NASCAR in Iowa: Weekend schedule, watch info, favorites for Iowa Corn 350

NASCAR in Iowa: Weekend schedule, watch info, favorites for Iowa Corn 350 originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago

NASCAR on NBC is back.

Starting this weekend in Newton, Iowa, the remaining 20 races of the 2024 season will air on NBC or USA Network. The coverage starts off with a complete unknown, too, as the Cup Series visits Iowa Speedway for the first time ever.

The oval short track is just under a mile, and has held races for NASCAR’s lower series from 2009 to 2019. Now, Iowa Speedway is getting a chance at the big leagues.

Who is racing in Iowa? What’s the schedule for TV and streaming? And what drivers could contend for the win on Sunday? Here’s everything you need to know for the Iowa Corn 350 this weekend:

NASCAR at Iowa entry list

Thirty-six drivers will race at Iowa – the 34 full-timers, plus two others.

Kaz Grala will pilot the No. 15 for Rick Ware Racing as he continues his part-time effort. Then there’s AJ Allmendinger, who will make his sixth start of the season for Kaulig Racing.

Here’s the full entry list for Iowa:

When is the NASCAR race in Iowa?

The Iowa Corn 350 is set for Sunday, June 16 at 7 p.m. ET.

Before the race on Sunday, there will be practice and qualifying sessions. All 36 drivers will get an hour of practice on Friday.

Then, the field will compete in two-round qualifying on Saturday. Here’s how it works:

• The 36 drivers will be split into two groups (found here).

• Each driver will make two laps in the first round, with the five fastest cars on single-lap speed in each group advancing.

• In the final round, the remaining drivers each get two laps to set the top 10 starting order, with positions 11 through 36 set based on first round times.

What is the NASCAR TV schedule this weekend?

Rick Allen (play-by-play), Jeff Burton (analyst), Steve Letarte (analyst) and Brad Daugherty (analyst) will be on the call for NBC all weekend. Marty Snider, Dave Burns and Kim Coon will serve as pit reporters while NASCAR Hall of Fame driver Dale Jarrett will be a specialty reporter and studio analyst for pre- and post-race coverage.

Here’s the full TV and streaming schedule:

Friday, June 14 (USA Network and streaming)

Saturday, June 15 (USA Network and streaming)

Sunday, June 16 (USA Network and streaming)

• Countdown to Green: 6:30 p.m. ET, USA Network, NBC Sports app

• Iowa Corn 350: 7 p.m. ET, USA Network, NBC Sports app

• NASCAR Post-Race: 10:30 p.m. ET, USA Network, NBC Sports app

NASCAR Iowa past winners, race history

Well, there’s no race history here. This is the inaugural Iowa Corn 350 and the first Cup Series event ever held at the track. There are, however, plenty of past Iowa winners in the field.

Ryan Blaney, Erik Jones and William Byron have victories in both the second-tier Xfinity Series and third-tier Truck Series. Brad Keselowski and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. lead the way in Xfinity Series statistics, with three Iowa wins apiece.

Here are all the past Iowa winners racing on Sunday:

XFINITY SERIES

• Brad Keselowski (2009, 2013, 2014)

• Kyle Busch (2010)

• Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (2011, 2011, 2012)

• Chris Buescher (2015)

• Ryan Blaney (2015)

• Erik Jones (2016)

• William Byron (2017)

• Ryan Preece (2017)

• Christopher Bell (2018, 2019)

• Chase Briscoe (2019)

TRUCK SERIES

NASCAR at Iowa picks, favorites, drivers to watch

This is a total shot in the dark given the lack of history at Iowa.

But there are three questions you can answer to make your picks this weekend, in this order of importance:

1. Who has been quick on short tracks this season?

Iowa will be the sixth race this season held on a track that is one mile or shorter. In those first five events, Hamlin has three wins (Bristol, Richmond, Dover), Bell has one win (Phoenix) and Byron has one win (Martinsville).

All of the Toyota drivers for Joe Gibbs Racing (Hamlin, Bell, Truex, Gibbs) and 23XI Racing (Reddick, Wallace) have been especially fast at this track type, but Hendrick Motorsports’ Chevys (Byron, Larson, Elliott) claimed the top three spots at Martinsville.

2. Who has tested at Iowa Speedway?

NASCAR held a tire test at Iowa last month with one representative for each manufacturer: Bell for Toyota, Larson for Chevy and Keselowski for Ford.

While it might not seem like much, getting a full day of laps at a new track could be an invaluable experience. Drivers will only have an hour to practice on Friday, but these three will go in with a better idea of what to expect.

3. Who won at Iowa Speedway in the lower series?

Least importantly, you can look at the aforementioned past winners to determine who might run well on Sunday. It doesn’t deserve as much consideration as the previous two questions, though. In the lower series, drivers with bigger teams have a massive advantage. So, don’t put as much stock into this one, but don’t completely ignore it.