2025 Iowa Corn 350
| Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 23 of 36 in the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series | |||
 | |||
| Date | August 3, 2025 | ||
| Location | Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 0.875 miles (1.408 km) | ||
| Distance | 350 laps, 306.25 mi (492.862 km) | ||
| Average speed | 92.905 miles per hour (149.516 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Joe Gibbs Racing | ||
| Time | 23.004 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| Laps | 140 | ||
| Fastest lap | |||
| Driver | Brad Keselowski | RFK Racing | |
| Time | 23.748 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | USA | ||
| Announcers | Leigh Diffey, Jeff Burton and Steve Letarte | ||
| Nielsen ratings | 2.2 million | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | MRN | ||
| Booth announcers | Alex Hayden and Mike Bagley | ||
| Turn announcers | Dave Moody (1 & 2) and Kurt Becker (3 & 4) | ||
The 2025 Iowa Corn 350 was a NASCAR Cup Series race held on August 3, 2025, at Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa. Contested over 350 laps on the 0.875-mile (1.408 km) D-shaped oval, it was the 23rd race of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season.
William Byron won the race. Chase Briscoe finished 2nd, and Brad Keselowski finished 3rd. Ryan Blaney and Ryan Preece rounded out the top five, and Bubba Wallace, Alex Bowman, Carson Hocevar, Joey Logano, and Austin Dillon rounded out the top ten.
Report
Background
Iowa Speedway is a 7/8-mile (1.4 km) paved oval motor racing track in Newton, Iowa, United States, approximately 30 miles (48 km) east of Des Moines. The track was designed with influence from Rusty Wallace and patterned after Richmond Raceway, a short track where Wallace was very successful. It has over 25,000 permanent seats as well as a unique multi-tiered Recreational Vehicle viewing area along the backstretch. The track hosts the NTT IndyCar Series and NASCAR events.
After the 2020 race was canceled due to the pandemic, the race was removed from the 2021 schedule.[7][8][9] In 2024, it was announced that the Xfinity Series would return to Iowa with a Cup Series race.[10][11]
Entry list
- (R) denotes rookie driver.
- (i) denotes driver who is ineligible for series driver points.
Practice
Christopher Bell was the fastest in the practice session with a time of 23.511 seconds and a speed of 133.979 mph (215.618 km/h).
Practice results
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 23.511 | 133.979 |
| 2 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 23.526 | 133.894 |
| 3 | 19 | Chase Briscoe | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 23.546 | 133.780 |
| Official practice results | ||||||
Qualifying
Chase Briscoe scored the pole for the race with a time 23.004 of and a speed of 136.933 mph (220.372 km/h).[12]
Qualifying results
Race
Stage 1
At the drop of the green flag, Chase Briscoe took the lead. However, by the end of the first lap, William Byron was out front. Austin Cindric and Brad Keselowski also passed Briscoe early in the running. Kyle Larson held down the fifth position. Byron moved away from the pack as Cindric and Keselowski staged their own battle for the second spot.
Keselowski hounded Byron, making several challenges for the lead. The #24 car held off every attempt to drop him out of the top spot until lap 67. Three laps before the end of the stage, Byron bobbled slightly, and Keselowski quickly moved around. Before Byron could recover, Cindric also made the pass. The mistake cost Byron a playoff point for the stage win and 2 position points for the Stage.
Stage 2
On the restart, Briscoe and Byron again lead the field to the green. Ultimately, Ryan Blaney and Keselowski moved to the front of the pack. Late in the stage cautions dominated the action. Shane van Gisbergen spun. Blaney and Keselowski traded the lead as the yellow flags came in short sequences.
Cody Ware went around on the front stretch. Ty Dillon got bumped high by Todd Gilliland and backed into the outside wall. Finally, Carson Hocevar got pushed around by John Hunter Nemechek on the last lap of Stage Two. He stayed off the wall and the Stage ended with Keselowski again taking the green and white checkered flag.
Final stage
Again, it was Blaney and Keselowski on the front row for the restart in the Final Stage. Brad appears to be the class of the field, as he seems to be able to work his way to the front is he is near the front. Just 12 laps into the final stage, Denny Hamlin went around racing four-wide for the 20th position. Somehow, he avoided contact with any other car in the back of the pack.
Restarts were picking up in intensity and as we always said, "cautions breed cautions". Hocevar and Zane Smith get together after two laps of green flag racing and Smith spins. With 119 laps to go, some teams gambled on being able to stretch fuel to the end of the race, including leader Brad Keselowski, along with Kyle Busch.
Teammates Blaney and Cindric restarted on the front row with 114 laps to go. Ryan Preece, Josh Berry, and Chase Elliott rounded out the top five.
With 107 to go, Erik Jones and Briscoe went together racing three-wide with Bubba Wallace. Jones spun around and brought out the eighth caution. Most of the field pitted so they get on the same cycle with teams that pitted earlier. It looks like gas will not be an issue if the race ends within its scheduled 350 laps.
Austin Cindric led Berry and Elliott once green flag racing resumes as cars were scrambling for positions three and four wide back in the pack. The ninth caution of the race occurred on lap 253 when Tyler Reddick and Christopher Bell got together and spin high on the track. Everyone avoids the incident and neither car makes contact with the wall.
More cars pitted to make sure they were good to the finish on either tires or fuel.
Chase Elliott jumped away from the pack on the restart with 83 laps to go, William Byron filled in the second spot. Three laps later, Ty Dillon was bumped by Kyle Larson and loses it out of turn four for the 11th caution of the day. All of those slow downs are benefitting the teams trying to stretch fuel economy and cooling tires.
Byron won the restart race to turn one, And the 12th caution of the race happened as the right close out window on the #34 car of Todd Gilliland blew out and landed on the track. Chase Elliott pitted during the caution and will start back in the pack with 60 laps to go.
With 50 laps to go, Byron’s out front. Briscoe runs in second. Preece, Bowman, Keselowski, Hocevar, Nemechek, and Justin Haley hold down the next six positions. None of those six drivers have a win yet this season.
With 30 laps to go, Byron led by Briscoe by two car lengths and Keselowski was up to third and closing. All three were catching lapped traffic.
Byron ekes out enough fuel economy to take the win. Briscoe, Keselowski, and Blaney followed nose to tail a second behind the winner.
William Byron regained the regular season points lead, up 18 point on former leader Chase Elliott. Just 51 points separate the top four. Ryan Preece cut the points difference between himself and teammate Chris Buescher (on the bubble) for 42 to 23 points. Another winner outside of the top 17 was likely force both Buescher and Preece into the must win category to qualify for the postseason.
Race results
Stage results
Stage One Laps: 70
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | Brad Keselowski | RFK Racing | Ford | 10 |
| 2 | 2 | Austin Cindric | Team Penske | Ford | 9 |
| 3 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 8 |
| 4 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 7 |
| 5 | 19 | Chase Briscoe | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 6 |
| 6 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 5 |
| 7 | 77 | Carson Hocevar | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 4 |
| 8 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 3 |
| 9 | 16 | A. J. Allmendinger | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 7 | Justin Haley | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 1 |
| Official stage one results | |||||
Stage Two Laps: 140
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | Brad Keselowski | RFK Racing | Ford | 10 |
| 2 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 9 |
| 3 | 2 | Austin Cindric | Team Penske | Ford | 8 |
| 4 | 54 | Ty Gibbs | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 7 |
| 5 | 8 | Kyle Busch | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 6 |
| 6 | 21 | Josh Berry | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 5 |
| 7 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 4 |
| 8 | 43 | Erik Jones | Legacy Motor Club | Toyota | 3 |
| 9 | 60 | Ryan Preece | RFK Racing | Ford | 2 |
| 10 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 1 |
| Official stage two results | |||||
Final Stage results
Stage Three Laps: 140
| Pos | Grid | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Laps | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 350 | 48 |
| 2 | 1 | 19 | Chase Briscoe | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 350 | 41 |
| 3 | 5 | 6 | Brad Keselowski | RFK Racing | Ford | 350 | 55 |
| 4 | 6 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 350 | 49 |
| 5 | 33 | 60 | Ryan Preece | RFK Racing | Ford | 350 | 34 |
| 6 | 15 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 350 | 31 |
| 7 | 16 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 350 | 34 |
| 8 | 7 | 77 | Carson Hocevar | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 350 | 33 |
| 9 | 14 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 350 | 28 |
| 10 | 18 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 350 | 28 |
| 11 | 28 | 1 | Ross Chastain | Trackhouse Racing | Chevrolet | 350 | 26 |
| 12 | 4 | 2 | Austin Cindric | Team Penske | Ford | 350 | 42 |
| 13 | 12 | 21 | Josh Berry | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 350 | 29 |
| 14 | 8 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 350 | 26 |
| 15 | 29 | 42 | John Hunter Nemechek | Legacy Motor Club | Toyota | 350 | 22 |
| 16 | 25 | 43 | Erik Jones | Legacy Motor Club | Toyota | 350 | 24 |
| 17 | 17 | 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 350 | 20 |
| 18 | 9 | 16 | A. J. Allmendinger | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 350 | 21 |
| 19 | 22 | 45 | Tyler Reddick | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 350 | 18 |
| 20 | 37 | 8 | Kyle Busch | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 350 | 23 |
| 21 | 20 | 54 | Ty Gibbs | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 350 | 23 |
| 22 | 27 | 17 | Chris Buescher | RFK Racing | Ford | 350 | 15 |
| 23 | 10 | 7 | Justin Haley | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 350 | 15 |
| 24 | 11 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 350 | 13 |
| 25 | 26 | 99 | Daniel Suárez | Trackhouse Racing | Chevrolet | 350 | 12 |
| 26 | 19 | 41 | Cole Custer | Haas Factory Team | Ford | 350 | 11 |
| 27 | 13 | 71 | Michael McDowell | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 350 | 10 |
| 28 | 3 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 350 | 14 |
| 29 | 31 | 4 | Noah Gragson | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 350 | 8 |
| 30 | 24 | 35 | Riley Herbst (R) | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 350 | 7 |
| 31 | 21 | 88 | Shane van Gisbergen (R) | Trackhouse Racing | Chevrolet | 349 | 6 |
| 32 | 35 | 51 | Cody Ware | Rick Ware Racing | Ford | 349 | 5 |
| 33 | 30 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Hyak Motorsports | Chevrolet | 347 | 4 |
| 34 | 34 | 34 | Todd Gilliland | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 347 | 3 |
| 35 | 32 | 10 | Ty Dillon | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 346 | 2 |
| 36 | 23 | 38 | Zane Smith | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 344 | 1 |
| 37 | 36 | 66 | Joey Gase (i) | Garage 66 | Ford | 340 | 0 |
| Official race results | |||||||
Race statistics
- Lead changes: 10 among 6 different drivers
- Cautions/Laps: 12 for 72
- Red flags: 0
- Time of race: 3 hours, 17 minutes, and 47 seconds
- Average speed: 92.905 miles per hour (149.516 km/h)
Media
Television
USA covered the race on the television side. Leigh Diffey, Jeff Burton, and Steve Letarte called the race from the broadcast booth. Dave Burns and Kim Coon handled the pit road duties from pit lane.
| USA | |
|---|---|
| Booth announcers | Pit reporters |
| Lap-by-lap: Leigh Diffey Color-commentator: Jeff Burton Color-commentator: Steve Letarte | Dave Burns Kim Coon |
Radio
Radio coverage of the race was broadcast by Motor Racing Network (MRN) and was also simulcast on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio.
| MRN | ||
|---|---|---|
| Booth announcers | Turn announcers | Pit reporters |
| Lead announcer: Alex Hayden Announcer: Mike Bagley Announcer: Todd Gordon | Turns 1–2: Dave Moody Turns 3–4: Kurt Becker | Steve Post Brienne Pedigo Jason Toy |
Standings after the race
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References
- ↑ "2025 schedule". Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. Retrieved January 2, 2025.
- ↑ "Iowa Speedway". Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. January 2, 2025. Retrieved January 2, 2025.
- ↑ Sturniolo, Zach (August 29, 2024). "NASCAR reveals milestone 2025 Cup Series schedule, complete with international flair, return to roots". NASCAR. Retrieved January 2, 2025.
- ↑ "Entry List" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. July 28, 2025. Retrieved July 28, 2025.
- ↑ "2025 Iowa Corn 350". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 3, 2025.
- ↑ "Points standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. August 3, 2025. Retrieved August 3, 2025.
- ↑ Weaver, Matt (June 13, 2018). "Minimal Change For 2019 NASCAR Trucks And Xfinity Series Schedules". Autoweek. Retrieved June 11, 2024.
- ↑ Leistikow, Chad (May 14, 2020). "In realigned schedule, NASCAR cancels its Iowa Speedway events for 2020 season". Des Moines Register. Retrieved June 11, 2024.
- ↑ Crandall, Kelly (October 30, 2020). "33 races on tap for 2021 NASCAR Xfinity Series". Racer. Retrieved June 11, 2024.
- ↑ Sturniolo, Zach (October 4, 2023). "NASCAR reveals 2024 Cup schedule as Atlanta, Watkins Glen move to playoffs". NASCAR. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
- ↑ Glover, Luken (October 4, 2023). "2024 NASCAR Xfinity Series Schedule Revealed". Frontstretch. Retrieved June 11, 2024.
- ↑ DeGroot, Nick (August 2, 2025). "Chase Briscoe stars again in NASCAR Cup qualifying with Iowa Speedway pole". Motorsport.com. Newton, Iowa: Motorsport Network. Retrieved August 2, 2025.