Stock car racing fans will have to wait until at least 2009 for a chance to see a NASCAR Busch Series or Craftsman Truck Series event at Iowa Speedway in Newton.

The track’s 2008 slate will include return visits by the IndyCar Series and NASCAR’s Grand National Division, but the Busch and Craftsman Truck Series will not expand next season, Iowa Speedway’s vice president and general manager Craig Armstrong said Monday.

“They are certainly looking at us as a prospect for 2009 and beyond,” said Armstrong, who saw the 2007 season close with Saturday’s Alan Kulwicki Memorial Soy Biodiesel 225. “But I think our patience and our good works will be rewarded in time. I believe that and I think the evidence supports that.”

Armstrong said the 2008 schedule could be set within a few weeks and he expects the buzz to build around showcase events featuring the IndyCar Series and NASCAR’s Grand National Division Busch East and West Series.

He said NASCAR is well aware of the track’s desire to eventually host Busch and Truck races, and pointed to the estimated paid crowd of 24,741 for this year’s Grand National race as a strong selling point.

“I know it far exceeded (Grand National’s) expectations,” Armstrong said. “Often, I think, racetracks think NASCAR is easily impressed and I can tell you they’re not. You really have to go a long ways and far exceed what would be normally expected in a situation like that to really impress them, and I can tell you we really impressed them.”