Tag: NASCAR Xfinity Series

Gragson clinches Championship 4 spot with dominant Xfinity victory at Homestead

Noah Gragson’s dream 2022 season has been elevated to another high note after the driver of the No. 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro clinched a Championship 4 berth with a late dominant victory in the Contender Boats 300 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Saturday, October 22.

The 24-year-old Gragson from Las Vegas, Nevada, led six times for a race-high 127 of 200-scheduled laps and was initially on his way to claim a dominant victory with a large advantage when a caution with 13 laps remaining due to an on-track incident briefly stalled his run. Despite the caution, Gragson’s pit crew capitalized late by giving him the final fresh of sticker tires needed for a short run with the lead. During a five-lap dash to the finish, he executed at the start to fend off his fellow Playoff rivals to score his unprecedented eighth victory of the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series season.

Above all, Gragson became the second Playoff competitor to punch his ticket into the Championship 4 round at Phoenix Raceway in November alongside teammate Josh Berry, where he will contend for his first Xfinity Series championship.

With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Friday, Trevor Bayne secured his second pole position of the 2022 season after posting a pole-winning lap at 166.667 mph in 32.400 seconds. Joining him on the front row was Playoff competitor Noah Gragson, who posted the second-best qualifying lap at 165.731 mph in 32.583 seconds.

When the green flag waved and the race started, Bayne and Gragson dueled for the lead in Turn 1 and again in Turn 3 until Bayne managed to pull ahead and lead the first lap while the field behind jostled early for positions. As Bayne retained the top spot, Gragson was being challenged early for the runner-up spot by Ty Gibbs and Daniel Hemric while Sam Mayer was in fifth.

On the third lap, the first caution of the event flew when Jeb Burton made contact with JJ Yeley and sent Yeley up the track as he squeezed Riley Herbst into the outside wall in the backstretch.

During the following restart on the seventh lap, Bayne and Gragson dueled for the lead again until Bayne pulled ahead to retain the lead. Behind, Gragson was left to battle Gibbs for second place while Mayer, who was trying to overtake Hemric for fourth place, got loose entering Turn 3. Mayer’s minor slip-up, which nearly collected Hemric, allowed Hemric to retain fourth followed by Brandon Jones, Kyle Weatherman and AJ Allmendinger while Mayer fell back to eighth in front of Austin Hill.

Through the first 10 scheduled laps, Bayne was leading ahead of teammate Gibbs, Gragson, Brandon Jones and a hard-charging Weatherman while Hemric, Allmendinger, Mayer, Hill and Chandler Smith occupied the top 10. By then, Josh Berry, a Championship 4 finalist after winning last weekend’s event at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, was in 12th while teammate Justin Allgaier was back in 14th.

Thirteen laps later, Gragson battled and overtook Bayne to become the second different leader of the day. By then, Gibbs, Hill and Allmendinger were scored in the top five followed by Landon Cassill, Hemric, Weatherman, Allgaier and Berry while Mayer and Brandon Jones fell back to 11th and 12th. In addition, Sheldon Creed made an unscheduled pit stop under green after cutting a right-rear tire.

At the Lap 35 mark, Gragson retained the lead by more than four seconds over Gibbs while Cassill muscled his No. 10 Voyager Chevrolet Camaro into third place. Bayne, meanwhile, fell back to fourth in front of Hill and Allmendinger while Hemric, Mayer, Allgaier and Weatherman were running in the top 10.

Six laps later, the second caution of the event flew when Mason Massey had fallen off the pace in Turn 2 after getting into the wall. At the same time, CJ McLaughlin spun from the top to the bottom and below the apron through the backstretch as his car came to a stop. The incident was enough for the first stage scheduled on Lap 45 to conclude under caution as Gragson captured his 15th stage victory of the 2022 season. Cassill settled in second followed by Gibbs, Bayne, Allmendinger, Hill, Hemric, Mayer, Weatherman and Allgaier. By then, six of eight Playoff competitors were running in the top 10 while the remaining two which included Berry and Brandon Jones were scored in 11th and 12th, respectively.

Under the stage break, the leaders led by Gragson pitted for four fresh tires and fuel. Following the pit stops, Cassill emerged with the lead followed by Gibbs, Gragson and Hill. During the pit stops, Nick Sanchez, the 2022 ARCA Menards Series champion, missed his pit stall and had to cycle around the circuit for a second time for service.

The second stage started on Lap 50 as Cassill and Gragson occupied the front row. At the start and amid a brief stack-up towards the front, Gibbs muscled his No. 54 Monster Energy Toyota Supra into the lead until Gragson rocketed his No. 9 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet Camaro back into the lead through the backstretch and back to the frontstretch. Shortly after, a three-car battle for the lead intensified between Gragson, Gibbs and Hill while Allmendinger was in fourth ahead of Cassill, Mayer and a bevy of competitors vying for positions.

By Lap 55, Hill led a lap for himself and he retained the top spot ahead of Gragson and Gibbs while Allmendinger, Mayer, Cassill, Berry, Bayne, Allgaier and Hemric were running in the top 10. By then, all but one of eight Playoff competitors were running in the top 10 as Brandon Jones was mired in 14th.

Fifteen laps later, Hill retained the lead by a tenth of a second over Gragson followed by Allmendinger, Bayne and Gibbs while Allgaier, Mayer, Cassill, Hemric and Chandler Smith were running in the top 10. By then, Berry made an unscheduled pit stop under green after making contact with the outside wall.

Another lap later, Gragson reassumed the lead over Hill as Allmendinger started to close in on the two leaders. While Bayne and Gibbs stabilized themselves in the top five, a three-car battle for sixth place occurred between Cassill, Allgaier and Mayer. Not long after, Creed made another pit stop under green after getting into the wall and cutting a right-rear tire.

By Lap 80, Gragson was leading by more than a second over Allmendinger, who overtook Hill for the runner-up spot, while Bayne and Gibbs remained in the top five. A few laps later, Weatherman, who was having a strong run toward the front, pitted under green after making contact with the wall. Soon after, Ryan Sieg was off the pace while running in the access road with flat tires while Allgaier made a pit stop under green with a flat right-front tire.

When the second stage concluded on Lap 90, Gragson captured his 16th stage victory of the 2022 season and the second of the day. Allmendinger settled in second followed by Hill, Bayne, Mayer, Gibbs, Cassill, Hemric, Chandler Smith and Stefan Parsons. By then, five of eight Playoff competitors were scored in the top 10 while the remaining Playoff competitors that included Brandon Jones, Berry and Allgaier were scored in 11th, 19th and 24th, respectively.

Under the stage break, the leaders led by Gragson pitted and Gragson retained the lead after exiting pit road first and by a hair over Hill, Allmendinger, Bayne and Mayer.

With 104 laps remaining, the final stage started under green. At the start, Gragson and Hill dueled for the lead until Gragson cleared the field and pulled away through the backstretch followed by Bayne. During the following lap and as the field behind jostled for positions, Hill overtook Gragson through Turns 3 and 4 to take the lead while Bayne was running third place in front of a side-by-side battle between Mayer and Allmendinger. Brandon Jones soon joined the battle toward the front along with Gibbs, Hemric and Cassill.

At the halfway mark on Lap 100, Hill and Bayne battled dead even for the lead, with the latter returning to the lead, while Gragson, Allmendinger and Brandon Jones were running in the top five. Behind, Hemric, Gibbs, Mayer, Cassill and Berry scrambled within the top 10 while Chandler Smith, Herbst, Parsons, Sanchez and Parker Retzlaff were running in the top 15 ahead of Bayley Currey, Anthony Alfredo, Jeb Burton, Brennan Poole, Myatt Snider and Allgaier.

Ten laps later, Bayne was out in front by more than a second over Hill while Allmendinger, Gragson, Berry, Cassill, Gibbs, Brandon Jones, Hemric and Chandler Smith were scored in the top 10. By then, six of eight Playoff competitors were running in the top 10 while the remaining two that included Mayer and Allgaier were in 11th and 16th.

Another 15 laps later and with a series of spots being swapped towards the front, Gragson, who overtook Hill three laps earlier and was starting to reel in on Bayne for the lead, executed a bold move beneath Bayne entering the first turn to reassume the lead. Not long after taking the lead, Gragson extended his advantage to more than a second while Bayne was starting to be challenged by Allmendinger and Hill for the runner-up spot.

With less than 70 laps remaining, Allmendinger moved his way into the runner-up spot over Hill following a heated between Hill while Gragson continued to extend his advantage to more than four seconds. Behind, Berry was in fourth ahead of Bayne while Gibbs, Cassill, Hemric, Smith and Mayer were in the top 10.

Then with less than 65 laps remaining, Allgaier, who was running in 17th, pitted under green but endured a slow stop from his crew due to a jack issue.

With 60 laps remaining, pit stops under green commenced as Hill pitted followed by the leader Gragson, Bayne, Brandon Jones, Gibbs, Mayer and others. Following the pit stops, Bayne was penalized for speeding while entering pit road. Under the final 55 scheduled laps and with the cycle of green flag pit stops complete, Gragson cycled his way back into the lead followed by a hard-charging Hill while Allmendinger, Gibbs and Cassill were scored in the top five.

Five laps later, Gragson’s advantage decreased to a tenth of a second over Hill, who continued to close in on Gragson despite radioing concerns about a vibration to his No. 21 United Rentals Chevrolet Camaro. Another three laps later, Hill surrendered the runner-up spot to pit under green to have the vibration issue addressed as he dropped out of the lead lap category.

Back on the track and with 45 laps remaining, Gragson was leading by more than five seconds over runner-up Allmendinger and by more than nine seconds over third-place Berry while Cassill and Gibbs were in the top five.

Two laps later, Cassill, who was running towards the top five, pitted under green for four fresh tires and fuel while Gragson retained the lead by more than six seconds over Allmendinger.

With 30 laps remaining, Gragson stabilized his advantage to more than six seconds over Allmendinger while Berry, Hemric and Gibbs were scored in the top five. By then, seven of eight Playoff competitors were scored in the top 10 while the remaining Playoff competitor, Allgaier, was in 12th. In addition, 13 competitors were scored on the lead lap.

Down to the final 20 laps of the event and with a handful of competitors making contact against one another and towards the wall, Gragson extended his advantage to nearly eight seconds over Allmendinger while third-place Berry trailed by more than eight seconds. While Hemric and Gibbs remained in the top five, Chandler Smith was up in sixth while Mayer, Hill, Allgaier and Herbst were in the top 10.

Then with 13 laps remaining, the caution flew when Stefan Parsons spun in Turn 1 with damage to his entry. By then, Nick Sanchez had fallen off the pace below the apron with flat right-side tires after making contact with the wall earlier as his strong night towards the front was spoiled. Parsons’ incident erased Gragson’s advantage of more than eight seconds over teammate Berry.

Under caution, the leaders led by Gragson pitted and Gragson exited with the lead still in his possession followed by Allmendinger, Hemric, Gibbs and Hill.

Down to the final five laps of the event, the race restarted under green. At the start, Gragson launched away with the lead following a strong start while Allmendinger was left to fend off Gibbs for second place. Through the backstretch, however, Allmendinger and Gibbs gained ground on Gragson, who continued to lead as he returned to the frontstretch. As the laps dwindled, Gragson slightly extended his advantage to nearly half a second over Allmendinger while Gibbs kept Allmendinger close in front of him.

When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Gragson remained as the leader by half a second over Gibbs while Allmendinger was back in third. Having no late challenges mounting behind him, Gragson muscled his way back to the frontstretch under full power and streaked across the finish line for his unprecedented eighth victory of the 2022 season and to claim a second spot in the championship finale.

In addition, Gragson recorded his 13th career victory in the Xfinity Series and his first at Homestead after dominating the previous three Xfinity events in Miami before falling short of the victory. Gragson’s victory was also the 15th of the season for JR Motorsports, which marked the 73rd overall Xfinity victory for JRM, and the 23rd of the season for Chevrolet, which clinched the manufacturer’s title a week ago.

“I wanted this one so bad the last three years,” Gragson said on USA Network. “Words can’t describe how thankful I am for everybody at JR Motorsports. Unbelievable. Thank you, Bass Pro Shops. Man, I’m worn out. It takes a lot of focus to run the fence like that. Pit crew did a great job. Really grateful.”

Ty Gibbs posted his fourth runner-up result of the season and left Homestead with a 30-point advantage above the top-four cutline to transfer to the Championship 4 round while Allmendinger, who came into the event 16 points below the cutline, moved back into the cutline with a five-point advantage with his sixth third-place finish of this season.

“We were just battling our race car, I feel like, all day,” Gibbs said. “We made great adjustments and my guys never gave up. Thank you to my whole Monster Energy Toyota GR Supra No. 54 group. We’ll move on to Martinsville. I feel like that’s a place we were really fast earlier this year and probably had a shot to win at, so I’m excited to go back there. To come out with a P2 finish is, I feel like, pretty good. We’re plus 30 [in the Playoff standings], so I think that’s really strong.”

“[I’m] Really proud of everybody at Kaulig Racing,” Allmendinger said. “Our Action Industries Chevy was pretty damn good. It was probably still better than the driver. Overall, we made up a lot of points there and we at least have a shot down at Martinsville.”

Hemric and Mayer finished fourth and fifth while Bayne, Chandler Smith, Herbst, Hill and Allgaier, who rallied from an eventful run from the rear towards the front, completed the top 10 on the track.

“I’m glad [today’s] over,” Allgaier, who is five points below the cutline, said. “Our team, definitely, had some adversity tonight. The only saving grace, I think, was about a 70-lap run there. We were able to drive away from [Gragson] and keep on the lead lap or tail end of the lead lap. I felt like we definitely made good strides over the course of the day to get our BRANDT Foundation Camaro up where we needed to be. The jack [issue] hurt us the most. That green flag stop, just losing all that track position, and I just tried to push it as hard as I could to get back up there. Ultimately, it worked out. We got back on the lead lap and were able to score some points there. We’re below the cut. We’ll go [to Martinsville] and we can lay it all on the line. Five points [deficit] is nothing. We can go there and have a good weekend. We’ll lock our way into Phoenix.”

There were 13 lead changes for seven different leaders. The race featured four cautions for 24 laps.

Results.

1. Noah Gragson, 127 laps led, Stage 1 & 2 winner

2. Ty Gibbs, one lap led

3. AJ Allmendinger, one lap led

4. Daniel Hemric

5. Sam Mayer

6. Trevor Bayne, 46 laps led

7. Chandler Smith

8. Riley Herbst

9. Austin Hill, 19 laps led

10. Justin Allgaier

11. Josh Berry, three laps led

12. Landon Cassill, three laps led

13. Bayley Currey

14. Brennan Poole

15. Brandon Jones, one lap down

16. Parker Retzlaff, one lap down

17. Sheldon Creed, one lap down

18. Anthony Alfredo, one lap down

19. Jeb Burton, one lap down

20. Kyle Weatherman, two laps down

21. David Starr, two laps down

22. Myatt Snider, two laps down

23. Patrick Emerling, two laps down

24. Joe Graf Jr., two laps down

25. Nicholas Sanchez, two laps down

26. Jeremy Clements, three laps down

27. Kris Wright, four laps down

28. Julia Landauer, four laps down

29. Timmy Hill, five laps down

30. Josh Williams, five laps down

31. CJ McLaughlin, five laps down

32. Matt Mills, five laps down

33. Ryan Sieg, 10 laps down

34. Stefan Parsons – OUT, Accident

35. Kyle Sieg – OUT, Accident

36. BJ McLeod – OUT, Electrical

37. Mason Massey – OUT, Engine

38. JJ Yeley – OUT, Accident

*Bold indicates Playoff contenders

Playoff standings

1. Noah Gragson – Advanced

2. Josh Berry – Advanced

3. Ty Gibbs +30

4. AJ Allmendinger +5

5. Justin Allgaier -5

6. Austin Hill -7

7. Sam Mayer -28

8. Brandon Jones -38

Next on the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule is the series’ return to Martinsville Speedway, where the Championship 4 field will be determined. The event is scheduled to occur on Saturday, October 29, at 3 p.m. ET on NBC.

October 22, 2022
Weekend schedule for Homestead-Miami Speedway

NASCAR travels to Homestead-Miami Speedway this week as the Playoffs continue. Team Penske’s Joey Logano clinched his spot in the Cup Series Championship 4 Round with a win at Las Vegas last weekend.

JR Motorsports driver Josh Berry scored the victory in the Xfinity Series at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in the first race of the Xfinity Round of 8 and secured his place in the final four.

Saturday’s Camping World Truck Series race is the last event in the series Round of 8. ThorSport Racing’s Ty Majeski is the only contender who has earned a spot in the Championship 4 with a win at Bristol in September. Matt DiBenedetto, a non-playoff driver, won the second race in the Round of 8 at Talladega.

NASCAR Press Pass Live will be available throughout the weekend.

All times are Eastern.

Friday, Oct. 21

4 p.m.: Truck Series Practice (All Entries) No TV
4:30 p.m.: Truck Series Qualifying (Impound/Single Vehicle/1 Lap/All Entries) No TV
6:05 p.m.: Xfinity Series Practice (All Entries) USA/NBC Sports App
6:35 p.m.: Xfinity Series Qualifying (Impound/Single Vehicle/1 Lap/All Entries)
USA/NBC Sports App

Saturday, Oct. 22

10:05 a.m.: Cup Series Practice (Group A & B- MRN/NBC Sports App
10:50 a.m.: Cup Series Qualifying (Impound/Group A & B/Single Vehicle/1 Lap/2 Rounds)
MRN/SiriusXM/NBC Sports App

1 p.m.: Truck Series Baptist Health 200
Distance: 134 laps = 201 miles
Stage 1 ends on Lap 30, Stage 2 ends on Lap 60, Final Stage ends on Lap 134
FS1/MRN/SiriusXM
The Purse: $721,227

4:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series Contender Boats 300
Distance: 200 laps = 300 miles
Stage 1 ends on Lap 45, Stage 2 ends on Lap 90, Final Stage ends on Lap 200
USA/MRN/SiriusXM/ NBC Sports App
The Purse: $1,392,256

Sunday, Oct. 23

2:30 p.m.: Cup Series Dixie Vodka 400
Distance: 267 laps = 400.5 miles
Stage 1 ends on Lap 80, Stage 2 ends on Lap 165, Final Stage ends on Lap 267
NBC/MRN/ SiriusXM/NBC Sports App
The Purse: $7,342,738

October 19, 2022
Josh Berry wins at Las Vegas and advances to Championship 4

Josh Berry drove his No. 8 JR Motorsports Chevrolet to victory lane Saturday evening at Las Vegas Motor Speedway to claim his fifth Xfinity Series career win and a spot in the Championship 4.

He also led a decisive 65 laps, including the final 34, to give Chevrolet its 500th win in the series to clinch the Manufacturer Championship.

Berry described the day as, “just really, really, really, special. You know when I started on this journey and found out I was gonna run full-time this year we all sat down at the beginning of the year and said that our goal was to make the Championship 4. We felt like we were capable of that. We knew what we could do. We knew there would be bumps along the road in my first full season but we believed in our hearts that we could be at Phoenix.

His teammates, Noah Gragson and Justin Allgaier finished second and third, respectively, giving JR Motorsports a 1-2-3 sweep at Las Vegas.

Joe Gibbs Racing’s Ty Gibbs and Trevor Bayne finished fourth and fifth with Austin Hill, Sam Mayer, Daniel Hemric, Brandon Jones and Anthony Alfredo rounding out the top 10.

Gragson leaves Las Vegas leading the standings by 19 points over Gibbs and with a 29-point advantage over Allgaier.

Regular season champion AJ Allmendinger started on the pole and led seven laps, finishing seventh in Stage 1 and 10th in Stage 2. But, after experiencing a vibration caused by two loose tires, he had to make a green flag pit stop, putting him a lap down. Allmendinger finished 22nd, the lowest of the playoff contenders.

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver Hailie Deegan finished 13th, the best finish ever by a woman in an Xfinity Series debut.

After the race, Deegan said, “I’m pretty excited right now; the guys gave me an amazing car.”

When asked if we might see her competing in more Xfinity Series races, she said, “I would love to be. If anyone’s out there that wants to pay the bills I’d be more than happy to run some more Xfinity races.”

The Xfinity Series Playoffs continue next week at Homestead-Miami Speedway at 4:30 ET Saturday on the USA Network with radio coverage by MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

October 15, 2022
Weekend schedule for Las Vegas playoff race

The NASCAR Cup Series and Xfinity Series travel to Las Vegas Motor Speedway this week as the Playoffs continue.

Chase Elliott, Joey Logano, Ross Chastain, Christopher Bell, Ryan Blaney, William Byron, Denny Hamlin and Chase Briscoe comprise the eight eligible Cup Series drivers who will be competing for the opportunity to advance and race for the 2022 championship trophy.

The Xfinity Series drivers also enter the Round of 8 at Las Vegas with Noah Gragson, AJ Allmendinger, Ty Gibbs, Justin Allgaier, Josh Berry, Austin Hill, Brandon Jones and Sam Mayer fighting for the final four spots in the championship race at Phoenix Raceway in November.

All times are Eastern.

Friday, Oct. 14

8:35 p.m.: Xfinity Series Practice (All Entries) USA
9:05 P.M.: Xfinity Series Qualifying (Impound) (Single Vehicle/1 Lap/All Entries) USA
10:15 p.m.: ARCA Menards Series West Star Nursery 150 (Bullring) – No TV

Saturday, Oct. 15

12:05 p.m.: Cup Series Practice (Group A & B) USA
12:50 p.m.: Cup Series Qualifying (Impound) (Group A & B) (Single Vehicle, 1 Lap, 2 Rounds) USA
3:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series Alsco Uniforms 302
Stages end on Laps 45/90/201
Distance: 301.5 Miles
NBC/PRN/SiriusXM
The Purse: $1,272,611

Sunday, Oct. 16

2:30 p.m.: Cup Series South Point 400
Stages end on Laps 80/165/267
Distance: 400.5 Miles
NBC/PRN/SiriusXM
The Purse: $7,352,089

October 12, 2022
Allmendinger claims fourth consecutive Charlotte Roval Xfinity Series win

The road course dominance of AJ Allmendinger continued under a sunny afternoon in Concord, North Carolina, after he claimed a late dominant victory in the fifth annual Drive for the Cure 250 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course on Saturday, October 8. It was his fourth consecutive Xfinity Series win at the Charlotte Roval as the field for the Playoff’s Round of 8 was set.

The 40-year-old Allmendinger from Los Gatos, California, led two times for a race-high 25 of 72 over-scheduled laps. Allmendinger capitalized on two overtime attempts while also dealing with power steering issues to overtake and hold off Ty Gibbs to claim his historic fourth consecutive Xfinity Series victory at the Roval. This also marked his second consecutive win following a last-lap photo-finish victory over Sam Mayer at Talladega Superspeedway. Allmendinger was one of eight competitors to officially transfer to the Playoff’s Round of 8.

With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Saturday, Allmendinger claimed his fourth pole position of the 2022 season after posting a 102.235 mph lap in 81.694 seconds. Joining him on the front row was Playoff competitor Ty Gibbs, who posted the second-best qualifying lap at 102.144 mph in 81.767 seconds.

Prior to the event, Scott Heckert, Ryan Vargas and Kris Wright dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments made to their respective cars along with Playoff competitor Noah Gragson, who started the event in a backup car.

When the green flag waved and the race started, Allmendinger battled and fended off Gibbs to lead the field through the first two turns and approaching the infield road course turns. As the field jostled for positions through the infield and back to the oval turns, Allmendinger remained out in front over Gibbs, Daniel Hemric, Justin Allgaier and Sheldon Creed. Through the backstretch chicane and back to the frontstretch chicane, Allmendinger retained the top spot by a decent advantage as he navigated his way back to the start/finish line and led the first lap.

By the second lap, Allmendinger was out in front by seven-tenths of a second over Gibbs followed by Hemric, Allgaier and Creed while Sam Mayer, Landon Cassill, Austin Hill, Jeremy Clements and Sage Karam were in the top 10.

Then on the third lap, early trouble struck for Playoff competitor Daniel Hemric, who went off the track and hit the wall in Turn 5 and damaged the left side of his No. 11 AG1 Chevrolet Camaro. Following an unscheduled pit stop for repairs, the reigning Xfinity Series champion returned to the track but plummeted to the bottom of the leaderboard.

Through the first five scheduled laps, Allmendinger was leading by nearly one-and-a-half seconds over Gibbs while Allgaier, Creed, Mayer, Cassill, Hill, Clements, Sage Karam and Riley Herbst were running in the top 10. By then, six of 12 Playoff competitors were running in the top 10 as Josh Berry was in 12th, Brandon Jones was scored in 16th, Ryan Sieg was running behind Jones in 17th, Gragson was in 20th and Hemric was mired back in 38th, dead last.

Four laps later, the first caution of the event flew when Kris Wright wrecked in the first turn. Wright’s incident occurred two laps earlier after JJ Yeley spun all by himself in Turn 7. During the caution period, some of the drivers, including Gragson, pitted while the rest led by Allmendinger remained on the track.

When the race proceeded under green on Lap 11, Allmendinger retained the lead ahead of Gibbs and the rest of the field.

In the closing laps of the second stage, Marco Andretti, who was making his NASCAR debut in Big Machine Racing’s No. 48 Chevrolet Camaro, spun entering the backstretch chicane. In addition, Alex Labbe went off the course and got a sign stuck to his front end while Allgaier and Cassill spun together in Turn 4. In the midst of the on-track carnage, Creed, Ryan Sieg, Brandon Jones, Labbe, Kaz Grala and Hemric pitted while Allmendinger retained the lead.

When the first stage concluded on Lap 20, Allmendinger claimed his fourth stage victory of the 2022 season. Gibbs settled in second while Mayer, Hill, Herbst, Allgaier, Davison, Cassill, Berry and Karam were scored in the top 10.

Under the stage break, a majority of the field led by Allmendinger pitted while the rest including Creed, Gragson, Karam, Brandon Jones, Alex Labbe, Ryan Sieg, Hemric, Grala, Josh Williams, Preston Pardus and Brandon Brown remained on the track. During the pit stops, Hill had the hood of his car up due to a power steering issue while Patrick Gallagher was penalized for speeding on pit road.

The second stage started on Lap 22 as Karam and Gragson occupied the front row. At the start, Gragson used the outside lane to his advantage as he stormed to the lead entering the first turn followed by Creed while Karam was left to battle Brandon Jones for third place in front of the field.

At the Lap 30 mark, Creed was leading ahead of Gibbs, Brandon Jones, Gragson and Karam while Hemric, Herbst, Labbe, Allmendinger and Mayer were running in the top 10. By then, six of 12 Playoff competitors were running in the top 10 as Allgaier was in 11th, Berry was in 13th, Clements was running in 15th, Sieg was back in 17th and Hill was mired back in 32nd. In the midst of the competition toward the front, Bayley Currey spun Brad Perez in Turn 8 as Andy Lally sustained damage from getting into Currey.

At the halfway mark between Laps 33 and 34, Creed continued to lead by more than three seconds over Gibbs while Brandon Jones, Gragson and Karam remained in the top five. By then, Herbst carved his way up to sixth followed by Allmendinger, Mayer, Hemric and Allgaier while Labbe, Davison, Berry, Alfredo and Clements occupied the top 15.

In the closing laps of the second stage, some of the drivers, including Karam, Labbe, Cassill, Stefan Parsons, Clements, Jeb Burton, Josh Bilicki, Allmendinger, Gragson and Gibbs, along with the leader, Creed, pitted under green while Brandon Jones cycled his way into the lead.

When the second stage concluded on Lap 40, Brandon Jones claimed his second stage victory of the 2022 season. Herbst settled in second while Mayer, Allgaier, Davison, Hemric, Berry, Alfredo, Creed and Gibbs were scored in the top 10. By then, six of 12 Playoff competitors were scored in the top 10 while Sieg, Gragson, Allmendinger, Clements and Hill were mired in 12th, 17th, 18th, 26th and 30th, respectively. During the stage’s conclusion, Myatt Snider limped his No. 31 TaxSlayer Chevrolet Camaro back to pit road with a flat left-rear tire.

Under the stage break, some of the drivers, led by Brandon Jones, pitted, while the rest led by Herbst remained on the track.

With 24 laps remaining, the final stage started with Creed and Gibbs on the front row. At the start, Creed pulled ahead with the lead through the first turn while Gibbs fended off Allmendinger, Gragson and Karam to remain in second through the infield turns. As the field re-entered the oval turns and approached the backstretch chicane, Gibbs started to close in on Creed as he launched his bid for the lead while Allmendinger kept both within his sights.

During the following lap, Gibbs moved into the lead over Creed entering the backstretch chicane while Allmendinger remained in third as he started to challenge Creed for the runner-up spot. Not long after, the caution flag flew again when Jeb Burton spun in Turn 6 after getting hit by teammate Anthony Alfredo before he was hit by Marco Andretti, whose NASCAR debut came to an end late in the event.

When the race restarted under green with 19 laps remaining, Gibbs fended off Creed and a daring three-wide attempt from Allmendinger to lead the field through the infield turns and back to the oval turns. Shortly after, the caution flew when Preston Pardus was hit by Kaz Grala, who spun and got his car stalled backward in the backstretch chicane. In the midst of the carnage, Herbst, who was running toward the top 10, sustained significant damage to the left-rear area of his No. 98 Monster Energy Ford Mustang after a stack-up resulted in Davison hitting Herbst.

During the following restart with 15 laps remaining, Gibbs jumped ahead and retained the lead while Allmendinger and Creed briefly battled for second as Allmendinger prevailed while Karam and Gragson were in the top five ahead of the field. While the field jostled for positions through the infield turns and the backstretch chicane, Gibbs stabilized his advantage to seven-tenths of a second over Allmendinger while third-place Creed trailed by more than a second.

A lap later, Herbst spun while exiting the backstretch chicane in 10th place. By then, Brad Perez hit the wall towards the backstretch while Joe Graf Jr. spun in Turn 6. Despite the incidents, the race remained under green flag conditions.

With 12 laps remaining, however, the caution returned due to debris on the course after Herbst lost a flat left-rear tire carcass and sustained more damage to the left-rear area of his car. At the same time, Allgaier had a sign stuck to the front of his car.

Three laps later, the race proceeded under green. At the start, Gibbs retained the lead with a strong start while Allmendinger battled and fended off Creed to retain the runner-up spot ahead of the field. Behind, a spin by Grala ignited a stack-up with cars wrecking in Turn 2 that involved Herbst, Patrick Gallagher, Ryan Vargas, Timmy Hill, Josh Bilicki and Brad Perez. Shortly after, Creed spun in Turn 7 after getting hit by Karam before the caution flew amid the carnage.

Down to the final six laps of the event, the event restarted under green. At the start, Gibbs launched ahead with another strong start while Allmendinger fended off Karam for second place. Behind, teammates Gragson and Allgaier battled for fourth in front of Parsons, Brandon Jones and Labbe as the field scrambled for late positions through the infield turns and back to the oval turns.

When the field returned to the frontstretch for the final five mark, Gibbs continued to lead by half a second over Allmendinger while Karam, Gragson and Allgaier remained in the top five. By then, Parsons remained in sixth ahead of Davison, Brandon Jones, Labbe and Berry while Mayer, Hemric, Kvyat, Casasill and Sieg were in the top 15.

Then with four laps remaining, Karam spun from third and backed his car into the wall. As Karam continued and limped his car back to pit road, the race remained under green and Gibbs retained the lead ahead of Allmendinger. Karam’s incident allowed Gragson, Allgaier and Parsons to move up the leaderboard.

Two laps later, the caution flew due to debris being reported on the track and the event was sent into overtime. By then, Gibbs had extended his advantage to a second over Allmendinger.

At the start of the first overtime attempt, Gibbs and Allmendinger dueled for the lead entering the first turn. They rubbed fenders through the first two turns as Allmendinger muscled into the lead entering the third turn. Through the infield turns, Allmendinger and Gibbs pulled away from the field, with Allmendinger closing in on Gibbs. It did not take long, however, for the caution to fly again and send the event into a second overtime attempt when Herbst spun, slapped the wall between Turns 4 and 5 and picked up a billboard sign on the course. Herbst eventually retired with a wrecked race car.

During the start of the second overtime attempt, Allmendinger and Gibbs dueled for the lead entering the first turn before Allmendinger pulled ahead and came out on top. Behind, Gibbs and Gragson battled for second while James Davison moved up to fourth in front of Allgaier. While Parsons spun in Turn 7, the field scattered to avoid hitting him as the race proceeded under green.

When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Allmendinger remained the leader by more than a second over Gibbs and Gragson. While Gibbs tried to close in on Allmendinger through the infield turns, the oval turns and the backstretch chicane, Allmendinger had enough power to fend off and beat Gibbs to the finish line by half a second.

In addition to claiming his fourth consecutive victory at the Roval along with his second win in recent weeks, Allmendinger recorded his 15th career victory in the Xfinity Series, his 10th on a road course venue and his fifth of the 2022 season. The victory was also the 19th overall in the Xfinity circuit for Kaulig Racing.

“It’s unbelievable,” Allmendinger said on NBC. “All the credit goes to all the men and women at Kaulig Racing. This Nutrien Ag Solutions Chevy was pretty good, but Ty [Gibbs] was really good there at the end. I didn’t know if I was gonna be able to get him. I knew I could just get to one restart on the outside of him, at least, we had a chance. I was whining pretty bad there. I was frustrated, didn’t think we had a shot, but I’m always gonna put it on my back when it’s time to go. We got that one. We stole that one!”

Gibbs settled in second place for the third time this season as he secured his spot in the Playoff’s Round of 8. Gragson came home in third place while James Davison and Justin Allgaier finished in the top five. Alex Labbe finished sixth followed by Brandon Jones, who secured the eighth and final transfer spot to the Round of 8 by two points over Ryan Sieg. Berry, Sieg and Landon Cassill completed the top 10 on the track. Notably, Playoff competitors Mayer, Clements, Hemric and Hill ended up 11th, 14th, 17th and 29th, respectively, while Herbst, who was unable to finish, was scored in 32nd.

AJ Allmendinger, Noah Gragson, Ty Gibbs, Josh Berry, Justin Allgaier, Sam Mayer, Austin Hill and Brandon Jones have transferred to the Round of 8 in the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs and will continue in their pursuit of this year’s championship. Ryan Sieg, Daniel Hemric, Riley Herbst and Jeremy Clements have been eliminated from title contention. With Hemric, the reigning Xfinity Series champion, being among one of four competitors eliminated from Playoff contention, the 2022 Xfinity Series will be primed to feature a new champion at season’s conclusion.

There were eight lead changes for six different leaders. The race featured nine cautions for 15 laps.

Results.

1. AJ Allmendinger, 25 laps led, Stage 1 winner

2. Ty Gibbs, 24 laps led

3. Noah Gragson, one lap led

4. James Davison

5. Justin Allgaier

6. Alex Labbe

7. Brandon Jones, three laps led, Stage 2 winner

8. Josh Berry

9. Ryan Sieg

10. Landon Cassill

11. Sam Mayer

12. Anthony Alfredo

13. Myatt Snider

14. Jeremy Clements

15. Daniil Kvyat

16. Sheldon Creed, 18 laps led

17. Daniel Hemric

18. Jeb Burton

19. JJ Yeley

20. Brandon Brown

21. Preston Pardus

22. Scott Heckert

23. Brad Perez

24. Ryan Vargas

25. Stefan Parsons

26. Bayley Currey

27. Joe Graf Jr.

28. Timmy Hill

29. Austin Hill, two laps down

30. Sage Karam, two laps down

31. Andy Lally, three laps down

32. Riley Herbst – OUT, Accident, one lap led

33. Patrick Gallagher – OUT, Engine

34. Josh Bilicki, six laps down

35. Kaz Grala – OUT, Accident

36. Marco Andretti – OUT, Accident

37. Josh Williams – OUT, Track bar

38. Kris Wright – OUT, Accident

*Bold indicates Playoff contenders

Playoff standings

1. AJ Allmendinger – Advanced

2. Noah Gragson – Advanced

3. Ty Gibbs – Advanced

4. Josh Berry – Advanced

5. Justin Allgaier – Advanced

6. Sam Mayer – Advanced

7. Austin Hill – Advanced

8. Brandon Jones – Advanced

9. Ryan Sieg – Eliminated

10. Daniel Hemric – Eliminated

11. Riley Herbst – Eliminated

12. Jeremy Clements – Eliminated

The Round of 8 in the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs is set to occur next Saturday, October 15, at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The event is scheduled to start at 3 p.m. ET on NBC.

October 8, 2022
Weekend schedule for Charlotte playoff race

The NASCAR Cup Series and Xfinity Series head to Charlotte Motor Speedway this weekend for the elimination races in the Round of 12.

When all is said and done, four competitors will be eliminated from championship contention, leaving eight eligible drivers as the Cup Series Playoffs continue. Chase Elliott’s win at Talladega Superspeedway on Sunday guaranteed him a spot in the next round as the field is cut from 12 drivers to 8.

Noah Gragson and AJ Allmendinger, by virtue of wins, have clinched a spot in the Xfinity Series Round of 8 as the remaining 10 drivers compete to advance to the next round.

The Camping World Truck Series is off for the next two weeks.

Press Pass Live will be available after each race.

All times are Eastern.

Saturday, October 8

10 a.m.: Xfinity Series Practice – All Entries – NBC Sports Streaming App
10:30 a.m.: Xfinity Series Qualifying (Impound) (Group A & B/ Multi-Vehicle/Two Rounds – NBC Sports Streaming App
12 noon.: Cup Series Practice (Group A & B) – USA coverage begins at 12:30, NBC Sports Streaming App
1 p.m.: Cup Series Qualifying (Impound) Group A & B/Multi-Vehicle/Two Rounds – USA/NBC Sports Streaming App

3 p.m.: Xfinity Series Drive for the Cure 250 presented by BlueCross BlueShield of North Carolina
Distance: 155.44 miles (67 Laps)
Stages 20/40/67 Laps
NBC/Peacock/PRN/SiriusXM
The Purse: $1,319,119

Sunday, October 9

2 p.m.: Cup Series Bank of America Roval 400
Distance: 252.88 miles (109 Laps)
Stages 25/50/109 Laps
NBC/PRN/SiriusXM/NBC Sports Streaming App
The Purse: $7,262,080

October 5, 2022
Allmendinger claims photo finish win at Talladega, advances to Playoff’s Round of 8

AJ Allmendinger saved his absolute best for the last and kept his championship hopes for this season alive after beating Sam Mayer in a photo finish to win the Sparks 300 at Talladega Superspeedway on Saturday, October 1.

The 40-year-old Allmendinger from Los Gatos, California, led three times for a total of three of 113-scheduled laps. Prior to the finish, he was running in second place behind pole-sitter Austin Hill under the final 10 laps. Following a shuffle amongst the front-runners, he made his way to the front of the field with two laps remaining before being overtaken by Sam Mayer prior to the final lap as he was shuffled back to third. Allmendinger then overtook Sieg through the backstretch and tucked in behind Mayer for the following two turns until he seized an opportunity entering the frontstretch to pull a slingshot move on Mayer with drafting help from teammate Landon Cassill. From there, Allmendinger was able to surge ahead and edge Mayer by a nose to claim his fourth checkered flag of the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series and a spot to the Playoff’s Round of 8.

With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Friday, Playoff contender Austin Hill claimed his first career pole position after posting a pole-winning lap at 182.036 mph in 52.605 seconds. Joining him on the front row was Playoff contender Ty Gibbs, who posted the second-best qualifying lap at 181.981 mph in 52.621 seconds.

Prior to the event, names like Jesse Iwuji, Caesar Bacarella, Jeremy Clements, BJ McLeod, Mason Massey and Noah Gragson dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments to their respective cars. Joey Gase also dropped to the rear of the field due to an engine change along with Bayley Currey, Timmy Hill and Howie Disavino III, all of whom missed driver introductions.

When the green flag waved and the race started, Hill battled Allmendinger dead even for the lead, but managed to retain the top spot and pull away from the field entering Turns 3 and 4 as he proceeded to lead the first lap with drafting help from teammate Sheldon Creed.

During the third lap, the first caution of the event flew when Ty Gibbs got bumped off the front nose of Justin Allgaier’s No. 7 BRANDT Chevrolet Camaro as his No. 54 Sport Clips Toyota Supra slipped sideways before spinning across the backstretch. Despite making light contact with the outside wall, Gibbs managed to continue as he was dodged by the field. Under the caution period, names like Gragson, Sam Mayer, Ryan Vargas, Clements and Caesar Bacarella pitted while the rest led by Hill remained on the track.

When the race restarted under green on the sixth lap, Hill retained the lead followed by teammate Creed, Allgaier, Brandon Jones and the field. Not long after, Allgaier launched a bid for the lead on the outside lane before rocketing to the top on the eighth lap. By then, he had drafting help from AJ Allmendinger and a number of competitors running on the outside lane while Hill attempted to fight back on the inside lane.

Through the first 10 scheduled laps, Allgaier was leading ahead of Allmendinger, Hill, Daniel Hemric and Trevor Bayne while the field behind fanned out to three tight-packed lanes.

By Lap 15, Hill, who reassumed the lead a lap prior, was out in front followed by teammate Creed and Bayne while Anthony Alfredo, Myatt Snider, Brandon Jones, Allmendinger, Gragson, Riley Herbst and Hemric were in the top 10. In addition, 10 of the 12 Playoff contenders were running within the top 20 with Sam Mayer running in 21st and Jeremy Clements mired back in 25th.

Nearing the first stage’s conclusion on Lap 20, Hill continued to lead as he was out in front of a long line of competitors running towards the outside lane. Creed settled in second followed by Alfredo, Allmendinger, Hemric, Allgaier, Brandon Brown, JJ Yeley, Brandon Jones and Ryan Sieg while Bayne, Snider, Derek Griffith, Gibbs, Gragson, Jeb Burton, Parker Kligerman, Herbst, Berry and Mayer were in the top 20.

Then with two laps remaining in the first stage, a number of competitors led by Allmendinger dipped to the bottom lane in an attempt to overthrow Hill, but Hill also moved below the bottom lane as he retained the lead.

When the first stage concluded on Lap 25, Hill captured his second stage victory of the 2022 season. Teammate Creed settled in second followed by Hemric, Brandon Jones, Bayne, Allmendinger, Allgaier, Gibbs, Brown and Mayer. By then, seven of 12 Playoff contenders were scored in the top 10 while Herbst, Ryan Sieg, Josh Berry, Gragson and Clements were running within the top 22.

Under the stage break, some led by Hill pitted while others that included Currey, Timmy Hill, Howie Disavino III, Joey Gase, Ryan Vargas, David Starr, Joe Graaf Jr., Iwuji, McLod and Caesar Bacarella remained on the track. All the competitors who remained on the track under caution eventually pitted prior to the restart, giving Hill back the lead.

The second stage started on Lap 30 as Hill and Bayne occupied the front row. At the start, Hill retained the lead on the inside lane before Bayne assumed the top spot on the outside lane with drafting help from teammate Brandon Jones, Mayer and a bevy of competitors. As Bayne continued to lead on the outside lane, Hill remained as the lead competitor on the inside lane followed by teammate Creed.

Ten laps later, Bayne retained the lead followed by teammate Brandon Jones while Creed emerged as the first competitor on the inside lane while launching his bid for the lead followed by Brown. By then, the field started to fan out to three tight-packed lanes.

Another five laps later, Hill, who made a bold move beneath Bayne through the frontstretch to reassume the lead three laps earlier, was out in front followed by Alfredo and Brown while Bayne, Mayer and Sieg were running three wide while battling for fourth in front of the pack.

When the second stage concluded on Lap 50, Hill, who navigated his way through both lanes while also fending off a late surge from Allgaier, captured his third stage victory of the 2022 season and second of the day. Allgaier settled in second followed by Allmendinger, Bayne, Jeb Burton, Mayer, Brown, Brandon Jones, Sieg and Berry. By then, seven of 12 Playoff were scored in the top 10 while Gibbs, Herbst, Gragson, Hemric and Clements were running in 11th, 12th, 14t, 23rd and 31st, respectively.

Under the stage break, the leaders led by Hill returned to pit road for service while names like Currey, Joey Gaase, Jeffrey Earnhardt, David Starr, Joe Graf Jr., Iwuji, Caesar Bacarella, Disavino, Timmy Hill, Ryan Vargas, McLeod and Mike Harmon remained on the track. All eventually pitted prior to the restart, giving Bayne the lead followed by Mayer, Gragson, Brandon Jones and Gibbs.

With 58 laps remaining, the final stage started. At the start, Bayne and Gragson dueled for the lead before Gragson muscled his way into the lead while Bayne settled in second in front of teammates Brandon Jones and Gibbs. A lap later and with the field fanning out to three tight-packed lanes, Ryan Sieg emerged with the lead followed by a fast-charging Allmendinger and Hill.

With 50 laps remaining, Sieg was the leader of the race and ahead of a long line of competitors running towards the outside wall followed by Allmendinger, Hill, Brandon Jones and Gragson while Gibbs, Herbst, Landon Cassill, Snider and Jeb Burton were in the top 10.

Nearing the final 45 laps of the event, green flag pit stops commenced as teammates Jeb Burton and Anthony Alfredo pitted before another wave of competitors, including Gragson, pitted, mainly for fuel. During the pit stops, Myatt Snider turned across the front nose of Blaine Perkins while trying to enter his pit stall as Snider ended up looping his car backwards inside his pit stall.

With 40 laps remaining, Currey, who was one of 11 competitors who had yet to pit, was leading while Hill, the first competitor who pitted, led a bevy competitors in 12th place as he tried to close in on the lead group.

Eight laps later, Hill reassumed the lead when the rest of the competitors who had yet to pit led by Currey pitted. By then, Hill led a 14-car breakaway at the front followed by Allmendinger, Gragson, Cassill, Mayer, Kligerman, Creed, Sieg, Herbst, Berry, Gibbs, Bayne, Brandon Jones and Hemric. Behind, the next six competitors trailed by more than four seconds with Jeb Burton in 15th ahead of Allgaier, Alfredo, Derek Griffith, Yeley and Brandon Brown. With all but one of 12 Playoff competitors running within the top 20, Clements was the lone Playoff contender running outside of the top 20 in 25th.

With 25 laps remaining, Hill retained the lead ahead of Allmendinger, Gragson, Cassill and Mayer while the top-14 competitors remained four seconds ahead of the 15th-place competitor Jeb Burton. In addition, the top-19 competitors were ahead by nearly 23 seconds over the 20th-place competitor Blaine Perkins.

Five laps later and down to the final 20 laps of the event, Hill continued to lead ahead of Allmendinger, Gragson, Cassill and Mayer while Kligerman, Creed, Sieg, Herbst, Berry, Gibbs, Bayne, Brandon Jones and Hemric remained within the 14-car lead pack.

With 10 laps remaining, Hill remained as the leader ahead of the 14-car lead pack followed by Allmendinger, Gragson, Cassill, Mayer, Kligerman, Creed, Sieg, Herbst, Berry, Gibbs, Bayne, Brandon Jones and Hemric.

Then with six laps remaining, Mayer was the first competitor to fan out and start a second lane followed by Sieg and others as they launched a bid for the lead on Hill, who remained on the inside lane. During the following lap, Gragson made a move on the outside lane before he was blocked by Hill through the frontstretch. This then caused the field to fan out to three lanes as Hill was shoved out of the lead draft while Mayer and Allmendinger moved up and battled dead even for the lead ahead of the pack.

With two laps remaining, Allmendinger was out in front with drafting help from teammate Cassill while Mayer fought back on the outside lane with drafting help from Sieg. Through the backstretch, Mayer gained a strong run as he cleared the field and assume the lead with both lanes to his control. While Snider spun behind the leaders in the backstretch, the race remainder under green flag conditions.

When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Mayer remained as the leader ahead of Sieg, Allmendinger, Cassill and the pack. He continued to lead through three turns until he started to pull away from the pack. This allowed the pack led by Allmendinger and Sieg to gain a momentum and close back in on Mayer entering the frontstretch. Then, Allmendinger, who had teammate Cassill behind him, made his move to the outside of Mayer. With the momentum on his side, Allmendinger was able to beat Mayer by 0.015 seconds to steal the victory.

As a result, Allmendinger achieved his fourth Xfinity Series victory of the season, the 14th of his career and his first on a superspeedway venue. The victory awarded Allmendinger and his No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet Camaro team a one-way ticket to the Round of 8 in the 2022 Xfinity Series Playoffs, where he joins Noah Gragson as the only competitors to be guaranteed a spot for the next Playoff round. It also marks the seventh Xfinity victory for Kaulig Racing on a superspeedway venue (Daytona International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway).

Photo by Chad Wells for SpeedwayMedia.com.

“I still hate [restrictor plate racing]!” Allmendinger exclaimed on USA Network. “Gosh, we’ve been so close to winning one and I feel like I keep giving them away. I’m still learning, trying to know what too big of a lead is, but honestly, all the credit to [teammate] Landon Cassill. He kept shoving me. He stuck with me. That’s what’s great about Kaulig Racing. When you got teammates like Landon and Daniel [Hemric], that you know no matter where you go, they’re gonna go with you. [It] Makes it a little bit easier. [Cassill]’s gonna share [the win] with me, but I wish we could both be the winner because he deserves it more than I do. Man, I just wanted to win a superspeedway [event]. Finally got it.”

Mayer, who came within inches of claiming his first Xfinity career victory, settled in a career-best second place for his 10th top-five finish of the season. With the result, Mayer, who came into Talladega a single point above the top-eight cutline, leaves Talladega with a 13-point advantage above the cutline as he is in seventh place in the Playoff standings.

“This is my first time getting to the end of a speedway race, coming to the checkered [flag],” Mayer said. “It was a good first experience, I guess. [I will] Take a top five [finish] at a place like this any day. Going into today, we were just like get some stage points and hopefully, survive to the end. Obviously, we survived at the end and we did everything right. We were just three feet shy…I’m looking forward to [the Charlotte Roval]. I’m just happy to get through this one, but our Accelerate Chevrolet Camaro probably should be in Victory Lane right now.”

Cassill came home in third place followed by Ryan Sieg and Josh Berry. Kligerman, Gibbs, Hemric, Brandon Jones and Gragson completed the top 10 on the track. Notably, eight of 12 Playoff competitors finished in the top 10 on the track while Herbst, Hill, Allgaier and Clements finished 11th, 14th, 15th and 20th, respectively.

There were 20 lead changes for 11 different leaders. The race featured three cautions for 11 laps. All 38 starters finished the event while 23 finished on the lead lap.

The 2022 Sparks 300 event marks the third and final time the fall Xfinity Talladega event will occur, with the series’ scaling back to competing at Talladega once annually in 2023.

Results.

1. AJ Allmendinger, three laps led

2. Sam Mayer, three laps led

3. Landon Cassill

4. Ryan Sieg, 11 laps led

5. Josh Berry

6. Parker Kligerman

7. Ty Gibbs

8. Daniel Hemric

9. Brandon Jones, one lap led

10. Noah Gragson, one lap led

11. Riley Herbst

12. Sheldon Creed, two laps led

13. Trevor Bayne, 13 laps led

14. Austin Hill, 60 laps led, Stage 1 & 2 winner

15. Justin Allgaier, six laps led

16. Anthony Alfredo

17. Jeb Burton

18. JJ Yeley

19. Josh Williams

20. Jeremy Clements

21. Joey Gase

22. Joe Garaf Jr.

23. Derek Griffith

24. Bayley Currey, one lap down, 12 laps led

25. David Starr, one lap down

26. BJ McLeod, one lap down

27. Timmy Hill, one lap down, one lap led

28. Jesse Iwuji, one lap down

29. CJ McLaughlin, one lap down

30. Ryan Vargas, one lap down

31. Caesar Bacarella, one lap down

32. Howie Disavino III, one lap down

33. Brandon Brown, one lap down

34. Mike Harmon, two laps down

35. Myatt Snider, two laps down

36. Blaine Perkins, three laps down

37. Jeffrey Earnhardt, four laps down

38. Mason Massey, 18 laps down

*Bold indicates Playoff contenders

Playoff standings

1. Noah Gragson – Advanced

2. AJ Allmendinger – Advanced

3. Ty Gibbs +49

4. Austin Hill +43

5. Josh Berry +27

6. Justin Allgaier +25

7. Sam Mayer +12

8. Ryan Sieg +6

9. Daniel Hemric -6

10. Riley Herbst -10

11. Brandon Jones -10

12. Jeremy Clements -47

The 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs will continue next weekend at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course for a 250-mile feature and where the first round of eliminations will occur. The event is scheduled to occur on Saturday, October 8, at 3 p.m. ET on NBC.

October 1, 2022

Weekend schedule for Talladega Playoff race

NASCAR travels to Talladega Superspeedway for what may be the most unpredictable racing of the Playoffs. After four races in the Cup Series postseason, none of the eligible drivers have been to victory lane.

There are only two more opportunities to advance in the Cup Series Playoffs with the upcoming race at Talladega and next week at Charlotte Motor Speedway. So far, none of the drivers have clinched a spot in the next 8-driver round.

Five of the playoff drivers, however, have previously won at Talladega. They include Joey Logano (3), Ryan Blaney (2), Denny Hamlin (2), Ross Chastain (1) and Chase Elliott (1).

Talladega will mark the second race of the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs Round of 12. Noah Gragson secured his spot in the Round of 8 last week with the win at Texas Motor Speedway.

Gragson has been impressive this season with seven trips to victory lane. He won at Talladega earlier this year and has won the last four consecutive races, tying a record set by Sam Ard in 1983. A win this weekend would set a new record in the Xfinity Series.

The Camping World Truck Series Round of 8 continues at Talladega followed by Homestead-Miami before the Championship Round of 4 begins. Ty Majeski is the only driver that has clinched a spot in the final round. To make things more interesting, one driver will make it to the last round on points, so expect the competition to be fierce.

Notes:

Press Pass Live will be available after each race.
There will be no practice sessions at Talladega.
All times are Eastern.

Friday, September 30

3:30 p.m.: Truck Series Qualifying – No TV
5:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series Qualifying – USA/NBC Sports Streaming App

Saturday, October 1

10:30 a.m.: Cup Series Qualifying –MRN/NBC Sports Streaming App
12:30 p.m.: Truck Series Chevy Silverado 250
Distance: 250.04 miles (94 Laps)
Stage 1 ends on Lap 20, Stage 2 ends on Lap 40, Final Stage ends on Lap 94
FS1/MRN/SiriusXM
The Purse: $806,669

4 p.m.: Xfinity Series Sparks 300
Distance: 300.58 miles (113 Laps)
Stage 1 Ends on Lap 25, Stage 2 Ends on Lap 50, Final Stage Ends on Lap 113
USA/MRN/SiriusXM/NBC Sports Streaming App
The Purse: $1,653,281

Sunday, October 2

2 p.m.: Cup Series YellaWood 500
Distance: 500 miles (188 Laps)
Stage 1 Ends on Lap 60, Stage 2 Ends on Lap 120, Final Stage Ends on Lap 188
NBC/MRN/SiriusXM/NBC Sports Streaming App
The Purse: $8,338,881

NASCAR Cup Series Playoff Standings after Texas

Rank	Driver	Points	Race Wins	Stage Wins	Playoff Pts	+/- Cutoff
1	Joey Logano (P)	3,071	2	5	25	37
2	Ross Chastain (P)	3,059	2	5	20	25
3	Kyle Larson (P)	3,057	2	4	20	23
4	Ryan Blaney (P)	3,056	0	6	14	22
5	Denny Hamlin (P)	3,049	2	3	13	15
6	Daniel Suarez (P)	3,045	1	2	7	11
7	Chase Elliott (P)	3,045	4	5	40	11
8	Chase Briscoe (P)	3,041	1	4	9	7
9	Austin Cindric # (P)	3,034	1	1	6	-7
10	William Byron (P)	3,033	2	4	15	-8
11	Christopher Bell (P)	3,016	1	4	13	-25
12	Alex Bowman (P)	3,015	1	2	7	-26

September 28, 2022

Allgaier to make 400th Xfinity career start at Talladega

Competing in his 12th full-time season in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, Justin Allgaier is primed to achieve a milestone start. By competing in this weekend’s Playoff event at Talladega Superspeedway, the driver of the No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro will be making his 400th career start in the Xfinity circuit.

A native of Riverton, Illinois, Allgaier was a full-time ARCA Menards Series competitor for his family owned team, Allgaier Motorsports, led by his father, Mike, when he made his inaugural presence in the Xfinity Series at Charlotte Motor Speedway in October 2008. Driving the No. 12 Dodge for Team Penske, Allgaier, who started 14th, finished 34th in his series debut after being involved in a multi-car wreck in the second half of the event. He returned for the final three races of the season, where his best on-track result during the stretch was an 11th-place run at Phoenix Raceway in November.

After winning the 2008 ARCA championship, Allgaier was promoted to a full-time racing role in the No. 12 Penske Dodge for the 2009 Xfinity season. Throughout the 35-race schedule, he recorded his first career pole at Memphis Motorsports Park in October. He also recorded a total of three top-five results (all fifth-place finishes), 12 top-10 results and an average result of 16.5 before settling in sixth place in the final standings. At the conclusion of the season, Allgaier was named the 2009 Xfinity Rookie of the Year.

Remaining with the Penske organization in 2010, Allgaier commenced the season on a strong note by finishing in fourth place in the season-opening event at Daytona. Three races later, he achieved his first Xfinity career win at Bristol Motor Speedway in March after fending off teammate Brad Keselowski and leading the final 27 laps. Allgaier went on to earn a total of two poles, eight top-five results, 20 top-10 results and an average result of 11.5 before finishing in fourth place in the final standings. His result made him the highest-finishing Xfinity regular competitor in the standings behind teammate Keselowski, Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch.

At the conclusion of the 2010 season, the No. 12 Penske team ceased operations due to sponsorship issues. In spite of losing his ride at Penske, Allgaier found a new team to call home for the 2011 season as he joined Turner Motorsports to drive the No. 31 Chevrolet Impala. After finishing as high as second place through the first 13 scheduled events, he claimed his first victory of the season at Chicagoland Speedway in June. The victory occurred in a thriller after he overtook Carl Edwards, who had run out of fuel, on the final lap before he too ran out of fuel, but had enough to coast and beat Edwards to the finish line by nearly two seconds. To go along with a total of six top-five results, 17 top-10 results and an average result of 11.8, Allgaier achieved a career-best third-place result in the final championship standings after spending nearly the entire season in the top five while contending for the title. At the conclusion of the 2011 season, Allgaier surpassed 100 career starts in the Xfinity circuit.

In 2012, Allgaier’s achieved his first and only victory of the season at Montreal’s Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in in August after he overtook Jacques Villeneuve, who was sputtering on fuel, on the final lap. Despite claiming his third Xfinity career win along with a total of six top-five results, 19 top-10 results and an average-finishing result of 12.0, Allgaier, settled in sixth place in the final standings behind Michael Annett. The following season marked Allgaier’s first winless season since his rookie campaign in 2009, but he finished one spot better in the championship standings than the previous season in fifth place in a season. During his fifth full-time campaign in the Xfinity circuit, he earned a pole, six top-five results, 16 top-10 results and an 11.2 average-finishing result.

Following the 2013 season, Allgaier moved up to the NASCAR Cup Series to drive for HScott Motorsports. Two years later, however, he returned to the Xfinity Series and teamed up with JR Motorsports to drive the No. 7 Chevrolet Camaro on a full-time basis. In his return to the series, the Illinois native was consistent on the strength of three runner-up results, 11 top-five results and 21 top-10 results throughout the 26-race regular-season stretch to qualify for the inaugural Xfinity Playoffs. After finishing no lower than 14th throughout the Playoffs, Allgaier was able to transfer all the way to the Championship Round at Homestead-Miami Speedway and stand as one of four competitors to contend for the 2016 Xfinity title. During the finale, however, Allgaier finished sixth on the track and in third place in the final standings. Despite concluding the season winless and without the title, he recorded career-high stats in top fives (13) and top 10s (27) along with a personal-best 9.1 average-finishing result. By then, Allgaier surpassed 200 Xfinity career starts.

After finishing 30th during the first two scheduled Xfinity events of the 2017 season followed by a fourth-place run at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in March, Allgaier returned to Victory Lane in the Xfinity Series for the first time in five seasons after beating Ryan Blaney and Erik Jones to win at Phoenix Raceway in March. He went on to earn his second victory of the season at Chicagoland in September before entering in his second consecutive appearance in the Playoffs as a title contender. With four top-10 results throughout the Playoffs, Allgaier also transferred to the Championship Round at Homestead for a second consecutive season despite losing his crew chief Jason Burdett for the finale due to a L1-level penalty that was handed to Allgaier’s team for failing the post-race inspection process the week prior at Phoenix. By finishing in 12th place during the finale while having veterans Billy Wilburn and Chad Knaus calling the shots, he ended up in third place in the final standings for a second consecutive season. Overall, he recorded two victories, one pole, 10 top-five results, 17 top-10 results and an average-finishing result of 13.0 throughout the 33-race schedule.

The 2018 season was a career year for Allgaier, who achieved a career-high five wins (Dover International Speedway in May, Iowa Speedway in June, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and Road America in August and Indianapolis Motor Speedway in September) and emerged as the 2018 Xfinity Series regular-season championship. He also earned a career-high 17 top-five results, 24 top-10 results and an average-finishing result of 10.6. Despite the momentum throughout the regular-season stretch and the 2018 Playoffs, respective finishes of 38th, fifth and 24th during the Round of 8 were not enough for the driver of the No. 7 team to transfer to the Championship Round finale at Homestead as he went on to finish in seventh place in the final standings.

The momentum from the previous season carried forth in the 2019 Xfinity opener at Daytona for Allgaier, who finished in the runner-up spot behind teammate Michael Annett and went on to record 16 results in the top 10 before qualifying for the Xfinity Playoffs for a fourth consecutive season. It was not until the penultimate event of the season at Phoenix in November where he won for the first time during the season. The Phoenix victory, however, was enough for Allgaier and the No. 7 team to secure a spot in the Championship Round at Homestead and receive another opportunity to contend for his first title. During the finale, Allgaier cut a tire late in the event and settled in 14th place on the track and in fourth place in the final standings. By then, he surpassed 300 Xfinity career starts in a season where he achieved a new personal-best average-finishing result of 9.0 along with 16 top-five results and 24 top-10 results throughout the 33-race schedule.

In 2020, Allgaier’s first victory of the season occurred during the first of a Dover Motor Speedway doubleheader feature in August. A month later, he swept both Richmond Raceway events in a doubleheader weekend to solidify his spot in the 2020 Xfinity Playoffs for a fifth consecutive season. Despite sustaining two DNFs and three results outside of the top 20 throughout the Playoffs, Allgaier accumulated enough points to transfer all the way to the Championship Round at Phoenix in November. During the finale, Allgaier was in prime position of achieving his first NASCAR Xfinity championship before being overtaken by Austin Cindric on the final lap and during an overtime attempt. He ended up in fifth place on the track and in a career-best runner-up result in the final standings after losing ground to Cindric on the final lap. While he fell one spot short of winning the title, he concluded the season with a career-high 1,008 laps led along with three victories, 11 top-five results, 19 top-10 results and an average-finishing result of 13.4.

This past season, Allgaier scratched two venues off of his bucket list after winning at Atlanta Motor Speedway in March followed by Darlington Raceway in May. The pair of victories along with a total of 10 top-five results throughout the 26-race regular-season stretch were enough for Allgaier to secure a spot in the Xfinity Playoffs for a sixth consecutive season. He then managed to finish no lower than ninth throughout the Playoffs, but he missed the top-four cutline to qualify for the Championship Round by a mere margin as he went on to finish in fifth place in the final standings.

Allgaier commenced the 2022 season with five results in the top 10 through the first 10-scheduled events before collecting his first victory of the season at Darlington in May. Throughout the summer stretch, he achieved his first victories at Nashville Superspeedway in June and at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in July. His three regular-season victories to go along with 18 top-10 results during the 26-race regular-season stretch were enough for him to qualify for his seventh consecutive appearance in the Playoffs. Despite recording a 29th-place result in his latest event at Texas Motor Speedway, which marked the first event of the 2022 Xfinity Playoffs, he is currently ranked in sixth place in the Playoff standings and is 20 points above the top-eight cutline to transfer to the Round of 8 while he continues his pursuit to win his first NASCAR national touring series championship.

Through 399 previous Xfinity starts, Allgaier has achieved 19 victories, seven poles, 124 top-five results, 237 top-10 results, 4,696 laps led and an average-finishing result of 11.7.

Allgaier is set to make his 400th career start in the Xfinity Series at Talladega Superspeedway on Saturday, October 1, with the event’s coverage to occur at 4 p.m. ET on USA Network.

September 28, 2022
Gragson ties all-time Xfinity wins streak after victory in Playoff opener at Texas

Noah Gragson commenced the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs by making history with his record-tying fourth consecutive victory in recent weeks to claim the Andy’s Frozen Custard 300 at Texas Motor Speedway on Saturday, September 24.

The 24-year-old Gragson from Las Vegas, Nevada, led three times for 85 of 200-scheduled laps and executed a pit stop under the green flag with less than 50 laps remaining to his advantage. He reassumed the top spot with 12 laps remaining and beat Austin Hill by more than a second to claim his seventh NASCAR Xfinity Series victory of the season.

Above all, Gragson became the first Playoff contender to punch his ticket into the Round of 8 in the 2022 Xfinity Series Playoffs.

With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Saturday, Playoff contender Brandon Jones secured his fourth pole position of the 2022 season after posting a pole-winning lap at 185.637 mph in 29.089 seconds. Joining him on the front row was Playoff contender Noah Gragson, who posted the second-best qualifying lap at 185.363 mp in 29.132 seconds.

Prior to the event, Playoff contender Ty Gibbs, as well as, Bayley Currey, David Starr, Akinori Ogata, Tommy Joe Martins, Stefan Parsons and JJ Yeley dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments made to their respective cars. Garrett Smithley also dropped to the rear of the field due to an engine change.

When the green flag waved and the race began, Brandon Jones surged ahead with a brief advantage over Gragson entering the first turn. Then, he slipped sideways below the apron in Turn 1 off the front nose of Daniel Hemric’s No. 11 DaaBIN Store Chevrolet Camaro. As Jones tried to straighten his No. 19 Menards Toyota Supra below the apron, the field fanned out to avoid Jones and Gragson pulled away with the lead. He went on to lead the first lap by eight-tenths ahead of John Hunter Nemechek followed by Justin Allgaier, Hemric and Landon Cassill. Meanwhile, Jones, who managed to keep his car intact without drawing a caution, was all the way back in 20th behind Alex Labbe.

Through the first 10 scheduled laps, Gragson was leading by a tenth of a second over Nemechek, who challenged Gragson for the lead before claiming it during the following lap. He was followed by Allgaier, Hemric and Cassill while Ryan Sieg, Brandon Brown, AJ Allmendinger, rookie Austin Hill and Josh Berry, rounding out the top 10. Playoff contender Sam Mayer was in 11th, Jeremy Clements was in 13th, Riley Herbst was scored in 15th ahead of Brandon Jones as Ty Gibbs was mired back in 24th behind Brennan Poole.

Nine laps later, the first caution of the event flew when Jeffrey Earnhardt, who was battling Poole for a spot outside of the top 20, got into the side of Poole’s car entering the backstretch and his No. 26 YesWav/ForeverLawn Toyota Supra darted to the inside wall and wrecked hard, which ended Earnhardt’s event early. By then, Nemechek was still leading Gragson, Brandon Jones had recovered to 14th and Ty Gibbs was up in 18th behind Creed.

During the first caution period, some like Creed, Alex Labbe, Matt Mills, David Starr, Joey Gase, Garrett Smithley and Joe Graf Jr. pitted while the rest, led by Nemechek, remained on the track.

When the race restarted under green on Lap 24, Nemechek and Gragson dueled for the lead until Nemechek managed to clear Gragson for the top spot while the field jostled for positions. Behind the leaders, Sam Mayer, who got loose beneath Cassill entering Turn 1 and lost a handful of spots, hit the wall entering Turn 4 and fell to 16th. With the race proceeding under green, Gragson kept the runner-up spot ahead of Hemric, Allgaier and Allmendinger while Nemechek retained the lead.

At the Lap 35 mark, Nemechek’s No. 18 Romco Equipment Toyota Supra was ahead by nearly six-tenths of a second over Gragson’s No. 9 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet Camaro while Hemric, Allgaier and Allmendinger remained in the top five. By then, Gibbs carved his No. 54 Interstate Batteries Toyota Supra into 10th place while Berry, Weatherman, Hill and Nicholas Sanchez were in sixth through ninth, respectively.

Two laps later, the caution returned when CJ McLaughlin spun in Turn 2, though he managed to keep his car intact without hitting the wall. During the caution period, some of the drivers, led by Nemechek who slid through his pit box, pitted, while the rest, led by Hemric and Allgaier remained on the track. Playoff contenders Gragson and Gibbs were among the front-runners who also pitted along with Nemechek.

With three laps remaining in the first stage, the race restarted under green. At the start, Hemric retained the lead on the inside lane while teammate Allmendinger battled Allgaier for the runner-up spot. In Turn 3, however, Allmendinger got loose and fell back to fourth behind Allgaier and Hill. Behind, JR Motorsports’ Berry and Gragson battled for fifth while Hemric held on to the top spot.

When the first stage concluded on Lap 45, Hemric claimed his third stage victory of the 2022 season. Allgaier settled in a close second place followed by Hill, Gragson, Allmendinger, Berry, Nemechek, Ryan Sieg, Gibbs and Kyle Weatherman. By then, Playoff contenders Brandon Jones, Clements, Herbst and Mayer were in 12th, 13th, 26th and 27th, respectively.

Under the stage break, some of the drivers, led by Hemric, and including Allgaier, Hill, Gragson, Allmendinger, Berry, Ryan Sieg, Anthony Alfredo, Joey Gase, Matt Mills, Weatherman, Clements, Poole, Yeley, Mayer and Currey pitted while the rest, led by Nemechek, remained on the track.

The second stage started on Lap 51 as teammates Nemechek and Gibbs occupied the front row. At the start, Nemechek pulled ahead with the lead on the inside lane followed by Gibbs and Nicholas Sanchez while Brandon Jones was in fourth ahead of Cassill, Brown, Creed and Ryan Sieg.

Two laps later, Gibbs, who started the event at the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments to his car, assumed the lead for the first time. Another two laps later, however, Nemechek reclaimed the top spot. Behind, Gragson, who was trying to navigate his way back toward the front, overtook Creed for seventh place while Hemric was mired back in 12th.

By Lap 60, Nemechek was leading by half a second over teammate Gibbs while teammate Jones trailed by more than a second in third place. Cassill was in fourth followed by a hard-charging Gragson while Sanchez, Brown, Creed, Hemric and Hill, who reported a vibration to his No. 21 Bennett Chevrolet Camaro, were in the top 10. By then, Allmendinger was in 11th ahead of Berry and Allgaier, Herbst was back in 16th, Clements was in 20th, Mayer was in 22nd and Sieg was in 24th.

Fifteen laps later and at the Lap 75 mark, Nemechek continued to lead by six-tenths of a second over teammate Gibbs while Gragson was up in third place and trailing the two Joe Gibbs Racing leaders by more than a second. Jones and Cassill remained in the top five while Hemric battled teammate Allmendinger for sixth ahead of Hill, Sanchez, Allgaier and Berry.

Three laps later, the caution flew when veteran David Starr lost a right-front tire and pounded the outside wall in Turn 2 and slowly limped his car back to pit road. During the caution period, the No. 51 Straitline Chevrolet Camaro piloted by Playoff contender Jeremy Clements received a push from a wrecker after losing power as he fell out of the lead lap category. The issue was eventually enough for Clements’ crew to push the car to the garage area for further analysis. Once pit road opened for the field, some of the drivers, led by Nemechek, pitted, while the rest, led by teammates Hemric and Allmendinger, remained on the track. Following the pit stops, Berry was sent to the rear of the field due to an uncontrolled tire violation along with Cassill, who sped on pit road.

With five laps remaining in the second stage, the race restarted under green. At the start, teammates Hemric and Allmendinger dueled for the lead until Allmendinger managed to navigate his No. 16 Andy’s Frozen Custard Chevrolet Camaro into the lead. In Turn 3, Hemric was locked in a battle with Sieg for the runner-up spot while Sanchez, who briefly made a bid towards the front, got loose up the outside lane as he fell out of the top 10. Soon after, Akinori Ogata spun off of Turn 4, but the race remained under green.

Back at the front, Allmendinger continued to lead while Hemric led a four-car battle for the runner-up spot, featuring Sieg, Gragson and Nemechek.

When the second stage concluded on Lap 90, Allmendinger, the 2022 Xfinity Series regular-season champion, captured his third stage victory of the season. Gragson muscled his way into the runner-up spot while Nemechek, Hemric, Gibbs, Hill, Allgaier, Sieg, Brandon Jones and Mayer were scored in the top 10. By then, Herbst was in 12th and Berry was back in 22nd.

Under the stage break, some of the drivers pitted, led by Allmendinger and Hemric, while the rest, led by Gragson, remained on the track.

With 104 laps remaining, the final stage started. Gragson secured the lead on the inside lane as he slid in front of Nemechek and was followed by Gibbs, Hill and Allgaier while Brandon Jones challenged and overtook Creed for sixth place. With the battles around the circuit ensuing, Gragson stabilized a narrow advantage over the field with Nemechek slowly closing in.

At the halfway mark with 100 laps remaining, the battle for the lead between Gragson and Nemechek ensued with the latter attempting to intimidate the former as Gibbs, Hill and Allgaier remained in the top five. By then, seven of 12 Playoff contenders were running in the top 10 on the track and all but one were running in the top 16.

Four laps later, the caution returned when Akinori Ogata spun in Turn 2. With the field remaining on the track and the race proceeding under green with 91 laps remaining, Gragson rocketed with the lead followed by Nemechek and Hill while Gibbs and Allgaier battled for fourth. Not long after, the caution quickly returned for a multi-car wreck entering Turn 3. It began when Allmendinger got into Brown as Brown clipped Cassill and sent Cassill into the outside wall while Mayer barely escaped the carnage. Also involved in the carnage were Myatt Snider, Anthony Alfredo, Weatherman, Joey Gase, Sieg and Brown.

When the race restarted under green with 81 laps remaining, Hill dipped his No. 21 Chevrolet below Gragson as both, along with Nemechek, went three wide for the lead. Then in Turn 2 and entering the backstretch, the caution flew when Nemechek got loose as he slipped sideways and clipped Allgaier, who was trying to make it a four-wide battle for the lead. Both collided against one another hard alongside the outside wall. The carnage did not stop there, however, as pole-sitter, Brandon Jones, collided into both with Poole, Joe Graf Jr., Weatherman, Josh Williams, Joey Gase and Sieg while Hemric smacked the inside wall. The wreck eliminated Jones, Nemechek, Allgaier and Hemric from further competition. Allmendinger, who dodged the wreck, moved back up to 14th as Gragson managed to keep the lead ahead of Hill, Berry, Gibbs and Herbst.

With 74 laps remaining, the race restarted under green as Gragson engaged in a tight battle with Hill for the lead before clearing him while Gibbs started to challenge Hill for the runner-up spot. Shortly after, however, the caution returned when Garrett Smithley got bumped and turned off the front nose of Weatherman through the backstretch while Stefan Parsons and Myatt Snider sustained damage after clipping Smithley.

Six laps later, the race restarted under green. At the start, Gragson retained the lead while Gibbs engaged in a tight side-by-side battle for the runner-up spot alongside Hill and Herbst battled Sanchez for fourth place.

With less than 60 laps remaining, Gragson was leading by eight-tenths of a second over Gibbs followed by Hill and Herbst while Allmendinger carved his way back into the top five in fifth. Sanchez was in sixth followed by Berry, Creed, Ryan Sieg and Mayer, rounding out the top 10. By then, eight of 12 Playoff contenders were running in the top 15.

A few laps later, Gibbs washed up the racetrack in Turn 3 and toward the outside wall as he lost momentum and was overtaken by Hill.

With 50 laps remaining, Gragson extended and stabilized his advantage to two seconds over Hill, who had Gibbs closing in for another challenge for the runner-up spot. Behind, Allmendinger was in fourth followed by Berry and Herbst while Creed, Sanchez, Mayer and Sieg were in the top 10.

Six laps later, Gragson surrendered the lead to pit under green followed by Gibbs. Once Hill pitted during the following lap, Allmendinger, who has yet to pit, assumed the lead followed by Berry, Herbst, Sanchez and Mayer. By then, Gragson, Hill and Gibbs were lapped by the field.

With less than 30 laps remaining, Allmendinger continued to lead followed by Berry, Mayer, Currey and Jeb Burton, all of whom had yet to pit. By then, Sanchez, Creed, Herbst and others had already pitted under green while Gragson was still a lap down, but running in the top 10 on fresh tires and with enough fuel for the finish.

Down to the final 20 laps of the event, Allmendinger retained the lead as one of four competitors who have not yet made a pit stop while Gragson was up in fifth and still a lap down, but gaining ground. Four laps later, however, Allmendinger surrendered the lead to pit along with Berry while Jeb Burton assumed the lead followed by a hard-charging Gragson, who un-lapped himself and went to work on closing back in on Burton for the lead.

Then with 11 laps remaining, Gragson reassumed the lead as Jeb Burton pitted. By then, Hill made his way up to second followed by Gibbs, Allmendinger and Berry while Herbst was back in sixth.

Down to the final five laps of the event, Gragson extended his advantage to more than a second over Hill, with Hill losing ground to the leader, while third-place Gibbs trailed by more than three seconds.

When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Gragson remained as the leader by more than a second over Hill. With Hill unable to close on the leader, Gragson was able to navigate his No. 9 Chevrolet back to the frontstretch and claim his unprecedented seventh checkered flag of the season and his fourth in a row in recent weeks.

With his accomplishment, Gragson joined the late two-time Xfinity champion Sam Ard as the only competitors to win four consecutive Xfinity events. Gragson also secured his 12th career victory in the Xfinity circuit, his first at Texas and the 13th victory of the 2022 season for JR Motorsports. With an automatic ticket to the Round of 8, which will commence in October at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Gragson continues his pursuit to win the 2022 Xfinity title before moving up to the NASCAR Cup Series in 2023 for Petty GMS Motorsports.

“This No. 9 team, man, they’re on fire,” Gragson said on USA Network. “The pit crew’s done awesome. Our car was as fast as Xfinity internet all day. Just so thankful for the opportunity. Such a relief. We lost this race in 2020. Just executed a great race. [Crew chief] Luke Lambert and the rest of the boys, they did a great job. Last year, I was standing with Justin Haley and saw John Hunter [Nemechek] raising the Andy’s Frozen Custard trophy over his head. He said, ‘Man, I would’ve tried a little bit harder if I would’ve seen that trophy and knew what it was.’ That made me motivated. I was like, ‘Damn, I want that [trophy], too.’ We came back and the team did a great job. We’re on fire as a team right now.”

Playoff rookie Austin Hill notched a strong runner-up result for his 11th top-five of the season while Ty Gibbs emerged as the lone Joe Gibbs Racing competitor to finish the event by ending up in third place. Hill leaves Texas in fourth place in the Playoff standings and 30 points above the top-eight cutline to transfer to the Round of 8 while Gibbs is currently in third place and with a 46-point advantage.

“We were faster than [Gragson],” Hill said. “I don’t know if he was just kind of pacing there or not, but [I] just got too tight there at the end. I’m sure I could’ve done a better job coming to that green flag pit stop. The guys did an excellent job all day on pit road. Pit stops were fantastic. It’s nice to start the Playoffs like this and start it off right, but at the same time, we know that if we would’ve won the race, we wouldn’t have to worry about [Talladega] or the [Charlotte] Roval. A little frustrated, but at the same time, happy with the performance. We showed speed. We just needed that little bit more.”

“Honestly, we were a little bit tight,” Gibbs said. “[We were] fighting that all day. We fired off one run really free and just kept it tight for the rest. [The crew] adjusted what I asked for, but I asked for a little bit too much and that’s what we went to. It’s my fault. Thank you to my team. We’ll keep moving on to Talladega, which is a yard sale.”

Meanwhile, Allmendinger survived his late incident and made his late pit strategy work to perfection as he finished fourth while Herbst completed the top five.

“I wished we could’ve won that race,” Allmendinger, who is 47 points above the top-eight cutline, said. “I thought we had a shot, but the way it could’ve been and the way it actually ended up to have a really good points day, we’ll take it.”

“This was our game plan,” Herbst, who is a single point below the cutline, added. “Just fall back on what we’ve been doing all year, consistency. We need to execute tremendously better if we want to advance. To come away out of Texas with a top five, it’s good and we’ll go battle with the Monster [Energy] guys at Talladega.”

Berry, Creed, Mayer, Ryan Sieg and CJ McLaughlin completed the top 10 on the track, with eight of 12 Playoff contenders finishing in the top 10.

There were 14 lead changes for seven different leaders. The race featured nine cautions for 52 laps. Only eight of 38 starters finished on the lead lap.

Results.

1. Noah Gragson, 85 laps led

2. Austin Hill, one lap led

3. Ty Gibbs, three laps led

4. AJ Allmendinger, 34 laps led, Stage 2 winner

5. Riley Herbst

6. Josh Berry

7. Sheldon Creed

8. Sam Mayer

9. Ryan Sieg, one lap down

10. CJ McLaughlin, one lap down

11. Nick Sanchez, one lap down

12. Bayley Currey, one lap down

13. Stefan Parsons, one lap down

14. Tommy Joe Martins, one lap down

15. Jeb Burton, one lap down, five laps led

16. Matt Mills, two laps down

17. Alex Labbe, three laps down

18. Joe Graf Jr., three laps down

19. Anthony Alfredo, three laps down

20. Myatt Snider, four laps down

21. Parker Retzlaff, 10 laps down

22. Kyle Weatherman – OUT, Accident

23. Garrett Smithley – OUT, Dvp

24. Brandon Brown – OUT, Accident

25. Joey Gase – OUT, Dvp

26. Josh Williams – OUT, Accident

27. Brandon Jones – OUT, Accident

28. John Hunter Nemechek – OUT, Accident, 60 laps led

29. Justin Allgaier – OUT, Accident

30. Daniel Hemric – OUT, Accident, 12 laps led, Stage 1 winner

31. Brennan Poole – OUT, Accident

32. Mason Massey – OUT, Accident

33. Landon Cassill – OUT, Accident

34. JJ Yeley – OUT, Water pump

35. Akinori Ogata – OUT, Suspension

36. Jeremy Clements – OUT, Ignition

37. David Starr – OUT, Accident

38. Jeffrey Earnhardt – OUT, Accident

*Bold indicates Playoff contenders

Playoff standings

1. Noah Gragson – Advanced

2. AJ Allmendinger +47

3. Ty Gibbs +46

4. Austin Hill +30

5. Josh Berry +24

6. Justin Allgaier +20

7. Sam Mayer +1

8. Ryan Sieg +1

9. Riley Herbst -1

10. Daniel Hemric -8

11. Brandon Jones -13

12. Jeremy Clements -29

With the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs underway, the battle for the series championship in the Round of 12 will continue next weekend at Talladega Superspeedway. The event is scheduled to occur on Saturday, October 1, at 4 p.m. ET on the USA Network.

September 24, 2022