The NASCAR Xfinity series competed at ISM Raceway Saturday for the iK9 Service Dog 200 and this race showed who the big dog is that everyone is chasing after.
Kyle Busch in the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota just dominated the race leading four times for 116 of the 200 total laps. Early on it seemed as if Christopher Bell in his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota would be able to challenge Busch but when he ran into trouble it was clear sailing for Busch.
“Christopher (Bell) was certainly going to give me a run for my money today,” Busch stated, “I can’t say enough about our guys at Joe Gibbs Racing, obviously they build really fast Supras.”
He added, “I want to thank the fans. It’s always cool to come out with Rowdy Nation and having their support, and everyone that backs us. Congrats to all these guys who work so hard to get me where I’m at.”
Stage 1 had only one caution in it when the No. 17 of Bayley Curry hit the wall. Some of the drivers opted to pit while others stayed out. Austin Cindric took advantage of the caution staying out and winning the stage.
Stage 2 went caution free and saw Bell and Busch battle for the lead. Halfway through the stage, Bell took the top spot and the stage win setting up what would be a great battle to the finish line. However, it wasn’t meant to be today.
The final stage saw Busch leading and Bell in second when the No. 01 of Stephen Leicht appeared to have an engine let go causing a huge plume of smoke. When the smoke cleared the No. 7 of Justin Allgaier had damage from tagging the wall, but Bell’s car was heavily damaged from hitting the wall and his day ended early.
Ryan Truex had a great day in the No. 8 JR Motorsports Chevrolet bringing it home in second place.
“I guess it’s good when you lose to Kyle Busch.” Truex commented, “ Our car was just so good in the long runs. I was able to hold Tyler Reddick off and finish second. He added, “ I’m thankful to JR Motorsports for this opportunity, it felt good to be back up here.”
Tyler Reddick, Cole Custer and Austin Cindric round out the top five. Chase Briscoe, Brandon Jones, Michael Annett, John Hunter Nemechek, and Ryan Sieg finished sixth through 10, respectively.
Reddick is leading the NASCAR Xfinity Series Standings with 169 points, Bell is second with 165 points and Custer is in third with 158 points. Annett is in fourth with 147 points and Brandon Jones rounds out the top five with 147 points.
The NASCAR Xfinity Series heads next to the Auto Club Speedway on Saturday, March 16.
For the first time this season, NASCAR heads to a race track without the Gander Outdoors Truck Series. The Monster Energy Cup Series teams and the Xfinity Series teams will take the second leg of the three step West Coast swing as ISM Raceway is home to both series this weekend.
All times are Eastern.
Friday, March 8
1:35 p.m.–2:35 p.m.: Cup Series First Practice – Nascar.com/Live 3:05 p.m.–3:55 p.m.: Xfinity Series First Practice – FS1 5:05 p.m.–5:55 p.m.: Xfinity Series Final Practice – FS1 6:10 p.m.: Cup Series Qualifying (Multi-Vehicle / Three Rounds) – FS1
Saturday, March 9
11:35 a.m.–12:25 p.m.: Cup Series Second Practice – FS1 12:40 p.m.: Xfinity Series Qualifying (Multi-Vehicle / Three Rounds) 2:05 p.m.-2:55 p.m.: Cup Series Final Practice 4 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series iK9 Service Dog 200 (Stages 45/90/200 Laps = 200 Miles) TV: FS1 – Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90)
Sunday, March 10
3:30 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Ticket Guardian 500 (Stages 75/150/312 Laps = 312 Miles)
TV: FOX – Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90)
LAS VEGAS – Kyle Busch recovers from an early race issue to win the Boyd Gaming 300 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
Since winning Friday night’s NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series Strat 200, Busch will now go for the triple sweep at Vegas in Sunday’s Pennzoil 400 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race (3:30 p.m. ET on FOX, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
“It was really tough to come back from one of those setbacks,” Busch said after an eventful day in his No. 18 Extreme Concepts / iK9 Toyota. “I wasn’t sure how we were going to be able to do it down a set of tires. We got a lucky break with a caution during the second stage. That kind of got us back on cycle, and we were able to put the first set (of tires) back on with fresh wheels so we didn’t have any more issues there.”
John Hunter Nemechek tried everything he could with the late race position he had, but came up just 0.192 seconds short of victory.
“We gave him a run for his money,” Nemechek said. “I’ve been beaten by Kyle (Busch) too many times, in late model races and now in the Xfinity Series. Hopefully, we can come out on top and build momentum off of this.”
Noah Gragson was the highest finishing rookie in his No. 9 Switch Chevrolet after an aggressive three-wide pass on the final lap to finish in third. Austin Dillon helped Kaulig Racing earn their best career finish of fourth in the No. 10 Stitched Chevrolet. Daytona 500 champion Michael Annett rounded out the top five.
Ryan Sieg, Ross Chastain, Chase Briscoe, Cole Custer and Justin Haley (one lap down) completed the top 10.
Custer Sets the Pace in Stage One
Qualifying was rained out, so the field was set by the order of owners’ points. Stephen Leicht and Christopher Bell started at the rear of the field for unapproved adjustments to their cars prior to the start of the race. Cole Custer started on the front row and led the opening eight laps. Austin Cindric, for a brief moment was out front on Lap 9, but Custer reclaimed the top spot for the rest of the first stage.
On Lap 3, Donald Theetge spun through Turn 3 and slowly drifted up the track, collecting Joey Gase. A few drivers did elect to come down pit road, but all the leaders stayed out.
Tyler Reddick leads Brandon Jones and John Hunter Nemechek on the front stretch at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Photo by Rachel Schuoler for Speedway Media.
After 15 laps into the race, Kyle Busch, who was working on his triple sweep at Vegas, came down pit road after feeling a vibration. He went a lap down early, and faced an uphill battle early in the race as a few others were already a lap down. This also put him at a disadvantage as he was down a fresh set of tires. Tyler Reddick radioed in saying that something might be breaking, and had trouble getting onto pit road as he was stuck in the outside lane. However, he stayed out on track to keep the lead lap position.
The rest of the stage finished under green with Custer collecting the stage points. At this point, four cars retired from the race and one had not yet joined the race. During pit stops, Custer lost three spots while Tyler Reddick gained the lead leaving pit road. Three penalties were handed out during this pit cycle. Jeff Green’s crew members were over the wall too soon, and both Timmy Hill and Josh Williams had uncontrolled tire issues.
Stage Two Dominated by Dirt Racers
As the field restarted the race, Tyler Reddick wasted no time and pulled away from the field to lead all the laps in the second stage. Christopher Bell had also worked his way up toward the front after starting at the rear of the field to finish in second at stage end, as the two dirt racers put on a great show racing together.
The one notable event that was a major turning point was on Lap 60 when the yellow was displayed after Austin Cindric and Zane Smith collided on the exit of Turn 2. Cindric went for a long slide, and barely made contact with the outside wall, if any. Both were able to continue the race, but this allowed Kyle Busch to put on the scuff set of tires from the first stage, putting him on the same tire strategy as the rest of the field. He was still a lap down, but it put him in much better position for either a lucky dog or a wave around.
Two drivers received penalties during pit stops. Ryan Sieg was caught speeding on pit road, and Vinnie Miller had a crew member over the wall too soon.
Kyle Busch Surges Back to the Front in the Final Stage
Most of the third stage was uneventful, aside from Busch charging through the field toward the front. He first claimed the lead from Tyler Reddick on Lap 112, and kept the top spot until 20 laps remaining.
Bell and Reddick worked together to reel in Busch, and Bell eventually was able to get by Busch. He led for a lap, but brushed the wall in Turns 3 and 4, giving the lead back to Busch. Bell and Reddick also collided a few times, allowing Busch to pull a gap. On Lap 190, Ja Junior Avila spun off Turn 4 into the infield grass to bring out the caution flag. All drivers had one set of fresh tires, and elected to come to pit road with only six drivers on the lead lap. Before the yellow flag, Busch, Jones and Reddick had over a 20 second lead on the fourth place driver. The top three positions stayed the same after pit stops, but Brandon Jones gained two spots to start in the fourth position.
On the restart, Bell and Reddick attempted to work together to get by Busch who didn’t have quite the perfectly handling car at this point in the race. Bell had briefly stepped out in front before, and Reddick was attempting to do the same.
Before the leaders could take the white flag, Cole Custer had a run on Brandon Jones out of Turn 2. Jones attempted to block, and the two made contact on the back stretch. Jones over-corrected and turned hard into the outside wall. His window net went down and he was able to walk away uninjured, and was evaluated and released from the infield care center shortly after.
Most of the leaders crashed during the first overtime attempt on the exit of Turn 4. Photo by Rachel Schuoler for Speedway Media.
The first overtime attempt had many unknowns, including who would push who and if there would be a four-wide pass going into the first turn. Many of the other drivers had better handling cars, as more started to charge for the win. Going into Turn 3, Reddick lost control of his car as he was to the inside of Busch. As he slid up the track, he collided into Bell and the two went spinning on the exit of Turn 4. Both Austin Cindric and Zane Smith crashed into the sides of both cars heavily, ending the day for all four drivers. The yellow flag was displayed before Busch could take the white flag.
Kyle Busch chose the outside lane on all the final restarts, including the one for the last overtime attempt. John Hunter Nemechek stayed to Busch’s inside until Turn 4 when Busch could clear his car. Noah Gragson made a 3-wide pass in Turns 1 and 2 to recover from an early ill-handling race car, but Busch had too much of a lead for anyone to get a run on him. This was Busch’s second career NASCAR Xfinity win at Vegas, and made him one win away from completing the triple sweep.
The NASCAR Xfinity Series competes next at ISM Raceway in Phoenix, Arizona on March 9.
Race Results for the 23rd Annual Boyd Gaming 300 – Saturday, March 2, 2019, at Las Vegas Motor Speedway
NASCAR heads to Las Vegas Motor Speedway for another triple-header weekend as the Monster Energy Cup Series, Xfinity Series and the Gander Outdoors Truck Series hit the track for the third race of the 2019 season.
All times are Eastern.
Thursday, February 28 5:05 p.m.- 5:55 p.m. Truck Series First Practice- Not televised 7:05 p.m.- 7:55 p.m. Truck Series Final Practice – Not televised
Friday, March 1 3:05 PM – 3:55 PM Cup Series First Practice – FS1 4:05 PM – 4:55 PM Xfinity Series First Practice – FS1 5:10 p.m.: Truck Series Qualifying (Single Vehicle / Two Rounds) – FS1 6:35 p.m. – 7:25 p.m.: Xfinity Series Final Practice – FS1 7:40 p.m.: Cup Series Qualifying (Multi-Vehicle / Three Rounds) – FS1 9 p.m.: NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series Strat 200 (Stages 30/60/134 Laps = 201 Miles) TV: FS1 – Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90) Saturday, March 211:30 a.m. – 12:25 p.m.: Cup Series Second Practice 2:40 p.m.: Xfinity Series Qualifying (Multi-Vehicle / Three Rounds) 2:30 p.m. – 3:20 p.m.: Cup Series Final Practice 4 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series Boyd Gaming 300 (Stages 45/90/200 Laps = 300 Miles) TV: FS1 – Radio: PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90)
Sunday, March 3 3:30 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Pennzoil 400 presented by Jiffy Lube (Stages 80/160/267 Laps = 400.5 Miles) TV: FOX – Radio: PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90)
Follow @angiecampbell_ for the latest NASCAR news and feature stories.
It was a misty afternoon as the NASCAR Xfinity Series took to the track for the Rinnai 250 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, but for Christopher Bell, it was all smiles.
Bell in his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Supra dominated the race. Bell won all three stages and led the most laps leading 142 out of 163. A late caution bunched the field up as the green flag flew with three laps to go and drivers trying to get the top spot, but Bell was just too strong today.
“Man, I’m very thankful and very fortunate to drive this Rheem Supra,” Bell said, “It’s the first Supra in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, that means a lot to me to be able to become their first driver to win this.” Bell then added, “The Supra is awesome, it looks great and it’s fast too. It’s a lot of fun and I’m just honored to be here.”
Stage 1 and Stage 2 both ran caution free, with Bell sweeping both stages. Cole Custer who started on the pole in his No. 00 Jacob Companies Ford Mustang came up just a little short but still had a great run.
The final stage of the race saw Brandon Jones get the jump off pit road in first place, however, a speeding penalty sent him to the rear of the field giving Tyler Reddick the top spot. It took Bell about 11 laps to retake the lead and it was game over. A late caution for the spinning car of John Hunter Nemechek saw the field bunch up for a late-race shootout but it wouldn’t deter Bell who took the checkered flag in first place. Custer would end up in the runner up spot.
“That was a fun race. I thought the end was pretty good. I thought I might get it for a second. We just didn’t have enough there and Bell kind of took my line there in the last lap. It is a great start to the year in our first race with the Jacob Companies Mustang. We got a new crew chief and it was huge for us to start the year strong. I feel like we will be a threat all year,” commented Custer after the race.
Justin Allgaier in his No.7 JR Motorsports Chevy also had a good run today finishing in third.
“Hats off to the guys at JR Motorsports. We had great pit stops all day. We were able to charge our way back through there and at the end, I thought we had the ticket.” Allgaier stated. “I was going to go to the middle on the last restart. I thought I could get that momentum but unfortunately, I let Cole (Custer) get by me. Still all in all a great day and a great start to the season.”
Jones and Reddick would round out the top five. Jeffrey Earnhardt, in his No. 18 Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing, is having his best season ever coming home in his career best finish with sixth place. He continues to become a fan favorite in the series.
Ryan Preece, Justin Haley, Noah Gragson, and Austin Cindric finished seventh through 10th, respectively.
Bell leads the Xfinity Series standings with 99 points, Jones is in second with 95 points, in third is Allgaier with 81 points, fourth is Reddick with 76 points and Custer rounds out the top 10, also with 76 points.
The Xfinity Series heads next to Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Saturday, March 2.
NASCAR heads to Atlanta Motor
Speedway for a triple-header weekend as the Monster Energy Cup Series, Xfinity
Series and the Gander Outdoors Truck Series hit the track for the second race
of the 2019 season.
Friday, February 22 11:35 a.m. – 12:55 p.m.: Cup Series first practice – Live on NASCAR.com/live 1:05 p.m. – 1:55 p.m.: Xfinity Series first practice – Live on NASCAR.com/live 2:05 p.m. – 2:55 p.m.: Truck Series first Practice – Live on NASCAR.com/live 3:05 p.m. – 3:55 p.m.: Xfinity Series Final Practice – FS1 4:05 p.m. – 4:50 p.m.: Truck Series Final Practice – FS1 5:10 p.m.: Cup Series Qualifying (Multi-Vehicle / Three Rounds) – FS1/PRN
Saturday, February 23 9:35 a.m.: Xfinity Series Qualifying (Multi-Vehicle / Three Rounds) – FS1 10:40 a.m.: Truck Series Qualifying (Single Vehicle / Two Rounds) – FS1 12:00 p.m. – 1:20 p.m.: Cup Series Final Practice – FS1 2 p.m.: Xfinity Series Rinnai 250 (Stages 40/80/163 Laps = 251.02 miles ) – FS1/PRN 4:30 p.m.: Truck Series Ultimate Tailgating 200 (Stages 40/80/130 Laps = 200.02 miles ) – FS1/MRN
Sunday, February 24 2:00 p.m.: Cup Series Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 (Stages 85/170/325 Laps = 500.5 miles) – FOX/PRN
Aric Almirola will lead the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series field as they take the green flag at 2:16 p.m. ET Sunday, Feb. 24 for The Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500. Television live coverage will begin at 2 p.m. ET on FOX.
Follow @angiecampbell_ for the latest NASCAR news and feature stories.
Starting Lineup for the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500
Starting
Driver
Number
No. 1
Aric Almirola
10
No. 2
Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
17
No. 3
Clint Bowyer
14
No. 4
Denny Hamlin
11
No. 5
Daniel Suarez
41
No. 6
Kyle Busch
18
No. 7
Kyle Larson
42
No. 8
Kurt Busch
1
No. 9
Martin Truex Jr.
19
No. 10
Austin Dillon
3
No. 11
Jimmie Johnson
48
No. 12
Michael McDowell
34
No. 13
Ryan Newman
9
No. 14
Paul Menard
21
No. 15
Erik Jones
20
No. 16
Alex Bowman
88
No. 17
William Byron
24
No. 18
Kevin Harvick
4
No. 19
Brad Keselowski
2
No. 20
Matt DiBenedetto
95
No. 21
Ty Dillon
13
No. 22
Chase Elliott
9
No. 23
David Ragan
38
No. 24
Corey Lajoie
32
No. 25
Ryan Preece
47
No. 26
Ryan Blaney
12
No. 27
Joey Logano
22
No. 28
Daniel Hemric
8
No. 29
Bubba Wallace
43
No. 30
Chris Buescher
37
No. 31
Matt Tifft
31
No. 32
Ross Chastain
15
No. 33
Landon Cassill
00
No. 34
Parker Kligerman
96
No. 35
Garrett Smithley
77
No. 36
Cody Ware
51
No. 37
BJ McLeod
52
Follow @angiecampbell_ for the latest NASCAR news and feature stories.
That is how many starts it took Michael Annett to finally find victory lane.
Annett kicked off the new season by earning his first career victory at Saturday’s NASCAR Racing Experience 300 at the sport’s most historic track, Daytona International Speedway.
Annett held off his JR Motorsports teammate Justin Allgaier on the final lap to get the checkered flag.
“This is amazing. My first words were ‘Eight years’ – it’s been eight years in this series,” Annett said in Victory Lane. “I can’t do it without these guys. They stuck with me when everybody would count us out. Some people wonder why I get to drive this car, and I think we showed it today.
“Our slogan this year is ‘One team, one dream, one goal’ and this was one of them. So, we’re starting off good.
“I was waiting for a second line to get formed. I know they tried, but it just wasn’t there,” he said. “When it hadn’t formed with about three (laps) to go, I knew they weren’t going to have enough steam to get us.
“I was just worried about my teammate. I knew he was going to push hard and I knew he was going to go for it. I just had to keep him in my mirror and keep the gap right.”
Brandon Jones came home third, Ryan Sieg was fourth, and Austin Cindric rounded out the top-five.
Completing the Top 10 were Christopher Bell (his best finish in a season opener out of his four full-time NASCAR seasons thus far), Jeff Green, John Hunter Nemechek, defending series champion Tyler Reddick, and Chase Elliott.
On Lap 71 of the scheduled 120-lap distance, NASCAR threw a caution after one of the roof flaps from Brad Keselowski’s No. 12 Ford flew off his car and landed in the infield grass. Keselowski took his car to the garage and was done for the day.
“I felt like I was back in the ’50s running a convertible here on the beach. That was interesting,” Keselowski said. “The roof, escape hatch, whatever it is called, looks like there was a defect from the factory on the body and just nothing we could do.
“The guys tried to fix it, but it is in a spot where you can’t get to it and work on it. It is made the way it is made. We are stuck.”
Michael Annett assumed the race lead on Lap 76 when the race got back underway. However, it did not stay green for very long. Just four laps later, Ray Black Jr. lost control on the backstretch and spun into the grass to bring out the yellow.
With 30 laps left in the race, Annett remained at the point followed by Allgaier, Jones, Sieg, and Cindric right behind him.
Michael Annett, who missed the playoffs a year ago, stretched the Speedweeks streak of first-time winners to three with a victory. Austin Hill won on Friday to pick up his first career Truck victory, while Harrison Burton scored a win in the ARCA Series season opener in his first career race at Daytona.
JR Motorsports has won this race four out of the last five years.
Xfinity Series Race Unofficial Race Results for the 38th Annual NASCAR Racing Experience 300 at Daytona – Saturday, February 16, 2019 Daytona International Speedway – Daytona Beach, FL – 2.5 – Mile Paved Total Race Length – 120 Laps – 300. Miles
Fin
Str
Vehicle
Driver
Team
Laps
Stage1Pos
Stage2Pos
Pts
Status
1
3
1
Michael Annett
Pilot Flying J/American Heart Assoc Chevrolet
120
0
9
42
Running
2
15
7
Justin Allgaier
BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet
120
0
7
39
Running
3
16
19
Brandon Jones
Juniper Toyota
120
5
2
49
Running
4
8
39
Ryan Sieg
Larry’s Hard Lemonade Chevrolet
120
7
0
37
Running
5
13
22
Austin Cindric
MoneyLion Ford
120
10
3
41
Running
6
11
20
Christopher Bell
Rheem Toyota
120
8
6
39
Running
7
21
93
Jeff Green
Nightowl Contractors Inc Chevrolet
120
0
0
30
Running
8
14
23
John Hunter Nemechek #
Fire Alarm Services INC Chevrolet
120
3
0
37
Running
9
1
2
Tyler Reddick
Pinnacle Financial Partners Chevrolet
120
9
8
33
Running
10
7
8
Chase Elliott(i)
Aftershokz Chevrolet
120
0
4
0
Running
11
18
9
Noah Gragson #
Switch Chevrolet
120
6
0
31
Running
12
10
98
Chase Briscoe #
Nutri Chomps/Chewy.com Ford
120
0
0
25
Running
13
6
10
Ross Chastain
Nutrien Ag Solutions Chevrolet
120
2
1
43
Running
14
38
0
Cole Custer
Jacob Companies Ford
120
0
0
23
Running
15
2
18
Jeffrey Earnhardt
iK9 Toyota
120
4
5
35
Running
16
30
35
Joey Gase
Medic Air Systems Inc/AGRI Supply Toyota
120
0
0
21
Running
17
4
11
Justin Haley #
LeafFilter Gutter Protection Chevrolet
120
1
10
31
Running
18
28
86
Brandon Brown #
Brandonbilt Motorsports Chevrolet
120
0
0
19
Running
19
22
66
Timmy Hill
VSI Racing/Overkill Motorsports Toyota
120
0
0
18
Running
20
32
52
David Starr
Whataburger Chevrolet
120
0
0
17
Running
21
17
4
Scott Lagasse Jr
Rimrock Devlin Chevrolet
120
0
0
16
Running
22
24
36
Josh Williams
JoeFroyo/All Sports Coffee Chevrolet
120
0
0
15
Running
23
20
38
Josh Bilicki
DR Squatch Soap Chevrolet
120
0
0
14
Running
24
26
0
Garrett Smithley
Flex Tape Chevrolet
120
0
0
13
Running
25
29
78
Vinnie Miller
JAS Expedited Trucking LLC/Koolbox Toyota
120
0
0
12
Running
26
31
5
Matt Mills
J.F. Electric Toyota
120
0
0
11
Running
27
35
15
BJ McLeod
BTX Global Logistics/Run the Race Chevrolet
120
0
0
10
Running
28
34
13
Max Tullman
Zoomi Toyota
120
0
0
9
Running
29
12
90
Caesar Bacarella
Alpha Prine/MAXIM Chevrolet
119
0
0
8
Running
30
33
7
Ray Black II
ISOKERN Fireplaces & Chimneys Chevrolet
119
0
0
7
Running
31
19
17
Chris Cockrum
ADVANCED COMMS GROUP Chevrolet
118
0
0
6
Running
32
37
42
John Jackson
James Carter Attorney at Law Toyota
118
0
0
5
Running
33
27
99
DJ Kennington
LORDCO Auto Parts Toyota
113
0
0
4
Running
34
5
8
Gray Gaulding
GGPURE.com Chevrolet
110
0
0
3
Running
35
36
74
Mike Harmon
AIR One Heating and Cooling Chevrolet
108
0
0
2
Running
36
25
51
Jeremy Clements
RepairableVehicles.com Chevrolet
90
0
0
1
Engine
37
9
12
Brad Keselowski(i)
Fitzgerald USA Ford
71
0
0
0
Roof Hatch
38
23
1
Stephen Leicht
OPAV Experience It Chevrolet
24
0
0
1
Overheating
NASCAR Xfinity Series Unofficial Driver Points After the Daytona International Speedway 38th Annual NASCAR Racing Experience 300 at Daytona
The
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, the NASCAR Xfinity Series and the NASCAR
Gander Outdoors Truck Series head to Daytona International Speedway this
weekend to kick off the 2019 season.
Please
check below for the complete weekend schedule.
All
times are Eastern.
Thursday, Feb.
14
2:35 p.m.: Truck
Series first practice – FS2
4:35 p.m.: Truck
Series final practice – FS2
7 p.m.: Cup Series Duel
1 (60 laps, 150 miles) – FS1
9
p.m.: Cup Series Duel 2 (60 laps, 150 miles) – FS1
Friday, Feb. 15
12:05 p.m.: Xfinity
Series first practice – FS1
1:05 p.m.: Cup Series third practice – FS1
2:05 p.m.: Xfinity Series final practice –
FS1
3:05 p.m.: Cup Series fourth practice – FS1
4:40 p.m.: Truck Series qualifying – FS1
7:30 p.m. Truck Series NextEra Energy 250 race
(100 laps, 250 miles) – FS1
HOMESTEAD, Fla – Tyler Reddick won Saturday’s Homestead 300 and also captured his first NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship in the series season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. This was Reddick’s second win of the season and gave JR Motorsports its third championship title.
“It’s something I knew was possible all year long and, you know not everyone in the garage probably believed it, our team believed it and that’s all you need. We winning the first race of the year was a huge sigh of relief, no matter what may or horrible things could happen, we were locked into the playoffs, but at the same time I think that looking back, obviously going into the playoffs we look back and see I was too aggressive and tore up a bunch of good race cars,” Reddick said.
Cole Custer, John Hunter Nemechek, Daniel Hemric and Austin Cindric rounded out the top 5.
Custer led the field to the green. Going into the race Custer had led every lap since lap since lap 62 of the 2017 edition of the race.
For Stage 1 on Saturday race, it looked like he did not want to give up the lead. After leading all the laps in Stage 1 he easily won it. Christopher Bell who started second, spun his tires at the start of the stage and finished sixth.
As for the other playoff divers, Hemric finished second and Reddick got third.
Stage 2 felt like a repeat of Stage 1. Custer continued leading laps. He was able to lead every lap in Stage 2 and take the stage win. Bell finished third, Hemric got forth and Reddick finished eight.
Up to that point in the race, there was not a caution out yet for incident on the race track. The first two stages of the race was clean and dominated by Custer.
The pit stops during the stage caution changed the race. Custer lost the lead to Nemechek on pit road and was forced to restart third. Custer was able to take second place shortly after the restart as he headed towards Nemechek.
Stage 3 had the Championship 4 listed from second to fifth and being blocked from the race lead by Nemechek. Reddick ran up against the wall and was one of the fastest cars during the stage.
Reddick hit the wall a few times while he was up top but there was a feel that the contact made him faster. He was able to take the third position from Bell with under 75 laps left in the race.
Bell mentioned on the radio that he felt like was losing the race when he got passed by Reddick. The race ran green towards the next cycle of pit stops so it was crucial for Bell to have started making moves toward the front before that.
Green flag pits arrived with under 60 laps and all Championship 4 drivers pitted around the same laps except for one. Custer who was running second at the time stayed out for many laps after the other championship contenders pitted.
Many people critiqued Custer for waiting so long to pit. He lost a lot of track position for waiting so many laps to pit. Reddick took the lead after the pit cycle.
“I don’t know if the call we made was, you know I would of rethought things but you know we don’t want to be caught a lap down, you don’t want, there a lot of risk involved in pitting early, I mean it is what it is,” Custer said.
Bell took the lead on lap 154 from Reddick. The battle for the championship started to heat up during the last quarter of the race. It looked like Bell’s car improved after his past complaints about it earlier in the race.
Reddick retook the lead with less than 40 laps in the race as a battle with Bell really got hot. He was on his bumper for a few laps when he was able to sneak over him and take the lead.
This gave Custer an advantage after he took the third position from Nemechek and he was able to get up and close to the battle between Bell and Reddick.
Reddick was able to extend the distance of his lead thanks to him running on the top lane. There was still no caution out for incident with under 20 laps in the race. Reddick was cruising fast in the top lane.
Reddick was able to extend his lead and take the victory. This ended the season for the Xfinity Series as they now look forward to a few months off before heading to Daytona in February.
NASCAR Xfinity Series Race Unofficial Race Results for the 24Th Annual Ford Ecoboost 300 – Saturday, November 17, 2018 Homestead-Miami Speedway – Homestead, FL – 1.5 Mile Paved
The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series and Camping World Truck Series will all be winding up at Homestead-Miami with the Championship 4 races in each series. Check out the full schedule for Ford Championship weekend below, which is subject to change.
Note: All times are ET
FRIDAY, November 16
8:35-9:25 a.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series first practice, No TV (Follow live)
10:05-10:55 a.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series final practice, No TV (Follow live)
1-2:20 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series first practice, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN1) (Follow live)
2:35-3:25 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series first practice, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN App) (Follow live)
3:45 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series qualifying, FS1 (Follow live)
5:05-5:55 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series final practice, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN App) (Follow live)
6:10 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Busch Pole Qualifying, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN App) (Follow live)
8 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Ford EcoBoost 200, FS1 (134 laps, 201 miles) (Follow live)
PRESS PASS (Watch live)
11 a.m.: Championship 4 Team Owner Media Availability: Walt Czarnecki (Team Penske), Joe Garone (Furniture Row Racing), Joe Gibbs (Joe Gibbs Racing) and Tony Stewart (Stewart-Haas Racing)
3:45 p.m.: Elliott Sadler
7:15 p.m.: Championship 4 Post-Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Qualifying
9:45 p.m.: Post-NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race
SATURDAY, November 17 11:35-12:25 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series second practice, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN4) (Follow live)
12:35 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series qualifying, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN App) (Follow live)
2-2:50 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series final practice, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN1, 4) (Follow live)
3:30 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series Ford EcoBoost 300, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (200 laps, 300 miles) (Canada: TSN1, 4) (Follow live)
PRESS PASS (Watch live) 11 a.m.: Manufacturers Media Availability: Jim Campbell (Chevrolet), Mark Rushbrook (Ford) and Ed Laukes (Toyota)
6 p.m.: Post-NASCAR Xfinity Series race
SUNDAY, November 18
3 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Ford EcoBoost 400, NBC/NBC Sports App (267 laps, 400.5 miles) (Canada: TSN3) (Follow live)
PRESS PASS (Watch live) 11 a.m.: NASCAR President Steve Phelps
5:45 p.m.: Post-Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race
