Sam Mayer surged late at Iowa Speedway, getting around Jesse Love before the race's final caution for Brandon Jones with 28 laps remaining to win his first race of the season and his second straight in the Hawkeye State. It was his 13th top-10 finish in the season's 22 races, continuing his consistent 2025 campaign.
Ross Chastain, Connor Zilisch, Harrison Burton, Carson Hocevar, Sheldon Creed, Ryan Sieg, Carson Kvapil and Christian Eckes rounded out the top 10. It was a solid fourth-place finish for the rookie Zilisch, who saw his three-race winning streak snapped at Iowa.
Four races remain in the NASCAR Xfinity Series regular season. Those include 2.45-mile road course Watkins Glen (Aug. 9), 2.5-mile Daytona International Speedway (Aug. 22), 1.9-mile road course Portland International Raceway (Aug. 30) and 1.25-mile World Wide Technology Raceway (Sept. 6).
Updated Xfinity Series standings after the HyVee Perks 250 at Iowa
Driver Standings | Points | Behind |
|---|---|---|
T1. Connor Zilisch | 772 | 0 |
T1. Justin Allgaier | 772 | 0 |
3. Sam Mayer | 756 | -16 |
4. Jesse Love | 702 | -70 |
5. Austin Hill | 650 | -122 |
6. Carson Kvapil | 622 | -150 |
7. Brandon Jones | 618 | -154 |
8. Sheldon Creed | 611 | -161 |
9. Taylor Gray | 596 | -176 |
10. Sammy Smith | 567 | -205 |
Zilisch's fourth-place finish, coupled with his three straight wins coming in and Justin Allgaier's second consecutive finish outside the top 15, moves him into a tie with his JR Motorsports teammate for the points lead. Mayer's consistency has him a close third, only 16 points behind with the Richard Childress Racing teammates Love and Austin Hill completing the top five. Sammy Smith is currently 21 points above Harrison Burton for the 10th spot, which awards an additional playoff point.
Other notables outside the top 10 in the overall points include EchoPark Speedway winner Nick Sanchez (12th), Ryan Sieg (13th), Jeb Burton (14th), Eckes (15th), Daniel Dye (17th) and William Sawalich (19th).
NASCAR Xfinity Series playoff picture after Iowa
Position/Driver | Playoff points | Wins/points above or below cutline |
|---|---|---|
1. Connor Zilisch | 30 | five wins |
2. Justin Allgaier | 22 | three wins |
3. Austin Hill | 0 | three wins |
4. Sam Mayer | 8 | one win |
5. Jesse Love | 6 | one win |
6. Brandon Jones | 8 | one win |
7. Sammy Smith | 7 | one win |
8. Nick Sanchez | 6 | one win |
9. Carson Kvapil | 1 | +93 |
10. Sheldon Creed | 1 | +82 |
11. Taylor Gray | 2 | +67 |
12. Harrison Burton | 2 | +17 |
13. Ryan Sieg | 0 | -17 |
14. Jeb Burton | 0 | -19 |
15. Christian Eckes | 0 | -69 |
16. Dean Thompson | 1 | -78 |
Zilisch, Allgaier, Hill, Mayer, Love, Brandon Jones, Smith and Sanchez are the eight drivers that have visited Victory Lane this season. Hill will forfeit the 21 playoff points he has earned and will not be able to receive any additional playoff points through the end of the regular season following his one-race suspension for what NASCAR viewed as a retaliatory act against Aric Almirola at Indianapolis. He was granted a waiver by NASCAR on Tuesday to remain playoff eligible.
Kvapil (+93), Creed (+82) and Taylor Gray (+67) are in the best position of the non-winners up to this point. A fifth-place finish at Iowa vaulted Harrison Burton above the cutline, 17 points clear of Ryan Sieg and his cousin Jeb Burton (-19), who struggled at the Midwest short track in 29th and fell below the cutline.
One thing to keep in mind is the importance of both regular-season points standings and playoff standings. While drivers with wins vault to the top of the points standings and guarantee themselves a playoff spot, assuming there are no more than 12 winners, the overall points are equally important. There are eight race winners this season and only four races left after Iowa before the playoffs begin, meaning there is still a chance - albeit slim - that the non-winners could potentially be left out of the playoff field if a new winner emerges the next four races.
The regular-season champion by season's end will earn an additional 15 playoff points, second place will get 10 and drivers third-to-10th in points will receive points in descending order down to one point for 10th.