Ty Gibbs Holds off JGR Teammate Christopher Bell on 2 Tires to Win Iowa Thriller

RPW EXCLUSIVE COLUMN BY: Steven Brien / RPW – NEWTON, IA – Ty Gibbs held off Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Christopher Bell in the closing laps to earn his second NASCAR Cup Series victory of the season Sunday in the Iowa Corn 350 powered by Ethanol at Iowa Speedway.

Gibbs led 20 laps and inherited the lead after crew chief Tyler Allen made a shrewd two-tire pit strategy call.

“I just kept my head down, gel up, and stay in it,” Gibbs said after climbing from his No. 54 Toyota. “I really appreciate all my teammates too, I wouldn’t be here without all my teammates.”

Bell finished second for the seventh time this season after leading 108 laps and taking four tires on the final pit stop.

“This is what you call a bad second place finish,” Bell said after exiting his No. 20 Toyota. “He just didn’t make mistakes, so P2.”

Polesitter Ryan Blaney won Stage 1 and finished third after leading 129 laps.

“The 20 and the 54 were definitely better than me in the second half of the race,” Blaney said. “It’s nice to get a good finish here, even though it’s not a win.”

Blaney earned his fifth stage victory of the season, holding off Team Penske teammate Joey Logano.

Josh Berry finished fourth, and Denny Hamlin rounded out the top five after dealing with brake issues.

“I just had to white knuckle every lap,” Hamlin said. “I’d retire at the end of the year if I had to do that every week.”

Chase Briscoe finished sixth, followed by Ross Chastain, A.J. Allmendinger, William Byron and Austin Dillon to round out the top 10.

Kyle Larson finished third in Stage 1, followed by Gibbs and Dillon. Chastain was sixth, while Bell, Briscoe, Connor Zilisch and Zane Smith also earned stage points.

The first crash of the day came on Lap 4 when Tyler Reddick got loose and slammed head-on into the outside wall, collecting Erik Jones. Both cars went to the garage and were done for the day.

Shane van Gisbergen spun in Turn 3 on Lap 91 to bring out the second caution of the day.

During the caution, Carson Hocevar’s crew went under the hood to repair a drivetrain issue.

On the ensuing restart on Lap 98, a four-wide battle in the middle of the field sent Ricky Stenhouse Jr. spinning into the outside wall in Turn 3.

A wild sequence unfolded on the Lap 148 restart when Larson moved up the racetrack and a three-wide battle underneath him triggered a crash. Riley Herbst did not realize he was four-wide and forced Ryan Preece up into Alex Bowman, who was turned off Larson’s nose and into the outside wall, destroying the No. 48 Chevrolet.

Hocevar’s rough day continued when he spun in Turn 4 on Lap 191.

After staying out on old tires, Bell won Stage 2, his fourth stage victory of the season.

Logano finished second, followed by Chastain, Gibbs and Briscoe. Hamlin was sixth, followed by Byron, Blaney, Smith and Zilisch to complete the top 10.

The NASCAR Cup Series heads to Richmond Raceway next week.

NASCAR Cup Series Race – Iowa Corn 350 powered by Ethanol

Iowa Speedway

Newton, IA.

Sunday August 9, 2026