Saturday’s 50-minute NASCAR Cup practice at Iowa Speedway featured just one incident, involving Chase Elliott. Elliott, driver of the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, and perennially ranked as NASCAR’s most popular driver, spun out and hit the wall with 27 minutes left in the practice.
After 30 laps of practice, Elliott spun while running the second lane through Turns 1 and 2. The car appeared to bottom out just before losing control, and the track is set for a repave before its 2027 race on the Fourth of July. Elliott reported damage to both the left rear and left front, with visible scars on the body of his No. 9 Chevrolet.
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Watch: In-car: Elliott bottoms out in Iowa practice before spin
He managed to drive the car back to the pits, and quickly returned to the track after the HMS team took a look at it. He ran another 30 laps, slotting in 30th on the time sheets. While unclear at this time, if the required repairs are deemed to be an unapproved adjustment (or if the team intends to make more extensive repairs later), then Elliott will be forced to go to the rear of the field for the start of Sunday’s Cup race.
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In qualifying, Elliott was well over the pace and will start deep in the field either way.
Elliott finished 11th at Iowa one year ago, and is in need of a positive weekend. Despite being the only Hendrick driver to visit Victory Lane during the 2026 season, he is currently facing a streak of eight consecutive races without a top ten finish.
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