The Iowa Corn 350 at Iowa Speedway Outlook and Picks

The NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) heads to Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa, for the Iowa Corn 350 Powered by Ethanol this Sunday, August 9 at 3:30 p.m. ET on USA, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90).

In 2025, William Byron led 141 laps and utilized a fuel strategy to win the Iowa Corn 350 at Iowa Speedway. Chase Briscoe finished second, Brad Keselowski won the first two stages and finished in third, while Ryan Blaney and Ryan Preece rounded out the top five finishers.

The Chase For The NASCAR Cup Series Standings Outlook after Indianapolis Motor Speedway

RankDriverPointsLdrNext+/- Chase CutoffStartsWinsStage WinsTop 5Top 10Poles
1Denny Hamlin88600Clinched224512145
2Tyler Reddick802-8484Clinched225110146
3Ryan Blaney766-12036Clinched22244153
4Ty Gibbs751-13515Clinched22159141
5Carson Hocevar638-2481131582210592
6Chase Elliott635-25131552222580
7Chase Briscoe623-2631214322109110
8Kyle Larson617-269613722048110
9Chris Buescher613-273413322002100
10Christopher Bell609-277412922039101
11Daniel Suarez583-303261032211260
12William Byron568-31815882203490
13Joey Logano545-34123652211481
14Bubba Wallace540-34656022023100
15Shane Van Gisbergen537-3493572221572
16Austin Cindric518-36819382201140

Track & Race Information for the Iowa Corn 350

Season Race #: 23 of 36 (August 9, 2026)
Race Purse: $11,233,037
Track Size/Type: 0.875 Mile – Asphalt Paved Oval
Number of Turns: 4
Degrees of Banking Turns: 12-14 degrees (progressive banking)
Degrees of Frontstretch: 10 degrees
Degrees of Backstretch: 4 degrees

Race Schedule, Length and Stages for the Iowa Corn 350

Race Length: 350 laps (306.25 miles)
Stage 1 Length: 70 laps (Ends on Lap 70)
Stage 2 Length: 140 laps (Ends on Lap 210)
Final Stage Length: 140 laps (Ends on Lap 350)

THE IOWA SPEEDWAY WEEKEND SCHEDULE

FRIDAY, AUGUST 7
2:30 PM – 3:15 PM: AMS PRACTICE (TIMED – 45 MINUTES)
3:30 PM – 3:50 PM: AMS QUALIFYING (IMPOUND) (TIMED – ALL ENTRIES)
5:35 PM: AMS DRIVER INTRODUCTIONS
6:00 PM: AMS RACE (150 LAPS, 131.25 MILES)

SATURDAY, AUGUST 8
10:30 AM – 11:20 AM: NOAPS PRACTICE
11:35 AM – 12:30 PM: NOAPS QUALIFYING
1:05 PM – 1:55 PM: NCS PRACTICE (COMBINED GROUP 1 & 2 (IMPOUND))
2:10 PM – 3:00 PM: NCS QUALIFYING (IMPOUND)
3:25 PM: NOAPS DRIVER INTRODUCTIONS
4:00 PM: NOAPS RACE (STAGES 60/120/250 LAPS = 218.75 MILES

SUNDAY, AUGUST 9
1:50 PM: NCS DRIVER INTRODUCTIONS
2:30 PM: NCS RACE (STAGES 70/210/350 LAPS = 306.25 MILES)
*All times are Eastern. NASCAR Cup Series (NCS), NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (NOAPS), NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (NCTS), ARCA Menards Series (AMS)

Who and what should you look out for at Iowa Speedway?

The second starting position or outside front row has led to winning both 2024 and 2025 races in the NCS.

Both William Byron (2024) and Chase Briscoe (2025) have finished in the runner-up spot, and Ryan Blaney and Byron are the only two drivers that have finished inside the top five in both NCS races.

A total of eight different drivers have finished in the top five in the two NCS races: Blaney (2), Byron (2), Brad Keselowski (1), Chase Briscoe (1), Chase Elliott (1), Christopher Bell (1), Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (1), and Ryan Preece (1).

Blaney leads the NCS in laps led with 230 laps led (33% of his laps completed).

The Driver Picks for the Iowa Corn 350 at Iowa Speedway

Driver Picks for the Iowa Corn 350 at Iowa Speedway
  • Christopher Bell has one top five, one top 10, and an average finish of 10.500.
  • Joey Logano has two top 10s and an average finish of 7.500.
  • Ryan Blaney has one win, two top fives, two top 10s, and an average finish of 2.500.
  • Chase Elliott has one top five, one top 10, and an average finish of 8.500.
  • William Byron has one win, two top fives, two top 10s, and a series-best average finish of 1.500.
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The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of SpeedwayMedia.com

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