Iowa Corn 350: Winners, Losers from NASCAR Race Today at Iowa Speedway

Sunday’s Iowa Corn 350 at Iowa Speedway delivered some chaos early, with Tyler Reddick taking himself out just minutes into the race. He wouldn’t be the only top driver to get wiped out, as Kyle Larson also found himself recording another disastrous result thanks to some more on-track misfortune.

Let’s dive into our winners and losers from the NASCAR race today in Iowa.

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Winner: Ty Gibbs

Ty Gibbs has officially buried the allegations of just being a nepo driver this season. He already delivered his first-ever Cup Series win at Bristol Motor Speedway earlier this year and his trip to victory lane on Sunday at Iowa Speedway felt even more impressive. Gibbs was repeatedly pushed on the final stage by JGR teammate Christopher Bell, but each time he held him off. While the No. 54 team’s two-tire strategy call certainly played a role in the win, Gibbs’ savvy driving late to get his second win in 2026 is what stands out.

Loser: Tyler Reddick

It really has been a tale of two seasons in 2026 for Tyler Reddick. Across the first nine points races this season, Reddick had five wins with a 5.0 average finishing position. Even through the 15 races, he always had a top-20 finish with 10 top-fives. Entering the NASCAR race today, Reddick ranked 26th in average finishing position (24.0) in the last six races. Things only worsened at Iowa. On Lap 4, the No. 45 car got loose going to the bottom of the racetrack and spun out into the wall for race-ending damage. It is the first race this season where Reddick scored just a single point and the fourth in the last six with single-digit points.

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Winner: Ross Chastain

With only four races left in the regular season entering the NASCAR race today, Ross Chastain and the No. 1 team desperately needed points. Chastain showed up to Iowa sitting 82 points below the cutline for the 10-race chase, putting him in now-or-never territory. He delivered on stages (13 stage points, tied for fourth-most) and walked off the track with his first top-10 finish on an oval since Pocono. With three races left to go, Chastain’s performance today kept his hopes of making The Chase alive.

Loser: Erik Jones

It’s one thing to pick up a DNF on Lap 4 because of something you or your car did. That’s not the case with Erik Jones. He was minding his business on the outside when Reddick’s car got loose and came up into him. The damage to the No. 43 car ended the team’s day. What makes it worse? Entering the NASCAR race today, Jones sat 18th in points 44 points below the cutline for The Chase. After picking up just 2 points in Iowa, Jones is effectively out of the hunt barring an unexpected win.

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Winner: Connor Zilisch

Finally. Connor Zilisch showed up to Iowa Speedway with the second-fewest points in the Cup Series, netting just 10 stage points in 22 races. Trackhouse Racing finally provided him a No. 88 car that he could be competitive with and the 20-year-old driver made it work. Zilisch picked up 2 stage points (ninth place) in Stage 1 and managed a top-10 average running position for a majority of the Iowa Corn 350. It is nice to see Zilisch get this opportunity, especially since it provided some much-needed experience running a lot of laps near the front of the field.

Loser: Kyle Larson

Kyle Larson hasn’t won a NASCAR Cup Series race in 47 consecutive races. Mind you, this is the reigning Cup champion. We thought the off week would have given Hendrick Motorsports and the No. 5 team a fresh start, allowing them to get a clean slate and put the recent woes behind them. Instead, the snake-bitten team got hit again. Late in Stage 2, John Hunter Nemechek got up the racetrack and sent the No. 5 car up. When Larson was able to regain some control and bring it back down, he got into a four-wide at Iowa and that predictably ended in disaster. Larson’s best finish in the last five races is 15th and even that performance came with some issues.

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Winner: Josh Berry

Josh Berry needed this. It was announced over a month ago that he wouldn’t be back next season with Wood Brothers Racing in the Cup Series. To make matters worse for the veteran driver, a majority of the full-time seats in Cup for 2027 have been filled. Berry’s career is on the line and he knows it, which as he said, is a familiar position for him. With the pressure on, Berry delivered a fourth-place finish in the Iowa Corn 350. That marks consecutive top-10 finishes for Berry, who is certainly doing a nice job showcasing himself right now.

Loser: Carson Hocevar

It was early in Stage 1 when Carson Hocevar and the No. 77 team knew it was going to be a bad day. He reported issues with the car early and after coming down pit road, it was determined there was an issue with the valve train. The message, in short, nothing could be done. Hocevar had to come back down pit road multiple times, with the team putting the hood up for thorough examinations and work. Nothing worked. Sunday marked Hocevar’s first finish outside the top 27 since Watkins Glen.

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