NASCAR Xfinity Series at Iowa Speedway Preview and Predictions

Race Preview:

The Hy-Vee Perks 250 is a 250-lap, 218.75-mile race on the 0.875-mile Iowa Speedway. Stage cautions will be on laps 60 and 120, and the checkered flag on lap 250. There is $1,651,939 up for grabs in the prize purse for this race. Teams will have 6 sets of Goodyear tires, 4 fresh sets for the race, 1 from their qualifying run, and 1 for practice. In case of rain, teams will have three sets of wet-weather tires. The Goodyear tires are a combination of the left sides recently used at Indianapolis and a new right side tire.

The Track-Iowa Speedway:

Built in 2005 and opened in 2006, the Iowa Speedway is a 0.875-mile short track in Newton, Iowa. With 10 degrees on the front stretch, 4 on the back straight, and progressive banking in the turns with 12 at the bottom and increasing to 14 by the wall. Iowa is a quintessential short track for NASCAR. Known for hosting the IndyCar Series, the NASCAR Xfinity Series has raced here since 2009 with 21 different races.

Brad Keselowski won the first Xfinity Series race here for Junior Motorsports in 2009. Justin Allgaier and Sam Mayer are the only two drivers in the field with victories at Iowa. Chandler Smith has the lap record, a 23.341-second lap, set in 2024, faster than the Cup Series record.

Xfinity Series Point Standings:

Here are the Xfinity Series point standings following last week’s race at Indianapolis:

1. Justin Allgaier: 750
2. Connor Zilisch *: 729
3. Sam Mayer: 702
4. Jesse Love: 654
5. Austin Hill: 650
6. Brandon Jones: 595
7. Carson Kvapil *: 587
8. Sheldon Creed: 576
9. Taylor Gray *: 568
10. Sammy Smith: 545

Here is the battle for the playoff cut-off line:

11. Taylor Gray: +59

12. Jeb Burton: +10

——-Cut-Off Line——-

13. Harrison Burton: -10

14. Ryan Sieg: -20

15. Dean Thompson: -57

Drivers Joining The Field:

There are 38 drivers for 38 spots for this race. The drivers joining the field are:

• Patrick Emerling, #07 Chevy, SS Greenlight Racing
• Ross Chastain, #9 Chevy, JR Motorsports
• Carson Hocevar, #11 Chevy, Kaulig Racing. Kaulig and Josh Williams have parted ways, the #11 Chevy will have several different drivers the remainder of the season.
• Garrett Smithley, #14 Chevy, SS Greenlight Racing
• Corey Day, #17 Chevy, Hendrick Motorsports
• Justin Bonsignore, #19 Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing
• Austin Dillon, #21 Chevy, Richard Childress Racing. Dillon is substituting for Austin Hill, who was suspended for intentionally wrecking Aric Almirola at Indy.
• Tyler Tomassi, #35 Ford, Joey Gase Motorsports
• Mason Massey, #45 Chevy, Alpha Prime Racing
• Thomas Annunziata, #70 Chevy, Cope Family Racing
• Dawson Cram, #74 Chevy, Mike Harmon Racing
• Josh Bilicki, #91 Chevy, DGM Racing

Who Will Win?

Connor Zilisch has been the gold standard for the Xfinity Series since he returned from his back injury. Four wins on four different types of race tracks and we could be seeing him get his sixth win on Saturday. Zilisch won the ARCA Menards Series race here last year, so he can wheel around this track. Look for the No. 88 Chevy.

Taylor Gray is the fastest Toyota every week, but just can’t seem to shake the first win jitters. I think Gray is a good candidate for the winner from Toyota.

Another team that needs to shake of the rust and get back into victory lane is Haas-Factory team. They ran second last year with Riley Herbst. This year they have two of the five top-five finishers on their roster. They have the talent, they just need to have everything else go right on Saturday. Watch the Nos. 00 and 41 Fords.

How To Watch The Xfinity Series at Iowa:

Here is the schedule for Saturday’s Hy-Vee Perks 250:

Saturday, August 2nd:

• Practice:
  • 11 AM Eastern
  • Coverage is on the CW App
• Qualifying:
  • 12:05 PM Eastern
  • Coverage continues on the CW App
• The Hy-Vee Perks 250:
  • 4:30 PM Eastern
  • Coverage is on the CW, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio provided by MRN