TY GIBBS WINS IOWA CORN 350 BY 0.253 SECONDS FROM CHRISTOPHER BELL

Ty Gibbs won the Iowa Corn 350 at Iowa Speedway, holding off his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Christopher Bell by 0.253 seconds. Gibbs qualified sixth and ran among the leaders in the opening stages, finishing Stage 1 in fourth position. A pit-road malfunction on Lap 74 whilst changing his right-rear tyre dropped him from fourth to 29th, forcing him to recover through the field. He steadily advanced during green-flag runs and passed Chase Briscoe for fourth on Lap 202, remaining in contention for victory.

The final stage became a competition between the two Joe Gibbs Racing drivers. On Lap 291, Christopher Bell pitted from the lead, and Gibbs's No. 54 Toyota passed Bell's No. 20 Toyota during the pit stop. With 40 laps remaining, Gibbs held the lead with only two fresh tyres, whilst Bell had four. Over the closing laps, Bell attempted to pass Gibbs multiple times, including through Turns 1 and 2 with six laps to go, but Gibbs blocked each move and maintained his position at the front.

The victory moved Gibbs up the 2026 Cup Series standings from fourth to second place. One report characterised the result as a "frustrating near-miss" for Bell, whose 2026 campaign has been defined by similar second-place finishes against his Joe Gibbs Racing teammates.