Cole Custer Fights Through Handling Issues to Finish 28th at Iowa Speedway.
By Haas Factory Team
NEWTON, IA (August 9, 2026) – Cole Custer battled through early handling issues and a challenging race at Iowa Speedway to bring the No. 41 HaasTooling.com Chevrolet home in 28th place on Sunday afternoon.
41 Cole Custer: Rolling off 36th in his second NASCAR Cup Series start at Iowa, Cole Custer faced an early uphill battle in the No. 41 HaasTooling.com Chevrolet. After fighting a loose car through the opening run, Custer an early caution on lap 4 to make his first handling adjustments. He finished Stage One a lap down but was able to take the wave-around to return to the lead lap.
Custer caught a break in the second stage when a caution on lap 91 allowed him to pit while staying on the lead lap and make further adjustments. The changes helped the No. 41 HaasTooling.com Chevrolet find a better groove, allowing Custer to remain with the pack throughout Stage Two. Two consecutive cautions around lap 145 helped keep him on the lead lap, but without another break late in the stage, Custer fell a lap down in the closing laps.
The free pass under the stage caution returned Custer to the lead lap, and he made his stop on lap 210. The No. 41 HaasTooling.com Chevrolet continued to run well as the leaders cycled through their own stops, with Custer maintaining pace through the longest green-flag run of the day. He made his final stop on lap 330 with 20 laps remaining and battled through the closing laps to finish 28th.
Up Next: The NASCAR Cup Series heads to Richmond Raceway next Saturday, August 15th, with race coverage on USA set for 7 p.m. ET.
About Haas Factory Team: Haas Factory Team is a NASCAR Cup and O'Reilly Auto Parts Series program owned by Gene Haas, founder of Haas Automation. New in 2026, Haas Factory will align with Chevrolet. As part of the manufacturer switch, HFT will have a technical alliance with Hendrick Motorsports, which will include using Hendrick-built engines across both series. The team will feature Cole Custer driving the No. 41 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in the NASCAR Cup Series, while Sheldon Creed and Sam Mayer take on the O'Reilly Auto Parts Series in the No. 00 and No. 41 Chevrolet Camaros, respectively. Based in Kannapolis, North Carolina, the Haas Factory Team reflects a commitment to performance and engineering excellence, carrying forward Gene Haas’s commitment to motorsports.