As his Hendrick Motorsports teammate and new NASCAR Cup Series points leader Kyle Larson rallied during the final stage to capture last Sunday’s road-course event at Sonoma Raceway, William Byron endured more trouble.
The circuit’s wins leader with six in 2023, Byron has just two top-10 finishes in his past seven outings. His recent follies include a P33 at Dover Motor Speedway (April 28) and a P30 during Sunday’s Toyota/Save Mart 350.
Byron’s No. 24 Chevrolet suffered early trouble, a flat rear tire on Lap 13. He came back to join the lead pack, but was forced into a Turn 11 collision during the second stage.
Perhaps Byron, who claimed three wins by April 7, can snap his skid during the series’ debut at Iowa Speedway. In three national series starts at the 0.875-mile paved oval short track, Byron earned an Xfinity Series win in 2017 and a Truck Series triumph in 2016.
Below, we’ll preview the top storylines heading into Sunday’s Iowa Corn 350 Powered by Ethanol, review the odds, and give our best bets for the 17th race on the 2024 NASCAR schedule.
William Byron running the Liberty U colors at Iowa Speedway… 😎 pic.twitter.com/lfFMxrQjT3
— Bumblebee48 🐝 (@KellieBlundell) June 11, 2024
Iowa Corn 350 Powered by Ethanol Storylines
- After completing just 16 of 110 laps at Sonoma, Ty Gibbs left frustrated with his performance after misjudging his exit on Turn 11. He placed P37, but returns to Iowa where he previously earned an ARCA Menards Series victory.
- With 10 career short-track victories, Denny Hamlin seeks to rebound from a last-place finish at Sonoma. He dropped from the circuit’s points lead to third, 26 points behind Larson.
- With five top-three finishes in his past nine starts, Brad Keselowski, a native Michigander, should feel at home at the Midwestern venue. Seven of his 36 career trips to Victory Lane occurred at short tracks.
There has to be at least twenty five cars involved in this crash… one of them is TY GIBBS!!!@AlwaysRaceDay pic.twitter.com/rlc2Btp4yK
— Mr Matthew CFB (@MrMatthew_CFB) June 9, 2024
Iowa Corn 350 Powered by Ethanol Odds
Here is an early look at the drivers’ odds for the Iowa Corn 350 Powered by Ethanol at Iowa Speedway, according to BetOnline Sportsbook:
| Driver | NASCAR Cup Series’ Iowa Corn 350 Powered by Ethanol Odds |
Play |
|---|---|---|
| Christopher Bell | +450 |  |
| Kyle Larson | +600 | |
| Denny Hamlin | +675 | |
| Ryan Blaney | +850 | |
| Joey Logano | +1000 | |
| William Byron | +1000 | |
| Martin Truex Jr. | +1000 | |
| Ty Gibbs | +1200 | |
| Brad Keselowski | +1200 | |
| Tyler Reddick | +1400 | |
| Chase Elliott | +1800 | |
| Ross Chastain | +2000 | |
| Chris Buescher | +2000 | |
| Kyle Busch | +2200 | |
| Chase Briscoe | +3300 | |
| Bubba Wallace | +3300 | |
| Austin Cindric | +4000 | |
| Josh Berry | +4000 | |
| Alex Bowman | +5000 | |
| Noah Gragson | +6600 | |
| Michael McDowell | +10000 | |
| Daniel Suarez | +12500 | |
| Justin Haley | +15000 | |
| Erik Jones | +15000 | |
| Todd Gilliland | +20000 | |
| Carson Hocevar | +20000 | |
| Ryan Preece | +20000 | |
| AJ Allmendinger | +25000 | |
| Austin Dillon | +25000 | |
| Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | +30000 | |
| Zane Smith | +50000 | |
| John Hunter Nemechek | +50000 | |
| Corey LaJoie | +50000 | |
| Harrison Burton | +50000 | |
| Daniel Hemric | +100000 | |
| Kaz Grala | +100000 | |
| David Starr | +100000 | |
*Odds current at time of publication
Iowa Corn 350 Powered by Ethanol Predictions and Picks
Here are our best NASCAR bets for the Iowa Corn 350 Powered by Ethanol at Iowa Speedway:
Chris Buescher (+2000)
Still looking to qualify for the playoffs, Buescher may be positioned to accomplish the feat at Iowa. He earned a win there during a 2015 Xfinity Series event.
Kyle Busch (+2200)
Busch is generally a good bet at short tracks, collecting 16 career wins. It’s been a decade and a half, but the two-time Cup champion won both of his Xfinity Series starts at Iowa (2009 and ‘10).
Michael McDowell (+10000)
A true longshot, but one who could contend at Iowa. McDowell made eight Xfinity starts at the track and averaged a 6.9 finish, including a P2 in 2014.
Perks of being a dad, sharing a water bottle. Got to watch out for that 2 yr old back wash though👀 pic.twitter.com/kuuQfOWpmW
— Kyle Busch (@KyleBusch) June 4, 2024
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
