. Even though Annett's experience in racing was limited to a few go-kart events, he knew his future was behind the wheel.

“I just kept hinting at it to my parents, and then when I was about 18 I said ‘This is something I'm going to do, with or without your support,”' Annett said.

Annett's parents agreed to help. Within a week after his final hockey season Annett was running a USAC Silver Crown car test session.

Annett soon discovered he had a good feel for race cars, and the pressure he went through playing in the highly competitive USHL gave him the mental toughness he needed to work his way up the racing ladder.

Annett, 23, ran four ARCA races in 2007 and finished in the top 10 every time, including a win at Talladega Superspeedway. He moved up to the Camping World Truck Series for eight races last season, picking up a top-five finish at Kentucky and setting himself up for a full year in the Nationwide circuit.

It's been an up-and-down rookie season, but things have been looking up. Though he's 15th in the Nationwide points standings, Annett's two top-10 finishes have come in the last seven races.

“I've kind of been disappointed. And it's not for a lack of effort, or people in place or the equipment. We've just had horrible luck this year,” Annett said. “This summer stretch that we've gone through, our cars have gotten a lot better.”

All signs point to a strong showing in Iowa. He won the pole and finished third at an ARCA Re/Max race here in 2007, and he holds the record for most competitive laps since the facility opened in 2006.

Plus, he'll have the support of his family and friends and all those folks who got their tickets through his dad's company.

“Of any track we go to, this is the one I'm most familiar with. If we could have an advantage going into any track it could be this weekend,” Annett said.