# 2017 U.S. Cellular 250

The 2017 U.S. Cellular 250 was the 19th stock car race of the 2017 NASCAR Xfinity Series season and the ninth iteration of the event. The race was held on Saturday, July 29, 2017, in Newton, Iowa, at Iowa Speedway, a 0.875 miles (1.408 km) permanent D-shaped low-banked racetrack. The race was extended from 150 laps to 154 laps, due to a NASCAR overtime finish. Ryan Preece, driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, held off Kyle Benjamin in a close finish for his first career NASCAR Xfinity Series win. Preece would beat Benjamin by 0.054 of a second. To fill out the podium, Brian Scott of Richard Childress Racing would finish third, respectively.

## Background

The race was held at Iowa Speedway, which is a 7/8-mile (1.4 km) paved oval motor racing track in Newton, Iowa, United States, approximately 30 miles (48 km) east of Des Moines. It has over 25,000 permanent seats as well as a unique multi-tiered RV viewing area along the backstretch.

### Entry list

* (R) denotes rookie driver.
* (i) denotes driver who is ineligible for series driver points.
| # | Driver | Team | Make | Sponsor |
| 00 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | Haas Automation |
| 0 | Garrett Smithley | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | Flex Shot |
| 01 | Harrison Rhodes | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | Flex Tape |
| 1 | Elliott Sadler | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | OneMain Financial |
| 2 | Ben Kennedy (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | RTP, Rheem |
| 3 | Brian Scott | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | Daniel Defense |
| 4 | Ross Chastain | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | Flex Seal |
| 5 | Michael Annett | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | TMC Transportation |
| 07 | Ray Black Jr. | SS-Green Light Racing | Chevrolet | CDA.edu |
| 7 | Justin Allgaier | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | Brandt Professional Agriculture |
| 8 | B. J. McLeod | B. J. McLeod Motorsports | Chevrolet | B. J. McLeod Motorsports |
| 9 | William Byron (R) | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | Liberty University |
| 11 | Blake Koch | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | LeafFilter Gutter Protection |
| 13 | Bobby Dale Earnhardt | MBM Motorsports | Chevrolet | Crystal Clear Home Improvement |
| 14 | J. J. Yeley | TriStar Motorsports | Toyota | TriStar Motorsports |
| 15 | Reed Sorenson (i) | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | Flex Liquid |
| 16 | Ryan Reed | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | Lilly Diabetes |
| 18 | Kyle Benjamin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | Reser's Fine Foods |
| 19 | Matt Tifft (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | Fanatics |
| 20 | Ryan Preece | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | Mohawk Northeast |
| 21 | Daniel Hemric (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff |
| 22 | Sam Hornish Jr. | Team Penske | Ford | Discount Tire |
| 23 | Spencer Gallagher (R) | GMS Racing | Chevrolet | Allegiant Air |
| 24 | Dylan Lupton | JGL Racing | Toyota | Nut Up |
| 28 | Dakoda Armstrong | JGL Racing | Toyota | WinField United |
| 33 | Brandon Jones | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | Jeld-Wen, Menards |
| 39 | Ryan Sieg | RSS Racing | Chevrolet | Ritchie |
| 40 | Stan Mullis | MBM Motorsports | Chevrolet | Casablanca Express |
| 42 | Tyler Reddick | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | Broken Bow Records, Jason Aldean |
| 48 | Brennan Poole | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | DC Solar |
| 51 | Jeremy Clements | Jeremy Clements Racing | Chevrolet | RepairableVehicles.com |
| 52 | Joey Gase | Jimmy Means Racing | Chevrolet | Jerry K. Ask Investments, Iowa Donor Network |
| 60 | Ty Majeski | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | Bit-O-Honey |
| 62 | Brendan Gaughan | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | U.S. Cellular |
| 74 | Mike Harmon | Mike Harmon Racing | Dodge | Forj'd Leather |
| 78 | Tommy Joe Martins | B. J. McLeod Motorsports | Chevrolet | Circle Track Warehouse |
| 89 | Morgan Shepherd | Shepherd Racing Ventures | Chevrolet | Shepherd Racing Ventures |
| 90 | Brandon Brown | Brandonbilt Motorsports | Chevrolet | Coastal Carolina University |
| 93 | Jeff Green | RSS Racing | Chevrolet | RSS Racing |
| 96 | Brett Moffitt (i) | GMS Racing | Chevrolet | Northland Foundations |
| 99 | David Starr | BJMM with SS-Green Light Racing | Chevrolet | Honest Wrenches Automotive Repair |
| Official entry list |||||

## Practice
### First practice

The first practice session was held on Friday, July 28, at 4:00 PM CST. The session would last for 55 minutes. Sam Hornish Jr. of Team Penske would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 24.721 and an average speed of 127.422 mph (205.066 km/h).
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
| 1 | 22 | Sam Hornish Jr. | Team Penske | Ford | 24.721 | 127.422 |
| 2 | 7 | Justin Allgaier | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 24.773 | 127.155 |
| 3 | 20 | Ryan Preece | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 24.802 | 127.006 |
| Full first practice results |||||||

### Final practice

The final practice session was held on Friday, July 28, at 5:30 PM CST. The session would last for 55 minutes. Ben Kennedy of Richard Childress Racing would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 24.244 and an average speed of 129.929 mph (209.100 km/h).
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
| 1 | 2 | Ben Kennedy (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 24.244 | 129.929 |
| 2 | 20 | Ryan Preece | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 24.423 | 128.977 |
| 3 | 22 | Sam Hornish Jr. | Team Penske | Ford | 24.442 | 128.877 |
| Full final practice results |||||||

## Qualifying

Qualifying was held on Saturday, July 29, at 11:00 AM CST. Since Iowa Speedway is under 2 miles (3.2 km) in length, the qualifying system was a multi-car system that included three rounds. The first round was 15 minutes, where every driver would be able to set a lap within the 15 minutes. Then, the second round would consist of the fastest 24 cars in Round 1, and drivers would have 10 minutes to set a lap. Round 3 consisted of the fastest 12 drivers from Round 2, and the drivers would have 5 minutes to set a time. Whoever was fastest in Round 3 would win the pole.
Ryan Preece of Joe Gibbs Racing would win the pole after advancing from both preliminary rounds and setting the fastest lap in Round 3, with a time of 24.072 and an average speed of 130.857 miles per hour (210.594 km/h).
Bobby Dale Earnhardt would fail to qualify.

### Full qualifying results

| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time (R1) | Speed (R1) | Time (R2) | Speed (R2) | Time (R3) | Speed (R3) |
| 1 | 20 | Ryan Preece | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 24.307 | 129.592 | 24.151 | 130.429 | 24.072 | 130.857 |
| 2 | 18 | Kyle Benjamin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 24.069 | 130.874 | 24.156 | 130.402 | 24.129 | 130.548 |
| 3 | 21 | Daniel Hemric (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 24.268 | 129.801 | 24.261 | 129.838 | 24.181 | 130.268 |
| 4 | 22 | Sam Hornish Jr. | Team Penske | Ford | 24.349 | 129.369 | 24.158 | 130.392 | 24.192 | 130.208 |
| 5 | 00 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 24.262 | 129.833 | 24.104 | 130.684 | 24.193 | 130.203 |
| 6 | 1 | Elliott Sadler | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 24.457 | 128.797 | 24.289 | 129.688 | 24.200 | 130.165 |
| 7 | 11 | Blake Koch | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 24.317 | 129.539 | 24.217 | 130.074 | 24.200 | 130.165 |
| 8 | 48 | Brennan Poole | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 24.264 | 129.822 | 24.308 | 129.587 | 24.218 | 130.069 |
| 9 | 60 | Ty Majeski | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 24.307 | 129.592 | 24.222 | 130.047 | 24.249 | 129.902 |
| 10 | 19 | Matt Tifft (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 24.455 | 128.808 | 24.150 | 130.435 | 24.253 | 129.881 |
| 11 | 3 | Brian Scott | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 24.398 | 129.109 | 24.300 | 129.630 | 24.352 | 129.353 |
| 12 | 23 | Spencer Gallagher (R) | GMS Racing | Chevrolet | 24.448 | 128.845 | 24.295 | 129.656 | 24.443 | 128.871 |
| Eliminated in Round 2 |||||||||||
| 13 | 2 | Ben Kennedy (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 24.387 | 129.167 | 24.317 | 129.539 | - | - |
| 14 | 7 | Justin Allgaier | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 24.386 | 129.172 | 24.350 | 129.363 | - | - |
| 15 | 42 | Tyler Reddick | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 24.414 | 129.024 | 24.353 | 129.348 | - | - |
| 16 | 62 | Brendan Gaughan | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 24.424 | 128.972 | 24.364 | 129.289 | - | - |
| 17 | 9 | William Byron (R) | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 24.395 | 129.125 | 24.407 | 129.061 | - | - |
| 18 | 16 | Ryan Reed | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 24.366 | 129.279 | 24.420 | 128.993 | - | - |
| 19 | 33 | Brandon Jones | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 24.393 | 129.135 | 24.423 | 128.977 | - | - |
| 20 | 28 | Dakoda Armstrong | JGL Racing | Toyota | 24.488 | 128.634 | 24.474 | 128.708 | - | - |
| 21 | 96 | Brett Moffitt (i) | GMS Racing | Chevrolet | 24.514 | 128.498 | 24.482 | 128.666 | - | - |
| 22 | 4 | Ross Chastain | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | 24.613 | 127.981 | 24.551 | 128.304 | - | - |
| 23 | 5 | Michael Annett | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 24.610 | 127.997 | 24.588 | 128.111 | - | - |
| 24 | 93 | Jeff Green | RSS Racing | Chevrolet | 24.505 | 128.545 | - | - | - | - |
| Eliminated in Round 1 |||||||||||
| 25 | 39 | Ryan Sieg | RSS Racing | Chevrolet | 24.626 | 127.914 | - | - | - | - |
| 26 | 01 | Harrison Rhodes | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | 24.641 | 127.836 | - | - | - | - |
| 27 | 51 | Jeremy Clements | Jeremy Clements Racing | Chevrolet | 24.683 | 127.618 | - | - | - | - |
| 28 | 14 | J. J. Yeley | TriStar Motorsports | Toyota | 24.703 | 127.515 | - | - | - | - |
| 29 | 15 | Reed Sorenson (i) | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | 24.740 | 127.324 | - | - | - | - |
| 30 | 52 | Joey Gase | Jimmy Means Racing | Chevrolet | 24.743 | 127.309 | - | - | - | - |
| 31 | 8 | B. J. McLeod | B. J. McLeod Motorsports | Chevrolet | 24.769 | 127.175 | - | - | - | - |
| 32 | 24 | Dylan Lupton | JGL Racing | Toyota | 24.771 | 127.165 | - | - | - | - |
| 33 | 89 | Morgan Shepherd | Shepherd Racing Ventures | Chevrolet | 24.820 | 126.914 | - | - | - | - |
| Qualified by owner's points |||||||||||
| 34 | 0 | Garrett Smithley | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | 24.976 | 126.121 | - | - | - | - |
| 35 | 78 | Tommy Joe Martins | B. J. McLeod Motorsports | Chevrolet | 25.008 | 125.960 | - | - | - | - |
| 36 | 99 | David Starr | BJMM with SS-Green Light Racing | Chevrolet | 25.120 | 125.398 | - | - | - | - |
| 37 | 07 | Ray Black Jr. | SS-Green Light Racing | Chevrolet | 25.155 | 125.224 | - | - | - | - |
| 38 | 90 | Brandon Brown | Brandonbilt Motorsports | Chevrolet | 25.266 | 124.673 | - | - | - | - |
| 39 | 40 | Stan Mullis | MBM Motorsports | Chevrolet | 26.050 | 120.921 | - | - | - | - |
| Qualified by time |||||||||||
| 40 | 74 | Mike Harmon | Mike Harmon Racing | Dodge | 26.109 | 120.648 | - | - | - | - |
| Failed to qualify |||||||||||
| 41 | 13 | Bobby Dale Earnhardt | MBM Motorsports | Chevrolet | 26.063 | 120.861 | - | - | - | - |
| Official qualifying results |||||||||||
| Official starting lineup |||||||||||

## Race results

Stage 1 Laps: 60
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Pts |
| 1 | 20 | Ryan Preece | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 10 |
| 2 | 1 | Elliott Sadler | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 9 |
| 3 | 18 | Kyle Benjamin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 8 |
| 4 | 48 | Brennan Poole | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 7 |
| 5 | 22 | Sam Hornish Jr. | Team Penske | Ford | 6 |
| 6 | 7 | Justin Allgaier | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 5 |
| 7 | 00 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 4 |
| 8 | 19 | Matt Tifft (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 3 |
| 9 | 2 | Ben Kennedy (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 11 | Blake Koch | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 1 |
Stage 2 Laps: 60
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Pts |
| 1 | 7 | Justin Allgaier | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 10 |
| 2 | 20 | Ryan Preece | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 9 |
| 3 | 1 | Elliott Sadler | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 8 |
| 4 | 2 | Ben Kennedy (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 7 |
| 5 | 18 | Kyle Benjamin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 6 |
| 6 | 48 | Brennan Poole | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 5 |
| 7 | 22 | Sam Hornish Jr. | Team Penske | Ford | 4 |
| 8 | 00 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 3 |
| 9 | 60 | Ty Majeski | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 2 |
| 10 | 19 | Matt Tifft (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 1 |
Stage 3 Laps: 134
| Fin | St | # | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts |
| 1 | 1 | 20 | Ryan Preece | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 254 | 141 | Running | 59 |
| 2 | 2 | 18 | Kyle Benjamin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 254 | 5 | Running | 49 |
| 3 | 11 | 3 | Brian Scott | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 254 | 0 | Running | 34 |
| 4 | 8 | 48 | Brennan Poole | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 254 | 0 | Running | 45 |
| 5 | 5 | 00 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 254 | 0 | Running | 39 |
| 6 | 28 | 14 | J. J. Yeley | TriStar Motorsports | Toyota | 254 | 0 | Running | 31 |
| 7 | 3 | 21 | Daniel Hemric (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 254 | 0 | Running | 30 |
| 8 | 7 | 11 | Blake Koch | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 254 | 0 | Running | 30 |
| 9 | 17 | 9 | William Byron (R) | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 254 | 0 | Running | 28 |
| 10 | 19 | 33 | Brandon Jones | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 254 | 0 | Running | 27 |
| 11 | 21 | 96 | Brett Moffitt (i) | GMS Racing | Chevrolet | 254 | 0 | Running | 0 |
| 12 | 6 | 1 | Elliott Sadler | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 254 | 2 | Running | 42 |
| 13 | 16 | 62 | Brendan Gaughan | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 254 | 0 | Running | 24 |
| 14 | 25 | 39 | Ryan Sieg | RSS Racing | Chevrolet | 254 | 0 | Running | 23 |
| 15 | 26 | 01 | Harrison Rhodes | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | 254 | 0 | Running | 22 |
| 16 | 9 | 60 | Ty Majeski | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 254 | 0 | Running | 23 |
| 17 | 20 | 28 | Dakoda Armstrong | JGL Racing | Toyota | 254 | 0 | Running | 20 |
| 18 | 22 | 4 | Ross Chastain | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | 254 | 0 | Running | 19 |
| 19 | 10 | 19 | Matt Tifft (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 253 | 0 | Running | 22 |
| 20 | 14 | 7 | Justin Allgaier | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 252 | 106 | Running | 32 |
| 21 | 18 | 16 | Ryan Reed | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 252 | 0 | Running | 16 |
| 22 | 31 | 8 | B. J. McLeod | B. J. McLeod Motorsports | Chevrolet | 252 | 0 | Running | 15 |
| 23 | 13 | 2 | Ben Kennedy (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 251 | 0 | Running | 23 |
| 24 | 30 | 52 | Joey Gase | Jimmy Means Racing | Chevrolet | 249 | 0 | Running | 13 |
| 25 | 32 | 24 | Dylan Lupton | JGL Racing | Toyota | 249 | 0 | RUnning | 12 |
| 26 | 36 | 99 | David Starr | BJMM with SS-Green Light Racing | Chevrolet | 249 | 0 | Running | 11 |
| 27 | 35 | 78 | Tommy Joe Martins | B. J. McLeod Motorsports | Chevrolet | 249 | 0 | Running | 10 |
| 28 | 27 | 51 | Jeremy Clements | Jeremy Clements Racing | Chevrolet | 249 | 0 | Running | 9 |
| 29 | 38 | 90 | Brandon Brown | Brandonbilt Motorsports | Chevrolet | 248 | 0 | Running | 8 |
| 30 | 37 | 07 | Ray Black Jr. | SS-Green Light Racing | Chevrolet | 247 | 0 | Running | 7 |
| 31 | 40 | 74 | Mike Harmon | Mike Harmon Racing | Dodge | 243 | 0 | Running | 6 |
| 32 | 39 | 40 | Stan Mullis | MBM Motorsports | Chevrolet | 241 | 0 | Running | 5 |
| 33 | 23 | 5 | Michael Annett | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 233 | 0 | Running | 4 |
| 34 | 4 | 22 | Sam Hornish Jr. | Team Penske | Ford | 229 | 0 | Accident | 13 |
| 35 | 34 | 0 | Garrett Smithley | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | 218 | 0 | Accident | 2 |
| 36 | 15 | 42 | Tyler Reddick | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 218 | 0 | Running | 1 |
| 37 | 12 | 23 | Spencer Gallagher (R) | GMS Racing | Chevrolet | 170 | 0 | Accident | 1 |
| 38 | 33 | 89 | Morgan Shepherd | Shepherd Racing Ventures | Chevrolet | 46 | 0 | Handling | 1 |
| 39 | 29 | 15 | Reed Sorenson (i) | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | 9 | 0 | Transmission | 0 |
| 40 | 24 | 93 | Jeff Green | RSS Racing | Chevrolet | 3 | 0 | Vibration | 1 |
| Official race results ||||||||||

## Standings after the race

| | Pos | Driver | Points |
| | 1 | Elliott Sadler | 707 |
| | 2 | William Byron | 653 (-54) |
| | 3 | Justin Allgaier | 564 (–143) |
| | 4 | Brennan Poole | 518 (–189) |
| | 5 | Daniel Hemric | 488 (–219) |
| | 6 | Cole Custer | 474 (-233) |
| | 7 | Matt Tifft | 436 (-271) |
| | 8 | Ryan Reed | 424 (-283) |
| | 9 | Dakoda Armstrong | 388 (-319) |
| | 10 | Blake Koch | 374 (-333) |
| | 11 | Michael Annett | 371 (-336) |
| | 12 | Brendan Gaughan | 353 (-354) |
| Official driver's standings ||||