There’s been plenty of talk lately about a Cup race at Iowa Speedway, but Christopher Bell would be fine with a few more XFINITY Series races there.
Bell swooped to the inside of Justin Allgaier to take the US Cellular 250. After the final restart coming to the white flag, Bell held off the field to score his third consecutive NXS victory. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver led the most laps but nearly lost the win during a wild restart.
Bell was leading on the first overtime attempt but was shuffled back on the restart. Allgaier and Kyle Benjamin pounced on either side of the No. 20 Toyota, resulting in a four-wide battle for the top spot. As the field approached the white flag, Max Tullman and Matt Tifft were involved in a crash, bringing out the yellow once again and leading to the subsequent red flag.
Allgaier wound up second, with Benjamin third, Ross Chastain fourth and John Hunter Nemechek rounded out the top five. Finishing in positions sixth through 10th were Elliott Sadler, Ryan Reed, Ryan Truex, Cole Custer and Chase Briscoe.
Bell and Custer waged a stirring battle for the lead throughout the 250 laps, trading the top spot often and running first and second for most of the race.
Custer got up into the wall following a restart with 10 laps to go, bringing him to pit road. He was able to work his way back up to ninth at the end.
Custer won the first stage, while the second stage went to Bell.
Tyler Reddick had a difficult afternoon after blowing a tire in the opening laps. That, coupled with a long pit stop for some radio issues, left him 22nd at the conclusion. The winner of the season opener at Daytona has struggled of late, finishing 22nd or worse in four of the last five events. He had only two results outside the top 20 in the first 14 events of 2018.
The NASCAR Xfinity Series returns to the track on August 4th at Watkins Glen International. Live coverage of the Zippo at the Glen airs at 3 p.m. ET on NBC.
Frank Velat has been an avid follower of NASCAR and other motorsports for over 20 years. He brings a blend of passionate fan and objective author to his work. Frank offers unique perspectives that everyone can relate to, remembering the sport's past all the while embracing its future. Follow along with @FrankVelat on Twitter.