Category: XFINITY Series

NASCAR XFINITY Series news and information

  • Weekend Schedule for Charlotte Coca-Cola 600

    Weekend Schedule for Charlotte Coca-Cola 600

    NASCAR is set to race Memorial Day Weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway headlined by the 65th running of the Coca-Cola 600 Sunday night. Once again NASCAR will pay tribute to the Armed Forces with the NASCAR Salutes Together with Coca-Cola program.

    As part of the program, every NASCAR Cup Series car participating in the Coca-Cola 600 will feature the name of a fallen service member on the windshield and Goodyear tires will feature a special “Honor and Remember” sidewall design. NASCAR and Coca-Cola will also host Gold Star Families who have lost family members as a result of serving.

    Team Penske driver, Ryan Blaney, is the defending race winner.

    The ARCA Menards Series and the Craftsman Truck Series will compete Friday night as the Xfinity Series takes to the track Saturday afternoon.

    Friday, May 24
    11:40 a.m.: ARCA Menards Series Practice (Al Entries) Race Center
    12:40 p.m.: ARCA Menard Series Qualifying (Impound, Timed, All Entries) Race Center

    1:35 p.m.: Truck Series Practice (Timed, All Entries, 20 Minutes) FS1
    2:05 p.m.: Truck Series Qualifying (Impound, All Entries, Single Vehicle -1 Lap) FS1

    3:35 p.m.: Xfinity Series Practice (Timed, All Entries, 20 Minutes) FS1
    4:05 p.m.: Xfinity Series Qualifying (Impound, All Entries, Single Vehicle – 1 Lap) FS1

    6 p.m.: ARCA General Tire 150 (100 Laps-150 Miles) FS1/MRN

    8:30 p.m.: Truck Series North Carolina Education Lottery 200
    Stages 30/60/134 Laps = 201 Miles – FS1/MRN/SiriusXM
    Purse: $782,014
    NASCAR Press Pass: Post Race

    Saturday, May 25
    1 p.m.: Xfinity Series BetMGM 300
    Stages 45/90/200 Laps = 300 Miles – FOX/PRN/SiriusXM
    Purse: $1,383,384
    NASCAR Press Pass: Post Race

    5:05 p.m.: Cup Series Practice (Groups A & B, 20 Minutes each)
    FS1/PRN/SiriusXM
    5:50 p.m.: Cup Series Qualifying (Impound, Groups A & B, Single Vehicle – 1 Lap/2 Rounds)
    FS1/PRN/SiriusXM
    NASCAR Press Pass: Post Qualifying

    Sunday, May 26
    6 p.m.: Cup Series Coca-Cola 600
    Stages 100/200/300/400 Laps = 600 Miles
    FOX/PRN/SiriusXM
    Purse: $9,874,821
    NASCAR Press Pass: Post Race

  • Justin Allgaier prevails to win Xfinity Series race at Darlington

    Justin Allgaier prevails to win Xfinity Series race at Darlington

    Justin Allgaier dominated the Xfinity Series field to claim a decisive win at Darlington Raceway. He won the first two stages in his No. 5 JR Motorsports Chevrolet, led 119 of 147 laps and captured the checkered flag for his 24th victory in the series.

    It was his third win at Darlington and his 24th Xfinity Series win, tying him with team owner, Dale Earnhardt Jr. He also leads the series with 267 top-10 finishes, breaking a tie with Kyle Busch.

    “I didn’t know if the day would come when I’d be able to match Dale Jr.,” Allgaier said after the race. “Not only is he a great boss but a really good mentor and an unbelievable race car driver.

    “To be able to come here, to be able to tie him, to be able to take over the all-time top 10s, man, there’s nothing better than that.”

    Austin Hill led six laps, finished second and leads the series by 3 points. Cole Custer was third as Sam Mayer and Aric Almirola rounded out the top five finishers at Darlington.

    Parker Kligerman, Riley Herbst, rookie Jesse Love, Sheldon Creed and Brandon Jones rounded out the top 10.

    The post-race inspection was completed with no issues.

    The Xfinity Series is off next week and returns to completion on May 25 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

  • Cole Custer awarded Xfinity Series pole at Darlington after qualifying canceled

    Cole Custer awarded Xfinity Series pole at Darlington after qualifying canceled

    Cole Custer will lead the field to green in Saturday’s Xfinity Series race at Darlington Raceway after the practice and qualifying sessions were canceled due to rain and hail at the track.

    The field was set per the NASCAR Rule Book performance metric which is based on the previous event: 15% of a fastest lap time position, 25% of the driver’s final race finish position, 25% of the owner’s final race finish position and 35% of the owner points position.

    Chandler Smith will join Custer on the front row followed by Sheldon Creed, AJ Allmendinger and Austin Hill to complete the top five starters. Sam Mayer, Justin Allgaier, Anthony Alfredo, Riley Herbst and Parker Retzlaff will round out the top 10.

    All of the cars passed pre-race inspection.

    The Crown Royal Purple Bag Project 200 is scheduled for Saturday at 1:30 p.m. ET on FS1 with radio coverage provided by FS1 and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

  • Darlington Throwback Weekend Schedule

    Darlington Throwback Weekend Schedule

    NASCAR heads to Darlington Raceway for a full weekend of racing as all three national series compete. The racing will culminate on Mother’s Day with the Cup Series Goodyear 400. Hendrick Motorsports’ William Byron is the defending race winner.

    The Craftsman Truck Series will get the action started Friday night with the Buckle Up South Carolina 200. Christian Eckes is the most recent winner at the 1.366-mile track. Saturday afternoon the Xfinity Series takes center stage for the Crown Royal Purple Bag Project 200.

    NASCAR Press Pass will be available post-race for all series.

    All times are Eastern.

    Friday, May 10
    3:05 p.m.: Truck Series Practice (Timed, All Entries, 20 Minutes) FS1
    3:35 p.m.: Truck Qualifying (Impound, All Entries, Single Vehicle, 1 Lap) FS1
    5:05 p.m.: Xfinity Series Practice (Timed, All Entries, 20 Minutes) FS1
    5:35 p.m.: Xfinity Qualifying (Impound, All Entries, Single Vehicle, 1 Lap) FS1
    7 p.m.: Truck Series Driver Intros – FS1
    7:30 p.m.: Truck Series
    Stages 45/90/147 Laps = 200.8 Miles
    FS1/MRN/SiriusXM
    Purse: $770,233

    Saturday, May 11
    10:35 a.m.: Cup Series Practice (Timed, Groups A & B, 20 Minutes each) FS1/MRN/SiriusXM
    11:20 a.m.: Cup Qualifying (Impound, Groups A & B, Single Vehicle, 1 Lap, 2 Rounds)
    FS1/MRN/SiriusXM
    1:10 p.m.: Xfinity Series Driver Intros – FS1
    1:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series Crown Royal Purple Bag Project 200
    Stages 45/90/147 Laps = 200.8 Miles
    FS1/MRN/SiriusXM
    Purse: $1,371,756

    Sunday, May 12
    2:25 p.m.: Cup Series Driver Intros – FS1
    3 p.m.: Cup Series Goodyear 400
    Stages 90/185/293 Laps = 400.2 Miles
    FS1/MRN/SiriusXM
    Purse: $8,090,969

  • Parker Kligerman to make 100th Xfinity career start at Darlington

    Parker Kligerman to make 100th Xfinity career start at Darlington

    In his third full-time season in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, Parker Kligerman is primed to achieve a milestone start. By competing in this weekend’s Xfinity event at Darlington Raceway, the driver of the No. 48 Big Machine Racing Chevrolet Camaro will make his 100th career start in the Xfinity circuit. 

    A native of Westport, Connecticut, Kligerman made his inaugural presence in the Xfinity Series at Kansas Speedway in October 2009. By then, he was competing on a full-time basis in the ARCA Racing Series for Cunningham Motorsports, where he would achieve nine victories and a runner-up result in the final standings, and was a development competitor for Team Penske. Driving the No. 22 Penske Dodge, Kligerman notched his first career pole position after posting a pole-winning lap at 172.778 mph in 31.254 seconds and would lead the first seven laps before settling in 16th place in the final running order. He returned for the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway in November, where he piloted the No. 42 Team 42 Racing Dodge to a 25th-place finish. 

    In 2010, Kligerman made a total of 12 starts in the Xfinity Series between Team Penske and Team 42, with his first start occurring at Auto Club Speedway in February and finishing 22nd despite failing to qualify for the season opener at Daytona International Speedway. After notching his first career top-10 result at Bristol Motor Speedway in August by finishing ninth, the Connecticut native then notched a season-best eighth-place result at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal during the following event. Ultimately, he recorded a total of six top-15 results between his two part-time rides. He would make a total of four Xfinity starts for Team Penske between 2011 and 2012, where he would notch three top-10 results and finish as high as seventh, which occurred at Chicagoland Speedway in July 2012. 

    In 2013, Kligerman, who had scored his first Craftsman Truck Series victory at Talladega in October 2012 while driving for Red Horse Racing, joined Kyle Busch Motorsports to pilot the No. 77 Toyota Camry on a full-time basis. Commencing the season by finishing fifth at Daytona while dodging a harrowing multi-car wreck on the frontstretch, Kligerman would record a total of three top-five results, 13 top-10 results, 45 laps led and an average-finishing result of 14.1 throughout the 33-race schedule before settling in ninth place in the final standings. By then, he notched a career-best third-place result at Road America in June and a fourth-place finish at Auto Club Speedway in March. At Michigan International Speedway in June, Kligerman led 13 laps and was in the position of achieving his first career victory amid a late pit strategy and gamble before pitting for fuel with 14 laps remaining and ending up in 25th place while two laps down. 

    With Kyle Busch Motorsports ceasing its Xfinity Series program after the 2013 season, Kligerman would move up to the NASCAR Cup Series to compete for Swan Racing and contend for the 2014 Rookie-of-the-Year title. The driver, however, would be released by Swan Racing after the team sold its operations to Xxxtreme Motorsport following the first eight scheduled events. A year later and after he joined NBC Sports Network as an analyst, he made a single Xfinity start for Obaika Racing at Darlington Raceway, where he finished 21st. Another two years later, he competed at Road America for Precision Performance Motorsports, where he finished 10th. 

    In 2022, Kligerman made a total of three starts in the Xfinity Series, with his first start occurring at Circuit of the Americas for Emerling-Gase Motorsports, where he finished 12th. He remained with the team as he competed at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course, where he ended up 37th after being eliminated in an early incident. His third and final start of the season occurred at Talladega Superspeedway during the Xfinity Series Playoffs, where he piloted the No. 48 Big Machine Racing Chevrolet Camaro to a sixth-place finish. 

    In late October 2022, Big Machine Racing announced that Kligerman will be driving the team’s No. 48 Chevrolet Camaro on a full-time basis for the 2023 Xfinity season. He commenced the season with a 23rd-place finish at Daytona after being involved in a final lap wreck amid an overtime shootout. After finishing 10th, 11th and 15th, respectively, during his next three starts, Kligerman was in contention of achieving his first victory at Atlanta Motor Speedway until he got turned approaching the finish line and wrecked, but managing a fourth-place finish. Kligerman and the No. 48 Big Machine Racing team would proceed to notch six top-five results and 12 top-10 results during the remaining 21 regular-season events, with their best result being a runner-up finish at Road America in late July.

    By virtue of the results and the consistency, including a seven-race consecutive streak of top-nine results between July and August and a fourth-place finish during the regular-season finale at Kansas Speedway in September, Kligerman managed to claim the 12th and final berth to the 2023 Xfinity Series Playoffs over Stewart-Haas Racing’s Riley Herbst.

    Commencing the 2023 Playoffs with a 31st-place result at Bristol Motor Speedway, Kligerman rallied during the following two events at Texas Motor Speedway and at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course by finishing second and sixth, respectively. The results, however, were enough for the Connecticut native to not transfer into the Round of 8 by four points. Nabbing two top-10 results during the final four events on the schedule, Kligerman settled in a career-best 10th place in the final driver’s standings. By then, he had achieved career-high stats in top fives (8), top 10s (18) and an average-finishing result of 13.2 as a full-time competitor. 

    Remaining at Big Machine Racing for the 2024 season, Kligerman has achieved three top-10 results through the first 10 events on the schedule. He is currently ranked in ninth place in the current 2024 driver’s standings and trails the series points lead by 133 points. 

    Through 99 previous starts in the Xfinity Series, Kligerman has achieved one pole, 12 top-five results, 41 top-10 results, 107 laps led and an average-finishing result of 14.9 as he continues his pursuit for both his first Xfinity race victory and championship. 

    Parker Kligerman is scheduled to make his 100th Xfinity Series career start at Darlington Raceway for the Crown Royal Purple Bag Project 200 on Saturday, May 11, with the event’s broadcast time to commence at 1 p.m. ET on FS1.  

  • Alliance Driveway Solutions & JCR Rewinding to the 90s with a Robert Pressley inspired Throwback

    Alliance Driveway Solutions & JCR Rewinding to the 90s with a Robert Pressley inspired Throwback

    Spartanburg, SC – Jeremy Clements Racing and Alliance Driveway Solutions are set to pay tribute to the legendary Robert Pressley during this year’s official Darlington Throwback weekend at the famed Lady in Black, Darlington Raceway.

    The JCR / Alliance Driveway Solutions Chevy will sport the classic black and gold paint scheme used by Pressley’s former team; The Alliance Tractor-Trailer Training Centers, during the late 80s and early 90s. This livery helped Pressley “The Bent Creek Bandit’ secure two Darlington wins, and nine total Xfinity Series wins, making it a fitting tribute to the racing icon. To make the event even more special, JCR has partnered with Super Lube out of Asheville, NC, one of Robert’s previous hometown associate sponsors.

    Additionally, Alliance will also be a co-primary partner at Portland with Impel Union and will be the principal partner for the season finale at Phoenix. Plus, Impel Union, Fox Sports Spartanburg, The Racing Warehouse, and RE Goodson will serve as associate sponsors. The Crown Royal Purple Bag Project 200 race is set to take place on Saturday, May 11th on the 1.366-mile egg-shaped oval, known as the Track Too Tough to Tame.

    “This Throwback is so cool! When Tate and LJ first told me about it, I was like, Heck yeah, this is gonna be a home run! Alliance has been amazing to us over the past two years, so I’m stoked to honor Robert Pressley. The scheme is just perfect, they even got Super Lube of Asheville, one of Robert’s old partners, on the deck lid. It’s gonna be such a great Throwback and Mother’s Day weekend. Now all we gotta do is take home that checkered flag!” Clements said.

    The Chevy Camaro SS #51 will also proudly feature logos of its other supportive associate sponsors, including Nordic Logistics, Workforce OHSS, Elite Towing, Whitetail Smokeless, Matman Designs, Carolina Driveline, ZMAX Race Products, E3 Spark Plugs and Dynamic Paintware.

    RACE PREVIEW

    Track: Darlington Raceway
    Race: Crown Royal Purple Bag Project 200
    Date: Saturday May 11th, 2024
    Broadcast Information – TV: 1:30 pm EST on FS1

    FAST FACTS

    Best Start 12th – 5/2021
    Best Finish 6th – 5/2021
    18th career start at Darlington

    JCR TEAM

    Team: No. 51
    Crew Chief: Mark Setzer
    Manufacturer: Chevrolet

    ABOUT ALLIANCE DRIVEAWAY SOLUTIONS

    Alliance Driveaway Solutions has over 18 years of experience in the heavy truck and transportation industry. We operate in all 48 states and Canada. No distance is too far. We excel in ensuring that our customers are more than satisfied with their shipments. At Alliance Driveaway Solutions, we don’t treat you just as a customer but rather as an operating partner. Our advanced state-of-the-art dispatch system ensures that we are with you every step of the way. Alliance Driveaway is American-owned and operated. Visit Alliancedriveway.com for more information.

  • Ryan Truex scores second consecutive Xfinity victory at Dover

    Ryan Truex scores second consecutive Xfinity victory at Dover

    A year after achieving his first elusive victory across NASCAR’s top three national touring series at the Monster Mile, Ryan Truex etched himself as a two-time race winner in the NASCAR Xfinity Series level after prevailing through two overtime shootouts and a late challenge from Carson Kvapil to win the BetRivers 200 at Dover Motor Speedway on Saturday, April 27. 

    The 32-year-old Truex from Mayetta, New Jersey, led the final two of 208 over-scheduled laps in an event where he started 12th and ran a consistent event, where he racked up a handful of stage points and dodged a series of late-race caution periods to line up alongside Carson Kvapil at the start of the second of two overtime shootouts. After muscling past Kvapil during the start of the second overtime shootout, Truex then took the white flag to start the final lap of the event and retained the lead just before the event’s race-ending caution flew after front-runner Justin Allgaier wrecked on the frontstretch. The incident resulted in Truex claiming the checkered flag to win at Dover for a second consecutive season and to collect his second career win in the Xfinity Series.

    With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup on Friday, April 26, Brandon Jones notched his second Xfinity pole position of the 2024 season and the 10th of his career after posting a pole-winning lap at 156.683 mph in 22.950 seconds. Joining him on the front row was Riley Herbst, who clocked in the second-fastest qualifying lap at 156.781 mph in 22.962 seconds. 

    Before the event, the following names that included Anthony Alfredo, Jeb Burton, Blaine Perkins, Garrett Smithley, Josh Williams and JJ Yeley dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments made to their respective entries. 

    When the green flag waved and the race started, Brandon Jones motored his No. 9 Menards Chevrolet Camaro ahead with the lead from the outside lane through the first two turns. As the field behind jostled for early spots, Jones proceeded to lead the first lap as teammate Justin Allgaier overtook Riley Herbst to move into the runner-up spot as Joe Gibbs Racing’s Sheldon Creed and Chandler Smith followed suit in the top five ahead of Austin Hill, Kyle Weatherman and a side-by-side battle between Taylor Gray and rookie Jesse Love. 

    On the fourth lap, the event’s first caution flew after Hailie Deegan and JJ Yeley, both of whom were racing towards the rear of the field, made contact through the frontstretch that resulted with Yeley spinning and slapping the outside wall in Turn 1 as his event came to an early end. 

    As the event restarted under green on Lap 13, Allgaier launched his No. 7 Jarrett Logistics Chevrolet Camaro ahead of teammate Jones through the first two turns as he muscled ahead to assume the lead while the rest of the field jostled for early spots. Allgaier would power ahead by more than a second by the Lap 15 mark while Jones, Herbst, Creed and Hill followed suit in the top five. Meanwhile, Chandler Smith, Gray, AJ Allmendinger, Cole Custer and Love were racing in the top 10 ahead of Kyle Weatherman, Ryan Sieg, Ryan Truex, Parker Kligerman and Sammy Smith as Allgaier continued to lead by more than a second by the Lap 20 mark. 

    Through the first 25 scheduled laps, Allgaier led by more than a second over teammate Jones while third-place Herbst trailed by five seconds. Creed and Hill followed suit in the top five while Chandler Smith, Gray, Custer, Allmendinger and Love were racing in the top 10 ahead of Ryan Sieg, Truex, Sammy Smith, Parker Retzlaff, Weatherman, Kligerman, Matt DiBenedetto, Sam Mayer, Carson Kvapil and Kaden Honeycut. 

    Shortly after, the event’s second caution period flew after Ryan Sieg, winner of the third Dash 4 Cash bonus from last weekend at Talladega Superspeedway and who was running in the top 15, came to a stop below the track in Turn 2 after his No. 39 Sci Aps Ford Mustang went up in flames, with the driver able to quickly escape his burned car.  

    During the caution period, some including Love, Parker Retzlaff and rookie Shane van Gisbergen pitted while the rest led by Allgaier remained on the track. 

    With the event restarting under green on Lap 32, Allgaier retained the lead after muscling ahead on the inside lane while teammate Jones was trying to fend off Creed for the runner-up spot. Behind, Herbst trailed in fourth ahead of Hill and Custer while Chandler Smith, Gray, Allmendinger and Truex occupied the top 10.  

    Just past the Lap 35 mark, Allgaier was leading by a second over teammate Jones with Creed following suit in third while Herbst and Hill battled in the top five ahead of Custer and Chandler Smith. The deficit for Creed, Custer, Herbst, Hill and Chandler Smith would increase to four seconds as Allgaier retained the lead by the Lap 40 mark. 

    When the first stage period concluded on Lap 45, Allgaier captured his fourth Xfinity stage victory of the 2024 season. Teammates Jones settled in second followed by Custer, Creed and Herbst while Hill, Chandler Smith, Allmendinger, Truex and Sam Mayer were scored in the top 10.  

    Under the stage break, nearly the entire lead lap field led by Allgaier pitted while the rest led by Retzlaff and Love, including those who pitted during the previous caution period, remained on the track. Towards the end of the first stage’s break period, Blaine Perkins stopped on the track in Turn 2 after his car ended up on fire. 

    The second stage period started on Lap 51 as Retzlaff and Love occupied the front row. At the start, Retzlaff and Love battled dead even for the lead through the first two turns and the backstretch as Jeb Burton followed suit in third. Love would prevail and take over the top spot during the following lap while the rest of the field behind scrambled and jostled for positions by the Lap 55 mark. 

    At the Lap 60 mark, Love was leading by half a second over Retzlaff followed by Custer, Jeb Burton and Hill while Creed, Herbst, Kaden Honeycutt, Chandler Smith and Allgaier were running in the top 10 as Allmendinger, Sammy Smith, Shane van Gisbergen, Truex and Jones trailed in the top 15. 

    Ten laps later, Love retained the lead by nine-tenths of a second over Retzlaff as third-place Custer, who was the first competitor who exited pit road during the first stage’s break period, trailed by a second as he was racing ahead of Creed and Herbst. 

    Another two laps later, Custer motored his No. 00 Haas Ford Mustang past Love’s No. 2 Whelen Chevrolet Camaro through the first two turns as he assumed the lead. Custer extended his advantage to a second over Love by the Lap 75 mark and to two seconds over Love just past the Lap 80 mark. 

    When the second stage period concluded on Lap 90, Custer captured his second Xfinity stage victory of the 2024 season. Hill charged his way into the runner-up spot followed by Love, Retzlaff and Creed while Allgaier, Herbst, Chandler Smith, Sammy Smith and Truex were scored in the top 10. 

    During the stage break, the lead lap field led by Custer pitted for service. Following the pit stops, Custer retained the lead after exiting pit road first followed by Hill, Allgaier, Herbst, Love, Sammy Smith, Creed, Truex, Chandler Smith and Allmendinger. 

    With 102 laps remaining, the final stage commenced as Custer and Hill occupied the front row. At the start, Custer fended off Hill to retain the lead as Allgaier muscled his way past Hill for the runner-up spot. Allgaier and Hill would battle for the runner-up spot ahead of Herbst and Love while Custer led with 100 laps remaining. Not long after, Love made an unscheduled pit stop under green to address a cut left-rear tire after making contact with Ryan Truex. 

    With 85 laps remaining, Custer stretched his advantage to three seconds over Allgaier while Herbst, Sammy Smith and Hill trailed in the top five ahead of Carson Kvapil, Creed, Truex, Allmendinger and Anthony Alfredo. 

    Ten laps later, Custer stabilized his advantage to two seconds over Allgaier as Herbst, Sammy Smith and Hill continued to run in the top five ahead of Kvapil, Creed, Truex, Allmendinger and Chandler Smith. 

    Down to the final 50 laps of the event, Custer continued to lead by six-tenths of a second over Allgaier as Herbst, Sammy Smith and Hill trailed by five seconds. Behind, Kvapil retained sixth ahead of Creed and Chandler Smith, who gained two spots, as Allmendinger and Truex trailed in the top 10 ahead of Jones, Mayer, Kligerman, Alfredo and Jeb Burton. 

    Eight laps later, the caution flew due to rain reported around the venue. During the caution period, some led by Herbst pitted while the rest led by Custer, who missed the pit road entrance line and did not pit when reported to do so, remained on the track.  

    With the caution period being extended due to the rain, the field led by Custer was directed to pit road with 33 laps remaining and the event was placed in a weather delay that spanned more than 12 minutes. Once the red flag period was lifted and the field returned to the track under a cautious pace, select names including Custer pitted while the rest led by Allgaier remained on the track. 

    When the race restarted under green flag conditions with 28 laps remaining, Allgaier and Hill battled closely against one another for the lead through the first two turns and the backstretch until Allgaier went wide and up the track in Turn 3. This allowed Hill to muscle ahead with the lead as Kvapil moved into the runner-up spot while Allgaier was left to battle Creed and Mayer to retain third place. 

    Another lap later, the caution returned after Jones, who was racing in the top 10, made contact with Allmendinger in Turn 2 that resulted in Allmendinger bumping into Jones and sending Jones for a spin towards the inside wall on the backstretch, but Jones managed to keep his car off the wall. 

    The start of the following restart period with 21 laps remaining featured Hill retaining the lead ahead of Creed, Kvapil and Gray. Four laps later, however, the caution returned after Mayer, who was battling Gray for a top-five spot, got loose underneath Gray and clipped Gray which resulted in Gray slamming into the outside wall in Turn 2. 

    During the start of the next restart period with 11 laps remaining, Hill and Creed battled dead even for the lead through the first two turns and the backstretch before Creed muscled ahead from the inside lane. With 10 laps remaining, however, Hill would battle back against Creed for the top spot as.  

    Then with eight laps remaining, Kvapil drew himself beneath a side-by-side action between Hill and Creed through the frontstretch. This generated a three-wide action for the lead as Kvapil moved his No. 88 Chevy Truck Season Chevrolet Camaro into the lead. The caution, however, returned a lap later after Herbst got turned sideways in Turn 4, which triggered a multi-car wreck that collected Kyle Sieg, Sammy Smith, Leland Honeyman, Brennan Poole, Daniel Dye and Allgaier. The incident was enough to sent the event into overtime. 

    The first overtime period did not last long as Hill got loose underneath Kvapil while battling him for the lead through the first two turns, which resulted in Hill spinning his No. 21 Nuthin Fancy Collection Chevrolet Camaro below the apron. 

    The second overtime attempt generated a different outcome as Ryan Truex, who restarted alongside Kvapil on the inside lane, battled dead even with Kvapil for nearly a full lap until Truex muscled ahead with the lead through Turns 3 and 4. 

    When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Truex was leading by two-tenths of a second over Kvapil as Mayer, Creed and Custer battled for third place. Not long after, the caution flew, which ended the race as Allgaier wrecked on the frontstretch. With the checkered flag being displayed alongside the caution flag, Truex was able to coast his No. 20 Toyota Gazoo Racing Toyota Supra back to the frontstretch victorious for a second consecutive season at the Monster Mile. 

    With the victory, Truex, who previously recorded two top-10 results in four starts thus far of the season, achieved his second career win in his 95th start in the Xfinity circuit and fifth of the 2024 season. He also recorded the fifth victory of the season for both Toyota and Joe Gibbs Racing as he became the third different competitor to pilot JGR’s No. 20 Toyota Supra entry to an Xfinity race victory in 2024.

    “I can’t believe it,” Truex said on FS1. “Our car was just good at the end when it mattered. I was so loose all day. Shout out to Carson [Kvapil]. What an amazing run for what, his second race. I felt a little bad running him up the hill, but you’ve got to take these things when you can. I’m out of breath. I think I held my breath the last two laps. Love these fans. Love this track. Just can’t believe it.”

    Meanwhile, Kvapil, a full-time CARS Late Model Stock Tour competitor for JR Motorsports and the son of former NASCAR Truck Series champion Travis Kvapil, was left with mixed reactions on pit road despite achieving a career-best runner-up result in his second Xfinity Series career start. He finished in fourth place during his first Xfinity career start at Martinsville Speedway in early April.

    “It sucks, right? You get that close [to winning],” Kvapil said. “I really don’t even know what to say. I think we had a really fast Chevrolet here. JR Motorsports brought me a really good piece. I’m just really fortunate to be in the spot that I am. I’m happy that I have a shot to win a race at the end there. We had a good car. I just couldn’t really get up through the restarts really good…[Truex] just barely got us there at the end.”

    Sam Mayer ended up in third place followed by Sheldon Creed and Cole Custer. AJ Allmendinger, Chandler Smith, Kyle Weatherman, Anthony Alfredo and Parker Retzlaff finished in the top 10.

    For the fourth and final Dash 4 Cash bonus of the 2024 season, the honors belonged to Anthony Alfredo, who achieved his first bonus of the initiative of his career as he also collected his fifth top-10 result of the season.

    There were 11 lead changes for 10 different leaders. The race featured 10 cautions for 61 laps. In addition, 20 of 38 starters finished on the lead lap. 

    Following the 10th event of the 2024 Xfinity Series season, Chandler Smith leads the regular-season standings by a single point over Cole Custer, 17 over Austin Hill, 57 over rookie Jesse Love and 81 over Justin Allgaier.

    Results. 

    1.  Ryan Truex, two laps led

    2. Carson Kvapil, 14 laps led

    3. Sam Mayer

    4. Sheldon Creed, three laps led

    5. Cole Custer, 95 laps led, Stage 2 winner

    6. AJ Allmendinger

    7. Chandler Smith

    8. Kyle Weatherman

    9. Anthony Alfredo

    10. Parker Retzlaff, three laps led

    11. Jeb Burton

    12. Parker Kligerman

    13. Ryan Ellis

    14. Jeremy Clements

    15. Austin Hill, 17 laps led

    16. Riley Herbst

    17. Justin Allgaier, 39 laps led, Stage 1 winner

    18. Shane van Gisbergen

    19. Brandon Jones, 13 laps led

    20. Daniel Dye

    21. Leland Honeyman, one lap down

    22. Brennan Poole, one lap down

    23. Kaden Honeycutt, two laps down

    24. Jesse Love, two laps down, 21 laps led

    25. Josh Williams, two laps down

    26. David Starr, two laps down

    27. Kyle Sieg, two laps down, one lap led

    28. Patrick Emerling, three laps down

    29. Dawson Cram, three laps down

    30. Garrett Smithley, six laps down

    31. Hailie Deegan, eight laps down

    32.  Matt DiBenedetto, 12 laps down

    33. Sammy Smith – OUT, Accident

    34. Taylor Gray – OUT, Accident

    35. Corey Heim – OUT, Engine

    36. Blaine Perkins – OUT, Electrical

    37. Ryan Sieg – OUT, Engine

    38. JJ Yeley – OUT, Accident

    With the completion of the 2024 Xfinity Series’ Dash 4 Cash initiative, the next event on the 2024 NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule is Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina, for the Crown Royal Purple Bag Project 200. The event is scheduled for May 11 and will air at 1:30 p.m. ET on FS1. 

  • Weekend schedule for Dover

    Weekend schedule for Dover

    The NASCAR Cup Series and Xfinity Series travel to Dover Motor Speedway this weekend as the ARCA Menards Series jump starts the action Friday night. Martin Truex Jr. is the defending Cup Series race winner and has four previous victories at Dover. Truex, however, is winless this year and will be looking to repeat for his first victory of the season.

    Legacy Motor Club owner/driver Jimmie Johnson holds the record for the most Cup Series wins at Dover (11) and will attempt to add one more to his resume at the one-mile concrete track.

    Dover will be the final race of the Xfinity Series Dash 4 Cash incentive program with drivers Ryan Sieg, Jesse Love, Riley Herbst and Anthony Alfredo competing for the $100,000 bonus.

    The CRAFTSMAN Truck Series is off but returns to competition on Saturday, May 4 at 8 p.m. ET for the Heart Of America 200.

    NASCAR PressPass will be available throughout the weekend post-qualifying and post-race for the Cup and Xfinity Series. You can also follow all of the ARCA Menards Series action on the ARCA Race Center page.

    All times are Eastern.

    Friday, April 26
    12:40 p.m.: ARCA Practice (All Entries)
    1:40 p.m.: ARCA Qualifying (Impound) Timed, All Entries
    3 p.m.: Xfinity Practice (Timed) All Entries, 20 Minutes – FS2
    3:30 p.m.: Xfinity Qualifying (Impound) All Entries, Single Vehicle, 2 Laps – FS2
    8 p.m.: ARCA General Tire 150 – FS2

    Saturday, April 27
    10:30 a.m.: Cup Series Practice (Timed) Groups A & B – 20 Minutes each group
    11:20 a.m.: Cup Series Qualifying (Impound) Groups A & B, Single Vehicle, 2 Laps, 2 Rounds
    1:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series BetRivers 200
    Distance: 200 miles (200 Laps)
    Stages end on Lap 45, Lap 90, Lap 200
    FS1/PRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
    Purse: $1,420,381

    Sunday, April 28
    2 p.m.: NASCAR Cup Series Würth 400
    FS1/PRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
    Distance: 400 miles (400 laps)
    Stages end on Lap 120, Lap 250, Lap 400
    Purse: $7,992,801

  • Jesse Love outlasts two overtime shootouts for first Xfinity career win at Talladega

    Jesse Love outlasts two overtime shootouts for first Xfinity career win at Talladega

    After generating an impressive start to his first NASCAR Xfinity Series campaign, rookie Jesse Love sealed the deal by notching his first career victory in the Ag-Pro 300 at Talladega Superspeedway on Saturday, April 20, amid two overtime shootouts. 

    The 19-year-old Love from Menlo Park, California, led five times for 28 of 124 over-scheduled laps in an event where he started on the front row alongside teammate and pole-sitter Austin Hill. After spending nearly the entire first stage period running behind Hill amid the draft, Love overtook him on the final lap prior to Justin Allgaier wrecking out of the event to capture the stage victory. 

    Love then spent the remainder of the event battling within the draft and towards the front while avoiding a handful of late on-track calamities that sent the event into overtime twice. After sneaking his way back into the lead for the start of the second overtime shootout, Love survived on a low tank of fuel and fended off late challenges from Leland Honeyman and Brennan Poole to score his first Xfinity Series career victory in his ninth series start. 

    With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Friday, April 19, Austin Hill notched his fifth Xfinity career pole position, his first of the 2024 season and his third straight at Talladega after posting a pole-winning lap at 181.629 mph in 52.723 seconds. Joining him on the front row was teammate and rookie Jesse Love, who clocked in the second-fastest qualifying lap at 181.120 mph in 52.871 seconds. 

    Prior to the event, the following names that included Jeb Burton, Sheldon Creed and Taylor Gray dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments made to their respective entries. 

    When the green flag waved and the race started, Austin Hill received a push from Cole Custer on the outside lane to muscle ahead before he then transitioned to the inside lane and moved in front of teammate Jesse Love through the first two turns. As the field fanned out to three lanes through the backstretch, Hill would manage to fend off the early challenges and maintain control of both lanes to return to the tri-oval with the lead and lead the first lap.  

    On the second lap, Sammy Smith would challenge Hill for the lead from the backstretch through the frontstretch amid the draft as the field fully fanned out to three packed lanes. Smith, however, would lose ground during the following lap as he had no drafting help on the inside lane as Hill, who continued to have both lanes under his control, maintained the top spot ahead of teammate Love, Parker Kligerman, Ryan Truex and AJ Allmendinger through the fifth lap mark. 

    Through the first 10 scheduled laps and with a majority of the field migrating to a long line on the outside lane, Hill was leading ahead of teammate Love, Kligerman, Truex and Chandler Smith, who was trying to ignite a drafting run from the inside lane, while Cole Custer, AJ Allmendinger, Riley Herbst, Justin Allgaier and Ryan Sieg trailed in the top 10 ahead of rookie Shane van Gisbergen, Anthony Alfredo, Kyle Weatherman, Jeremy Clements and Sheldon Creed.  

    A lap later, Custer, who was drafting Chandler Smith on the inside lane, made a bold move beneath Smith to assume the runner-up spot before he then made a move beneath Hill in a bid for the lead through the frontstretch. Despite drawing even against Hill through the first two turns and the backstretch, Hill quickly fought back on the inside lane as he had teammate Love drafting him while Custer was trying to keep pace amid the draft. 

    By Lap 15, Hill was leading by a tenth of a second over teammate Love followed by Chandler Smith, Kligerman and Truex while Allmendinger, Justin Allgaier, van Gisbergen, Kyle Weatherman, Clements and the rest of the field followed suit, with the top 29 of 38 starters trailing within three seconds. 

    Just past the Lap 20 mark, Hill continued to lead just ahead of teammate Love as Chandler Smith, Kligerman, Truex, Allmendinger, Allgaier, van Gisbergen, Weatherman and Clements were running in the top 10 ahead of Brandon Jones, Jeb Burton, Alfredo, Perkins, Taylor Gray, Creed, Herbst, Custer, Ryan Sieg and Josh Williams, all of whom were running under two seconds. 

    On the final lap of the first stage period, the event’s first caution period flew after Allgaier, who was running in the top 10, got loose entering the backstretch and made contact with Herbst that sent Allgaier spinning before the Illinois veteran T-boned the inside wall hard at full pace as his No. 7 BRANDT Chevrolet Camaro then came to a halt back across the track, with Allgaier managing to emerge uninjured. Allgaier’s incident not only spoiled his chances of achieving the third Xfinity Dash 4 Cash bonus of the season, but it was also enough for the first stage period scheduled to conclude on Lap 25 to conclude under caution as Jesse Love, who overtook teammate Hill for the lead on the frontstretch and prior to Allgaier’s wreck, captured his fourth Xfinity stage victory of the 2024 season. Kligerman ended up second followed by Hill, Chandler Smith and Allmendinger while Truex, van Gisbergen, Brandon Jones, Riley Herbst and Custer were scored in the top 10. 

    Under the stage break, a majority of the field led by Love pitted for service while the rest led by Matt DiBenedetto and including Joey Gase, Caesar Bacarella, Leland Honeyman, Jordan Anderson, Dawson Cram, Mason Massey and Hailie Deegan remained on the track. All including Josh Bilicki, who exited pit road first the lap prior, pitted during the following lap, which allowed Love to cycle back into the lead. Kligerman, who slid through his pit box earlier, also returned to pit road for another pit service. 

    The second stage period started on Lap 30 as teammates Love and Hil occupied the front row. At the start, Love and Hill battled dead even for the lead through the first two turns and entering the backstretch until Hill muscled back ahead with the lead exiting the backstretch as Ryan Truex followed suit in second. With the field fanning out to three tight-packed lanes during the following lap, Hill maintained control of both lanes amid the draft.  

    On Lap 34, a three-wide battle for the lead ensued as Custer, Truex and Hill battled dead even for the lead through the frontstretch until Custer muscled his No. 00 Haas Ford Mustang into the lead. Hill then fought back during the following two turns and the backstretch before Custer moved in front of Hill to stall his momentum. This allowed Ryan Sieg to move into the lead despite drawing dead even with Truex through the first two turns before Custer fought back and battled Sieg for the lead through the backstretch and the frontstretch. With the field tight-packed amid three lanes, Sieg fended off Custer to maintain the lead on the inside lane while Hill was trying to regain momentum on the outside lane by Lap 37. 

    Just past the Lap 40 mark, Sieg continued to lead ahead of Hill, who surged his way back towards the front, along with Herbst while Love followed suit in fourth, though he would be overtaken by Chandler Smith, Custer and Taylor Gray amid the draft. Chandler Smith would then challenge Sieg in a side-by-side battle for the lead from the inside lane by Lap 42 before he assumed the top spot by the following lap as he had Hill following suit. Another lap later, teammate Truex challenged Smith for the lead before he got shuffled out of the draft. This enabled Smith to retain the top spot ahead of Hill and Love while Brandon Jones was trying to ignite a charge from the inside lane. 

    When the second stage period concluded on Lap 50, Hill, who reassumed the lead four laps earlier, captured his second Xfinity stage victory of the 2024 season after fending off a last-lap charge from Allmendinger. Love edged Allmendinger to claim second followed by Sieg and Brandon Jones while Chandler Smith, Kligerman, Herbst, Jeb Burton and Truex were scored in the top 10. 

    During the stage break, a majority of the field led by Hill pitted for service while the rest led by Jordan Anderson remained on the track. The remaining competitors who elected not to pit led by Anderson would pit shortly after as Love, who only opted for fuel to his entry, reassumed the lead.  

    With 58 laps remaining, the final stage period commenced as Love and Brandon Jones occupied the front row. At the start, Love muscled ahead from the outside lane to retain the lead as he had Chandler Smith following him in the draft while Jones was trying to keep pace from the inside lane. With Hill trying to fight his way back to the front in ninth place and as the field fanned out amid the draft, Jones would assume the lead just past the halfway mark on Lap 57. With Jones leading, Kligerman followed suit along with Hill while Love was left to fend off Sieg for fourth place. 

    With 52 laps remaining, Ryan Sieg muscled ahead from Jones on the inside lane entering the frontstretch to assume the lead. Sammy Smith would then rocket his way into a side-by-side challenge against Sieg for the lead entering Turn 3 as Smith had Shane van Gisbergen following him. With more battles at the front ensuing and more names carving their way to the front, van Gisbergen then led a lap for himself in his No. 97 Wendy’s Chevrolet Camaro with 50 laps remaining until Hill drafted Sammy Smith back to the lead ahead of a tight three-wide pack. 

    A few laps later, the caution returned after Kligerman, who was running fourth, turned across the right-front fender of Sieg, where he then turned and sent Jones’ No. 9 Menards Chevrolet Camaro head-on into the outside wall in the frontstretch. This triggered a multi-car wreck that involved Allmendinger, Clements, Truex, Sam Mayer, Josh Williams, Jeb Burton, DiBenedetto, Leland Honeyman and Kyle Weatherman. At the moment of caution, Hill had reassumed the lead over Sammy Smith. 

    During the caution period, a majority of the field led by Hill pitted for service while the rest led by David Starr remained on the track. As the rest of the field, including Starr and DiBenedetto pitted during the following few laps, Hill, who only opted for fuel to his entry, cycled back into the lead. 

    As the event restarted under green with 41 laps remaining, Sieg received a push from Custer to maintain the lead on the inside lane as Herbst tried to follow suit in third place. Hill, however, would fight back on the outside before Custer moved in front of Hill to stall his momentum. Amid the field fanning out through the frontstretch, Herbst would assume the lead with 40 laps remaining. Then as Herbst was trying to fend off Love for the lead, the caution returned after Allmendinger’s rear bumper cover split, came off of the car and fell on the backstretch. 

    During the following restart period with 35 laps remaining, Herbst muscled his No. 98 Monster Energy Ford Mustang ahead from the inside lane to retain the lead through the first two turns before he transitioned up to the outside lane to block Sieg and retain the lead. With the field fanning out to three lanes and charging hard to the front, Hill challenged Herbst for the lead during the following lap, but Herbst received a strong push from Sieg, Custer and Kligerman amid the draft to maintain the lead from the outside lane, which dropped Hill out of the top five as he was trying to regain momentum with drafting help from Alfredo and Love.  

    With 30 laps remaining, Hill, who led the previous lap by a hair, over Herbst, was leading by a mere margin over Herbst amid a side-by-side battle while Alfredo, Sieg, Custer, Love, Kligerman, Sheldon Creed, Jordan Anderson and Chandler Smith were running in the top 10 ahead of van Gisbergen, Jeb Burton, Sammy Smith, Parker Retzlaff and Taylor Gray. By the following lap, the top-29 competitors were separated by two seconds as Herbst rocketed back into the lead ahead of Ford teammates Sieg and Custer while Kligerman, Creed and Hill followed suit. 

    Five laps later, Kligerman, who led the previous lap, was leading ahead of Hill followed by Herbst, Sieg and Custer while Creed, Alfredo, van Gisbergen, Love and Jeb Burton were scored in the top 10 within the bevy of cars battling in the pack.  

    Two laps later, Sieg, who was battling for the lead, lost pace and pitted under green to address a flat right-rear tire to his No. 39 Sci Aps Ford Mustang after he made contact with the frontstretch’s outside wall earlier. The move pinned Sieg a lap down and currently out of contention to claim the third Dash 4 Cash prize while allowing Allmendinger, who was racing in the middle of the pack, to draw himself back into contention for the prize. Amid Sieg’s late-race issue, Anthony Alfredo cycled into the lead as he was trying to fend off Kligerman, Chandler Smith and a bevy of competitors towards the front and in the draft. 

    Down to the final 20 laps of the event and with a majority of the field migrating to a long single-file line towards the outside wall, Alfredo was leading ahead of Kligerman, Hill, Creed and van Gisbergen while Burton, Josh Williams, Retzlaff, Custer and David Starr were racing in the top 10. Behind, Love, Weatherman, Herbst, DiBenedetto and Patrick Emerling occupied the top-15 spots ahead of Blaine Perkins, Sammy Smith, Taylor Gray, Chandler Smith and Anderson. 

    Five laps later, Custer, who assumed the lead the previous lap, was leading ahead of teammate Herbst while Alfredo, who nearly wrecked amid contact with Creed, had drifted out of lead contention. Custer would then get stuck in the middle of a three-wide packed competition that resulted with him losing the lead and a handful of spots as Herbst assumed a brief lead before Love assumed the lead back to the frontstretch. 

    Down to the final 10 laps of the event, Love was leading both the race and a long line of competitors running towards the outside wall, with Kligerman, Hill, Herbst, Creed, Williams, van Gisbergen, Alfredo, Retzlaff and Perkins following suit in the top 10. By then, the top-19 competitors were running within two seconds of one another. 

    With five laps remaining, Love continued to lead ahead of Kligerman, Hill, Herbst, Creed and a long line of competitors within the lead-lap draft, with some including Jeb Burton, Custer and Chandler Smith starting to fan out of the line and attempt to mount a charge from the inside lane. 

    Two laps later, the front-runners started to scatter and fan out as Hill made a move underneath Kligerman through the first two turns to settle behind the leader and teammate Love, with Creed also mounting a charge from the outside lane amid the draft. Entering the frontstretch, Kligerman ran towards the outside wall to overtake Creed for position as Hill overtook teammate Love for the lead with two laps remaining.  

    Then with two laps remaining, Hill got loose exiting the backstretch after he received a tap from Kligerman within the draft that resulted with Hill spinning his No. 21 Bennett Transportation Chevrolet Camaro across the front nose of Alfredo’s No. 5 Dude Wipes Chevrolet Camaro while Weatherman, Gray, Anderson, Starr, Burton, Herbst and Emerling also wrecked in an attempt to avoid Hill’s carnage as the rest of the front-runners scattered. The incident was enough to send the event into overtime as Kligerman escaped with the lead followed by Williams, Love, Perkins, van Gisbergen and Creed. 

    The start of the first overtime attempt did not last long after Creed, who was running fourth, got bumped by Sammy Smith exiting the frontstretch that resulted with Creed running into the side of Williams and sending Williams sideways before he spun and clipped Kligerman’s No. 48 Spiked Lite Coolers Chevrolet Camaro as Kligerman hit the outside wall head-on and was taken out of contention for his first victory. The incident occurred as van Gisbergen, who restarted on the second row, fell off the pace after he ran out of fuel. Amid the carnage and fuel concerns amongst the leaders, Love escaped with the lead followed by Sammy Smith while Leland Honeyman, Hailie Deegan, Joey Gase, Caesar Bacarella, Brennan Poole and Ryan Ellis followed suit in the top eight. During the caution period, however, Smith fell off the pace after he ran out of fuel, where he then needed a wrecker to push his No. 8 Pilot Flying J Chevrolet Camaro back to his pit stall. 

    The start of the second overtime attempt generated a different outcome as Love rocketed his No. 2 WAT Chevrolet Camaro away from a side-by-side battle involving Honeyman and Deegan through the first two turns. With Ryan Ellis slipping sideways and coming to a halt towards the bottom of the track while the race remained under green flag conditions, Love was left to defend a stacked three-wide charge behind through the following two turns. 

    When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Love remained as the leader as he had Honeyman drafting him just past the start/finish line. With Love leading a scattered field through the backstretch, he then threw two blocks on Honeyman before Brennan Poole mounted a charge entering Turns 3 and 4 followed by Alfredo. Poole then drew even with Love and tried to take the lead entering the tri-oval, but his momentum stalled as Love muscled back ahead. With the field fanned out to four lanes and as Joey Gase wrecked through the tri-oval while charging to the front, Love had enough momentum, motor and gas to drive across the finish line first for his first ever checkered flag in the Xfinity circuit. 

    With the victory, Love, the reigning ARCA Menards Series champion, became the 177th competitor overall to win in the Xfinity Series and the seventh to do so at Talladega. He also became the seventh winner through the first nine events of the 2024 Xfinity schedule. 

    In addition, Love recorded the 95th Xfinity career win for Richard Childress Racing and the first for RCR’s No. 2 entry since Myatt Snider won at Homestead-Miami Speedway in February 2021. The victory was the first in eight years in the Xfinity circuit for veteran Danny Stockman Jr., who returned to RCR as a crew chief for the California rookie. 

    “Man, it’s been just a journey to get to this point,” Love said on FOX. “I got so many people to thank. Man, I wanted [this win] so bad. I had PTSD flashbacks from Atlanta and burned [the car] to the ground. It’s awesome. I love Talladega, my favorite speedway. I love the fans. My team did a phenomenal job. I was just going back and forth to if I thought I was doing a good job and then, I was making dumb decisions. Towards the end, the bottom [lane] started rolling. I don’t even remember what happened. I’d be lying if I told you I remembered what happened. Just a phenomenal car. Just ready to go celebrate with my family. A lot of people that I love very much that sacrificed a lot for me to get to this point.” 

    Behind Love, Herbst mounted a late rally to finish second while Alfredo, Leland Honeyman and Brennan Poole finished in the top five. 

    Sheldon Creed, Caesar Bacarella, Matt DiBenedetto, Jeb Burton and Custer completed the top 10 on the track. 

    Meanwhile, Ryan Sieg finished 17th and claimed the third Dash 4 Cash bonus of the 2024 season and his first overall by two positions over AJ Allmendinger, who ended up 19th. Sieg, Jesse Love, Riley Herbst and Anthony Alfredo will square off against one another for the fourth and final Dash 4 Cash bonus of the 2024 season next weekend at Dover Motor Speedway.

    There were 34 lead changes for 16 different leaders. The race featured six cautions for 28 laps. In addition, 22 of 38 starters finished on the lead lap. 

    Following the ninth event of the 2024 Xfinity Series season, Chandler Smith leads the regular-season standings by 14 points over Cole Custer, 16 over Austin Hill, 41 over Jesse Love, 79 over Justin Allgaier and 85 over Riley Herbst. 

    Results. 

    1. Jesse Love, 28 laps led, Stage 1 winner 

    2. Riley Herbst, 13 laps led 

    3. Anthony Alfredo, six laps led 

    4. Leland Honeyman 

    5. Brennan Poole 

    6. Sheldon Creed 

    7. Caesar Bacarella 

    8. Matt DiBenedetto, one lap led 

    9. Jeb Burton 

    10. Cole Custer, four laps led 

    11. Mason Massey 

    12. Hailie Deegan 

    13. Kyle Sieg 

    14. Austin Hill, 41 laps led, Stage 2 winner 

    15. Taylor Gray, one lap led 

    16. Josh Bilicki 

    17. Ryan Sieg, seven laps led 

    18. Joey Gase 

    19. AJ Allmendinger 

    20. Josh Williams 

    21. Sammy Smith, two laps led 

    22. Shane van Gisbergen, one lap led 

    23. Blaine Perkins, one lap down 

    24. David Starr, one lap down, one lap led 

    25. Chandler Smith, one lap down, three laps led 

    26. Ryan Ellis, one lap down 

    27. Kyle Weatherman – OUT, DVP 

    28. Dawson Cram, four laps down

    29. Parker Kligerman – OUT, Accident, 10 laps led 

    30. Parker Retzlaff – OUT, Ignition 

    31. Jordan Anderson – OUT, Accident, one lap led 

    32. Patrick Emerling – OUT, Accident 

    33. Brandon Jones – OUT, Accident, four laps led 

    34. Ryan Truex – OUT, Accident, one lap led 

    35. Jeremy Clements – OUT, Accident 

    36. Sam Mayer – OUT, Accident 

    37. Jeffrey Earnhardt – OUT, Engine 

    38. Justin Allgaier – OUT, Accident 

    Next on the 2024 NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule is the BetRivers 200 at Dover Motor Speedway in Dover, Delaware. The event is scheduled to occur next Saturday, April 27, and air at 1:30 p.m. ET on FS1. 

  • Austin Hill tops Xfinity Series qualifying to win the pole at Talladega

    Austin Hill tops Xfinity Series qualifying to win the pole at Talladega

    Austin Hill captured the Pole Award Friday evening at Talladega Superspeedway in the No. 21 Richard Childress Chevrolet with a qualifying lap of 181.629 mph and will lead the field to green for Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series Ag-Pro 300. It was his third consecutive pole at the 2.66-mile track and his fifth career pole in the series.

    Hill, who has two wins this year at drafting tracks, Daytona International Speedway and Atlanta Motor Speedway, explained his strategy for these types of tracks.

    “I’ve been asked this question a lot and when I was first asked it, I didn’t feel like I did anything different than others,” he said. “First and foremost, you have to have a fast car and our Richard Childress Racing Camaros are always fast when we come to a superspeedway.

    “But as I have gone back and watched races to prepare, I noticed that I make a lot of the right decisions at the right time and take all the runs that I can get. Even if those runs don’t work out early in the race, I try to learn from those and not make the same mistake twice.

    “Some sort of luck is involved, but if you can position yourself in the top four or five, you have a higher percentage of getting the job done. I don’t like to be one of the guys that runs in the back and then when it’s go time, try to drive through the field. I prefer to control the race all day if I can. Take all the runs and be aggressive.”

    His RCR teammate, rookie Jesse Love, will start beside him on the front row after posting a 181.120 mph lap. Parker Kligerman qualified third with a lap of 180.693 mph. Custer (180.169 mph) and Sammy Smith (180.054) completed the top five qualifiers.

    Ryan Truex (179.942 mph), Chandler Smith (179.861 mph), Riley Herbst (179.774 mph), Josh Williams (179.568 mph) and Sheldon Creed (178.767 mph) rounded out the top 10.

    You can tune into Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series Ag-Pro 300 with race coverage beginning at 4 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.