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 After a rough NASCAR outing and a near-miss on dirt, Kyle Larson wasn’t ready to leave Iowa without the biggest prize in the bag. And so, he edged out 19-year-old Corey Day in a fierce showdown at Southern Iowa Speedway and bounced back from the $23,000 he lost at Knoxville yesterday. 

The Knoxville Nationals had slipped away from him Sunday night after multiple lead swaps with Rico Abreu. Abreu took home a $34,000 total purse, $20,000 for the win and $14,000 in lap-leader bonuses, while Larson, despite charging late, had to settle for second, getting just $11,000. Larson had also endured a frustrating run in the Iowa Corn 350, finishing 28th after getting caught in multiple wrecks, including one involving teammate Chase Elliott and another with Christopher Bell. That double hit, on pavement and dirt, made Monday’s race more than just another entry on the schedule.

The payback came at Southern Iowa Speedway during the Front Row Challenge, a sprint car event where even the top eight starters are determined by a foot race on the frontstretch. Larson locked horns with Corey Day, the runner-up at last year’s Osky event, in the 30-lap main. Day brought the heat again, but Larson pulled ahead in the closing laps to notch his fifth Front Row Challenge win– his fourth in the last five years, and $21,000 in the bag. The final lap only added to the drama, which FloRacing described as it unfolded, along with the win:

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“As the white flag is in the air, Kyle Larson, one lap away from being a five-a-time winner. For victory as they race through the corner, down the back straightaway lap, traffic ahead of your leader. Through the middle of three, coming to turn number four, the checkers will be in the air. Win number five in the Front Row Challenge for Kyle Larson!” Twenty-six drivers took the green flag in Monday’s FloRacing-streamed Front Row Challenge, and it wasn’t just the usual lineup; this was one of the strongest fields in recent memory. Among the stars were:

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Anthony Macri, fresh off his 2025 Kings Royal win, World of Outlaws regulars Carson Macedo and Buddy Kofoid, and Danny Dietrich, who already had eight feature wins this year. Past Front Row Champions like Brian Brown and James McFadden were also in the mix. Larson had to navigate through crashes and cautions — Lap 8 saw a multi-car pileup, including Macedo, Larson himself, Chase Randall, and Danny Sams III, which reshuffled the deck early.

Corey Day claimed the pole by winning the track’s signature foot-race, pocketing a $1,500 bonus and starting the 30-lap A-Main up front. Day led the early running, holding the top spot through the first 16 laps before Larson, starting deep in the pack, made his way forward with a clean slide job on Brad Sweet around Lap 10 and later on Carson Macedo around Lap 14. It was a masterclass in aggression and patience. A late-race caution brought the field back together with four laps to go, and both Larson and Day nudged the wall battling side-by-side, yet neither lifted, setting up a four-lap shootout in which Larson surged ahead.

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Does Kyle Larson's victory over Corey Day prove experience always trumps youth in racing?

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