Max Gordon might only be twelve years old, but he is off to a good start in the Stadium Super Trucks‘ return to action. Set for his SST début on Saturday, he led the nine-driver practice on Friday morning at Road America. Eleven drivers will take part in the next day’s races.
The top three in practice—held on the shorter course that cuts from turn five to thirteen—consisted of drivers running their first races of the season as Gordon led with a lap time of 1:36.463. He and Arie Luyendyk Jr. (1:36.899) were the lone drivers in the session to break 150 miles per hour, while John Holtger, who made his series début at the road course in 2019, followed at 1:37.448 and 149.544 mph.
Max’s father Robby Gordon was over two seconds behind his son with a time of 1:38.977. Jett Noland, an SST newcomer, was fifth. Series regulars Matt Brabham and Bill Hynes tailed Noland, while the last two were new faces in Zoey Edenholm and Barry Boes.
Qualifying, run on the full circuit, took place later in the day. Brabham led the way with a time of 4:29.437, half a second faster than Robby Gordon’s 4:29.944. Following the champions were Luyendyk, Holtger, Max Gordon, Boes, Hynes, Noland, and Edenholm.
“Perfect day to be racing around in @stadiumsupertrucks,” Brabham wrote in an Instagram post. “Qualified on the pole today, will be starting off the back tomorrow on reverse grid order.”
Sheldon Creed and Zane Smith did not participate in Friday’s sessions as they were at Michigan International Speedway for that day’s NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series event. Smith, who ultimately won in a wild finish for his maiden Gander Trucks victory, is running his first Stadium Super Trucks weekend. Both drivers, team-mates in the Truck Series, and Max Gordon will start at the back for Race #1 as the field inversion places Edenholm on the pole.
Two races will take place on Saturday. The first is scheduled for 10:15 AM (Central time) prior to the NASCAR Xfinity Series‘ Henry 180, and the second will begin at 3:35 PM after the Trans-Am Series event.
Practice results
| Position | Number | Driver | Best Time | Margin | Top Speed (mph) |
| 1 | 77 | Max Gordon | 1:36.463 | Leader | 151.071 |
| 2 | 25 | Arie Luyendyk Jr. | 1:36.899 | + 0.436 | 150.392 |
| 3 | 44 | John Holtger | 1:37.448 | + 0.985 | 149.544 |
| 4 | 7 | Robby Gordon | 1:38.977 | + 2.514 | 147.234 |
| 5 | 81 | Jett Noland | 1:39.605 | + 3.142 | 146.306 |
| 6 | 83 | Matt Brabham | 1:39.720 | + 3.257 | 146.137 |
| 7 | 57 | Bill Hynes | 1:40.462 | + 3.999 | 145.058 |
| 8 | 21 | Zoey Edenholm | 1:41.290 | + 4.827 | 143.872 |
| 9 | 32 | Barry Boes | 1:47.241 | + 10.778 | 135.888 |
Qualifying results
| Position | Number | Driver | Best Time | Margin |
| 1 | 83 | Matt Brabham | 4:29.437 | Leader |
| 2 | 7 | Robby Gordon | 4:29.944 | + 0.507 |
| 3 | 25 | Arie Luyendyk Jr. | 4:31.265 | + 1.828 |
| 4 | 44 | John Holtger | 4:34.877 | + 5.440 |
| 5 | 77 | Max Gordon | 4:36.750 | + 7.313 |
| 6 | 32 | Barry Boes | 4:39.309 | + 9.872 |
| 7 | 57 | Bill Hynes | 4:40.099 | + 10.662 |
| 8 | 81 | Jett Noland | 4:40.627 | + 11.190 |
| 9 | 21 | Zoey Edenholm | 4:43.519 | + 14.082 |
| 10 | 2 | Sheldon Creed | No Time | N/A |
| 11 | 66 | Zane Smith | No Time | N/A |
UPDATE: Article has been updated with qualifying times from the series. Results were not available in the initial hours following the session’s conclusion, with Brabham first revealing them (without times) in an Instagram story.
