The NASCAR postseason shaped up Sunday in a significant way, and the task of racing for a championship became a little more difficult for drivers gathered around the 16th-place cut line.
With a full August of racing that starts Sunday at Iowa Speedway with the Iowa Corn 350 Powered by Ethanol, Tyler Reddick, Alex Bowman and Chris Buescher are anxious to add as many points as possible while hoping there is no repeat of what happened last weekend in Indianapolis: A surprising new winner.
In the wake of Bubba Wallace’s dramatic victory in the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis, the NASCAR Cup Series standings have been jostled a bit.
However, the No. 23 23XI Racing driver, who was having a good season in points, basically just advanced his position with the win from 16th to ninth — right in the middle of the nine one-race winners this season, starting with Chase Elliott (fifth place) and ending at Josh Berry (13th).
RFK Racing’s Buescher sits 16th in his No. 17 Ford with 17th-place Ryan Preece down 42 points, which marks the largest gap on the playoff bubble this season. Kyle Busch (-81) and Ty Gibbs (-95) are in hot pursuit.
Kaulig Racing’s A.J. Allmendinger, who rides in 20th, could be the biggest spoiler waiting to pounce in the group.
The No. 16 Chevrolet road-course ace trails Buescher by 124 points, but Allmendinger will be in full “win-and-you’re-in” mode when the twisting Watkins Glen road course rolls around next weekend.
23XI Racing’s Reddick, who stands 14th on the points list, is perhaps the most puzzling non-winner so far.
The Corning, Calif., racer displayed hints of future glory and maybe a title after earning all eight of his career wins from 2022-24.
The No. 45 Camry wheelman said this season when the few chances to win races have arisen, he or his team have come up short because of a bad moment or two.
“Unfortunately, when those opportunities have been there (to win), we haven’t executed,” said Reddick, who was one lap down and finished 22nd at last year’s inaugural Iowa race. “We’ve made a mistake, we’ve done something along the way that either makes that much more difficult to win or takes us out of it.”
So Reddick can take nothing for granted as the regular season winds down.
Plus, Wallace taking the checkers before his Toyota teammate at a prestigious speedway like Indy, no less, is a feat few would have predicted or had on their bingo card as the 2025 season opened.
Denny Hamlin said he and co-owner Michael Jordan have put the right kind of pressure on Wallace, now a three-time winner who had not won in 100 races dating back to 2022.
“We want to win and we put a lot of resources into doing that,” said Hamlin, who leads the Cup Series with four victories. “So he’s felt pressure. I think he’s felt the pressure not only from me but Michael and everyone.”
At Iowa this Sunday, the field will likely have to contend with some of motorsports’ heaviest hitters — defending winner Ryan Blaney, Hamlin and Kyle Larson. The trio has won 11 of the past 14 short-track races.
When the NASCAR Cup Series visited Iowa Speedway’s 0.875-mile short track for the first time in June 2024, Blaney scored his 11th career victory and first of the season by taking two tires and leading the final 88 laps in front of a large group of family and friends.
–Field Level Media
