NEWTON, Iowa – A look at the winners and losers of this weekend’s race at Iowa Speedway.
WINNERS
Ryan Blaney – Two weeks after losing a win when he ran out of fuel just before the white flag, Blaney returns to score his first win of the season. What made it even more special was that 85 friends and family were at Iowa Speedway, and many joined him in Victory Lane after the race.
Special celebration: Victory Lane in Iowa will host a Blaney family reunion after Ryan’s win
Eighty-five friends and family came to Iowa Speedway to watch Ryan Blaney and many joined him in Victory Lane.
Team Penske — Team Penske has won three of the last five races and each of its drivers has a victory in that span. Joey Logano won the All-Star Race in North Wilkesboro. Austin Cindric won at the World Wide Technology Raceway. Ryan Blaney won at Iowa Speedway.
Ryan Blaney triumphs in the first NASCAR Cup race at Iowa Speedway: race results
Ryan Blaney led a career-high 201 of the 350 laps.
Chase Elliott – His third place gave him the points lead and was also his seventh top-five result of the season.
Christopher Bell — He finished fourth in a backup car after wrecking his primary car during practice on Friday after a right front tire blew. Bell has recorded four consecutive top-10 finishes, including a win, and five top-10 finishes in the last six races.
Josh Berry – He led 32 laps, almost doubling his season total, scored 15 stage points during the season and finished seventh for this third top 10 in the last five points races.
NASCAR Made the right decision to have a Cup race at Iowa Speedway. It seems likely that the series will return next year.
LOSERS
AJ Allmendinger – He finished 37th in the Xfinity race after a right front tire blew and he crashed. He finished 36th in the Cup race after a right front tire blew and he crashed.
Kyle Busch – A mechanical problem sidelined him, leaving him in 35th place. He entered the weekend eight points shy of the play-off mark. He lost 23 points at Iowa and is 31 points shy of the playoff mark with nine races remaining in the regular season.
What drivers said after the first NASCAR Cup race at Iowa Speedway
Here’s what the drivers had to say about their race Sunday night.
