JR Motorsports (JRM) took to social media to reveal its crew chief lineup for the 2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series season which features the return of four familiar names and one new name calling the shots atop their respective numbered pit boxes and paired drivers.
Beginning next season, Cory Shea will be serving as an Xfinity crew chief for JRM’s No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro entry which will be fielded as the “all-star” entry. Shea makes his move atop the pit box as a crew chief after recently serving as a car chief for veteran Justin Allgaier and the No. 7 JRM team that achieved the 2024 Xfinity Series championship. Thus far, Ross Chastain and Shane van Gisbergen, both of whom compete in the Cup Series for Trackhouse Racing, have been confirmed to pilot the No. 9 “all-star” entry for select events (nine total combined).
Speaking of JRM’s No. 7 team, Jim Pohlman, the reigning Xfinity championship-winning crew chief, will remain both atop the pit box of the No. 7 Chevrolet team and paired up with Allgaier as both strive to defend their title for the 2025 season. Pohlman first joined JRM as an Xfinity crew chief in 2023, where he navigated Allgaier and the No. 7 team to four victories and a runner-up result in the final standings. This past season, the duo captured two regular-season victories, made the Championship 4 round and outdueled the competition during the finale at Phoenix Raceway to win the title, which marked Allgaier’s first in the series after 14 previous attempts and during his seventh appearance as a Championship 4 contender.
Currently, Pohlman, who first served as a crew chief for Sheldon Creed at Richard Childress Racing for four Xfinity events in 2022, has achieved six victories, three poles, 25 top-five results and 41 top-10 results as a crew chief in the series.
Like Pohlman, Phillip Bell will be returning as a crew chief for JRM’s No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro team which will be piloted by Sammy Smith, the latter of whom returns for a second consecutive driving campaign at JRM in 2025. Bell, who embarked in his first season as a NASCAR crew chief last year, initially spent the first 23 scheduled events working atop the pit box of JRM’s No. 9 team and driver Brandon Jones. Then starting at Atlanta Motor Speedway in September, he shifted to JRM’s No. 8 team and was paired with Sammy Smith for the final 10 scheduled events. During the span, Bell notched his first victory as a crew chief after Smith won at Talladega Superspeedway in October, which enabled the duo to transfer to the Playoff’s Round of 8 and settle in 11th place in the final driver’s standings.
Through his first full-time season as an Xfinity crew chief (33 races total), Bell notched one victory, two poles, three top-five results and nine top-10 results as he prepares to lead the No. 8 JRM Chevrolet team and Smith on a full-time basis in 2025.
Meanwhile, Andrew Overstreet will be paired up with incoming Xfinity rookie Carson Kvapil, the latter of whom will be driving the No. 1 JRM Chevrolet entry for his first full-time campaign in the division amid a successful campaign in late model competition. Previously, Kvapil achieved the 2021 CARS Super Late Model Tour title and back-to-back CARS Late Model Stock Tour titles between 2022 and 2023. This past season, Kvapil also won the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 and the Icebreaker 125.
Overstreet, who first served as an Xfinity crew chief for driver Sam Mayer for three events in 2022, was a crew chief for JRM’s No. 88 “all-star” Chevrolet team that appeared in a total of 17 events in 2024. At Watkins Glen International this past August, Overstreet achieved his first Xfinity career victory as a crew chief after he navigated Zilisch to his first career victory in his series’ debut from pole position. In addition to Zilisch, Overstreet spent the 2024 season working with Kvapil, team owner Dale Earnhardt Jr., Connor Mosack and Bubba Pollard with the No. 88 team. He also served as a crew chief for JRM’s No. 1 team and Mayer for a single event this past season.
Through 21 appearances as an Xfinity crew chief, Overstreet has achieved one victory, two poles, 10 top-five results and 14 top-10 results as he strives to lead Kvapil to both his first victory and Playoff berth.
Like teammate Overstreet, Mardy Lindley will be paired with another incoming Xfinity rookie, that being Connor Zilisch as he will be piloting the No. 88 JRM Chevrolet for his first full-time campaign in the series. Lindley became an Xfinity crew chief for JRM for the first time in 2023 after spending the previous two seasons as a Craftsman Truck Series crew chief at Kyle Busch Motorsports. Paired with Sam Mayer and the No. 1 team, Lindley led both the driver and team to four victories and a Championship 4 berth, where they settled in third place in the final standings. This past season, Lindley and Mayer notched three victories and ended up in ninth place in the final standings after both fell short of reaching the Championship 4 round for a second consecutive season.
Through 62 appearances as an Xfinity crew chief, Lindley has achieved seven victories, one pole, 19 top-five results and 30 top-10 results as he strives to navigate Zilisch to additional victories and his first Playoff berth in 2025.
The 2025 season is scheduled to mark JR Motorsports’ 20th consecutive season as a full-time team in the Xfinity Series division. Since its inception, the organization has accumulated a total of 88 victories and four championships. The organization has also notched a combined 35 poles, 534 top-five results, 1,045 top-10 results and 14,308 laps led through a 19-year span as they strive for more on-track success for the upcoming racing season.
With the crew chief lineup set, JR Motorsports’ 2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series season is scheduled to commence at Daytona International Speedway on February 15. The event’s broadcast time is slated to commence at 5 p.m. ET on the CW Network.
Carson Kvapil has received the call to be named a full-time NASCAR Xfinity Series competitor for JR Motorsports in 2025.
Kvapil, a 21-year-old, second-generation racer from Mooresville, North Carolina, is set to pilot the No. 1 Chevrolet entry, which is currently being driven by Sam Mayer who will join the newly formed Haas Factory Team next season. The entry will be sponsored by Bass Pro Shops as Kvapil will commence his first full-time campaign in the Xfinity circuit at Daytona International Speedway on February 15, 2025.
The news comes as Kvapil, the reigning two-time CARS Late Model Stock Tour champion who was also crowned the 2021 CARS Super Late Model Tour and 2020 Carolina Pro Late Model Series titles, is coming off a thrilling victory in the prestigious ValleyStar Credit Union 300 at Martinsville Speedway this past weekend.
This season, Kvapil, who joined JR Motorsports to compete in Late Models in 2022, made his first eight career starts in the Xfinity Series while piloting JR Motorsports’ No. 88 “all-star” Chevrolet entry. After finishing an impressive fourth place in his Xfinity debut at Martinsville in early April, he notched a career-best runner-up result in his second start at Dover Motor Speedway in late April after being overtaken for both the lead and eventual victory during a second of two overtime attempts.
Since his first two Xfinity career starts, Kvapil has racked up an additional top-five run by finishing fifth at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in June before he finished 10th at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in July. With his current average-finishing result being 11.5, he also led 63 laps during the span. Kvapil is scheduled to make his ninth and final Xfinity Series start of the 2024 season this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway.
With his plans for the 2025 season set, Kvapil is set to compete alongside teammates Justin Allgaier, Sammy Smith and newcomer Connor Zilisch, all of whom will occupy JR Motorsports’ four full-time stables next season. His crew chief for the 2025 Xfinity season ane additional partnerships for his entry have yet to be determined.
Carson Kvapil’s final Xfinity Series start of the 2024 season at Talladega is set to occur this Saturday, October 5, with a 4 p.m. ET broadcast start time on the CW Network.
After 12 previous attempts, Justin Allgaier made his 13th attempt of winning at Michigan International Speedway pay off to perfection as he utilized pit strategy to withstand an overtime shootout and win the rain-delayed Cabo Wabo 250 on Saturday, August 17.
The 38-year-old Allgaier from Riverton, Illinois, led three times for a race-high 37 of 128 over-scheduled laps in an event where he qualified in 16th place, but managed to methodically carve his way to the front as he nearly won the first stage period on Lap 30 before settling in fourth place amid the draft. Then through a flurry of pit strategies, on-track chaos and a fight against time with Mother Nature, Allgaier, who pitted several laps later than most of his front-runners including teammate Carson Kvapil, Sheldon Creed and John Hunter Nemechek cycled his way into the lead for the third and final time with 16 laps remaining.
Despite having his progress to the victory halted as the caution flag flew with 10 laps remaining due to a late incident involving Kyle Weatherman and having to wait on pit road for more than 23 minutes due to a second red flag period for inclement weather, Allgaier managed to muscle ahead of teammate Sammy Smith at the start of an overtime shootout. He then proceeded to drive away from Creed, Nemechek and the field before claiming the checkered flag and the victory under caution amid a harrowing multi-car wreck on the final lap that resulted in Kyle Sieg going airborne, flipping and sliding on his roof through the backstretch’s infield.
With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Friday, August 16, Sheldon Creed notched his second Xfinity pole position of 2024 and the third of his career with a pole-winning lap at 171.645 mph in 41.947 seconds. Joining him on the front row was Riley Herbst, who clocked in the second-fastest qualifying lap at 171.233 mph in 42.048 seconds.
Prior to the event, Ryan Ellis and Joey Gase 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, Sheldon Creed and Riley Herbst dueled for the lead in front of Taylor Gray, Cole Custer and the rest of the field through the first two turns. Then as the field fanned out through the backstretch amid the draft, this being due to the field running superspeedway restricted engines with intermediate aerodynamics, Gray attempted to execute a three-wide pass on Creed and Herbst for the lead, but Creed managed to muscle his No. 18 Friends of Jaclyn Foundation Toyota Supra ahead from the outside lane through Turns 3 and 4 as he just managed to lead the first lap.
Over the next four laps, Creed retained a narrow advantage over Herbst as Custer, Brandon Jones and Ryan Sieg followed suit in the top five. Behind, Carson Kvapil occupied sixth place in front of Noah Gragson, Sammy Smith and Justin Allgaier while Gray, who dropped back as far as 11th in the opening laps due to losing the draft from the leaders, was fending off teammate Chandler Smith for 10th place. With the majority of the front-runners running in a single file line towards the outside wall, Creed continued to lead by a tenth of a second over Herbst.
Through the first 10 scheduled laps, Creed stabilized his advantage to a tenth of a second over Herbst followed by Custer, Jones and Ryan Sieg as Kvapil, Sammy Smith, Gray, Noah Gragson and Chandler Smith were racing in the top 10. Behind, Justin Allgaier occupied 11th place ahead of John Hunter Nemechek, rookie Jesse Love, Parker Kligerman and Austin Hill while AJ Allmendinger, Daniel Dye, Anthony Alfredo, Jeb Burton and Parker Retzlaff occupied the top 20 ahead of Sam Mayer, Kyle Weatherman, Lawless Alan, rookie Shane van Gisbergen and Kyle Sieg.
Three laps later, the event’s first caution period flew when Gray, who was battling Sammy Smith for seventh place, got loose underneath Smith and slid his No. 19 Operations 300 Toyota Supra sideways towards the apron between Turns 1 and 2 before he steered and looped his car in a 360 spin below the track as he then proceeded without sustaining any significant damage.
During the event’s first caution period and with early pit strategy amid weather concerns commencing, some led by Carson Kvapil and including Jesse Love, Austin Hill, AJ Allmendinger, Sam Mayer, Daniel Dye, Noah Gragson, Shane van Gisbergen, Jeffrey Earnhardt, Jeremy Clements, Jeb Burton and Gray pitted while the rest led by Creed and including top-five contenders Herbst, Custer, Jones and Ryan Sieg remained on the track.
When the race restarted under green on Lap 18, Creed muscled ahead from the outside lane as he retained the lead through the first two turns while the rest of the field behind fanned out to multiple lanes. In the midst of the three-wide battle, Sammy Smith fell off the pace due to sustaining a flat right-rear tire to his No. 8 Allstate Peterbilt Group Chevrolet Camaro through the first two turns and the backstretch. With the race remaining under green flag conditions as Smith limped his car to pit road without damaging it and eventually lost a lap due to pitting, Creed retained the lead by a tenth of a second over Herbst by the Lap 20 mark as Jones, Chandler Smith and Allgaier followed suit in the top five.
Then on Lap 23, the caution flew when the leader Creed got aero loose off the front nose of Herbst’s No. 98 Monster Energy Ford Mustang, slipped sideways and spun towards the outside wall in Turn 4, where he then proceeded to straighten his car and drive through pit road. With Creed spinning and plummeting below the leaderboard, Herbst inherited the lead as Jones, Chandler Smith, Allgaier, Parker Kligerman and Ryan Sieg followed suit in the top six.
During the caution period, select names including Custer, Nemechek, Parker Retzlaff, Sam Mayer, Brennan Poole, Leland Honeyman, Jeremy Clements, Blaine Perkins, Kyle Weatherman and Creed pitted while the rest led by Herbst remained on the track.
With the race restarting under green with three laps remaining in the first stage period, Herbst launched ahead from the outside lane to retain the lead before Allgaier muscled ahead from the inside lane amid the draft as he led for the first time. With Allgaier leading, Ryan Sieg would follow suit in second while Herbst was battling Chandler Smith, Jones and Kyle Sieg to retain third place as the field behind battled within close quarters and fanned out through all corners and straightaways.
When the first stage period concluded on Lap 30, Ryan Sieg, who received a draft from Chandler Smith and Brandon Jones to overtake Allgaier through the backstretch on Lap 29, proceeded to claim his second Xfinity stage victory of the 2024 season. Jones followed suit in second and Chandler Smith edged Allgaier for third place while Lawless Alan, Austin Hill, Herbst, Kyle Sieg, Allmendinger and Kligerman were scored in the top 10.
Immediately after the first stage period concluded, rain started to hit the track. Soon after, the field, led by Ryan Sieg, was directed to pit road, halted and placed in a red flag period due to the damp conditions, beginning on Lap 33.
More than nine minutes later, the red flag lifted as the track was deemed dry from the wet weather and the field led by Ryan Sieg returned to the track under a cautious pace. During the caution period, some led by Chandler Smith and including Lawless Alan, Kyle Sieg, Kligerman and Matt DiBenedetto pitted while the rest led by Ryan Sieg remained on the track.
The second stage period started on Lap 36 as Ryan Sieg and Allgaier occupied the front row. At the start, Sieg and Allgaier dueled for the lead through the first two turns and the backstretch. Then as the field fanned out, Austin Hill, who was trying to execute a three-wide move on Allgaier and Sieg in his bid for the lead, turned across the right-front fender of Kvapil and spun his No. 21 United Rentals Chevrolet Camaro below the track and through the infield grass before he came back up across the track and was dodged by the field just past the backstretch and in Turn 3. In the process, Allgaier managed to move into the lead over Sieg as Herbst, Allmendinger and Kvapil were scored in the top five.
The start of the next restart period on Lap 41 featured Allgaier and Allmendinger, the latter of which moved up to start on the front row during the choose lane option the lap prior, dueling for the lead entering the first two turns as the field fanned out. With Allgaier receiving a shove from Ryan Sieg from the outside lane, he continued to battle Allmendinger before he muscled ahead and retained the lead for the following lap Behind, Allmendinger slipped to third as Sieg moved back into second while Kvapil would overtake Herbst for fourth place.
Herbst would then be overtaken by Love, Nemechek and Jones for the following lap as he slipped out of the top five as a flurry of battles ensued behind him. With a majority of the front-runners running in a single-file line amid the draft towards the outside wall, Allgaier continued to lead by a tenth of a second ahead of Ryan Sieg, Kvapil, Love and Nemechek, respectively, as Herbst, Jones and Gray followed suit by the Lap 45 mark.
Then on Lap 47, the caution returned when Herbst, who was battling Sieg for fourth place, veered right and got turned off the left-front fender of Sieg as Herbst went head-on into the outside wall in Turn 3 while Jones slid his No. 9 Menards Chevrolet Camaro as he was trying to dodge Herbst’s carnage. With Herbst left with a wrecked No. 98 Monster Energy Ford, Jones, who was dodged by most of the field through Turns 3 and 4, was then hit on the driver’s side by teammate Sam Mayer, which sent Jones’ car back up the track as he received a shunt in the rear by Cole Custer’s No. 00 Autodesk Ford Mustang. Amid the carnage, Herbst, Jones and Mayer were knocked out of contention while Custer continued with a patched-up nose.
During the caution period, the leader Allgaier along with Kvapil, Ryan Sieg and Gragson pitted while the rest led by new leader John Hunter Nemechek remained on the track.
When the race restarted under green on Lap 54, the field jostled for spots amid two tight-laned packs as Nemechek and Allmendinger dueled for the lead through the first two turns and the backstretch. For the following lap, Nemechek would prevail from the outside lane and retain the lead. Behind, Jesse Love would retain second over Allmendinger while Gray, Sammy Smith, Chandler Smith and Gray battled for fourth place. With more battles ensuing around the track just past the Lap 55 mark, Nemechek remained as the leader ahead of Love and Allmendinger.
When the second stage period concluded on Lap 60, Nemechek captured his second Xfinity stage victory of the 2024 season after he fended off Love by three-tenths of a second. Love settled in second ahead of Allmendinger, Gray and Sammy Smith while Chandler Smith, Allgaier, Creed, Jeb Burton and Anthony Alfredo were scored in the top 10 amid a flurry of on-track battles.
During the stage break, nearly the entire field led by Nemechek pitted for service while a select few led by Kvapil and including Clements and Josh Williams remained on the track. With mixed strategies ensuing, Nemechek exited pit road first with only two fresh tires ahead of Gragson and Allgaier while Chandler Smith, Austin Hill and Parker Retzlaff followed suit.
With 61 laps remaining and the sun brightly overshadowing the Michigan circuit, the final stage commenced as Kvapil and Nemechek occupied the front row. At the start, Nemechek received a draft from Allgaier that moved Nemechek’s No. 20 Pye Barker Toyota Supra into the lead through the first two turns. With the field fanning out through the backstretch and back to the frontstretch, Nemechek retained the lead ahead of Allgaier as Kvapil, Chandler Smith and Sammy Smith were in the top five.
A lap later, however, the caution returned for a multi-car wreck that started when Lawless Alan got loose and clipped both Jeb Burton and Daniel Dye. The contact sent the former spinning below the track’s infield grass while the latter backed his No. 10 Race to Stop Suicide Chevrolet Camaro into the outside wall and was hit by Alan, all of which occurred in Turn 2 and which knocked both Dye and Alan out of contention. During the recent caution period, some including runner-up Allgaier, Clements, Williams, Allmendinger, Ryan Sieg and van Gisbergen pitted while the rest led by Nemechek remained on the track.
The start of the next restart period with 54 laps remaining featured another duel for the lead, this time between Nemechek and Sammy Smith, while the rest of the field behind began to fan out through the first two turns. With the field still fanned out through the frontstretch and jostling for late positions, Nemechek maintained the lead and he would proceed to lead with 50 laps remaining by a tenth of a second over Kvapil while Sammy Smith, Gragson and Chandler Smith followed suit in the top five. By then, van Gisbergen was penalized for a restart violation while Custer lost multiple laps due to pitting under green.
With 40 laps remaining, Nemechek continued to lead by a tenth of a second over Kvapil while third-place Sammy Smith trailed by half a second. Meanwhile, fourth-place Gragson trailed the lead by a second as he was trying to fend off Chandler Smith for the spot while Creed, Gray, Hill, Love and Allgaier were scored in the top 10 ahead of Kligerman, Allmendinger, Alfredo, Kyle Sieg, Matt DiBenedetto and Ryan Sieg.
Shortly after, Kvapil overtook Nemechek through the backstretch to lead the proceeding lap with 39 laps remaining. Kvapil’s overtake on Nemechek allowed Sammy Smith, Gragson, Chandler Smith, Creed and Gray to all close in on runner-up Nemechek amid the draft. In the process, Chandler Smith overtook both Gragson and Sammy Smith for third place. In addition, Creed would move back up into the top five and Gragson slipped to sixth. With Allgaier overtaking Richard Childress Racing’s Austin Hill and Love for eighth place, Kvapil extended his advantage to more than a second over Nemechek with less than 35 laps remaining.
Down to the final 25 laps of the event, Kvapil continued to stretch his advantage as he was leading by more than two seconds over Nemechek as Creed trailed Nemechek by less than two-tenths of a second. With JR Motorsports’ Allgaier and Sammy Smith mired in the top five, Chandler Smith followed suit in sixth along with Gragson and Gray, all of whom trailed the lead by more than four seconds, while Hill and Love rounded out the top 10.
Five laps later, Kvapil stabilized his advantage to less than two seconds over Nemechek as teammate Creed, Allgaier and Sammy Smith battled for third place. With the top-five competitors separated by two seconds, sixth-place Chandler Smith trailed by five seconds along with Gray, Gragson and Hill while Love and 11th-place Allmendinger trailed by eight seconds.
Another three laps later and with a cloud overcast hovering around Turns 3 and 4, Kvapil, who tried extending his dry fuel tank as far as possible, surrendered the lead to pit his No. 88 Clarience Technologies Chevrolet Camaro for fuel. Meanwhile, Allgaier, who powered past Creed and Nemechek over the last few laps, cycled his No. 7 Hellmann’s/Meijer Chevrolet Camaro into the lead. With Love also pitting his No. 2 Whelen Chevrolet Camaro under green, Nemechek and Creed moved up to second and third behind Allgaier while Sammy Smith and Gragson were scored in the top five. Allgaier would proceed to lead by half a second over Nemechek as Creed followed closely behind with 15 laps remaining.
Then with 10 laps remaining, the caution flew due to Kyle Weatherman blowing a right-front tire and hitting the Turn 2 outside wall hard. At the time of caution, Allgaier was leading by four-tenths of a second over Creed as Sammy Smith, Nemechek, Gray and Gragson were running in the top six. During the caution period, select names including Chandler Smith, Ryan Sieg, Kligerman, Retzlaff and Leland Honeyman pitted while the rest led by Allgaier remained on the track.
Amid the caution period as the laps dwindled, a drizzle started to fall and soon began to increase into a steady rain. With the light rain continuing to fall, however, the field led by Allgaier was directed to pit road and placed in a second red flag period for more than 23 minutes and with two laps remaining of the event’s scheduled distance.
When the red flag was lifted, the field led by Allgaier returned to track under a cautious pace as the event was sent into overtime.
The start of the first overtime attempt featured Sammy Smith, who opted to start alongside teammate Allgaier on the front row and attempted to slide up in front of Allgaier through the first two turns. Allgaier, however, managed to duel and overtake Smith through the backstretch as the field fanned out to multiple lanes. With Smith losing ground as he got shuffled out of the draft while being pinned in the middle lane and being overtaken by a bevy of competitors, Creed muscled his way up to second followed by Nemechek and Gragson as Alfredo charged his way into the top five, all of which occurred through Turns 3 and 4.
When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Allgaier remained as the leader by six-tenths of a second over Creed and a flurry of competitors jostling for positions. Then as Allgaier kept his No. 7 Meijer/Hellmann’s Chevrolet out in front through the first two turns and the backstretch, the event concluded under caution when Caesar Bacarella made contact and turned Kvapil into the backstretch’s outside wall. This ignited a chain reaction wreck as Chandler Smith and Kyle Sieg were sent spinning towards the inside wall, with Sieg then getting airborne and rolling over onto his roof, where his No. 28 Bailey Excavating Ford Mustang slid through the infield backstretch and into the grass before the car rolled back over and came to rest on all four wheels.
With the event concluding under caution, Allgaier was able to coast his car back to the frontstretch and claim the checkered flag for his second Xfinity race victory of the 2024 season.
With the victory, Allgaier notched his 25th career win in the Xfinity Series, which moved him into sole possession on 10th place on the all-time wins list after he was initially tied with his team owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Tommy Houston for the mark. The Michigan victory was also the Illinois veteran’s first since winning at Darlington Raceway in May as he became the fifth multi-race winner of this year’s Xfinity Series season. Allgaier’s Xfinity victory was also the fourth for JR Motorsports and the 12th for the Chevrolet nameplate through 21 scheduled events in 2024.
Photo by Tim Jarrold for SpeedwayMedia.com.
“[I] Just cannot say thank you enough to this team, all these [No. 7] guys standing right here,” Allgaier said on USA Network. “The effort that’s been put in is incredible. We did not show up to Indianapolis two, three weeks ago like we wanted to and these guys have worked tirelessly through this break. It’s truly special and to win here at Michigan, manufacturer’s backyard, these fans. I can hear them all chanting whenever we were sitting in the car under the red flag. I hope whoever got turned over over here’s OK and we’ll go on and celebrate this one for a while.”
Amid his flip and slide on his roof on the final lap, Kyle Sieg, who ended up in 28th place, the first competitor scored a lap down, emerged uninjured.
With Allgaier winning, Sheldon Creed, the pole winner who led 23 laps and was announced to be driving for Haas Factory Team in 2025 earlier in the day, ended up in second place, where he has now accumulated the most runner-up results in the Xfinity Series as a winless competitor for the 11th time.
This [runner-up finish] frustrates me the most just because I was saving fuel there behind [Nemechek], we were, maybe, three to four laps short there, so I was just trying to buy some time,” Creed said. “I knew [Allgaier] wasn’t going to have to [save fuel] as much. [I] Kind of let him go and yeah, a caution at the wrong time that hurt us. Once I went and got around [Nemechek] and was running [Allgaier] down, I felt like I had a car just as fast as Xfinity Internet and could’ve passed him. That one stings a little bit, but I’m super proud of everyone. Starting today at 13 races left, I really think we’re turning into a team that can make a really good fight for this championship.
Teammate John Hunter Nemechek had enough fuel, like teammate Creed, to settle in third place after he led 31 laps while Anthony Alfredo and Sammy Smith finished in the top five. The rally for Smith to achieve the top-five result ended up being crucial as he launched himself back into the top-12 cutline to make the 2024 Xfinity Series Playoffs and holds sole possession of the final transfer spot by a single point over 13th-place finisher Ryan Sieg with five regular-season events remaining on the schedule.
Noah Gragson, Matt DiBenedetto, Taylor Gray, Caesar Bacarella and AJ Allmendinger completed the top 10 in the final running order.
There were 10 lead changes for seven different leaders. The race featured nine cautions for 39 laps. In addition, 27 of 38 starters finished on the lead lap.
Following the 21st event of the 2024 Xfinity Series season, Cole Custer continues to lead the regular-season standings by 12 points over Justin Allgaier, 70 over Austin Hill and 84 over Chandler Smith.
Results.
1. Justin Allgaier, 37 laps led
2. Sheldon Creed, 23 laps led
3. John Hunter Nemechek, 31 laps led, Stage 2 winner
4. Anthony Alfredo
5. Sammy Smith
6. Noah Gragson
7. Matt DiBenedetto
8. Taylor Gray
9. Caesar Bacarella
10. AJ Allmendinger
11. Parker Kligerman
12. Leland Honeyman
13. Ryan Sieg, seven laps led, Stage 1 winner
14. Ryan Ellis
15. Jeremy Clements
16. Jeb Burton
17. Shane van Gisbergen
18. Austin Hill
19. Josh Williams
20. Parker Retzlaff
21. Jeffrey Earnhardt
22. Patrick Emerling
23. Blaine Perkins
24. Josh Bilicki
25. Logan Bearden
26. Carson Kvapil, 25 laps led
27. Chandler Smith
28. Kyle Sieg, one lap down
29. Jesse Love, one lap down, one lap led
30. Cole Custer – OUT, Suspension
31. Joey Gase – OUT, Fuel Pump
32. Kyle Weatherman – OUT, Accident
33. Brennan Poole – OUT, Oil Pump
34. Daniel Dye – OUT, Accident
35. Lawless Alan – OUT, Accident
36. Brandon Jones – OUT, Accident
37. Sam Mayer – OUT, Accident
38. Riley Herbst – OUT, Accident, four laps led
Next on the 2024 NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule is Daytona International Speedway for the Wawa 250. The event is scheduled to occur next Friday, August 23, and air at 7:30 p.m. ET on USA Network.
Christopher Bell remains undefeated in four NASCAR Xfinity Series career starts at New Hampshire Motor Speedway after prevailing in an overtime battle against teammate Sheldon Creed and Cole Custer to win the SciAps 200 on Saturday, June 22.
The 2024 Coca-Cola 600 champion from Norman, Oklahoma, led twice for 43 of 203 over-scheduled laps in an event where he started in 23rd place based on a qualifying metric formula as the event’s qualifying session was canceled due to on-track precipitation. After methodically carving his way to the front, Bell assumed the lead for the first time at the start of the second stage period on Lap 52 and he would proceed to capture the second stage victory on Lap 90.
Despite losing the lead to Cole Custer at the start of the final stage period with 95 laps remaining, Bell remained upfront and withstood a series of late-race caution periods to restart alongside Custer on the front row as the event was sent into overtime. Then during the event’s only overtime attempt, Bell seized an opportunity amid a late-race battle between Custer and teammate Sheldon Creed to make a three-wide move on both through the frontstretch to start the final lap. He then overtook both through the first two turns and retained the top spot through the final two turns to claim his fourth consecutive Xfinity Series checkered flag at the Magic Mile and in his first Xfinity start of the 2024 season.
On-track qualifying was scheduled for Friday, June 21, but was canceled due to on-track precipitation. The starting lineup for the main event was determined through a qualifying metric formula. As a result, Cole Custer was awarded the pole position and shared the front row with rookie Chandler Smith.
Before the event, Parker Retzlaff dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments to his No. 31 Jordan Anderson Racing Chevrolet Camaro entry. He was also assessed a stop-and-go penalty at the start of the event.
Prior to the field entering the track for pace laps, NASCAR directed the teams to change to wet weather tires on their respective entries due to this weekend’s on-track precipitation and with more wet weather looming near the circuit.
When the green flag waved and the race started, the field jumbled up and scattered as Matt DiBenedetto, who qualified in 10th place and started alongside teammate Ryan Sieg in the fifth row, struggled to launch at the start and through the frontstretch. During the early chaos, Custer muscled his No. 00 Haas Automation Ford Mustang ahead with the lead from the outside lane. He would retain the lead from the backstretch and back to the frontstretch, where he would lead the first lap ahead of teammate Riley Herbst and Chandler Smith.
During the next four laps, Custer extended his advantage to a second over teammate Herbst while Chandler Smith, Sam Mayer and Sammy Smith trailed in the top five, with the latter trailing by two seconds. Chandler Smith would then slowly drift out of the top five while battling handling issues to his entry as Parker Kligerman overtook him for fifth place. Sheldon Creed, Austin Hill, Justin Allgaier and Corey Heim would all overtake Chandler Smith, who would soon lose 10th place to Anthony Alfredo, as Kligerman was being challenged Creed, Hill and Allgaier for fifth place.
Through the first 10 scheduled laps, Custer was leading by nine-tenths of a second over teammate Herbst followed by Mayer, Hill and Sammy Smith while Allgaier, Heim, Creed, Jeremy Clements and Kligerman occupied the top 10 spots on the track. Behind, Alfredo was in 11th place ahead of Christopher Bell, who carved his way up to the top 12 on the track after starting 23rd, while rookie Jesse Love, AJ Allmendinger and Ryan Sieg were running in the top 15.
Shortly after, a competition caution was flown as NASCAR analyzed the track to determine if it was still wet or not. With the track deemed dry, the field led by Custer pitted for slick, dry tires. Following the pit stops, Custer retained the lead after exiting pit road first as Hill, Sammy Smith, Bell, Creed and Mayer followed suit in the top six.
When the event restarted under green on Lap 16, Hill challenged Custer for the lead through the first two turns before he muscled his No. 21 Bennett Transportation Chevrolet Camaro ahead through the backstretch. Hill retained the lead over Custer for the following lap while Bell was intimidating Sammy Smith for third place. Amid the early battles around the circuit, Custer reassumed the lead from Hill by Lap 18 and he would retain the lead by the Lap 20 mark while Sammy Smith retained third place ahead of Bell and Creed.
At the Lap 25 mark, Custer stretched his advantage to more than a second over Hill while Bell was up to third place after he overtook Sammy Smith for the spot. Corey Heim, who was making his eighth Xfinity Series start of the 2024 season with Sam Hunt Racing, occupied fifth place ahead of Herbst, Creed, Mayer, AJ Allmendinger and Allgaier while Kligerman, Ryan Sieg, Alex Bowman, Clements and Chandler Smith followed suit in the top 15 ahead of Jesse Love, Justin Bonsignore, Jeb Burton, Carson Kvapil and Brennan Poole.
Two laps later, the event’s second caution flew due to Patrick Emerling stalling his SS-Green Light Racing entry off of Turn 2. During the caution period, select names including Allgaier, teammate Brandon Jones, Retzlaff, Leland Honeyman, rookie Shane van Gisbergen and newcomer Justin Bonsignore pitted while the rest led by Custer remained on the track.
As the event restarted under green on Lap 33, Custer rocketed away from Hill and the field entering the first two turns while Bell overtook Hill for the runner-up spot. Heim would move his No. 26 Yahoo! Toyota Supra to third place as he also overtook Hill for the spot while Custer retained the lead for the following lap. The caution would then return by Lap 34 as Kligerman, who was racing in eighth place, received a tap from Allmendinger that sent Kligerman’s No. 48 Spiked Coolers Chevrolet Camaro spun towards the outside wall in between Turns 1 and 2.
During the caution period, some led by Custer and including Bell, Hill, Creed, Heim, Chandler Smith and Jesse Love pitted while the rest led by Sammy Smith remained on the track.
The start of the next restart period on Lap 39 featured Sammy Smith retaining the lead while Mayer and Alex Bowman battled for the runner-up spot. Mayer would then muscle through and overtake teammate Sammy Smith to assume the lead during the following lap as Herbst, Allmendinger and Bowman battled for third place.
When the first stage period concluded on Lap 45, Mayer, winner of last weekend’s Xfinity Series event at Iowa Speedway, secured his first Xfinity stage victory of the 2024 season. Teammate Sammy Smith fended off Herbst for the runner-up spot as they were followed by Allmendinger and Allgaier while Bowman, Kvapil, Ryan Sieg, Jeb Burton and Bonsignore were scored in the top 10. By then, Bell was up to 11th place while Creed, Hill, Custer, Chandler Smith and Heim were trailing in the top 21 on the track.
Under the stage break, some led by Mayer and including those who did not during the previous caution period pitted while the rest led by Bonsignore and Bell remained on the track.
The second stage period started on Lap 52 as teammates Bonsignore and Bell occupied the front row. At the start and with the field fanning out to three lanes through the frontstretch, Bonsignore struggled to launch at the start while Bell received a push from teammate Creed to assume the lead. Bonsignore would retain second place ahead of teammate Creed, Brandon Jones and Hill while teammate Bell retained the lead for the following lap. Bell would proceed to lead by half a second over teammate Bonsignore, who kept Bell’s No. 20 Mobil 1 Toyota Supra close in his front windshield, while Custer was trying to carve his way back into the top five as he trailed Creed, Hill and Heim in sixth place.
Through the Lap 60 mark, Bell extended his advantage to a second over teammate Bonsignore while teammate Creed was trying to retain third place ahead of Heim, Custer, Chandler Smith, Brandon Jones and Hill, all of whom trailed Creed by a second. Meanwhile, Allgaier, who pitted during the first stage break period due to concerns of smoke coming out of his No. 7 BRANDT Chevrolet Camaro, was in ninth place as he trailed the lead by five seconds while Kligerman was up to 10th place. Behind, Jesse Love, Mayer, Sammy Smith, DiBenedetto and Alfredo occupied the top 15 while Allmendinger, Kyle Weatherman, Ryan Sieg, Bowman and Kvapil trailed in the top 20.
Ten laps later, Bell stretched his lead to another second as he was leading by two seconds over teammate Bonsignore while third-place Creed retained third place as he trailed teammate Bell by five seconds. Behind, Custer and Heim were in the top five while Chandler Smith, the fourth Joe Gibbs Racing competitor, was up to sixth place ahead of Allgaier, Hill, Brandon Jones and Kligerman.
By Lap 80 and with the leaders lapping the rear end of the field, Bell stabilized his advantage to two seconds over teammate Bonsignore. Behind, Custer, who trailed the lead by more than five seconds, was up to third place and Creed dropped to fourth while Chandler Smith was up to fifth place ahead of Allgaier and Heim.
When the second stage period concluded on Lap 90, Bell cruised to his first Xfinity stage victory in his first Xfinity start of the 2024 season. Teammate Bonsignore settled in second as he trailed Bell by four seconds followed by Custer, Creed and Chandler Smith while Allgaier, Heim, Brandon Jones, Hill and Kligerman were scored in the top 10.
During the stage break, the lead lap field led by Bell pitted for service. Following the pit stops, Custer returned atop the leaderboard after he exited pit road first ahead of Bell, Chandler Smith, Creed and Bonsignore. Allgaier slid through his pit box and endured a slow pit service as he exited the pits in 25th place.
With 102 laps remaining, the final stage commenced as Custer and Bell occupied the front row. At the start, Custer launched ahead of Bell from the outside lane while Chandler Smith tried to challenge Bell for the runner-up spot. Bell then tried to draw even with Custer through the first two turns, but Custer retained the lead through the backstretch. Bell then got briefly loose entering Turn 3, which allowed teammate Chandler Smith to assume the runner-up spot while Custer retained the lead during the following lap. Then just as the event reached its halfway mark on Lap 100, the caution returned after Armani Williams spun in Turn 4.
With the event restarting under green with 95 laps remaining, Custer gained another strong start from the outside lane to retain the lead while Chandler Smith battled and prevailed in a brief battle over teammate Bell for the runner-up spot. Teammate Bonsignore followed suit in fourth along with Heim and Creed while Hill and Sammy Smith battled for seventh place in front of Herbst and Kligerman. Amid the battles within the field, Custer continued to lead by half a second over a side-by-side battle between teammates Chandler Smith and Bell.
With 80 laps remaining, Custer stretched his advantage to a second over Chandler Smith while Smith’s Toyota teammates that included Bell, Bonsignore, Creed and Heim followed suit in the top six. Herbst, Sammy Smith, Hill and Mayer trailed in the top 10 while Ryan Sieg, Kligerman, Allmendinger, Bowman and Allgaier were running in the top 15 ahead of Kvapil, Brandon Jones, Love, van Gisbergen and DiBenedetto.
Ten laps later, Custer added another second to his advantage and was now leading by two seconds over Bell. Bonsignore was up to third place after he prevailed in an earlier battle with teammate Chandler Smith for the spot, as he overtook Smith from the outside lane. With Smith dropping to fourth place, teammate Creed retained fifth place as he trailed Smith by half a second while Heim was scored in sixth place ahead of Herbst, Sammy Smith, Hill and Mayer.
Another 10 laps later, Custer stretched his advantage to three seconds over Bell while third-place Bonsignore also trailed by three seconds, but by seven-tenths of a second to teammate Bell. With the event remaining under green flag conditions despite light precipitation being reported around the circuit, Custer, who was nearing his fuel window, retained the lead as Bell, Sammy Smith and Herbst pitted under green with 51 laps remaining.
The following lap, more green flag pit stops commenced as the leader Custer pitted along with Bonsignore, Heim, Hill, Allgaier, Allmendinger and Love before Chandler Smith, Creed, Mayer, Kligerman, van Gisbergen and DiBenedetto pitted with 49 laps remaining. During the pit stops, Kvapil, who had yet to pit, was leading and would continue to lead with 45 laps remaining while Brandon Jones, Bowman, Weatherman, Josh Williams, Alfredo and Retzlaff all trailed in the top seven as all have yet to pit.
With 40 laps remaining, Kvapil, who was opting to stretch his fuel tank as far as he could, continued to lead ahead of teammate Jones, Bowman and Weatherman while Custer, the first competitor on four fresh tires and a full tank of fuel, carved his way up to fifth place as he trailed the lead by 12 seconds. Meanwhile, Bell was mired in eighth place and trailing Custer by four seconds while Chandler Smith, Creed and Bonsignore were back within the top 12.
Four laps later, Bowman pitted his No. 17 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro from third place as Retzlaff would also pit under green. As Bowman was then assessed a penalty for an uncontrolled tire violation, Jones would pit his No. 9 Menards Chevrolet Camaro from the runner-up spot a few laps later before Kvapil surrendered the lead to pit his No. 88 Clarience Technologies Chevrolet Camaro with 34 laps remaining. As a result, Custer cycled his way back into the lead while Bell, Chandler Smith, Creed and Bonsignore moved back into the top five.
The caution would then fly with 33 laps remaining after Armani Williams spun in the backstretch, which marked his second incident of the day. During the caution period, nearly the entire lead lap field led by Custer returned to pit road for service while Love and Kvapil remained on the track. Following the pit stops, Custer exited pit road first ahead of Bell, Chandler Smith, Kligerman, Sammy Smith, Hill, Creed and Bonsignore.
The start of the following restart period with 26 laps remaining featured Kvapil receiving a push from Custer to shoot into the lead from the inside lane as Chandler Smith tried to make a three-wide move on Custer and Love through the frontstretch. With the move not prevailing for Smith, Custer would battle and overtake Love for the runner-up spot as he started to close in on Kvapil for the lead. Then as Custer attempted to draw even with Kvapil through the frontstretch, the caution returned after Chandler Smith spun his No. 81 Smith General Contracting Toyota Supra from fifth place after he made contact with teammate Creed in Turn 3.
The start of the next restart period with 19 laps remaining did not last long as Sammy Smith made contact with Bonsignore as both Bonsignore and Mayer, who was racing beneath Sammy Smith at the moment of contact, spun together through Turns 1 and 2. At the same time, a chain reaction wreck occurred that collected Hill, van Gisbergen, Jones, Brennan Poole, Weatherman, Allmendinger and Bowman. At the moment of caution, Custer had managed to reassume the lead from Kvapil while Bell, Love, Creed and Allgaier were scored in the top six.
Down to the final 12 laps of the event, the field restarted under green. At the start, Custer rocketed ahead of Kvapil from the outside lane with the lead while Bell was battling Kvapil for the runner-up spot. Creed then tried to ignite a three-wide battle between teammate Bell and Kvapil for the runner-up spot, but Bell prevailed in the battle as he assumed the spot followed by Creed and a hard-charging Allgaier, who was charging strong from the outside lane, while Kvapil dropped to fifth. The caution, however, would return during the following lap as Nathan Byrd and Hailie Deegan wrecked in Turn 4.
With the event restarting under green with six laps remaining, Custer held a brief advantage entering the first two turns until Bell drew even with Custer through the backstretch. With both remaining dead even for the top spot during the following lap, Custer held the advantage by a hair over Bell while Creed followed in close pursuit in third place. As all three continued to battle closely for the lead, the caution returned for an incident involving Mason Massey and Deegan in Turn 2. At the moment of caution and with the event sent into overtime, Custer was deemed the leader over Bell as Creed, Allgaier and Kvapil were scored in the top five.
The start of the first overtime attempt featured Custer gaining another strong start from the outside lane as he muscled ahead with the lead while Creed muscled his way up to second place from teammate Bell. Then as Custer retained the lead through the backstretch, he received a little bump from Creed entering the frontstretch, which allowed both Creed and Bell to make their move beneath Custer as Creed emerged ahead of both Custer and Bell by a hair to start the final lap of the event.
Then entering Turns 1 and 2, Bell made the inside lane stick as he muscled ahead of both Custer and teammate Creed to assume the lead entering the backstretch. As Creed and Custer battled for the runner-up spot through the backstretch and in front of Allgaier, Bell was able to maintain his ground and make the final two turns stick as he cycled back to the frontstretch victorious by claiming the checkered flag by two-tenths of a second over Creed and by six-tenths of a second over Custer.
With the victory, Bell notched his fourth consecutive Xfinity Series win in all four career starts at New Hampshire that includes the 2018, 2019 and 2021 seasons. He also recorded his 18th career victory in the series and his first since winning at New Hampshire in 2021 as he joined AJ Allmendinger as competitors to win in first four career starts at a track.
In addition, Bell recorded the 13th Xfinity victory overall at New Hampshire for both the Toyota nameplate and Joe Gibbs Racing. He is the fourth Cup Series regular to win through the first 16 events of the 2024 Xfinity season, joining John Hunter Nemechek, Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott. He is also the fourth competitor overall to pilot the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Supra entry to a victory this season, including Nemechek, Aric Almirola and Ryan Truex.
“I feel so bad for Sheldon [Creed],” Bell said on USA Network. “He’s been really, really close to winning these [races] and today, he did everything right to win that race. He restarted in the right lane, gave Cole [Custer] a good push and then coming to the white flag, he got Cole loose and that’s what opened the door for me. This Mobil 1 [Supra] was really, really good early in the race and once I lost the track position, I was just kind of another guy. Very fortunate to keep my undefeated streak alive. We got really lucky there. Everyone on this No. 20 car’s doing awesome.”
Teammate Sheldon Creed, who led the penultimate lap before being overtaken by teammate Bell on the final lap, settled in second place for the third of the 2024 season and the 10th time in his career while Cole Custer, who led a race-high 114 laps, ended up in third place.
“I feel like there’s a million things to do differently,” Creed said. “[Finishing second for the 10th time]’s not a stat I wanted to tie. Most seconds before a win. I thought when I got next to [Custer] off of [Turn] 4 coming to the white [flag], that was going to be my opportunity. Obviously, Bell got a good run and we shifted down there in [Turn] 1. I felt like I was gonna stay outside of him. I think [Custer] was able to stay close enough to me and me being free on the short run all day, just a little too free there to stay outside of [Bell]. Overall, a great day. I’ve been in the hunt the last four weeks, so just gonna keep working hard at it.”
“I would’ve done the same thing [on Creed with the contact],” Custer said. “You’re racing for the win. It is what it is. Man, it just stings. I felt like we had the best car all day. That’s not easy to do at these flat short tracks. Our guys brought such a fast car. [I] Guess you get put in those late-race restarts six times or whatever, eventually, it’s probably not gonna going your way, but I’m gonna relive that, definitely, of what I could’ve done different. Maybe I could’ve protected a little bit more, but you watch the replay and it went perfectly wrong for us. Just got to keep digging. I’m really excited about what we can do. That was a really fast car. We got the points lead. Just got to keep knocking on the door.”
Justin Allgaier rallied from his early issues on pit road to finish fourth while Carson Kvapil finished in fifth place for the third time in his first four Xfinity Series career starts.
Ryan Sieg, Parker Kligerman, Riley Herbst, Alex Bowman and Corey Heim finished in the top 10. Notably, Justin Bonsignore, a three-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion who won the Modified event at New Hampshire hours before the Xfinity event, finished 22nd in his Xfinity Series debut while Sam Mayer, who won the first stage period, ended up in 19th place.
*Matt DiBenedetto was disqualified from his 17th-place result due to three loose lug nuts that were discovered on his right-rear section of his car.
There were 15 lead changes for 10 different leaders. The race featured 11 cautions for 58 laps. In addition, 29 of 38 starters finished on the lead lap.
Following the 16th event of the 2024 Xfinity Series season, Cole Custer leads the regular-season standings by 15 points over Chandler Smith, 42 over Justin Allgaier, 69 over Austin Hill, 105 over Sheldon Creed and 111 over Riley Herbst.
Results.
1. Christopher Bell, 43 laps led, Stage 2 winner
2. Sheldon Creed, one lap led
3. Cole Custer, 114 laps led
4. Justin Allgaier
5. Carson Kvapil, 24 laps led
6. Ryan Sieg
7. Parker Kligerman
8. Riley Herbst
9. Alex Bowman
10. Corey Heim
11. AJ Allmendinger
12. Sammy Smith, three laps led
13. Jesse Love, three laps led
14. Brandon Jones
15. Chandler Smith, one lap led
16. Brennan Poole
17. Jeb Burton
18. Shane van Gisbergen
19. Sam Mayer, nine laps led, Stage 1 winner
20. Anthony Alfredo
21. Jeremy Clements
22. Justin Bonsignore, three laps led
23. Josh Williams
24. Austin Hill, two laps led
25. Kyle Weatherman
26. Parker Retzlaff
27. Blaine Perkins
28. Glen Reen
29. Garrett Smithley, one lap down
30. Mason Massey, one lap down
31. Kyle Sieg, two laps down
32. Hailie Deegan, two laps down
33. Armani Williams, five laps down
34. Patrick Emerling, six laps down
35. Ryan Ellis – OUT, DVP
36. Nathan Byrd – OUT, Accident
37. Leland Honeyman – OUT, Accident
38. Matt DiBenedetto – Disqualified
Next on the 2024 NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule is Nashville Superspeedway in Lebanon, Tennessee, for the Tennessee Lottery 250. The event is scheduled to occur next Saturday, June 29, and air at 5 p.m. ET on USA Network.
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.
Seventeen years after being credited a NASCAR Xfinity Series victory driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, Aric Almirola earned an Xfinity victory with JGR in the DUDE Wipes 250 at Martinsville Speedway on Saturday, April 6, following a dramatic, overtime shootout to the finish.
The 40-year-old Almirola from Tampa, Florida, led six times for a race-high 148 of 251 over-scheduled laps in an event where he qualified in sixth place. He quickly made his name known at the front by assuming the lead for the first time on Lap 28, where he would win the first stage period on Lap 50.
Amid a series of war of attrition and on-track chaotic moments, including a series of late-race restarts, Almirola, who spent the majority of the event battling with his Joe Gibbs Racing teammates towards the front, capitalized on an overtime shootout period to muscle away from Sam Mayer and retain the lead on the final lap amid a race-ending caution to achieve both his first race-winning checkered flag and first Dash 4 Cash bonus of the 2024 season.
On-track qualifying on Friday, April 5 determined the starting lineup with Brandon Jones initially recording his first Xfinity pole position of the 2024 season with a pole-winning lap at 96.15 mph in 19.694 seconds. Jones, however, was forced to start at the rear of the field due to an unapproved adjustment to change brake rotors on his pole-winning car along with teammates Allgaier and Sammy Smith. Akinori Ogata, Leland Honeyman, Ryan Ellis and Chandler Smith also dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments to their respective entries.
As a result, Cole Custer, who clocked in the second-fastest qualifying lap at 95.845 mph in 19.757 seconds, led the field to the green flag as he started alongside Sheldon Creed, who posted the third-fastest qualifying lap at 95.840 mph in 19.758 seconds, on the front row.
When the green flag waved and the race started, Custer and Creed battled for the lead through the first two turns until Custer muscled his No. 00 Haas Ford Mustang ahead on the outside lane through the backstretch. Custer would then move in front of Creed’s front nose entering Turns 3 and 4 and proceed to lead the first lap.
Through the second to fifth lap mark, Custer retained the lead by within three-tenths of a second over Creed while Jeb Burton trailed in third place ahead of Aric Almirola and Alfredo Alfredo, all of whom were racing in the top five. Behind, Sam Mayer occupied sixth place ahead of rookie Jesse Love, Parker Retzlaff, Ryan Sieg and AJ Allmendinger while Austin Hill was scored in 11th ahead of newcomer Carson Kvapil, Matt DiBenedetto, Taylor Gray and rookie Shane van Gisbergen.
On the ninth lap, the event’s first caution period flew after Sammy Smith, who attempted to throw a dive-bomb move underneath Garrett Smithley and Dexter Bean, made contact with both entering Turns 3 and 4 resulting in Bean spinning.
When the event restarted under green on Lap 14, Custer managed to fend off Creed for a full lap to retain the lead. As Custer muscled ahead during the Lap 15 mark, Almirola challenged teammate Creed for the runner-up spot while Burton and Mayer remained within close distance.
Through the first 20 scheduled laps, Custer was leading by half a second over Almirola followed by Creed, Burton and Mayer while Alfredo, Retzlaff, Love, Allmendinger and Ryan Sieg were scored in the top 10 ahead of Hill, Kvapil, Jeremy Clements, Corey Heim and Riley Herbst. Meanwhile, Brandon Jones was running in 23rd place behind teammate Sammy Smith and Hailie Deegan while Gray, DiBenedetto, van Gisbergen, Parker Kligerman and Josh Williams were running in the top 20. In addition, Chandler Smith, winner of last weekend’s Xfinity event at Richmond Raceway, was mired back in 25th.
Seven laps later, Almirola challenged and overtook Custer for the lead through the first two turns. Almirola would proceed to stretch his advantage to half a second by the Lap 30 mark while teammate Creed tried to close in on Custer for the runner-up spot.
On Lap 35, the event’s second caution period flew after Brennan Poole tapped and sent Hailie Deegan for a spin in Turn 2, where she was then hit by Kyle Weatherman and sustained damage to her No. 15 AM Racing entry. During the caution period, some including the JR Motorsports’ competitors Kvapil, Sammy Smith, Justin Allgaier and Brandon Jones pitted as part of a strategic plan while the rest led by Almirola remained on the track.
During the following restart on Lap 42, Almirola muscled his No. 20 He Gets Us Toyota Supra ahead to retain the lead on the inside lane ahead of teammate Creed and Custer. Almirola would continue to lead through the Lap 50 mark as Creed and Custer followed suit in second and third, respectively. Behind, Mayer occupied fourth place while Allmendinger trailed in fifth as he was ahead of Alfredo, Burton, Ryan Sieg, Retzlaff, Hill, Love, Herbst and Gray.
When the first stage period concluded on Lap 60, Almirola fended off a late challenge and bump from teammate Creed to capture his third Xfinity stage victory of the 2024 season. Creed settled in second followed by Custer, Mayer and Allmendinger while Alfredo, Ryan Sieg, Hill, Burton and Retzlaff were scored in the top 10.
Under the stage break, all five JR Motorsports competitors led by Sam Mayer and including teammates Sammy Smith, Allgaier, Jones and Kvapil, remained on the track while the rest led by Almirola pitted for service. Amid the pit stops, Herbst was penalized for an uncontrolled tire violation while Kligerman was also penalized for speeding on pit road.
The second stage period started on Lap 70 as teammates Mayer and Sammy Smith occupied the front row. At the start, however, the caution quickly returned after Jones, who struggled to launch from the second row on the outside lane, ignited a stack-up that resulted in Logan Bearden, Deegan, Allmendinger, Hill, Heim, Retzlaff, Leland Honeyman, Herbst, Burton, Bean, Kyle Sieg and Alfredo all wrecking and sustaining damage to their respective entries entering the first turn. The incident was enough to send the event in a red flag period for more than nine minutes.
When the red flag lifted and the field resumed under a cautious pace, the competitors who wrecked, including Herbst, pitted while the rest led by Sammy Smith remained on the track. By then, top names that included Retzlaff, Heim, Hill and Allmendinger were ruled out of the event.
As the event restarted under green on Lap 80, Sammy Smith and Mayer battled for the lead through the first two turns until Smith muscled ahead with the lead through the backstretch while Almirola fanned out to three lanes in his drive back to the front. As Smith retained the lead during the following lap ahead of teammate Mayer, Creed was in third ahead of a tight side-by-side battle between Allgaier and Custer while Kvapil and Almirola followed suit.
Following another caution period that occurred on Lap 84 after Kligerman spun his No. 48 Spiked Lite Coolers Chevrolet Camaro from 29th place in Turn 2 due to cutting a left-front tire, the start of the following restart period on Lap 90 featured a brief side-by-side battle between teammates Sammy Smith and Mayer through the first two turns. With Smith muscling ahead through the backstretch and entering Turns 3 and 4, Mayer then got loose after he hit the curbs exiting Turn 4, which allowed teammate Allgaier and Creed to move into second and third while Mayer, who got his car stuck on the outside lane but resumed under full pace, dropped to 10th place.
At the Lap 100 mark, Sammy Smith continued to lead by a second in his No. 8 TMC Transportation Chevrolet Camaro over teammates Allgaier and Kvapil as Almirola and Custer trailed in the top five. Behind, Creed occupied sixth place ahead of Jones, Burton, Ryan Sieg and Josh Williams while Mayer, Chandler Smith, Love, Alfredo and Taylor Gray were running in the top 15 ahead of a battle between Herbst and van Gisbergen.
Ten laps later, Sammy Smith retained the lead by a tenth of a second over teammate Allgaier, who was using the front bumper to pressure his JR Motorsports teammate for the top spot through the turns, while teammate Kvapil trailed by within eight-tenths of a second. Another lap, however, Allgaier managed to draw even with Smith on the inside lane through the frontstretch until he muscled his No. 7 Jarrett Logistics Chevrolet Camaro ahead with the lead through the backstretch. With Allgaier leading, Smith retained second while Almirola challenged Kvapil for third place.
When the second stage period concluded on Lap 120, Allgaier, who stretched his advantage, captured his first Xfinity stage victory of the 2024 season. Almirola settled in second followed by Sammy Smith, Kvapil and Custer while Creed, Jones, Chandler Smith, Burton and Ryan Sieg were scored in the top 10. By then, 29 of 38 starters were scored on the lead lap.
During the stage break, the lead lap field led by Allgaier pitted for service. Following the pit stops, Almirola assumed the lead after he exited pit road first ahead of Sammy Smith while Creed, Custer, Chandler Smith, Allgaier, Jones, Herbst, Ryan Sieg and van Gisbergen followed suit in the top 10. Amid the pit stops, Allgaier lost 14 spots due to an issue while having his left-rear tire changed while Taylor Gray was penalized for his pit crew jumping over the pit wall too early.
With 120 laps remaining, the final stage commenced as Almirola and Sammy Smith occupied the front row. At the start, Almirola muscled ahead from Smith amid contact to retain the lead while teammate Creed moved into the runner-up spot through Turns 3 and 4. Teammate Chandler Smith would grab third place from Smith during the following lap, thus placing all three Joe Gibbs Racing entries in the top three spots, while Custer followed suit and overtook Smith for fourth place.
Not long after, the battle for the lead between Almirola and Creed ignited as the latter gave the former a bump through Turns 3 and 4, but Almirola retained the top spot during the proceeding laps. Behind, Custer and Jones were racing in the top five while Allgaier, Herbst, Smith, Kvapil and Ryan Sieg occupied the top 10, with a series of bumps and jostles for spots ensuing in the middle of the pack.
With 110 laps remaining, Almirola stretched his advantage to more than a second over teammate Creed as Custer intimidated Chandler Smith for third place. Almirola would stabilize his advantage to more than a second over teammate Chandler Smith as teammate Creed dropped to third with 100 laps remaining.
Down to the final 85 laps of the event, Almirola continued to lead by nearly a second over teammate Chandler Smith while third-place/teammate Creed trailed by two seconds ahead of Custer, Allgaier and Kvapil.
Four laps later, the caution flew due to a metal debris reported in Turn 3. During the caution period, nearly the entire lead lap field led by Almirola returned to pit road for service while Kligerman, who did not have any fresh tires in his pit box, remained on the track. Following the pit stops, Almirola exited first ahead of teammate Creed, Custer and teammate Chandler Smith while Allgaier, Sammy Smith and Herbst followed suit.
When the event restarted under green with 73 laps remaining, Kligerman and Almirola battled for the lead through the first two turns until Almirola managed to muscle ahead through the backstretch and move in front of Kligerman, who made contact with Custer through Turns 3 and 4. The contact allowed Creed and Custer to move ahead in second and third, with Chandler Smith following suit in fourth. As Kligerman began to lose ground on old tires while also trapped on the outside lane, Chandler Smith made contact with teammate Creed amid a tight three-wide battle during the following lap in Turn 3, though Creed managed to bump and fend off Smith for second place while Custer and Sammy Smith bumped and battled for fourth place. Amid the bumps and late battles, Almirola stretched his advantage to eight-tenths of a second with 70 laps remaining.
Down to the final 60 laps of the event, Almirola was leading by seven-tenths of a second over teammate Creed while teammate Chandler Smith trailed by nearly a second while Sammy Smith and Custer were racing in the top five. Behind, Herbst occupied sixth place ahead of Mayer, Kvapil, Love and Allgaier while Taylor Gray, Ryan Sieg, Alfredo, Jones and Burton were scored in the top 15.
Following another caution period with 55 laps remaining after Garrett Smithley spun in Turn 1, the start of the following restart period with 46 laps remaining featured a tight side-by-side battle between teammates Almirola and Chandler Smith, which ensued for the next four laps until Almirola managed to clear Smith and move in front of him to have both lanes to his control with the lead. Smith then got loose as he tried to re-challenge Almirola for the lead, which allowed teammate Creed to battle and overtake Smith for the runner-up spot while Custer and Sammy Smith followed suit in the top five. With a series of bumps and late battles igniting in the middle of the field, Almirola slightly stretched his lead to four-tenths of a second with less than 40 laps remaining.
With 30 laps remaining, Almirola was leading by six-tenths of a second over teammate Creed while teammate Chandler Smith trailed by less than a second as he was trying to mount a charge on Creed for the runner-up spot. By then, Mayer carved his way back to fourth as he was ahead of Custer while Sammy Smith, Allgaier, Herbst, Alfredo and Kvapil were running in the top 10. Meanwhile, Love occupied 11th place while Jones, Gray, van Gisbergen and Ryan Sieg were in the top 15.
Ten laps later, Almirola extended his advantage to two seconds over teammate Chandler Smith, who bumped into the side of teammate Creed three laps earlier, to move into the runner-up spot. Behind, Creed, who slipped up the track in Turn 1 with 22 laps remaining while giving teammate Smith a bump back following their contact, was battling Mayer for third while Allgaier trailed by more than four seconds in fifth place.
Another three laps later, the caution flew after Ryan Sieg, who was running in the top 15, spun and hit the outside wall in Turn 1 after he over-drove his No. 39 Sci Aps Ford Mustang entering the turn, which evaporated Almirola’s reasonable advantage over teammate Chandler Smith.
Down to the final 11 laps of the event, the event restarted under green. At the start, teammates Almirola and Chandler Smith battled dead even and rubbed fenders for the lead through the first two turns and the backstretch. Then in Turns 3 and 4, Smith bumped Almirola and muscled his No. 81 Wheelers Toyota Supra into the lead. A lap later, however, Almirola bumped and sent Smith up the track in Turns 3 and 4. This allowed Almirola to reassume the lead followed by Mayer while Smith was left to battle teammate Creed for third place.
Then with a series of battles and on-track contact ensuing within the field in the closing laps, Mayer bumped and made his move beneath Almirola for the lead through the backstretch with eight laps remaining. Amid a tight side-by-side battle, Mayer then motored his No. 1 10X Health Chevrolet Camaro ahead to lead the proceeding lap ahead of Almirola before the caution returned due to a multi-car wreck that erupted when Jeb Burton got turned sideways along with Myatt Snider and resulted with both, including Clements, Kyle Sieg and DiBenedetto all wrecking and sustaining significant damage to their respective entries. The incident was enough to send the event into overtime.
At the start of the overtime period, Mayer and Almirola briefly battled dead even for the lead in Turn 1 until Creed attempted to stretch the battle to three lanes through the turn, which he got Mayer sideways amid contact. This allowed Almirola to muscle ahead on the outside lane as he reassumed the lead from Mayer while the field fanned out through the backstretch.
When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Almirola remained as the leader by four-tenths of a second over Mayer. Not long after, the caution returned and the event was deemed official after Herbst, who was racing in the top 10, got sideways entering Turn 1 and backed his No. 98 Monster Energy Ford Mustang hard against the outside wall as Ryan Ellis and Brandon Jones also piled into the carnage. With the event concluding under caution, Almirola was able to coast his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing entry around the Martinsville circuit smoothly for a final time before returning to the frontstretch and claiming his first checkered flag of the 2024 Xfinity season.
With the victory, Almirola, who was making his fourth Xfinity start of the 2024 season, recorded his fifth NASCAR Xfinity Series career win in his 108th series start. He also achieved his first victory at Martinsville Speedway and his first series win since winning at Sonoma Raceway in June 2023 while driving for RSS Racing. As a bonus, Almirola claimed the first Dash 4 Cash’s $100,000 bonus of this season, which marked his first time achieving the award. The victory was the fourth of the season for both Joe Gibbs Racing and Toyota.
The Martinsville victory with Joe Gibbs Racing was extremely meaningful for the veteran Almirola, whose first career start across NASCAR’s top three national touring series occurred in a JGR car in the Xfinity Series at Richmond Raceway in May 2006. In addition, Almirola was credited with his first Xfinity career victory with JGR at the Milwaukee Mile in June 2007.
The victory occurred after Almirola, who had started on pole position and was dominating early, was forced to relinquish his seat to Denny Hamlin, who was initially set to compete in the entry but was not able to arrive at the track in time for the event’s start, due to sponsorship obligations. In the end, Hamlin proceeded to win as a relief competitor while Almirola, who did not participate in the team’s celebration, was credited the victory due to starting the event.
For tonight, Almirola, who retired from full-time Cup Series competition at the conclusion of the 2023 season and rejoined Joe Gibbs Racing for a part-time campaign in the Xfinity Series, was not to be denied of earning an Xfinity victory driving for JGR while completing all of the event’s miles from start to finish behind the steering wheel.
Photo by John Knittel for SpeedwayMedia.com.
“Man, this is so awesome,” Almirola said on FS1. “To win for Joe Gibbs Racing, I’ve had an asterisk next to a win for Coach [Gibbs] for 17 years and this is so awesome to finally put a real win banner up inside the shop at Joe Gibbs Racing. Man, this GR Supra was fast. Thank you, thank you, thank you, Coach, for calling me and giving me this opportunity to come and have some fun and still scratch the itch of racing, but still to get to spend a lot of time with my family. I’ve had so much pressure to win. I think everybody expected me to just get in [the No. 20 car] and go win.
“The reality is it’s really hard to jump in these cars and race against the guys that do it week in and week out. This just feels really good. I’ve won a lot of races in my career, through the late model ranks and stuff to get me that opportunity to go to work for Coach. And then from there, it’s been a lot of ups and downs and a lot of struggles over 20 years in NASCAR. To cap off my career doing it the way I want to do it with Coach, with this whole organization at Joe Gibbs Racing, it feels amazing. We’re gonna celebrate this one.”
Mayer, who led 11 laps and has finished no higher than ninth during the first six events on the schedule, posted a strong runner-up result followed by Chandler Smith, who led three laps and rallied from starting at the rear of the field without posting a qualifying lap to finish third.
“The way this year’s gone, I’m happy with P2 at the end of the day,” Mayer said. “We finished the race. The car’s pretty much in one piece. Man, those restarts here are just ruthless and painful. Obviously, [Almirola] was really, really good today, and it was good that I was able to keep up and be as fast as them and pass all those [Joe Gibbs Racing] cars there at the end and march up to the front, for real. That’s the first time I’ve done that here. Super proud of [the No. 1] guys. We’re digging ourselves out of a whole little by little. At the end of the day, we needed a [win] and got one, I feel like, stolen from me there a little bit. We’re gonna go and try to haul the mail [at Texas Motor Speedway].”
Newcomer Carson Kvapil achieved a solid fourth-place finish in his Xfinity Series debut while Allgaier ended up in fifth place. Sheldon Creed, Sammy Smith, Cole Custer, rookie Jesse Love and Josh Williams finished in the top 10.
With Almirola not scheduled to compete in next weekend’s event on the schedule at Texas Motor Speedway, the next four competitors who will contend for the second Dash 4 Cash bonus of this season will be Sam Mayer, Chandler Smith, Justin Allgaier and Sheldon Creed.
There were 15 lead changes for eight different leaders. The race featured 11 cautions for 68 laps. In addition, 24 of 38 starters finished on the lead lap.
Following the seventh event of the 2024 Xfinity Series season, Chandler Smith continues to lead the regular-season standings by 35 points over Cole Custer, 41 over Austin Hill, 76 over Jesse Love and 79 over Justin Allgaier.
Results.
1. Aric Almirola, 148 laps led, Stage 1 winner
2. Sam Mayer, 11 laps led
3. Chandler Smith, three laps led
4. Carson Kvapil
5. Justin Allgaier, 14 laps led, Stage 2 winner
6. Sheldon Creed
7. Sammy Smith, 42 laps led
8. Cole Custer, 27 laps led
9. Jesse Love
10. Josh Williams
11. Shane van Gisbergen
12. Parker Kligerman, five laps led
13. Taylor Gray
14. Brennan Poole
15. Anthony Alfredo
16. Blaine Perkins
17. Ryan Sieg
18. Hailie Deegan
19. Myatt Snider
20. Dexter Bean
21. Matt DiBenedetto
22. Jeremy Clements
23. Kyle Sieg
24. Dawson Cram
25. Riley Herbst – OUT, Accident
26. Ryan Ellis – OUT, Accident
27. Brandon Jones – OUT, Accident
28. Joey Gase, one lap down, one lap led
29. Garrett Smithley, two laps down
30. Logan Bearden, four laps down
31. Leland Honeyman, seven laps down
32. Jeb Burton – OUT, Accident
33. Kyle Weatherman – OUT, Accident
34. Austin Hill – OUT, Accident
35. Corey Heim – OUT, Accident
36. AJ Allmendinger – OUT, Accident
37. Parker Retzlaff – OUT, Accident
38. Akinori Ogata – OUT, Brakes
Next on the 2024 NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule is Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas, for the Andy’s Frozen Custard 300 and where the second Dash 4 Cash event will occur. The event is scheduled to occur next Saturday, April 13, at 1:30 p.m. ET on FS1.
