Saturday’s qualifying runs may go a long way toward determining the winner of Sunday’s Iowa Corn Indy 250 at the Iowa Speedway. Ed Carpenter says starting up front will be an advantage, especially with an expanded field of 27 cars in this year’s event.

Carpenter says it’s a tight track and that made it tough to pass last year, and that’s also why it’s important to qualify toward the front. Carpenter says his race strategy will depend upon where he is in the lineup. Carpenter says starting up front allows you to stay on the leaders and maybe save some fuel, but if you’re in the back, you may have to take more risks and burn more fuel.

Pit stops are crucial in every race but perhaps even more so this weekend. On a shorter track heading into the pits under yellow may be the difference between staying in or falling out of contention.

A.J. Foyt IV says pitting under a green could cause you to fall behind early with the shorter track. Foyt says under green the fuel limit will be about 70 laps but any yellow flag before that will bring everyone into the pits. He says if you’re over 30 or 40 laps when the yellow comes out, people will pit to get fresh tires.

The Firestone Indy Lights race is Saturday afternoon and qualifying for the Iowa Corn Indy 250 will follow the race.