Ty Gibbs wins Cup race in Iowa
Ty Gibbs brings home his Chevrolet to victory in Iowa after holding Christopher Bell in the closing stages of the race.
A strategic two-tire call and a flawless green-flag run led Ty Gibbs to his second victory of the season.
Thanks to crew chief Tyler Allen's decision for a two-tire change on Lap 290 of 350, Gibbs overtook his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Christopher Bell on pit road. Gibbs maintained his lead over Bell for the remainder of the race in front of a full crowd at the 0.875-mile Iowa Speedway.
When Ross Chastain entered pit road to complete the cycle of green-flag stops, Gibbs took the race lead on Lap 331, with Bell closely trailing.
Bell tried various strategies, such as taking a high arc into the corner, running the bottom, and pressuring Gibbs' No. 54 Toyota to force an error. However, Gibbs consistently held his line, preventing Bell from passing his 23-year-old teammate, who had secured his first career victory at Bristol Motor Speedway in April.
Before reaching a race-winning position, Gibbs had to recover from a pit stop error that cost him 25 positions at the first stage break. Staying composed after the setback, he skillfully worked his way back to the front.
"We've made significant progress since last year, and I truly appreciate it," said Gibbs, who has finished in the top four at all four short tracks this season. "I'm also very grateful to my teammates.
"I wouldn't be here without their support, week in and week out, helping to develop the program. Clearly, we're all up front for a reason. I really appreciate Denny (Hamlin), Chase (Briscoe), and Christopher for all their help, obviously."
For the seventh time this season, and the fourth in the last five races, Bell finished second. Despite climbing from 10th to sixth in the NASCAR Cup Series standings with this result, it offered little consolation.
"This is definitely a disappointing second-place finish," Bell said. "I don't know what else to say. Ty did an excellent job managing the race.
"I could see he was struggling with grip, similar to a race with Corey Heim at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, but he didn't make any mistakes. So, P2."
Pole winner Ryan Blaney finished third after leading the first 93 laps and winning the first stage. Josh Berry secured fourth in the No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford, marking his first top-five finish of the season.
Despite brake issues and starting from the back, series leader Hamlin finished fifth, increasing his lead in the standings to 103 points over Gibbs, who moved from fourth to second with the victory.
“I had to hold on tight every lap,” said Hamlin, who mentioned a “long” brake pedal early in the race. “Not knowing where my car would end up when entering corners, you definitely want brakes, and it was a wild race to do without them the entire time.
“But you do what you have to do. The team did an incredible job. I would choose that day 100 out of 100 times.”
Chase Briscoe secured sixth place, followed by Chastain, AJ Allmendinger, defending race winner William Byron, and Austin Dillon. Sunoco rookie Connor Zilisch finished 11th, matching his best Cup Series result on an oval track (2025 at EchoPark Speedway).
Shane van Gisbergen finished 30th, three laps down after a spin, but stayed 15th in the standings with a 47-point lead over the current Chase cut line.
Just five laps in, a mistake by Tyler Reddick triggered a crash that significantly impacted the series standings.
With both cars in the top seven, Reddick’s Toyota lost control in Turn 2 on Lap 4, colliding with Erik Jones' Camry. Both vehicles hit the outside wall, suffering damage that ended their races in 35th (Jones) and 36th (Reddick) place.
The crash dropped Reddick two positions in the standings, hurting his chances of surpassing Hamlin for the regular-season title. He’s now fourth in points, 120 behind Hamlin, with three races left before the Chase field is finalized.
“I lost control in a spot—corner entry—where I thought we were solid all weekend,” a disappointed Reddick said after leaving the infield care center. “Taking ourselves out is one thing, but taking out a fellow Toyota teammate racing for the Chase… pretty much ended their day too.
“It’s something you don’t do to yourself, and you don’t do to a teammate.”
Jones' early exit was a major setback, as he arrived in Iowa 18th in the standings, 44 points below the Chase cutoff. He leaves the state 20th in points, 50 behind Austin Cindric in 16th, the last Chase-eligible spot.
“Yeah, we needed a few perfect weeks, starting today, and obviously that didn’t happen,” Jones said. “It’s unfortunate with how early it is. I’m just trying to settle in and get going.
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