Pit Stops : Iowa Speedway

• Thursday, June 13th, 2024
• NASCAR Wire Service - Reid Spencer

NASCAR Xfinity Series returns to an oval after Kiwi domination

If the NASCAR Xfinity Series’ first trip to Iowa Speedway since 2019 will be a tutorial of sorts for New Zealander Shane van Gisbergen, it’s familiar and welcome territory for Justin Allgaier, who will compete there for the 17th time in Saturday’s Hy-Vee PERKS 250 (3:30 p.m. ET on USA, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Van Gisbergen, a three-time Australian Supercars champion, is fresh from back-to-back victories on road courses at Portland and Sonoma, but the Kiwi has never won on a NASCAR oval and hasn’t posted a top 10 on an oval track since his sixth-place finish at Phoenix in the fourth race of the season.

Understandably, van Gisbergen will need to sharpen his skills on conventional NASCAR tracks during the remaining regular-season races in order to be a contender for the championship. Included in the list of Playoff tracks is just one road course, the Charlotte Roval.

Allgaier, on the other hand, is an adept road racer as well as a perennial contender on Xfinity ovals, and in the field for Saturday’s race, only Jeremy Clements (19) and Joey Gase (17) have more Iowa starts.

The driver of the No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet has scored 12 top 10s in his 16 starts at the 0.875-mile track, with a win in 2018 and three other top fives to his credit there.

Already locked into the series Playoffs with a victory at Darlington, Allgaier can add to his current total of 15 Playoff points (bolstered by a whopping 10 stage wins) with a victory at Iowa.

“I’m really looking forward to our return to Iowa this weekend,” Allgaier said. “This has always been one of my favorite tracks, and it’s great to be going back there.

“JRM was always really strong (there), and I see no reason why we won’t have that same speed again when we unload for practice on Friday. Hopefully we can have a smooth weekend and be fighting for the win on Saturday.”

The only variable Allgaier hasn’t faced at Iowa is the partially repaved surface—a necessity given the age and degradation of the original asphalt there.

• Iowa Speedway
• Hy-vee PERKS 250
• Pole Winner: Austin Hill
• Age: 30
• Team: No. 21 - Bennett Transportation Chevrolet
• Owner: Richard Childress Racing
• Crew Chief: Andy Street
• Start positions set by NASCAR's Performance Metrics Qualifying (PMQ).
• Austin Hill won the Pole Award for the Hy-vee PERKS 250 by having the highest total PMQ.
• PMQ is a total number calculated on four performance metrics from the previous race:
• 15% of the driver's fastest lap time position.
• 25% of the driver's final race finish position.
• 25% of the owner's final race position.
• 35% of the Owner Points position.

• Saturday, June 15th, 2024
• NASCAR Wire Service - Reid Spencer

Overtime and Over the Line? Mayer Holds Off Herbst in Iowa Return

In a race of tire management and hurt feelings, Sam Mayer held off Riley Herbst in overtime to win Saturday’s Hy-Vee Perks 250 in the NASCAR Xfinity Series’ return to Iowa Speedway after a four-year hiatus.

Mayer’s No. 1 JR Motorsports Chevrolet crossed the finish line 0.146 seconds ahead of the No. 98 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford of Herbst, who felt Mayer had abused him earlier in the race.

The victory was Mayer’s second of the season and the sixth of his career, all coming within the last 29 races in the series.

“We struggled (Friday in practice), and the team went to work,” said Mayer, who started fifth when qualifying was canceled because of rain earlier on Saturday. “Obviously, we did pretty good overnight, making different changes on this race car.

“I feel really good. I could do another 100 laps — with a race car like this, it would be a lot of fun.”

Mayer held the lead when John Hunter Nemechek slammed the outside wall in Turn 4 with his left front tire down, the result of close quarters racing with Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Sheldon Creed.

That accident on Lap 245 caused the ninth caution of the afternoon and sent the race three laps beyond its scheduled distance.

In the overtime, Mayer and Herbst took the green flag side-by-side and remained in that posture into Turn 1, but Mayer cleared the race runner-up off Turn 2 and held the top spot the rest of the way.

“I like racing Sam, but Stage 1 or 2 he just absolutely brooms me,” Herbst said. “We were racing clean for fourth, and he takes us back to 10th and then doors me down the back straightaway before the green-white-checker. 

“It’s just frustrating the way he wants to do that, but all in all, it was fun. I’m happy to be back on ovals. The speed is back in the 98.”

Corey Heim finished a career-best third after starting 22nd because of the qualifying rainout. Sammy Smith was fourth, followed by Creed, who survived the dust-up with Nemechek after a restart on Lap 238.

Cole Custer, Matt DiBenedetto, Chandler Smith, Ross Chastain and Daniel Dye completed the top 10.

If any driver had cause for frustration, it was Chandler Smith, who led a race-high 131 laps and swept the first two stages. Smith restarted third to begin the final stage, but lack of short-run speed quickly dropped him to 12th, and he never recovered.

Austin Hill likewise had reason to bemoan his result. Overcoming early handling issues, Hill charged into the top five in the final stage, but a cut left front tire sent him hard into the Turn 1 wall on Lap 218, causing the seventh caution.

Hill finished 29th and dropped to third in the series standings, 41 points behind Custer, the current leader and defending series champion. Chandler Smith, second in the standings, trails Custer by one point.

• Drivers Entered: 38
• Laps Scheduled: 250
• Laps Actual: 253 - NASCAR OVERTIME!
• Margin of Victory: 0.146 Seconds
• Time of Race: 2 Hours 36 Minutes 27 Seconds
• Average Speed: 84.899
• Cautions: 9 for 71 laps
• Lead Changes: 13
• Green Flag Passes: 1,552 (8.5 passes per green flag lap)

• Hy-Vee Perks 250
• Race Winner: Sam Mayer
• Age: 20
• Team : No 1 - Roto-Rooter Chevrolet
• Owner: LW Miller
• Crew Chief: Mardy Lindley
• Sam Mayer won the Hy-Vee Perks 250, his sixth victory in 99 Xfinity Series races
• This is his second victory and eighth top-10 finish in 2024
• This is his first victory and first top-10 finish in one race at Iowa Speedway
• Riley Herbst (second) posted his second top-10 finish in three races at Iowa Speedway It is his sixth top-10 finish in 2024
• Corey Heim (third) posted his first top-10 finish in one races at Iowa Speedway
• Leland Honeyman (13th) was the highest finishing rookie
• Cole Custer leads the point standings by 1 points over Chandler Smith