2014 Get To Know Newton 250

The 2014 Get To Know Newton 250 presented by Sherwin-Williams was the tenth stock car race of the 2014 NASCAR Nationwide Series season, and the fourth iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, May 18, 2014, in Newton, Iowa at Iowa Speedway, a 7⁄8 mile (1.4 km) permanent D-shaped oval racetrack. On the final restart with 21 to go, Joe Gibbs Racing driver Sam Hornish Jr. would manage to hold off the field to win his third career NASCAR Nationwide Series victory and his only win of the season. To fill out the podium, Team Penske driver Ryan Blaney and JR Motorsports driver Regan Smith would finish second and 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.

Practice

First practice

The first practice session was held on Friday, May 16, at 9:00 AM CST. The session would last for three hours. Chase Elliott, driving for JR Motorsports, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 23.387 and an average speed of 134.690 miles per hour (216.763 km/h).

Second practice

The second practice session was held on Friday, May 16, at 1:00 PM CST. The session would last for two hours. Brian Scott, driving for Richard Childress Racing, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 23.366 and an average speed of 134.811 miles per hour (216.957 km/h).

Third practice

The third practice session was held on Friday, May 16, at 3:30 PM CST. The session would last for one hour and 20 minutes. Chase Elliott, driving for JR Motorsports, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 23.236 and an average speed of 135.566 miles per hour (218.172 km/h).

Final practice

The final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Saturday, May 17, at 11:30 AM CST. The session would last for one hour and 30 minutes. Dylan Kwasniewski, driving for Turner Scott Motorsports, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 23.320 and an average speed of 135.077 miles per hour (217.385 km/h).

Qualifying

Qualifying was held on Saturday, May 17, at 6:10 PM CST. Since Iowa Speedway is under 1.25 miles (2.01 km) in length, the qualifying system was a multi-car system that included two rounds. The first round was 30 minutes, where every driver would be able to set a lap within the 30 minutes. Then, the second round would consist of the fastest 12 drivers in round 1, and drivers would have 10 minutes to set a time. Whoever set the fastest time in round 2 would win the pole.

Ryan Blaney, driving for Team Penske, would win the pole, setting a time of 23.148 and an average speed of 136.081 miles per hour (219.001 km/h) in the second round.

No drivers would fail to qualify.