William Byron won his second Camping World Truck Series event in a row at Iowa Speedway on Saturday night. It was the 18-year-old’s third win on the 2016 season and moved him just 11 points shy of series points leader Matt Crafton. The rookie driver for Kyle Busch Motorsports powered his #9 Liberty University Toyota past Cole Custer after the race’s final re-start. The opportunistic rookie managed to stay out in front and hold on by less than half a second to claim the win.
William Byron had been fast all throughout the evening’s main event. He led a race high 107 circuits of the 200 turned. He looked to be taking complete charge of the race until a caution flew at lap 148. The youngster had some pit troubles that forced him back into the middle of the field. The setback didn’t phase the feisty competitor. Byron rallied to reach the front on the final push of the race and took full advantage by grabbing the lead and driving off in the open air.
“My gosh, it’s awesome just to be a part of Kyle Busch Motorsports and to have the group of guys I do,” said William Byron from Victory Lane. “It’s amazing. I’m so fortunate to be in this position. We had a couple setbacks there. I stalled it on pit road and I had a few setbacks on some restarts, but we kept after it until that last restart. It’s awesome.”
“We’ve kind of hit our stride in May and now June, and we’ve been able to focus on what we need to do better,” said William Byron, who will attend Liberty University, the sponsor of his No. 9 truck, in the fall. “I wouldn’t say it’s related to graduating high school, although it’s definitely a relief.”
Second place finisher Cole Custer couldn’t muster up enough speed to run down the speedy William Byron in the final laps. The #00 Haas Automation-sponsored speedster with JR Motorsports found himself in front with only 12 laps to go. Custer got caught up in a side-by-side battle with fellow competitor Cameron Hayley. The intense racing opened the door for William Byron to squeeze past Custer and take the lead for good.
Custer started in the eleventh spot for the Speediatrics 200 at Iowa speedway. By the race’s halfway point it was clear that the rookie driver would be keeping his Chevrolet up front for the remainder of the contest. He managed to lead three laps in the event and now sits 11th, just outside the Camping World Truck Series top ten point leaders. Custer was grateful for the efforts of his racing team in his post race interview.
“For the first 10 laps or so, the others were probably better than us on four tires,” said Custer, who recorded his season best finish. “After that it kind of equaled out. I thought I had them there when I took the lead. I can’t thank Marcus and everyone enough. They worked their tails off all weekend. I really appreciate that. I think we’re going in the right direction.”
Fifth place finisher Tyler Reddick thought that Iowa’s .875 mile oval was going to be the track where he would capture his first win. The #29 Cooper standard Tire sponsored driver for Brad Keselowski Motorsports led 53 laps in the contest. When the race’s deciding caution flew with 12 laps to go, it allowed the field to close the gap on Reddick and force him to battle the contests in a tightly grouped re-start. He couldn’t find his way back to the front and relented to a fifth place finish.
John Hunter Nemecheck sat on the pole position for the start of the Speediatrics 200 at Iowa Speedway. The #8 Fire Alarm Services sponsored racer took full advantage of his starting position and jumped out front for the race’s first 53 laps. Nemecheck had a strong truck for the entirety of the contest but couldn’t take advantage of track position when the race’s five caution flags flew. It wasn’t meant to be for the young up-and-comer and he settled for a disappointing 12th place tally.
The 2016 Speediatrics 200 at Iowa Speedway took one hour and 53 minutes to complete. The average speed around the .875 mile oval was 92.702 miles per hour. There were four lead changes among four different drivers and five cautions for a total of 39 laps. John Hunter Nemecheck won the Keystone Light Pole Award for his efforts in qualifying. The Mobil 1 Driver of the Race went to race winner William Byron.
Final running Order for the Speediatrics 200 at Iowa Speedway:
- William Byron, Toyota, Kyle Busch Motorsports
- Cole Custer, Chevrolet, JR Motorsports
- Cameron Hayley, Toyota, ThorSport Racing
- Ben Rhodes, Toyota, ThorSport Racing
- Tyler Reddick, Ford, Brad Keselowski Racing
- Daniel Suarez, Toyota, Kyle Busch Motorsports
- Ben Kennedy, Chevrolet, GMS Racing
- Matt Crafton, Toyota, ThorSport Racing
- Christopher Bell, Toyota, Kyle Busch Motorsports
- Johnny Sauter, Chevrolet, GMS Racing
- Timothy Peters, Toyota, Red Horse Racing
- John Hunter Nemechek, Chevrolet, NEMCO Motorsports
- Spencer Gallagher, Chevrolet, GMS Racing
- German Quiroga, Toyota, Red Horse Racing
- Daniel Hemric, Ford, Brad Keselowski Racing
- Austin Wayne Self, Toyota, AM Racing
- Brandon Jones, Chevrolet, Contreras Motorsports
- Rico Abreu, Toyota, ThorSport Racing
- John Wes Townley, Chevrolet, Athenian Motorsports
- Jordan Anderson, Chevrolet, Bolen Motorsports
- Jake Griffin, Chevrolet, MB Motorsports
- Casey Smith, Chevrolet, SS Green Light Racing
- Nick Drake, Chevrolet, Premium Motorsports
- Brandon Brown, Chevrolet, Brown Racing
- Derek Scott Jr., Chevrolet, Youngs Motorsports
- Caleb Holman, Chevrolet, Henderson Motorsports
- Travis Kvapil, Chevrolet, MAKE Motorsports
- Jennifer Jo Cobb, Chevrolet, MAKE Motorsports
- Kaz Grala, Chevrolet, GMS Racing
- Tommy Joe Martins, Chevrolet, Martins Racing
- Parker Kilgerman, Ford, Ricky Benton Racing
- Claire Decker, Chevrolet, JJC Racing
