NEWTON, Iowa – Speed has been an issue for Trackhouse Racing throughout the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season. But Ross Chastain found the pace he had desperately been searching for at Iowa Speedway, capping the weekend with his best showing of the campaign.
“It feels so good,” Chastain said with a sigh of relief. “It was a complete weekend. The very first lap, very small changes all weekend.”
RELATED: Race results | At-track photos: Iowa
Chastain was confident in the No. 1 Chevrolet during practice and qualifying, hanging on for a ninth-place starting position in Sunday’s Iowa Corn 350, his best effort on a non-drafting track oval since early April at Bristol Motor Speedway. At the drop of the green flag, he remained competitive, placing sixth in the opening stage.
Stage 2 was even stronger for Chastain, trailing only Christopher Bell and Joey Logano at the second intermission. He collected 13 stage points on the day, as he had earned only 16 stage points total in the 40 stages that he hadn’t won entering this weekend (Chastain has four stage wins in 2026, tied for the fourth-most in Cup).
During a caution-free final stage, first-year crew chief Brandon McSwain left Chastain on track longer than all of the competition. The No. 1 car dipped to pit road for the final time on Lap 330 after leading 40 laps, his most in a single race since winning at Kansas Speedway in September 2024 (52). Chastain re-entered the track in seventh position with two fresh Goodyear tires and remained there for the final 20 laps.
The seventh-place finish tied Chastain’s best effort of the season at a non-drafting track (Naval Base Coronado). He gained 35 points on The Chase bubble, now 47 points below the cutline with three races remaining before the reset.
With a pair of shorter tracks on the horizon at Richmond Raceway and New Hampshire Motor Speedway, that speed could pay dividends over the next two events.
“I just want to enjoy this,” Chastain said. “To run in the top five, take a shot at trapping those guys. I love that McSwain swung for that. Seventh still feels really good. I don’t know about next weekend or anything, just happy for this one.”
Just over 24 hours after calling a Chase bid insurmountable because of a lack of speed, there is renewed life within the No. 1 camp. Chastain has collected two top-five finishes in his last five starts at Richmond and four top-10s in his last five starts at New Hampshire.
“If you do that four weeks in a row, you are fine,” Chastain chuckled. “I said it before the race, I don’t care about points unless the speed comes with it. That’s the speed that we’re looking for. You got to Richmond and do that again – I love it. I love the speed, so that’s what we’re working towards.”
Trackhouse Racing put two cars inside the top 11 positions at Iowa with Connor Zilisch matching his best oval finish.