IndyCar start times: Iowa Speedway is back on the NTT IndyCar Series schedule and so is the race weekend doubleheader.
The only short track on the 2022 schedule also will mark the only Saturday-Sunday race slate as Iowa will play host to the Hy-Vee Race Weekend with events on consecutive days in its return to IndyCar after being absent last year.
There are 26 cars entered in the Hy-VeeDeals.com 250 presented by DoorDash and the Hy-Vee Salute to Farmers 300 presented by Google, tying for IndyCar’s largest fields at Iowa (in 2008 and ’11).
In the track’s most recent appearance on the schedule, Iowa played host to one of five race weekend doubleheaders in the pandemic-disrupted 2020 schedule. Team Penske swept the July 17-18, 2000 races with wins by Simon Pagenaud and Josef Newgarden, who leads active drivers with three wins at Iowa.
Penske has won five of the past six races on the 0.894-mile oval where IndyCar has held 15 races since 2007. Andretti Autosport has seven victories there.
Aside from Newgarden, the only other active winners at the Newton, Iowa, track are Meyer Shank Racing teammates Pagenaud and Helio Castroneves (in 2017).
Starpower will be in large supply at Iowa Speedway -- with Tim McGraw, Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton playing trackside concerts over the HyVee-sponsored weekend -- and some of IndyCar’s biggest names still are seeking to find their way into victory lane for the first time at Iowa. Scott Dixon, Pato O’Ward, Will Power, Alexander Rossi and Colton Herta are among those who have yet to win at the track east of Des Moines.
Though they haven’t raced there in two years, several teams (including Chip Ganassi Racing, Andretti Autosport, Penske and Arrow McLaren SP) have tested at Iowa over the past three weeks.
“We tested there, and Penske was strong there,” defending series champion Alex Palou of Ganassi told NBC Sports in a July 7 interview (before his contract imbroglio). “It’s going to be tough. I’m looking forward to all the road courses, but then there’s places like Iowa where our target is not to win. It’s to finish both races in the top 10. Get through that race and that weekend and push in the other ones.”
Ganassi has only two victories at Iowa -- with the late Dan Wheldon in 2008 and Dario Franchitti in ’09.
In the 2022 season, Penske has the only repeat winners through 10 races with Scott McLaughlin (Toronto, St. Petersburg) and Newgarden (Texas, Long Beach, Road America).
Here are the details and IndyCar start times for Iowa Speedway this weekend (all times are ET):
IOWA SPEEDWAY INDYCAR START TIMES
TV: Saturday race at 4 p.m. ET on NBC; Sunday race at 3 p.m. ET on NBC. Both races also will be streaming on Peacock Premium, the NBC Sports App and NBCSports.com. Peacock Premium also will be the streaming broadcast for both practices and qualifying. (Click here for information on how to sign up for Peacock.)
Kevin Lee is the announcer with analysts Townsend Bell and James Hinchcliffe. Dave Burns and Dillon Welch are the pit reporters. Click here for the full NBC Sports schedule for IndyCar in 2022.
RADIO BROADCAST: The IndyCar and Indy Lights races, practices and qualifying sessions live on network affiliates, SiriusXM 160, racecontrol.indycar.com and the IndyCar app.
COMMANDS TO START ENGINES: 4:01 p.m. Saturday; 3:25 p.m. Sunday
GREEN FLAGS: 4:06 p.m. Saturday; 4:30 p.m. Sunday
POSTRACE SHOW ON PEACOCK: After the race’s conclusion, an exclusive postrace show will air on Peacock with driver interviews, postrace analysis and the podium presentation. To watch the extended postrace show, click over to the special stream on Peacock after Sunday’s race ends.
Peacock also will be the streaming broadcast for practices and qualifying. The race also will be streamed on Peacock (in addition to the NBC Sports App/NBCSports.com streams and the NBC broadcast).
PRACTICE: Friday, 4:30 p.m. ET (Peacock Premium)
PRACTICE SPEEDS: Click here for the rundown from the lone session
QUALIFYING: Saturday, 10:30 a.m. (Peacock Premium), single-car runs for two laps (the first sets Saturday’s race lineup; the second for Sunday’s race lineup)
STARTING LINEUPS: Click here for the results from qualifying
RACE DISTANCES: Saturday’s race is 250 laps/223.5 miles on the 0.894-mile oval. Sunday’s race is 300/268.2 laps.
TIRE ALLOTMENT: Teams will have 14 sets during the doubleheader weekend
FORECAST: According to Wunderground.com, it’s expected to be 97 degrees Saturday with a 17% chance of rain at the green flag. On Sunday, it’s expected to 83 degrees with a 5% chance of rain at the green flag.
INDYCAR ENTRY LISTS: Click here for Saturday’s race l Click here for Sunday’s race
INDY LIGHTS ENTRY LIST: Click here for the 13 drivers racing Saturday
IOWA SPEEDWAY INDYCAR WEEKEND SCHEDULE
(All times are Eastern)
Friday, July 22
3:15 p.m.: Indy Lights practice
4:30 p.m.: IndyCar practice, 90 minutes (Peacock Premium)
Saturday, July 23
9:30 a.m.: Indy Lights qualifying
10:30 a.m.: IndyCar qualifying for both races (Peacock Premium)
12:15 p.m.: Indy Lights race (Peacock Premium, 75 laps/67.05 miles)
2 p.m.: Tim McGraw concert
4 p.m.: Hy-VeeDeals.com 250 presented by DoorDash (NBC, 250 laps/223.5 miles)
6:30 p.m.: Florida Georgia Line concert
Sunday, July 24
1 p.m.: Gwen Stefani concert
3 p.m.: Hy-Vee Salute to Farmers 300 presented by Google (NBC, 300 laps/268.2 miles)
6:15 p.m.: Blake Shelton concert