The NASCAR Cup Series landed in Iowa, and it was obvious that the race was going to be a thriller. But not many expected Brad Keselowski to be the talk of the town early on in the race. The No. 6 RFK Racing driver locked horns with William Byron, and what went down between the two was an intense battle for the lead. At the end of which, Byron sounded bummed out on the radio.
William Byron Is Left Disappointed in the First Stage of Iowa Speedway
After a rather slow practice session, Byron has a solid day in qualifying, taking P2, after narrowly missing out on the pole position. But he made up for this quickly, taking the lead from pole starter Chase Briscoe. But while Byron was probably expecting the No. 19 to fight back for the lead, he rather dropped several positions with Ford drivers Austin Cindric and Keselowski passing him.
And speaking of Keselowski, he brought a fast car to the race, one that was quick to take on the race leader. However, the battle proved to be more intense than expected. Byron wasn’t ready to give the lead to Keselowski, who kept choosing the lower lane to make the pass. But Byron was always there to block his path.
But Keselowlsi is a seasoned stock car driver and former Cup champion! So, he did not hesitate or make a risky move. Rather, he changed his strategy to running the top line, and it worked. Keselowski soon got a narrow window to pass with two laps remaining in stage one. This ended the 40-lap-long cat-and-mouse chase.
The No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports driver gave it his all, but Keselowski prevailed in the end. Naturally, this left Byron disappointed, who on his radio said, “That’s all I had, man.”
Byron: “That’s all I had, man.”
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) August 3, 2025
Keselowski won stage one, and Byron ended up in P2. And to be fair, the #6 driver had no choice but to run hard. He entered the Iowa race in a must-win situation and with just four races left in the regular season, time’s running out for Keselowksi. Moreover, the NASCAR veteran hasn’t won a race since Darlington last year, so he’s also looking to break that streak.
Well, so far, Keselowski has had a good run in the race, other than his pit stop debacles. A slow pit stop after stage one had him drop four spots when it was green-flagged. But given his speed, he eventually took back the lead. Then again, when the pack pitted under caution in Stage 2, he dropped a position on the restart.
Keselowski swept Stage 2 a few moments ago, the first time in six years that he has swept both stages! Still, there is a lot of racing remaining in Iowa. Let’s see if Keselowski can continue his run and earn a playoff spot.
