NASCAR Cup Series Preview: Iowa Corn 350

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Race Overview

Race Name: Iowa Corn 350 Powered by Ethanol

Track: Iowa Speedway, Newton, Iowa

Surface: Asphalt

Distance: 350 laps (306.25 miles)

Track Length: 0.875 miles

Date: Sunday, August 3, 2025

Start Time: 3:30 PM ET

TV Broadcast: USA Network

Streaming: Peacock, Fubo, NASCAR.com, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

The NASCAR Cup Series returns to Iowa Speedway for the second-ever running of the Iowa Corn 350, a pivotal short-track race with major playoff implications. With just four races left in the regular season, drivers on the playoff bubble are under immense pressure to secure a win or rack up points.

Key Storylines

Playoff Pressure Intensifies

Bubba Wallace locked in his playoff spot last week with a dramatic win at the Brickyard 400.

Ryan Preece, now 42 points below the cut line, is in a must-win situation and returns to the site of his first Xfinity Series win.

Chris Buescher, Tyler Reddick, and Alex Bowman currently hold the final playoff spots on points.

Track Profile

Iowa Speedway is a D-shaped short oval with low banking, often compared to Richmond Raceway.

The race is divided into three stages:

Stage 1: 70 laps

Stage 2: 140 laps

Stage 3: 140 laps

Starting Lineup Highlights

PositionDriverTeam
1stChase BriscoeJoe Gibbs Racing
2ndWilliam ByronHendrick Motorsports
3rdKyle LarsonHendrick Motorsports
4thAustin CindricTeam Penske
5thBrad KeselowskiRFK Racing

Chase Briscoe earned his sixth pole of the season with a blistering 23.004-second lap.

Kyle Busch starts 37th after a crash in practice — he’s in must-win territory to make the playoffs.

Sleepers to Watch

Chase Elliott (+1100) – Leads regular season standings; finished 3rd at Iowa in 2024

Ryan Preece (+4400) – Desperate for a win; confident after Brickyard top 5

Brad Keselowski (+3500) – Veteran with playoff experience, starting 5th

Shane van Gisbergen – 4th in playoff standings but only 27th in regular season points

Race Trends & Insights

Experience matters: Last six short-track winners were all over 30 years old.

Lead = Win: Six of the last nine short-track races were won by the driver who led the most laps.

Parity rising: Five of the last seven oval races produced first-time winners.

DRIVER                                                 ODDS

Kyle Larson                                         + 350

William Byron                                   + 550

Ryan Blaney                                       + 550

Christopher Bell                               + 700

Chase Elliott                                       + 800

Denny Hamlin                                   + 1000

Chase Briscoe                                    + 1000

Brad Keselowski                              + 1200

Joey Logano                                       + 1800

Josh Berry                                           + 2000

Ross Chastain                                    + 2200

Alex Bowman                                    + 2200

Ryan Preece                                       + 2500

Carson Hocevar                                 + 2500

Tyler Reddick                                     + 3500

Kyle Busch                                          + 3500

Austin Cindric                                    + 3500

Ty Gibbs                                              + 5000

Chris Buescher                                  + 5000

Bubba Wallace                                  + 5000

Ricky Stenhouse Jr.                         + 9000

Michael McDowell                          + 13000

Justin Haley                                        + 13000

John Hunter Nemechek                + 13000

AJ Allmendinger                              + 13000

Shane Van Gisbergen                    + 15000

Austin Dillon                                      + 15000

Daniel Suarez                                     + 17000

Erik Jones                                            + 20000

Ty Dillon                                              + 30000

Noah Gragson                                   + 30000

Zane Smith                                         + 40000

Todd Gilliland                                   + 50000

Riley Herbst                                       + 60000

Joey Gase                                            + 60000

Cole Custer                                         + 60000

Cody Ware                                          + 70000

Odds Courtesy of Sports Odds Direct as of Saturday, August 2, 2025