Zac Brown Band performs its hits at Iowa Speedway during Hy-Vee IndyCar weekend

It’s a great day for a race in Newton, Iowa, according to singer Zac Brown.

The frontman, joined by the band named after him, raised his bottle of water with a "cheers" to the crowd.

The Zac Brown Band performed Sunday afternoon as part of the Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend after country stars Carrie Underwood and Kenny Chesney transformed the Iowa Speedway into a summer bash on Saturday.

The Grammy Award-winning band is comprised of Brown, Coy Bowles, Clay Cook, Daniel de los Reyes, Jimmy de Martini, Chris Fryar, Matt Mangano, Caroline Jones and John Driskell Hopkins, who all showed how they were masters of their respective instruments Sunday afternoon during their hourlong set, delivering electrifying solos especially apparent during “The Devil Went Down to Georgia,” originally by the Charlie Daniels Band.

Brown’s intense strumming on his acoustic guitar, paired with Jimmy de Martini’s increasingly frantic-sounding violin, made the already high-energy song all the more exciting and had the crowd cheering and putting their hands in the air by the end of it.

“It’s been such an amazing crowd. Show some love for my band,” Brown said at the end of the set.

The Zac Brown Band kicked off the show with 2015’s “Homegrown,” a song that embraces simple living.

More: Country music star Carrie Underwood performs at Iowa Speedway during IndyCar weekend

Paxten Hainline, 11, and her mother, Josie, from Bondurant sang along to many of Brown’s songs, with Paxten occasionally using her water bottle as a microphone.

“We both are (fans), but she loves ‘Chicken Fried’ so she was waiting for that,” Josie said of her daughter’s favorite song by the band.

“After many guesses,” Paxten added.

Paxten has been listening to Brown for years since she and her mom mostly listen to country radio. Finally seeing him live for the first time, Paxten confidently said she’d see him again.

Like Paxten, Billy Starbeck of Clear Lake saw the Zac Brown Band play for the first time Sunday afternoon.

He’d been listening to the singer-songwriter for “forever” and was hopeful to hear “Knee Deep,” a song that’s all about the beach, a song that resonates with him.

“My dad played him when I was little a lot,” Starbeck said before the show.

His father was at the Iowa Speedway and set to join him for the performance.

More: Country music singer Kenny Chesney takes the stage at Iowa Speedway during IndyCar weekend

The Zac Brown Band has been performing since the mid-2000s, formed by Georgia native Brown. Over the years, the band has collaborated with artists from Jimmy Buffett to Chris Cornell and Dave Grohl.

It’s one of the band’s early singles, “Toes” off their album “The Foundation,” that had the crowd singing along.

“Y’all sound great,” Brown said.

The band performed “Keep Me in Mind," “Same Boat,” and later, a cover of “Sabotage” by the Beastie Boys midway through — Brown stated it was a request on their way to the stage — with violinist Martini taking the mic.

It was the band’s last song, “Chicken Fried,” that evoked a huge response from the crowd, in part because it became a hit on Billboard country charts. The song, like “Homegrown,” celebrates the little things in life.

And the audience delivered when they were asked to help sing a line from the song: “A cold beer on a Friday night.”

More: Country music singer Kenny Chesney takes the stage at Iowa Speedway during IndyCar weekend

Maddie Poppie, Ed Sheeran and Kirk Ferentz all at the Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend

Another “American Idol” graced the Iowa Speedway Sunday.

Maddie Poppe, the Season 16 winner and a singer-songwriter from Clarksville, performed the national anthem ahead of the NTT IndyCar Series Race, the Hy-Vee One Step 250.

Also taking on an important role, University of Iowa football coach Kirk Ferentz was the grand marshal for the Sunday race, saying the iconic line, “Drivers, start your engines.”

Meanwhile, Ed Sheeran, the British pop singer behind hits like “Shape of You” and “Thinking Out Loud,” got to wave the green flag as racers flew by. Sheeran will be closing out the Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend with a performance at 4:15 p.m.

Paris Barraza covers entertainment, lifestyle and arts at the Des Moines Register. Reach her at pbarraza@registermedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @ParisBarraza.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Zac Brown Band plays Iowa Speedway in Newton during IndyCar weekend