You won’t see a NASCAR race at Iowa Speedway this year, after the series canceled all of its premier series events at the track for the year, but a limited amount of fans will be allowed into the track this weekend for an IndyCar and ARCA combination race weekend.
It’s pound for pound one of my favorite race weekends of the season and I’m crushed that I won’t be there this weekend.
Neveretheless I have some story lines to get you prepared for what’s on track at Newton Friday and Saturday.
IndyCar Doubleheader
Race 1: Friday, 7:30 p.m. CT NBCSN
Race 2: Saturday, 7:30 p.m. CT NBCSN
Scott Dixon’s Blistering Pace: IndyCar Points Leader Scott Dixon got his 2020 season off to an unprecedented start that saw him earn wins at the first three events of the year. The plethora of success has seen the veteran get off to a large lead in the points standings, putting some ground between himself and the other heavy hitters of the tour. That’s always big, but in a shorter season when you’re looking to try to win your sixth title, that’s especially important.
Colton Herta stepping onto the Scene: Colton Herta’s coming out party really came last year with the NTT IndyCar Series, when he earned his first career win at Circuit of the America’s racing for Harding Steinbrenner Racing. This season, though, he’s fresh off a rookie campaign that saw him earn two wins and get a spot on the Andretti Autosport team. The team still has Harding Steinbrenner backing, but its obvious its helped Herta get faster so far this year.
A Uncharacteristic Start for Alexander Rossi: The No. 27 car has been an IndyCar staple since Alexander Rossi took the wheel in 2016. It’s lead to second and third place finishes in the points standings during the past two seasons. However, so far this year, Rossi has seen bad luck ruin potential top five finishes in a pair of races this season. He’ll look to try and right the ship this weekend, and will hope make up some ground on Dixon.
Death, Taxes, and Graham Rahal early: By this point it shouldn’t be a secret that Graham Rahal is one of the best drivers that IndyCar has to offer, at least in the front of half of the seasonal schedule. The Ohio native is used to getting off to a fast start and having something – anything – come in his way of maintaining success, no matter how freakish of a happening it is. Now, four races into the season, Rahal will try to use the momentum from his P2 finish at Indianapolis to make a splash this year.
| NTT IndyCar Points Standings | ||||
| Position | Driver | Points | Behind | |
| 1 | Scott Dixon | 173 | -0 | |
| 2 | Colton Herta | 119 | -54 | |
| 3 | Simon Pagenaud | 110 | -63 | |
| 4 | Pato O’Ward | 110 | -63 | |
| 5 | Josef Newgarden | 106 | -67 | |
| 6 | Marcus Ericsson | 93 | -80 | |
| 7 | Will Power | 92 | -81 | |
| 8 | Graham Rahal | 88 | -85 | |
| 9 | Felix Rosenqvist | 88 | -85 | |
| 10 | Santino Ferrucci | 87 | -86 | |
| 11 | Ryan Hunter-Reay | 81 | -92 | |
ARCA Menards Series Race
Shore Lunch 150 – Saturday, 5:00 p.m. CT MAVTV
Chandler Smith back for more: Chandler Smith will return to the No. 20 car for another ARCA race at Iowa Speedway, hoping to do what he did last season as a 17-year old when he won the event on the 7/8th’s mile oval. The year before his win in Newton, Smith finished second at the Iowa Speedway in 2018’s ARCA event. If there’s anyone to look at as a favorite this Saturday, he’ll be one of them.
Dirt Track Rising Star Gio Scelzi Grinding for McAnally: Fans over in Knoxville know the name Gio Scelzi very well. The rising up-and-comer became the youngest driver ever to start a Knoxville Nationals Feature event in 2018. He’s back in the Bill McAnally Racing No. 16 car at Iowa to try the hand at asphalt once again.
15-year old Jesse Love competes against National Competition: As maybe the youngest phenom in racing across the United States, Jesse Love began this year’s ARCA West Tour – a regional series in the ARCA Racing umbrella that runs in the western region of the country – with two wins in the first four races. Now, he’ll join up with the national tour like many others have – including his BMR teammate in Scelzi – to try his hand against the top development tour.
Michael Self still trying for first ARCA Title: Michael Self leads the six full-time members of the ARCA Menards Series standings this season, still looking for his first title in the series. The tour is used as a development series for a lot of young drivers, so it can be difficult to run every race of the year. That’s not to say it’s impossible to win the title without participating in every race. Just last season Christian Eckes did just that, winning the 2019 championship.
| ARCA Menards Series Points | ||||
| Position | Driver | Points | Behind | |
| 1 | Michael Self | 298 | -0 | |
| 2 | Drew Dollar | 276 | -22 | |
| 3 | Bret Holmes | 276 | -22 | |
| 4 | Hailie Deegan | 274 | -24 | |
| 5 | Thad Moffitt | 245 | -53 | |
| 6 | Ryan Huff | 224 | -74 | |
