NEWTON, Iowa: After winning the last NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series event two weeks ago at World Wide Technology Raceway, Corey Heim could have taken the next three weeks off before the tour runs again at Nashville Superspeedway on June 28.
Not surprisingly, the 21-year-old from Marietta, Georgia elected to race.
Reviving his role with Sam Hunt Racing at Iowa Speedway this weekend paid off. On Friday, Heim wheeled the No. 26 yahoo! Toyota to the top of the speed chart during Xfinity Series practice for the HyVee Perks 25.
“Seat time is huge,” Heim said. “I’ve preached that my entire career. The more starts and the more seat time I can get, the better I’ll be. Anytime I can jump in a race car and get laps, I think it’s super important and I want to take advantage of it. This weekend is a great example of it.”
In his ARCA Series starts at the 0.875-mile, Heim averaged a fifth-place finish. But his last race on the short track nestled in Newton came in 2021. NASCAR repaved the corners after the sanctioning body deemed the 18-year-old track needed a little facelift.
Heim believes his past experience will assist his execution on this “momentum track” but the repave presents new challenges for the drivers.
“You’re still trying to stay spooled up,” Heim said. “It’s a pretty circular track when you put it all together. It’s still momentum racing. Those extra laps will help, but there’s just so much grip on the new pavement compared to the old track.
“The last time I was here was ’21. So regardless of the repave, I was going to have to relearn this place either way, but it kind of makes it an equal playing field for everybody with the unknowns.”
Even the best students of the sport need a good teacher. Heim credited Toyota Racing Development’s (TRD) simulation package with helping him get up to speed before tackling the unknowns at the Iowa track.
“The trickiest part is getting used to the transition on entry (to the corners), turning up to the wall and having no grip to having as much grip as you can possibly stand,” Heim said. “That was the biggest learning curve and I was able to learn that throughout the week at TRD.
“To come here and be pretty close is pretty big for us. Our car correlated to (the simulation) really well. Even though we had a longer practice and time to work on it, it’s crucial to be fast either way.”
The Toyota development driver has excelled on the fast track to the NASCAR Cup Series. In his full-time job with TRICON garage behind the wheel of the No. 11 Tundra, he has scored seven victories including four this year in his second full season with the team. Even as a part-timer with Kyle Busch Motorsports in 2022, Heim earned two wins in his 16 starts—and always made the most of every opportunity.
His approach with the single-entry Sam Hunt team is no different. While competing against the top teams in the Xfinity Series garage, Heim finished fourth at Richmond Raceway and 10th last year at Darlington Raceway.
Heim’s greatest challenge to date will come in two weeks when he makes his NASCAR Cup Series debut with 23XI Racing at Nashville Superspeedway. While he filled in for Erik Jones in the No. 
43 Toyota when the Legacy Motor Club driver was sidelined with a back injury, Heim’s opportunity was not ideal.
Driving the No. 50 Mobil 1 Camry for one of the up-and-coming powerhouse teams will provide Heim with a chance to prove his potential. Veteran crew chief Dave Rogers will oversee Heim’s Cup start in Nashville.
“Nashville will be a high-pressure situation compared to what I’m used to,” said Heim, who will perform double duty with trucks and Cup that weekend. “But at the end of the day, I’m used to jumping between cars a lot with the Legacy starts I got. That was super short notice. I basically had to learn how to drive a Cup car in like three or four days.
“Now, I have time to actually think about those starts and prepare for the Nashville race. Definitely, no different than what I’m used to but I higher pressure situation no doubt.”
23XI Racing co-owner Denny Hamlin believes that Heim is ready for the challenge.
“For us, he’s a young Toyota prospect that deserves to get a shot at the next level,” Hamlin said.
Follow Lee Spencer on Twitter @CandiceSpencer or email her at: [email protected].
