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  • Harrison Burton wins at Martinsville; Xfinity Championship 4 field set

    Harrison Burton wins at Martinsville; Xfinity Championship 4 field set

    With the NASCAR Xfinity Series returning to Martinsville Speedway for the first time since 2006 and three spots to the Championship 4 round up for grabs at the start, rookie Harrison Burton knocked another one out of the park after holding off Justin Allgaier to win the Draft Top 250 at the Paperclip circuit. The victory was Burton’s fourth of this season and of his career as he also claimed back-to-back victories for the first time in his NASCAR national touring series career.

    The starting lineup was based on four stats: current owner’s standings, driver’s and owner’s results from a previous Xfinity race and the fastest lap recorded from a previous Xfinity race. With that, Austin Cindric started on pole position and was joined on the front row with Noah Gragson.

    Kyle Weatherman and Josh Reaume started at the rear of the field due to driver changes. In addition, Reaume’s No. 93 Chevrolet team have been docked a pit selection for next weekend’s finale event at Phoenix Raceway due to the car failing pre-race inspection twice.

    When the green flag waved and the race started, Cindric jumped ahead with the lead and he was able to come back around the start/finish line to lead the first lap. Behind, Gragson retained second place ahead of Kaulig Racing teammates Justin Haley and Ross Chastain. Justin Allgaier closed in in fifth place while Jeb Burton settled in sixth ahead of Brandon Jones.

    The first caution of the race flew on the fourth lap when Gray Gaulding fell off the pace and was nearly rammed by leader Cindric and the oncoming leaders when his No. 07 Panini Chevrolet Camaro continued to stall before it came to a rest in Turn 1.

    The race restarted on the eighth lap with Cindric and Gragson on the front row followed by Haley, Allgaier, Chastain and Jeb Burton. At the start, Cindric retained the lead following a strong start while Haley mounted a challenge on the inside lane for second place. Behind, Allgaier and Chastain were in the top five while Joe Gibbs Racing’s Harrison Burton and Brandon Jones moved into sixth and seventh. 

    Shortly after, Harrison Burton moved into fifth place and teammate Jones followed suit while Chastain slipped back to seventh place while stuck on the outside lane. In addition, Michael Annett joined the party as he started to challenge Chastain for more.

    By Lap 15, Cindric continued to lead by more than half a second over Haley with Gragson trailing by more than a second. Allgaier and Harrison Burton were in the top five followed by Brandon Jones, Chastain, Jeb Burton, Annett and Brett Moffitt. Meanwhile, Chase Briscoe and Ryan Sieg were in 11th and 12th while A.J. Allmendinger was in 19th place behind Riley Herbst and Jeremy Clements. 

    Five laps later, on Lap 20, Cindric stabilized his advantage by more than half a second over Haley while Gragson, Allgaier and Harrison Burton continued to run in the top five. 

    A few laps later, Bayley Currey made contact with the wall after sustaining a flat tire, but  he was able to nurse his car back to pit road with a tire rub and the race continued under green. 

    When the competition caution flew on Lap 25, Cindric was still at the front as the leader followed by Haley, Gragson, Allgaier and Harrison Burton while Brandon Jones, Chastain, Jeb Burton, Annett and Moffitt were in the top 10.

    Under caution, some like Sieg, Myatt Snider, Ryan Vargas and Brandon Brown pitted while the rest led by Cindric remained on the track.

    When the race restarted on Lap 31, Cindric retained the lead following another strong start while Gragson retained second place on the outside lane. Behind, Haley and Harrison Burton battled for third place while Allgaier was in fifth place ahead of Chastain. Behind, Allmendinger used the outside lane to move up to 11th place. 

    By Lap 35, Cindric and Gragson were at the front followed by Harrison Burton, Haley, Allgaier and Chastain. Not long after, the caution returned when Gaulding spun in Turn 1 while he was engaged in a three-wide battle with Stefan Parsons and Colby Howard.

    The race restarted on Lap 42 with Cindric and Gragson on the front row. At the start, Gragson mounted a challenge for the lead on the outside lane next to Cindric. Back at the start/finish line, Gragson led a lap for himself as he and Cindric made contact in Turn 1 before battling hard through Turns 2 and 3. Entering Turn 4, Gragson cleared Cindric for the lead as Harrison Burton mounted a challenge for second place on Cindric. 

    By Lap 46, Harrison Burton moved into second place over Cindric while Gragson continued to lead. Shortly after, Jeb Burton wheel hopped and got loose entering Turn 3 as he slid towards the outside wall and got shuffled out of the top 10, though he was able to continue and the race remained under green. 

    Back towards the front, Harrison Burton started to close in on Gragson for the lead. Behind, Cindric retained third place followed by Haley and Allgaier while Chastain, Jones, Annett, Allmendinger and Moffitt were in the top 10 with Briscoe just outside of the top-10 mark on the track.

    While Gragson and Harrison Burton battled for the lead, Allmendinger continued to carve his way toward the front as he overtook Allgaier for sixth place. Behind, Briscoe, a 2020 NASCAR Xfinity Series championship contender, cracked the top 10 in 10th place. 

    With five laps remaining in the first stage, Gragson retained a narrow lead over Harrison Burton and Cindric while Kaulig Racing’s Haley, Chastain and Allmendinger pursued behind. 

    With one lap remaining in the first stage, the leaders started to approach lapped traffic. Despite encountering lapped traffic and being challenged by Harrison Burton, Gragson was able to retain the lead and win the first stage on Lap 60 for his ninth stage victory of the season. Burton settled in second place followed by Cindric, Chastain and Haley while Allmendinger, Jones, Allgaier, Annett and Briscoe were scored in the top 10.

    Under the stage break, most of the leaders pitted and Harrison Burton exited with the lead over Gragson followed by Cindric, Allgaier and Allmendinger, who was hit by Brandon Jones as Jones was exiting his pit stall. Back on the track, J.J. Yeley, Stefan Parsons and Sieg remained on the track. Shortly after, Parsons surrendered his position towards the front by pitting.

    The second stage started on Lap 68 with Yeley and Harrison Burton on the front row followed by Sieg and Gragson. At the front, Yeley retained the lead while Harrison Burton mounted a challenge behind. 

    On Lap 70, Harrison Burton emerged with the lead for the first time after passing Yeley. Not long after, Gragson moved into second place over Yeley while Cindric, Haley, Chastain, Sieg and Allgaier battled behind. 

    Three laps later, the caution returned for a multi-car wreck in Turn 3 that involved Donald Theetge, B.J. McLeod and Parsons. Not long after, the race was red-flagged for more than seven minutes due to mud and dirt on the track that was kicked on the racing surface from the incident. 

    When the red flag was lifted and the race resumed under green on Lap 80, the battle for the lead ignited between Harrison Burton and Gragson with Gragson prevailing the following lap. Behind, Cindric was in third place in front of Kaulig Racing’s Chastain and Haley while Allgaier and Sieg battled for sixth.

    On Lap 83, Harrison Burton reassumed the lead following a lengthy battle with Gragson. A lap later, Chastain overtook Cindric for third place as teammate Haley started to mount a challenge for more along with Allgaier. Behind, Allmendinger moved into seventh place while Jones, Sieg and Herbst were in the top 10. Briscoe, meanwhile, was back in 13th place. 

    By Lap 90, Harrison Burton was still leading while Chastain, who moved into second place, started to close in for the lead. Gragson fell back to third place while Haley and Allgaier were in the top five. Allmendinger moved up to sixth followed by Jones, Cindric, Herbst and Sieg while Briscoe was in 12th behind Annett. 

    On Lap 92, Chastain muscled his way below Harrison Burton to take the lead. While Chastain settled into an advantage of half a second over Harrison Burton, Gragson retained third place followed by Haley, Allgaier, Allmendinger and Cindric. 

    At the Lap 100 mark, Chastain, who was approaching lapped traffic, extended his advantage by more than a second over Harrison Burton with Gragson, Haley and Allgaier pursuing behind. By then, the remaining eight Playoff contenders were running in the top 13 with Briscoe still mired back outside the top 10.

    Five laps later, the caution returned when fire erupted out of the No. 5 Chevrolet Camaro driven by Matt Mills, who parked and exited his car on the backstretch. Under caution, some like Harrison Burton, Annett, Allmendinger, Jeb Burton, Sieg, Herbst, Snider, Briscoe, Brandon Brown, Jesse Little and others pitted while the rest led by Chastain remained on the track.

    With six laps remaining in the second stage, the race restarted with Chastain and Gragson on the front row. At the start, Chastain was able to clear Gragson for the lead entering Turn 1 while Gragson was able to fend off Haley for second. Allgaier and Cindric were in the top five followed by Jones, who overtook Moffitt for position. 

    Down to the final laps of the second stage, Chastain continued to lead with Gragson remaining in pursuit. With clean air being key, Chastain was able to hold on and win the second stage on Lap 120 and for his third stage victory of the season. Gragson settled in second followed by Haley, Allgaier and Cindric while Jones, Moffitt, Allmendinger, Harrison Burton and Timmy Hill rounded out the top 10. 

    Under the stage break, some of the leaders pitted with Chastain exiting pit road ahead of Gragson, Jones, Allgaier, Cindric and Haley. Back on the track, Allmendinger, who pitted prior to the conclusion of the second stage, remained on the track and assumed the lead followed by Harrison Burton, teammate Herbst, Jeb Burton, Sieg and Briscoe. 

    With 123 laps remaining, the final stage commenced. At the start, Allmendinger retained the lead and Harrison Burton fended off teammate Herbst for second. Behind, Jeb Burton muscled his way into third place while Myatt Snider, who overtook Briscoe and Herbst for position, went to work on Sieg for fourth. 

    With 118 laps remaining and the pack behind the leaders bumping and battling hard for position, the caution returned when contact from Allgaier in Turn 4 and a bump from Haley entering Turn 1 sent Yeley spinning as everyone behind scattered to avoid hitting Yeley.

    Under caution, the No. 61 Toyota Supra driven by Chad Finchum was towed back to the garage due to mechanical issues.

    When the race restarted under green with 112 laps remaining, Allmendinger retained the lead following a strong start while cousins Harrison and Jeb Burton battled for second. Behind, Snider and Sieg battled in the top five while Herbst was in sixth ahead of Briscoe. Behind, Chastain and Jones battled for a top-10 spot while Allgaier was in 13th. Gragson, Cindric and Haley were mired back in 16th, 17th and 18th.

    With 105 laps remaining, Allmendinger continued to lead by nearly two seconds over Harrison Burton while Jeb Burton was in front of a bevy of competitors in third place. By then, Chastain carved his way into eighth place as he went to work on Briscoe for more. 

    Five laps remaining and with 100 laps remaining, Allmendinger stabilized his advantage by more than a second over Harrison Burton with Jeb Burton trailing by more than three seconds. Sieg, Snider and Herbst were in the top six while Chastain, a Playoff contender trying to fight his way into the Championship 4 finale round, moved into seventh place ahead of Briscoe. 

    Meanwhile, Allgaier, Gragson and Cindric were in 10th, 11th and 12th while Haley and Jones were in 14th and 15th behind Brandon Brown.

    Fifteen laps later, with 85 laps remaining, Allmendinger continued to lead followed by Harrison and Jeb Burton. Sieg, Snider and Herbst continued to run in fourth through sixth while Chastain started having JR Motorsports’ Allgaier, Annett and Gragson close in for seventh place. 

    Nearly five laps later, Chastain attempted to push Herbst beneath Snider for position to move forward on the track, but it did not work as Chastain lost his momentum and Allgaier was able to overtake him for position and continue to move up on fresh tires. 

    With 75 laps remaining, Allmendinger continued to lead over Harrison and Jeb Burton followed by Sieg and Allgaier, who overtook Herbst for position. Behind, Chastain slipped back to 10th place while Gragson and Annett moved up to eighth and ninth. 

    Down to the final 70 laps of the race, the battle for the lead between Allmendinger and Harrison Burton started to heat up as they were mired in lapped traffic. A few laps later, the caution flew when Bayley Currey made hard contact into the outside wall entering Turn 2.

    Under caution, the leaders pitted and Harrison Burton was able to reassume the lead after exiting pit road ahead of Allmendinger with Jeb Burton, Sieg and Allgaier exiting in the top five.

    With 61 laps remaining, the race restarted under green with Harrison Burton and Allmendinger on the front row. At the start, Burton and Allmendinger battled dead even for the lead and continued to do so for the next four laps before Burton made contact and got loose entering Turn 4 with Allmendinger with the latter prevailing on the outside lane. 

    Behind, Allgaier overtook teammate Jeb Burton for third place while Gragson passed Sieg for fifth place. Behind Sieg and Herbst was Chastain, mired in eighth place and still scored outside of the top-four cutline in the Playoff standings. 

    With 52 laps remaining, Harrison Burton reassumed the lead while Allmendinger fell off the pace and made a pit stop under green due to cutting a left-rear tire as a result of his on-track battle and contact with Burton for the lead. 

    Back on the track and down to the final 50 laps, Allgaier moved into second place behind Harrison Burton while Gragson, Jeb Burton and Herbst were in the top five. Chastain was in sixth ahead of Sieg, Cindric, Briscoe and Haley with Jones in 11th place.

    With 45 laps remaining, Harrison Burton continued to lead by a narrow margin over Allgaier with Gragson, Jeb Burton and Chastain in the top five. By then, Cindric, Allgaier and Haley were above the top-four cutline in the Playoff standings and in position of transferring to the Championship 4 round with Chastain, Jones, Gragson and Sieg trailing on the outside of the cutoff mark.

    Under 40 laps remaining, Harrison Burton stabilized his advantage by nearly a second over Allgaier, who continued to pressure the rookie for the lead. Gragson retained third place while Chastain overtook Jeb Burton for fourth place.

    Four laps later, the caution returned when Snider spun following contact with Brandon Brown. Under caution, some like Sieg, Briscoe, Brandon Jones, Annett and others pitted while the rest led by Harrison Burton remained on the track.

    With 30 laps remaining, the race restarted under green with Harrison Burton and Allgaier on the front row. At the start, Burton and Allgaier battled dead even for the lead with the former prevailing the following lap. Allgaier settled in second while teammate Gragson, facing a “must-win” situation, moved into third place. Jeb Burton was in fourth while Chastain was in fifth ahead of teammate Haley, Herbst and Cindric.

    Down to the final 20 laps of the race, Harrison Burton was still leading, though JRM teammates Allgaier and Gragson kept Burton within their sights. Behind, Chastain overtook Jeb Burton for fourth place while Haley, clinging onto the final transfer spot to the Championship 4 round, battled Herbst to retain sixth place. Cindric was in eighth while Jones was in 10th ahead of Briscoe. 

    With less than 15 laps remaining and with Harrison Burton still leading Allgaier by more than half a second, Haley was shuffled back to 12th place while teammate Chastain was in fourth place as both Kaulig Racing teammates were left in a battle with one another for a championship finale spot. 

    Down to the final 10 laps of the race, Harrison Burton continued to lead by nearly a second over Allgaier with teammate Gragson trailing by nearly two seconds. Chastain settled in fourth ahead of Jeb Burton while Herbst, Briscoe, Jones, Annett and Cindric were in the top 10. Haley was in 12th and holding onto the final transfer spot by four points over teammate Chastain.

    With five laps remaining, leader Harrison Burton started to catch lapped traffic as he continued to lead by less than a second over Allgaier with Gragson trailing behind by more than a second and Chastain trailing by four seconds. 

    Despite the lapped traffic, Harrison Burton continued to stabilize his advantage over Allgaier, who continued to close in. At the final lap, Burton continued to lead by half a second. Coming back around to the checkered flag, Burton was able to hold on and win by approximately three-tenths of a second over Allgaier.

    At 20 years and 22 days old, Harrison Burton became the youngest winner at Martinsville Speedway, eclipsing his father Jeff’s previous record at 23 years, two months and 24 days old.

    During his cool-down lap and victory burnout, Harrison received congrats from his father Jeff, who interviewed his son during the on-track celebration.

    “What’s up, dad? That was pretty awesome!” Burton exclaimed. “Great race car. I got the best team in the garage. That’s pretty fun!”

    “I heard my old man get on the radio, which was pretty special,” Burton added during a post-race interview. “He’s funny on the TV. He was probably hating that because he tries to stay as non-biased as possible and avoids talking about me as much as he can. When they told him to do that, he was probably excited to talk to me but probably, he was a little bit nervous. That was awesome to have my dad talk to me. The amount of stuff that my dad and my mom have done for me, sacrificing time together, sacrificing time with my sister,…To give back to them by winning these races and, hopefully, proving that all that time spent away was worth it, racing all over the country with my mom, that means a lot.”

    Allgaier finished in second place and raced his way into the Championship 4 round while teammate Gragson failed to advance to the Championship 4 round despite finishing in third place. 

    “I’m just proud of our team, everybody at JR Motorsports,” Allgaier said. “We had four really fast Camaros today. We came in today with the idea of just managing the stages as best we could, managing the race as best we could. At the end there, I really wanted to be able to get up there and pass Harrison, but hats off to those guys. They did a great job. I just didn’t do a good job on getting off the corner. I struggled all day to get my rhythm down. Once we finally did that, I felt like we had a really fast Camaro. Proud to get Unilever a good finish. Most importantly, proud to get all of our partners an opportunity to go for a championship next week. That’s what this is all about. Just got to get after it next week…We just got to go all week and work as hard as we can, and be there whenever it comes time.”

    Photo by Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images.

    “I definitely thought our Bass Pro Shops/True Timber was pretty good,” Gragson said. “I was saving my tires a little bit the run before that…We put on one hell of a stretch in the Playoffs. Overall, we can’t hang our heads over this stretch. We did the best we could do. It wasn’t meant to be. We’ll go fight hard next weekend at Phoenix. I like that track. I wish I was competing in the Final Four. Congrats to all the guys who made it happen. I’m hungry to win one. It sucks finishing second and third. I wanna go win.”

    Jeb Burton recorded a strong fourth-place run while Chastain finished in fifth place and failed to advance to the Championship 4 round by four points. 

    “I made too many mistakes the two races leading up to this,” Chastain said. “I know that. It was a tough week coming here knowing the hole I put us in. Today though, the fight was awesome. I just wanted to win Martinsville. I knew how fast our car was, especially in clean air. Proud of the fight, proud of the effort from everybody. I’ve got great owners. Can’t wait to go to Phoenix and put all the effort after Phoenix into 2021.”

    Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images.

    Herbst, Briscoe, Annett, Jones and Cindric rounded out the top 10 on the track. Cindric and Haley, who finished 12th, secured the final two spots to the Championship 4 round, joining Allgaier and Chase Briscoe. 

    “Yeah, obviously, coming to a race track with a brand new set-up and a car that hasn’t been here, I’m sure [crew chief Brian Wilson] was pretty nervous but obviously, he did a great job,” Cindric said. “Our guys worked incredibly hard on this Pirtek Ford Mustang for this race. Really proud of that. I don’t think we really got to show its capability today. I took the easy way out and picked a lot of bottom lane restarts, which were a lot safer. I hate playing the points game, but we have done that the entire Playoffs. I’m happy we’re in the final four…We get to go to Phoenix and have a lot of fun. I’m excited to go fight for a championship…We got to beat everyone, that’s the thing. You can’t just be better. You have to be the best.”

    “The motor’s actually blown up,” Haley said. “From about halfway through the race, the motor started letting go. Just so thankful for everyone at Kaulig Racing. When I first signed on, Chris Rice [President of Kaulig Racing] was like, ‘Hey man, this is a 12th-place car. You got to get it. We gotta work together, we got to get it in the Final Four, we gotta win races and we can do it.’ I believed him. It’s just so awesome to get this thing in the Final Four. If you told a lot of people at the start of the year that the No. 11 car out of Kaulig Racing was gonna be in the Final Four, I’m sure they’d probably say you’re wrong. So, so thankful. Sigh of relief. Matt Kaulig, have a drink for me.”

    Photo by Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images.

    Chase Briscoe, Austin Cindric, Justin Allgaier and Justin Haley will contend for this year’s NASCAR Xfinity Series championship next weekend at Phoenix Raceway. In addition to the drivers’ championship, all four will battle for this year’s owners’ championship.

    Ross Chastain, Brandon Jones, Noah Gragson and Ryan Sieg, who finished 11th, have been eliminated from title contention.

    “I wanted to go to Phoenix and have a shot to [win the title],” Jones said. “Luckily, we announced that we’re coming back next year and we’re gonna have a shot at it again. Pretty cool to see Harrison get a couple more wins before the year’s over. I think these guys still need to watch out. We’re gonna be really good at Phoenix when we get there. I think we still could be better for next year.”

    There were 11 lead changes for six different leaders. The race featured 10 cautions for 63 laps.

    Results.

    1. Harrison Burton, 81 laps led

    2. Justin Allgaier

    3. Noah Gragson, 23 laps led, Stage 1 winner

    4. Jeb Burton

    5. Ross Chastain, 31 laps led, Stage 2 winner

    6. Riley Herbst

    7. Chase Briscoe

    8. Michael Annett

    9. Brandon Jones

    10. Austin Cindric, 42 laps led

    11. Ryan Sieg

    12. Justin Haley

    13. Brett Moffitt

    14. J.J. Yeley, five laps led

    15. Jeremy Clements

    16. Tommy Joe Martins

    17. Timmy Hill

    18. Brandon Brown

    19. Josh Williams

    20. Mason Diaz

    21. Joe Graf Jr.

    22. Jesse Little, one lap down

    23. Myatt Snider, one lap down

    24. Stefan Parsons, one lap down

    25. Colby Howard, two laps down

    26. A.J. Allmendinger, two laps down, 68 laps led

    27. Alex Labbe, three laps down

    28. Jeffrey Earnhardt, four laps down

    29. Kody Vanderwal, four laps down

    30. Kyle Weatherman, four laps down

    31. Donald Theetge, five laps down

    32. Carl Long, six laps down

    33. B.J. McLeod, 11 laps down

    34. Ryan Vargas, 17 laps down

    35. Gray Gaulding – OUT, Electrical

    36. Bayley Currey – OUT, Accident

    37. Chad Finchum – OUT, Engine

    38. Matt Mills – OUT, Oil line

    39. Josh Reaume – OUT, Suspension

    Bold indicates Championship finale contenders

    Standings

    1. Chase Briscoe – Advanced

    2. Austin Cindric – Advanced

    3. Justin Allgaier – Advanced

    4. Justin Haley – Advanced

    5. Ross Chastain – Eliminated

    6. Brandon Jones – Eliminated

    7. Noah Gragson – Eliminated

    8. Ryan Sieg – Eliminated

    The NASCAR Xfinity Series will travel to Phoenix Raceway for the 2020 season finale and where a champion will be crowned. The race will occur on Saturday, November 7, at 5 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

  • Haley sweeps Talladega; clinches Round of 8 spot

    Haley sweeps Talladega; clinches Round of 8 spot

    Emerging as a serious dark horse candidate for this year’s NASCAR Xfinity Series championship battle, Justin Haley won the Ag-Pro 300 at Talladega Superspeedway after rallying from a late pit road penalty, taking the lead with two laps remaining and retaining his advantage following a multi-car wreck on the final lap. The victory was Haley’s third of his Xfinity career and of the season as he punched his ticket into the Round of 8 in the Playoffs.

    The starting lineup was based on four stats: the current owner points standings, driver’s and owner’s results from a previous Xfinity race and the fastest lap recorded from a previous Xfinity race. With that, Chase Briscoe, coming off his dominating win at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, started on pole position and was joined on the front row with Noah Gragson. 

    Prior to the race, Austin Hill’s No. 61 AISIN Group Toyota Supra failed pre-race inspection twice, resulting with his team losing pit road selection for next weekend’s series race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval. In addition, drivers like Brandon Jones and Joe Graf Jr. were not in their respective cars as the command to fire engines was given, resulting with both competitors having to hustle to their cars as the engines from the rest of the field were being ignited.

    When the green flag waved and the race started, Briscoe jumped ahead with an early lead on the inside lane and was able to move in front of Noah Gragson on the outside lane in Turn 2 to retain the lead. He returned to the inside lane entering the tri-oval, but Gragson gained a run on the outside lane to emerge ahead and lead the first lap.

    The following lap, Justin Allgaier left teammate Gragson out to dry on the outside lane to lead the second lap by a nose over Briscoe as the field expanded to two lanes while battling for positions. 

    By the third lap, Briscoe emerged with the lead to lead a lap for himself for the first time. Behind, Austin Cindric settled behind Briscoe’s No. 98 Ford Performance Racing School Ford Mustang followed by Anthony Alfredo and Justin Haley while Allgaier was the first competitor running on the inside lane followed by teammate Michael Annett.

    Following the first five laps of the race, Briscoe continued to lead followed by Cindric, Alfredo, Allgaier as the field continued to run in two lanes while remaining in the draft and close to one another in a pack.

    Five laps later, on Lap 10, Briscoe and Allgaier battled dead even for the lead and in a double lane battle within the pack. By then, Haley moved up to third place behind Cindric while Alfredo dropped back to 20th place.

    With the field reaching its halfway mark of the first stage, Briscoe continued to run ahead of the pack followed by Cindric, Haley, Brandon Jones, Allgaier, Riley Herbst, Annett, Brandon Brown, Harrison Burton and Ryan Sieg while Ross Chastain and Noah Gragson were running inside the top 16 on the track. 

    With five laps remaining in the first stage and the early double-wide pack racing breaking apart, Briscoe led a single-file line with seven cars on the inside lane while Annett was the first car running on the outside lane in eighth place. By then, A.J. Allmendinger, who started at the rear of the field, cracked the top 15 while Alfredo and Daniel Hemric were running in the top 10 and as the highest-running non-title contenders on the track.

    When the final lap of the first stage started, the field started to expand to two lanes as a multitude of Playoff contenders battled for spots in the top 10 for stage points. When the first stage concluded on Lap 25, Briscoe emerged out in front as he collected his eighth stage victory of the season. Cindric settled in second place followed by Brandon Jones, Haley and Alfredo while Herbst, Sieg, Harrison Burton, Hemric and Allgaier settled in the top 10. By then, Playoff contenders Brandon Brown, Gragson, Chastain and Annett failed to secure stage points.

    Under the stage break, the leaders pitted and Briscoe emerged with the lead following a two-tire pit stop, with Jones, Burton, Cindric and Herbst following behind after two-tire stops.

    The second stage started on Lap 29 with Briscoe and Jones on the front row. At the start, Briscoe moved in front of Jones on the bottom lane to retain the lead. 

    The following lap, Jones led a lap for the first time by a nose over Briscoe on the inside lane and with teammates Harrison Burton and Herbst tucked behind Jones’ No. 19 Menards/Swiffer Toyota Supra. Leading the outside lane was Briscoe followed by Cindric, Sieg, Alfredo, Chastain and Haley.

    Not long after, the outside lane led by Briscoe prevailed with a number of cars opting to run on the outside lane while the inside lane led by Jones fell back due to a lack of cars. Cindric continued to settle in second place behind Briscoe while Alfredo and Sieg made aggressive moves while attempting to move to the front. 

    By Lap 35, drivers like Haley, Hemric, Allgaier, Gragson and Chastain moved up behind Briscoe and Cindric with nearly the entire field opting to run in a single-file line on the outside lane.  

    Five laps later, on Lap 40, Briscoe continued to lead followed by Ford teammate Cindric and Haley while JR Motorsports’ teammates Hemric, Allgaier and Gragson settled in fourth through sixth. Chastain was in seventh place followed by Joe Gibbs Racing’s Harrison Burton and Herbst. Brown and Sieg were in 11th and 12th while Annett was back in 21st place behind Jeffrey Earnhardt. Allmendinger was in 16th place in front of Alfredo and Josh Williams while Myatt Snider, Brett Moffitt and Austin Hill were in the top 15.

    On Lap 42, the caution flew when Austin Hill, in an attempt to side draft Herbst, made contact, turned and sent Herbst for a spin in Turn 4 before he made hard contact into the inside wall at the driver’s door near the pit road entrance before he drove through the tri-oval grass and limped back to his pit stall.

    Under caution, few like Gragson, Annett and Allmendinger pitted while the rest led by Briscoe and Cindric remained on track.

    Prior to the restart with four laps remaining, the leaders stacked up the field and Chastain, who ran into the rear bumper of Hemric in the top 10, was hit by Harrison Burton, who was getting pushed by Sieg and Moffit, as he spun and touched the outside wall before he came back down and was hit by Colby Howard on the right side of his No. 10 Dyna-Gro Seed Chevrolet Camaro. Following the incident, the race was red-flagged for nine minutes due to fluid on the track.

    When the red flag lifted, Chastain limped to pit road as his pit crew went to work to repair the damage and to ensure the car will reach minimum speed under NASCAR’s Damaged Policy guidelines. He was able to return back on the track and in front of the field with the field coming to the restart.

    On a one-lap dash to conclude the second stage, Briscoe retained the lead over Cindric and Haley. When the second stage concluded on Lap 50, Briscoe was able to fend off Cindric and the field to collect his ninth stage victory of the season. Cindric settled in second followed by Hemric, Haley and Allgaier while Harrison Burton, Brandon Jones, Sieg, Brandon Brown and Gragson settled in the top 10.

    Under the stage break, the leaders pitted and Gragson emerged with the lead following a fuel-only pit stop. Briscoe followed behind in second place and on two fresh tires followed by Annett, Cindric, Hemric and Jones. Chastain and Harrison Burton pitted to have their respective cars repaired with both on the lead lap. Prior to this, Herbst took his No. 18 Monster Energy Toyota Supra to the garage and retired from the race following his late incident in the second stage. 

    “It just sucks,” Herbst said at the infield care center on NBCSN. “This is the fastest race car I have ever had on a superspeedway. I was really excited for that. I want to thank everybody at Joe Gibbs Racing for that. It just sucks when a Truck Series guy comes in here to have fun. I’m really good friends with Austin [Hill], so I just hate to see that. If I went into the Truck Series and wrecked his Playoff hopes, he would be upset with me. I’m a little upset. We are not out of it yet. It’s going to be tough at the Roval, but we will see what we will have with the Monster Energy Supra.”

    Following the pit stops, Allgaier was sent to the rear of the field due to having too many crew members over the pit wall. In addition, he also pitted again to address possible fluid concerns to his No. 7 BRANDT Chevrolet Camaro, an issue first noted following the red flag period in the second stage, where he re-fired his car and a billow of smoke was puffing out of the tailpipes of his Camaro.

    With 58 laps remaining, the final stage commenced as Allmendinger, Timmy Hill and Moffitt emerged out in front followed by Gragson and Briscoe. Entering the backstretch, the field expanded to three lanes, but Allmendinger retained the lead followed by Gragson, Annett, Hemric and Haley. Briscoe, meanwhile, was in seventh place while Cindric continued to run behind Briscoe.

    At the halfway mark between Laps 56 and 57, Allmendinger continued to lead a bevy of cars running on the outside lane while Briscoe and Cindric fell back inside the top 20 and in front of Allgaier while stuck on the inside lane.

    With 50 laps remaining, Allmendinger continued to lead followed by JRM’s Gragson, Annett and Hemric while Haley, Allmendinger’s teammate at Kaulig Racing, was in fifth place. Sieg was in sixth place followed by Austin Hill, Alfredo, Snider and Jesse Little. Meanwhile, Brandon Jones and Brandon Brown were in 12th and 13th while Briscoe, Chastain, Cindric and Allgaier were in 20th through 23rd behind Ryan Vargas. Harrison Burton was in 25th place behind Jeffrey Earnhardt.

    With 40 laps remaining, Allmendinger and his No. 16 Ellsworth Advisors Chevrolet Camaro continued to lead the way over a multitude of competitors racing on the outside lane. Gragson was in second place followed by teammates Annett and Hemric while Haley, Sieg, Austin Hill, Alfredo, Snider and Little were scored in the top 10. Jones and Brown were still in 12th and 13th, Chastain was in 17th and Allgaier was in 19th. Cindric and Briscoe were back in 20th and 22nd while Harrison Burton was in 26th.

    Two laps later and while a majority of competitors led by Allmendinger moved to the inside lane and were slowing down in an attempt to make a pit stop under green, Austin Hill got hit from behind from Alfredo while backing off the pace and spun before he made head-on contact into the inside wall. Behind, Cindric slipped sideways as he also made contact into the inside wall and damaged the front nose of his No. 22 CARQUEST Auto Parts Ford Mustang beyond repair. The caution immediately flew as Jeffrey Earnhardt was also involved in the carnage. Though the wreck knocked Cindric out of contention for the remainder of the race, the stage points he earned by finishing in second place in both stages kept him above the top-eight cutline in the Playoff standings and with a decent cushion of transferring to the second round of the Playoffs.

    “I just got smoked from behind,” Cindric said at the infield care center on NBCSN. “I had no chance of making it to pit road. It is really unfortunate. Obviously we hit the wall a ton. I really wanted to have a great run for our CARQUEST Ford Mustang and their first race on the car for us. It is really cool to have them back in the sport. We ran up front all day. Unfortunately, circumstances kept me and [Briscoe] from being up front with the way the slower cars stayed out…We were hoping to get ourselves locked into the next round today but we will have to go fight for it next week.”

    At the time of caution, a handful of competitors led by Allmendinger entered pit road at the time the pit road entrance was closed. While some like Allmendinger and Gragson drove through pit road without service, Annett, Ryan Vargas and Haley received service and all three were penalized for pitting too soon.

    Under caution and with the leaders pitting, Brown exited in first place followed by Allgaier, Jones, Chastain and Briscoe, all of whom opted for a fuel-only stop.

    With 30 laps remaining, the race restarted under green with Brandon Brown and Allgaier on the front row. At the start, Brown retained the lead on the inside lane followed by Jones and Chastain while Allgaier and Briscoe battled in the top five. 

    The following lane, Briscoe gained a huge run on the outside lane and drew himself alongside Brown for the lead followed by Allmendinger. Shortly after, the field started to expand into three lanes with Alex Labbe leading a small pack of cars on the outside lane and Jones leading Allgaier, Chastain and a number of competitors on the middle lane while Briscoe moved into the lead over Brown.

    With 26 laps remaining and with Briscoe back in the lead ahead of Allmendinger, Josh Williams moved inside the top five while Brown was shuffled out of the inside lane and back in the middle lane, thus falling out of the top 10. 

    Three laps later, with 23 laps remaining, the outside lane led by Briscoe prevailed with a bevy of competitors opting to run on the outside lane. By then, Briscoe was leading Allmendinger, Jones, Chastain and Labbe while teammates Gragson and Hemric were in sixth and seventh while running on the inside lane. 

    Not long after, the caution flew due to debris on the frontstretch. Under caution, the mechanical issues for Allgaier returned with smoke starting to puff out of the tailpipes of his No. 7 BRANDT Chevrolet Camaro.

    With 18 laps remaining, the race restarted under green and with Briscoe and Allmendinger on the front row. At the start, the inside lane prevailed as Briscoe retained the lead followed by Labbe, Gragson and Hemric while Allmendinger got shuffled back.

    A lap later, Allgaier, who was still dealing with mechanical issues, took his car to the garage and retired for the remainder of the race. At the front, teammates Gragson and Hemric along with Chastain moved up to second, third and fourth while Briscoe continued to lead. In addition, Harrison Burton moved up to fifth place followed by Snider, Moffitt, Alfredo, Sieg, Brown and Jones.

    With 15 laps remaining and a majority of competitors settling on the outside lane in a single-file line, Briscoe, the lone Ford competitor towards the front, continued to lead followed by Chevrolet teammates Gragson, Hemric and Chastain while Burton, the highest-running Toyota competitor, was in fifth place ahead of Alfredo.

    With 10 laps remaining, Briscoe was still scored as the leader followed by teammates Gragson and Hemric with Chastain and Harrison Burton in the top five. By then, Brandon Jones and Brandon Brown were in eighth and ninth followed by Haley, who rallied from his late pit road penalty, while Annett was back in 16th place and the first car on the inside lane.

    With eight laps remaining, Haley started to make moves to the front as he moved into sixth place, two spots behind teammate Chastain, and after making bold moves on the inside lane before settling back in the draft on the outside lane. A few laps later, teammate Allmendinger made his move on the inside lane and started to move into the top five. By then, Briscoe continued to lead over Gragson, Hemric, Chastain and Burton with five laps remaining and with the field starting to jumble up for runs to the front and for the finish.

    With three laps remaining, Haley started to form a line on the inside lane in an attempt for the lead while Briscoe continued to lead the race on the outside lane. Entering Turn 4, Gragson got Briscoe sideways following a bump, but Briscoe was able to prevent the car from spinning out in front of the pack as he continued to battle Gragson on the inside lane for the lead. 

    With two laps remaining, Briscoe moved up the track to block Gragson, which allowed Haley to gain a run on the inside lane and challenge for the lead. In Turn 3, Haley moved into the lead followed by Annett and Sieg while Briscoe and Gragson made contact again, resulting in Briscoe scraping the outside wall and falling out of contention for the win.  

    At the start of the final lap, Haley was still in the lead followed by Annett and Sieg while Gragson continued to battle on the outside lane in fourth place next to Jones. Through the backstretch, a multi-car wreck ensued that involved Harrison Burton, Allmendinger, Snider, Little, Moffitt and Brown. The wreck ended the race under caution as Haley emerged out in front and was able to grab the win. 

    With his win, Haley joined Dale Earnhardt and Dale Earnhardt Jr. as the only competitors to achieve three consecutive Xfinity Series superspeedway wins. In addition, Haley became the first Xfinity competitor to win two series races at Talladega in one season as he recorded the fourth victory of the season and the sixth overall for Kaulig Racing. Ironically, five of Kaulig Racing’s six career wins in NASCAR have occurred on superspeedway venues.

    “Three in a row is pretty hard to do on luck,” Haley said on NBCSN. “We had that penalty there. We struggled to get back, just bunny hopping. Thankfully, Kevin Hamlin, my spotter, was able to guide me through the bunny hops, being able to go from the bottom. We were so far back with 10 [laps] to go. This LeafFilter Gutter Protection Chevrolet, these ECR Engines, [Richard Childress Racing], Matt Kaulig, we love you! We got this thing in the Round of 8, that’s the most important. Just super thankful to everyone. This is a blessing.”

    Annett initially settled in second place for his best result of the season since winning the 2019 Xfinity Series season opener at Daytona International Speedway. Following the race, however, Annett was disqualified due to his No. 1 Pilot Flying J Chevrolet Camaro being deemed too low in the left front. As a result, he was credited with a 37th-place result (last place in the field) and dropped from ninth to 12th in the Xfinity Playoff standings, also leaving him with a 38-point deficit entering next Saturday’s race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval.

    With that, Sieg was promoted into second place while Gragson, Brandon Jones and Hemric rounded out the top five on the track.

    “A win would’ve been a lot better, but we’re still on the positive side [in the standings],” Sieg said on NBCSN. “You never know what can happen at the road courses. We’ll do a little bit of a different strategy or you never know what can happen [at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval]. We’re excited to go to the Roval plus 23 [points]…Points day, it was great.”

    “This is probably a really impressive day for a superspeedway because I’ve never really been a part of running great all the stages and then, getting that finish that we needed there at the end as well,” Jones said on NBCSN. “These guys did a really good job from the last superspeedway that we went to to try to get our Menards Supra as fast as Xfinity Internet. I think we showed up with something that contended almost for the win there. Really excited, I think the Roval’s gonna be pretty good for us. We had such a good run at Daytona earlier at the road course that I think is gonna be really strong next week. Looking forward to it.”

    Chastain rallied from his share of challenges throughout the race by finishing in sixth place while Josh Williams, Garrett Smithley, Brandon Brown and Alex Labbe rounded out the top 10.

    “It’s just about the fight, the fight of this No. 10 team,” Chastain said on NBCSN. “It’s no different than some farmer putting Dyna-Gro Seed to the ground and hoping for that rain. It’s the same thing with us…My Chip Ganassi Racing pit crew did an awesome job. Those guys are some unsung heroes today. [The car]’s toed in, the crush panels are knocked out of it. It was a hard hit… Our Dyna-Gro Seed guys, they did what a farmer does and we kept fighting. We came out of here and gave ourselves a shot at the Roval.”

    “That was really cool to be able to get out and get our Larry’s Hard Lemonade No. 68 upfront,” Brown said on NBCSN. “I was like, ‘Man, we got the Xfinity Internet speed in this thing.’ We were gonna go all the way to the front, but it’s Talladega. It was a lot of highs and lows. Getting shuffled all the way to the rear and it feels like your race is over, but then you get a line that moves you to the front. It was a lot of fun all day to do that and battle back and forth with these guys…I think we came out and we showed how strong we can be.”

    Briscoe, who won both stages, led a race-high 73 laps and was in position to win until the final two laps, fell all the way back to 19th place.

    “Obviously, there at the end, you’re doing everything you can to protect the runs,” Briscoe said on NBCSN. “[Gragson]’s trying to make moves, just part of racing here. It was exciting at least on my end. I was about wrecked two or three times trying to block. I knew that he had talked to Dale [Earnhardt Jr.] about how to run this place and obviously, I talked to Dale how to run this place. It was weird because I knew what [Gragson] was trying to do every time. So, I just kept trying to protect it and just, it’s part of racing here. But overall, a really good day for our Ford Performance Racing Ford to win two stages. That’s huge going into the next round. So, 20th, obviously, doesn’t tell the whole picture, but it’s part of racing here. We’re going on to the Roval next week and have some fun.”

    “There’s so much going on. I don’t remember what happened,” Gragson said on NBCSN. “It’s pretty wild out there, racing for the win in the Xfinity Series. This is all I’ve ever dreamed of as a kid is to come to these races and have an opportunity to race for the win…It was definitely wild. [Briscoe] was throwing big blocks. That’s what you gotta do in the lead. I thought he did a pretty damn good job up there, but definitely unfortunate letting [Haley] get through for the win. I don’t love sitting here watching people do burnouts. Hopefully, we can go get a burnout at the Roval and take home a checkered flag.”

    There were 13 lead changes for nine different leaders. The race featured seven cautions for 25 laps.

    Results.

    1. Justin Haley, two laps led

    2. Ryan Sieg

    3. Noah Gragson, two laps led

    4. Brandon Jones, one lap led

    5. Daniel Hemric

    6. Ross Chastain

    7. Josh Williams

    8. Garrett Smithley

    9. Brandon Brown, four laps led

    10. Alex Labbe

    11. Chad Finchum

    12. Anthony Alfredo

    13. Caesar Bacarella

    14. Timmy Hill

    15. Tommy Joe Martins

    16. Joe Nemechek

    17. Mike Harmon

    18. Josh Bilicki

    19. Chase Briscoe, 73 laps led, Stage 1 & 2 winner

    20. Jeremy Clements

    21. Matt Mills

    22. Vinnie Miller

    23. Harrison Burton

    24. A.J. Allmendinger – OUT, Accident, 24 laps led

    25. Jesse Little – OUT, Accident, five laps led

    26. Myatt Snider – OUT, Accident

    27. Brett Moffitt – OUT, Accident

    28. Kody Vanderwal, three laps down

    29. Justin Allgaier – OUT, Engine, one lap led

    30. Ryan Vargas – OUT, Suspension

    31. Joe Graf Jr. – OUT, Engine

    32. Jeffrey Earnhardt – OUT, Accident

    33. Austin Hill – OUT, Accident

    34. Austin Cindric – OUT, Accident

    35. Riley Herbst – OUT, DVP

    36. Colby Howard – OUT, Accident, one lap led

    37. Michael Annett – DISQUALIFIED

    Playoff standings.

    1. Chase Briscoe – Advanced

    2. Justin Haley – Advanced

    3. Austin Cindric +50

    4. Noah Gragson +47

    5. Brandon Jones +34

    6. Ryan Sieg +27

    7. Justin Allgaier +19

    8. Ross Chastain +7

    9. Harrison Burton -7

    10. Brandon Brown -19

    11. Riley Herbst -36

    12. Michael Annett -38

    Next on the NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule is the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval on Saturday, October 10, where the Round of 12 in the Xfinity Playoffs will conclude and the first round of eliminations will occur. The race will air at 3:30 p.m. ET on NBC.

  • Allgaier sweeps Richmond in doubleheader weekend

    Allgaier sweeps Richmond in doubleheader weekend

    Coming off his late surge and dominating win on Friday night in Richmond, Virginia, while recording a milestone win for JR Motorsports, Justin Allgaier backed it up by winning the Virginia is for Racing Lovers 250 at Richmond Raceway on Saturday afternoon, September 12, for his third NASCAR Xfinity Series win of the season and in the past six races as he also claimed his second victory of the weekend. The win was Allgaier’s 14th of his Xfinity career and 11th while driving JRM’s No. 7 car as JR Motorsports recorded its 51st NASCAR Xfinity career victory.

    The starting lineup was based on the results from Friday night’s race at Richmond, where the top-14 finishers were inverted. With that, Tommy Joe Martins started on pole position and was joined on the front row with Brandon Jones. Chad Finchum started at the rear of the field due to an engine change. Rookie Myatt Snider also started at the rear of the field in a backup car.

    When the green flag waved and the race started, Martins and Jones battled dead even for the lead before Jones was able to prevail through Turns 3 and 4 and lead the first lap. Behind, Chase Briscoe and Ryan Sieg made a three-wide move on Martins entering Turn 1 before both moved up to second and third behind Jones. Not long after, Kaz Grala also moved up into fourth followed by Michael Annett while Martins continued to fade and lose spots on the track.

    By the fifth lap, Jones was ahead by nearly three-tenths of a second over Briscoe with Sieg trailing by half a second. Five laps later, on Lap 10, Jones stabilized his advantage to nearly three-tenths of a second over Briscoe. Behind, Grala moved into third place over Sieg while Noah Gragson joined the battle. Austin Cindric was in sixth followed by Annett, Justin Haley, teammate Ross Chastain and rookie Riley Herbst. Justin Allgaier, winner of Friday night’s Xfinity race at Richmond, was in 11th ahead of cousins Harrison and Jeb Burton while Tommy Joe Martins fell back to 20th.

    On Lap 17, Briscoe emerged with the lead after passing Jones on the inside lane the previous lap in Turn 1. Behind him. Grala moved into second place followed by Gragson while Jones settled in fourth place ahead of Haley and Cindric. Four laps later, Haley, who finished in second place on Friday night behind Allgaier, continued his march to the front after passing Jones for fourth place. By then, Allgaier cracked the top 10.

    By Lap 25, the top-three competitors on the track led by Briscoe and followed by Grala and Gragson were ahead of fourth-place Haley by a second with Cindric trailing by more than a second and Annett by more than two seconds. Shortly after, Gragson moved into second place over Grala.

    Thirty laps into the event and with the leaders approaching lapped traffic, Gragson emerged with the lead after passing Briscoe the previous lap in Turn 1. Briscoe maintained second place over Grala while Haley and Cindric stabilized themselves inside the top five. Behind, Allgaier moved up to sixth place and Ross Chastain moved up to eighth place while Jones fell back to 11th behind teammates Herbst and Harrison Burton.

    While Gragson slowly extended his advantage, Grala and Briscoe battled for second place with Haley joining the party and heavy lapped traffic in front of them. On Lap 37, Haley, Briscoe and Grala went three wide for second place amid the lapped traffic for nearly a full circuit before Haley prevailed and took the spot. Behind, Allgaier rocketed his way into third place while Briscoe and Grala settled in the top five ahead of Cindric. Shortly after, Allgaier moved into second place. 

    With the battling for positions settling down, Gragson was able to maintain the lead just as the competition caution flew on Lap 40. Under caution, few that included Joey Gase and Tommy Joe Martins made a pit stop while the rest remained on track.

    The race resumed under green on Lap 45 as teammates Gragson and Allgaier battled for the lead while Briscoe made a three-wide move to move up to third place. At the front, Allgaier emerged with the lead entering Turn 2 and after restarting on the inside lane. Behind, Haley passed Briscoe for third place while teammate Chastain overtook Annett into fifth place in pursuit of more on the track.

    Fifty-five laps into the event, Allgaier was ahead by three-tenths of a second over teammate Gragson while Kaulig Racing teammates Haley and Chastain trailed behind. Annett, teammates to Allgaier and Gragson at JR Motorsports, was back in fifth place while Joe Gibbs Racing’s Herbst and Burton battled with Stewart-Haas Racing’s Briscoe for sixth and seventh. Penske’s Cindric was in ninth while RSS Racing’s Ryan Sieg was in 10th. Richard Childress Racing’s Grala was back in 12th behind Sieg.

    Five laps later, on Lap 60, Allgaier continued to lead by half a second over Gragson with Haley trailing by seven-tenths of a second and Chastain trailing by more than a second. Jones was back in 14th while Martins was back in 27th. In addition, Grala overtook Cindric for 10th place. 

    When the first stage concluded on Lap 75, Allgaier emerged at the front of the field as he claimed his 10th stage victory of the season. Gragson settled in second place behind his teammate followed by Haley, Chastain and Harrison Burton while Annett, Herbst, Jeb Burton, Sieg and Grala settled in the top 10. By then, Briscoe and his No. 98 Go Bowling Ford Mustang dropped back to 11th place ahead of Brandon Jones while Cindric and his No. 22 PPG Ford Mustang also fell back to 15th place. 

    Under the stage break, the leaders pitted and Allgaier retained the lead following his pit stop ahead of teammate Gragson, Chastain, Haley, Harrison Burton and Jeb Burton. Following the pit stops, Sieg was sent to the rear of the field for speeding on pit road.

    The second stage commenced on Lap 82 and Chastain made a bold three-wide move beneath Allgaier and Gragson in Turn 1 to take the lead. Eight laps later, on Lap 90, Chastain stabilized his advantage to a second over teammates Allgaier and Gragson while Jeb Burton moved up to fourth place in front of Haley and Harrison Burton. Behind, Cindric rallied from his late issues near the end of the first stage to run in seventh place followed by Herbst, Briscoe and Brett Moffitt. Annett, Jeremy Clements, Brandon Jones, Brandon Brown and Grala were running in the top 15.

    Another 10 laps later, on Lap 100, Chastain stabilized his advantage to seven-tenths of a second over Allgaier, whose car slowly came to life and with speed on long runs like the first stage, with Gragson trailing by more than a second. Behind, Jeb Burton continued to maintain fourth place over Haley. 

    By Lap 110, Allgaier cut his deficit to three-tenths of a second over Chastain as the leaders started to approach heavy lapped traffic. Both Chastain and Allgaier were ahead of third-place Gragson by more than two seconds with Haley in fourth. Behind by more than four seconds were cousins Harrison and Jeb Burton, both battling for fifth place, with Herbst joining the party. Cindric was back in eighth place ahead of Briscoe and Annett.

    Ten laps later, on Lap 120, Allgaier started to pressure Chastain for the lead as they cleared the lapped traffic. He then attempted to gain a run and set up a pass on the outside lane, but Chastain was able to stabilize his narrow lead.

    When the race reached its halfway point on Lap 125, Chastain was still ahead with the lead as Allgaier settled right behind the rear bumper of Chastain’s No. 10 Nutrien Ag Solutions Chevrolet Camaro. Three laps later, Allgaier and his No. 7 BRANDT Chevrolet Camaro moved back into the lead after fending off a challenge by Chastain, who refused to back out of the gas.

    Behind, Harrison Burton made his way to third place after passing Gragson while Herbst moved up to fifth place after passing Haley. Jeb Burton settled in seventh place in front of Cindric, Jones and Briscoe. Shortly after, Herbst muscled his No. 18 Monster Energy Toyota Supra into fourth place.

    With 10 laps remaining in the second stage, the caution flew for an incident involving in Turn 3 involving Colby Howard. By then, Allgaier was leading by more than a second over Chastain with Harrison Burton trailing by less than four seconds. Under caution, some like Chastain, Haley, Harrison Burton, Herbst, Cindric, Jeb Burton, Brandon Jones and Briscoe pitted while the rest led by Allgaier remained on track. Following the pit stops, Jones was sent to the rear for speeding on pit road.

    With five laps remaining, the short dash to the conclusion of the second stage started under green and with Allgaier and Grala restarting on the front row followed by teammates Gragson and Annett. At the start, Allgaier retained the lead while Chastain rocketed his way on the outside lane to move all the way up to second place in two laps and on fresh tires than Allgaier. All this occurred as the field scrambled for positions between those on fresh tires versus those on old tires. 

    A lap later, teammates Chastain and Haley made a three-wide move on Allgaier for the lead with Chastain reassuming the lead while Allgaier was overtaken by a handful of cars on fresh tires and dropped back to the top 10. By the time the second stage concluded on Lap 150 and with the scrambling for positions still ongoing through every turn and straightaway, Chastain emerged out in front and claimed his second stage victory of the season. Teammate Haley and his No. 11 LeafFilter Gutter Protection Chevrolet Camaro settled in second followed by Jeb Burton, Briscoe and Harrison Burton while Cindric, Herbst, Allgaier, Gragson and Grala settled in the top 10.

    Under the stage break, some like Allgaier, Gragson, Jeb Burton, Grala, Clements and Brandon Brown pitted while the rest led by teammates Chastain and Haley remained on track. 

    The final stage commenced under green with 93 laps remaining and with Chastain and Haley on the front row. At the start, Chastain took off with the lead followed by Briscoe and Jeb Burton while Haley got shuffled out of the top five entering Turn 2. In one lap, Allgaier moved up to sixth place on fresh tires. 

    At the front, Jeb Burton made a move beneath Chastain to take the lead with 90 laps remaining. Shortly after, Allgaier rocketed into third place after passing Cindric while Briscoe settled in fifth place in front of Harrison Burton.

    With 87 laps remaining, Allgaier overtook Chastain for second place as Jeb Burton continued to lead by a second. Seven laps later, with 80 laps remaining, Allgaier cut his deficit to Jeb Burton down to less than three-tenths of a second. Behind, Chastain trailed by two seconds in third place followed by Gragson and Cindric while Harrison Burton and Haley battled for sixth place.

    Two laps later, Allgaier made his way back into the lead after passing teammate Jeb Burton. Another five laps later, with 73 laps remaining, Allgaier extended his advantage to more than a second over Jeb Burton’s No. 8 LS Tractor Chevrolet Camaro.

    As the green-flag run progressed and with Allgaier ahead by more than two seconds, Chastain took second place over Jeb Burton with Gragson and Haley in the top five. Cindric was in sixth place followed by Harrison Burton, Annett, Grala and Herbst while Briscoe was back in 12th place in front of Jones, Clements and Brown.

    With 60 laps remaining, Allgaier stabilized his lead to three seconds over Chastain. Ten laps later, with 50 laps remaining, Allgaier extended his advantage to more than five seconds over Chastain with Jeb Burton trailing by less than six seconds.

    Another 10 laps later and with 40 laps remaining, Allgaier continued to extend his advantage by seven seconds over Chastain with Jeb Burton trailing by more than eight seconds. Fourth-place Haley was trailing by 10 seconds while Gragson and Harrison Burton trailed by more than 12 seconds. By then, names like Ryan Sieg, Brett Moffitt and Chase Briscoe were lapped.

    Under 30 laps remaining, Allgaier’s lead expanded to eight seconds over Chastain with Jeb Burton trailing by nine seconds, Haley by less than 11 seconds and Harrison Burton by less than 15 seconds. Gragson retained sixth place ahead of teammate Annett and Grala while Cindric and Jones were scored in the top 10. Behind, Alex Labbe was in 11th place ahead of Herbst, Clements, Brandon Brown and Matt Mills. Jeffrey Earnhardt was in 16th place, a lap down, while Sieg and Briscoe were back in 17th and 19th. 

    With approximately 20 laps remaining, the caution flew after contact from Brandon Brown sent Herbst hard into the Turn 1 outside wall and with significant damage sustained to the rear end of Herbst’s No. 18 Toyota that knocked Herbst out of contention in the closing laps of the race. The caution erased a nearly nine-second advantage for Allgaier. Under caution, the leaders pitted and Allgaier retained the lead after exiting pit road first ahead of Jeb Burton and Chastain.

    The race restarted under green with 13 laps remaining and with teammates Allgaier and Burton on the front row while Chastain and Harrison Burton lined up on the second row. At the start, Allgaier withstood a challenge from Jeb Burton to retain the lead, 

    With 10 laps remaining, Allgaier stabilized his advantage to nearly four-tenths of a second over teammate Jeb Burton with Chastain trailing behind and the pack behind jostling for late positions. Two laps later, Allgaier extended his advantage to six-tenths of a second.

    With five laps remaining and Allgaier leading by more than a second, Jeb Burton continued to maintain second place ahead of Chastain and Harrison Burton with Haley in fifth place ahead of Gragson.

    With the leaders encountering lapped traffic, Chastain started to challenge Jeb Burton for second place followed by Harrison Burton and his No. 20 Dex Imaging Toyota Supra. Despite encountering lapped traffic in front of him, Allgaier was able to stabilize his advantage and navigate his way through one final circuit and come back around to win by two seconds and for his second checkered flag of the weekend.

    Through the first 19 regular-season races of this year, Allgaier had yet to fill in the win column to his stats in 2020. Since recording his first victory at Dover International Speedway in August, Allgaier’s pair of victories this weekend at Richmond allowed him to join Cindric, Briscoe and Brandon Jones as the lone Xfinity competitors to achieve three or more victories throughout the regular-season stretch. In addition, Allgaier joined Cindric as the lone Xfinity competitors to achieve two victories in a doubleheader weekend at a track, when Cindric made his accomplishment at Kentucky Speedway in July.

    “I knew how good our car was all day,” Allgaier said in Victory Lane on NBCSN. “It seems like lately, we haven’t been able to get [BRANDT] to Victory Lane. It wasn’t for lack of effort. I knew at the end there, I knew we had speed. I knew when we needed to go we could. I just didn’t know how fast. My teammate, Jeb Burton, did a fantastic job today on that last restart. I’m just so proud of these guys.”

    In addition, Allgaier, who won on Friday night at Richmond, spent time afterwards working with his crew to install a new front nose on his No. 7 Chevrolet Camaro prior to Saturday afternoon’s race, where he went on to win.

    “I have to thank the Man upstairs,” Allgaier added. “Tonight was definitely a push to the end, but we just had the luck we needed. I say luck, but luck is opportunities and preparation. We were prepared and the opportunities came tonight and we did a good job. I’m really proud of these guys.”

    Behind, Jeb Burton settled in a career-best second place in his 40th series start followed by Chastain, who racked up his 12th top-five result of this season. Harrison Burton rallied from a 16th-place result on Friday night to finish in fourth place while Haley recorded a fifth-place run for his second top-five result in two days and for his eighth top-five finish of this season. Gragson finished in sixth place while Annett, Brandon Jones, Grala and Cindric rounded out the top 10. By finishing in 10th place, Cindric clinched this year’s regular-season championship and he will be awarded 15 bonus points for this year’s Playoffs.

    By finishing 15th and 34th, Ryan Sieg and Riley Herbst clinched their spots for this year’s Xfinity Playoffs, thus joining Austin Cindric, Chase Briscoe, Justin Allgaier, Noah Gragson, Brandon Jones, Justin Haley, Harrison Burton, Ross Chastain and Michael Annett for this year’s championship battle.

    Brandon Brown finished in 11th place and he holds sole possession of the 12th and final transfer spot to the Playoffs by 49 points over Clements, who finished 17th, and 88 over Snider, who finished 31st, as the series makes its way to the regular-season finale next Friday at Bristol Motor Speedway.

    There were nine lead changes for six different leaders. The race featured five cautions for 29 laps.

    Results.

    1. Justin Allgaier, 135 laps led, Stage 1 winner

    2. Jeb Burton, 12 laps led

    3. Ross Chastain, 58 laps led, Stage 2 winner

    4. Harrison Burton

    5. Noah Gragson, 16 laps led 

    6. Justin Haley

    7. Michael Annett

    8. Brandon Jones, 16 laps led

    9. Kaz Grala

    10. Austin Cindric

    11. Brandon Brown

    12. Alex Labbe

    13. Matt Mills

    14. Jeffrey Earnhardt

    15. Ryan Sieg, one lap down

    16. Chase Briscoe, one lap down, 13 laps led

    17. Jeremy Clements, one lap down

    18. Brett Moffitt, one lap down

    19. Bayley Currey, one lap down

    20. Kyle Weatherman, two laps down

    21. Mason Massey, two laps down

    22. Stephen Leicht, three laps down

    23. Joey Gase, three laps down

    24. B.J. McLeod, three laps down

    25. Josh Williams, three laps down

    26. Tommy Joe Martins, three laps down

    27. Joe Graf Jr., three laps down

    28. Chad Finchum, four laps down

    29. Kody Vanderwal, four laps down

    30. Dexter Bean, four laps down

    31. Myatt Snider, four laps down

    32. Vinnie Miller, five laps down

    33. Jesse Little, six laps down

    34. Riley Herbst – OUT, Accident

    35. Colby Howard – OUT, Accident

    36. Timmy Hill – OUT, Fuel pump

    The NASCAR Xfinity Series regular-season finale will occur at Bristol Motor Speedway for the Food City 300, which will occur on Friday, September 18, at 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN. 

  • 2020 Xfinity Playoff outlook after Darlington

    2020 Xfinity Playoff outlook after Darlington

    It all comes down to the final three NASCAR Xfinity Series races through the upcoming two weekends until the 2020 Xfinity Playoff field is set.

    With this year’s series regular season reaching its conclusion, the time for the competitors on the outside of the cutline and vying for the final spots to the 12-car postseason field is running out while those currently inside the cutline on points have stabilized themselves into the postseason battle for the title.

    Following a thrilling finish to last Saturday’s Sport Clips Haircuts VFW 200 at Darlington Raceway on September 5, Brandon Jones joins Chase Briscoe and Austin Cindric as the lone Xfinity competitors to achieve three or more victories through the first 23 races of the regular-season stretch as the Atlanta native also collected his fourth career series win.

    They, along with Noah Gragson, Justin Haley, rookie Harrison Burton and Justin Allgaier, remain the only competitors to be guaranteed a spot in this year’s Playoffs based on winning throughout the regular season.

    For Ross Chastain, Saturday’s race at Darlington produced a good and bad news outcome. The bad news for Chastain was that he fell short of claiming his first victory of the season following a late battle with Cup veteran Denny Hamlin, where he made contact with Hamlin approaching the final lap and limped home in second place and after leading in the closing laps. The good news for Chastain and his No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet team is that with his career-high 10th top-five result (fourth runner-up result in 2020), the Floridian is guaranteed a spot in the Playoffs based on points as he will make his second series postseason appearance as a title contender. In addition, Chastain’s result places both Kaulig Racing competitors into the Playoffs.

    Like Chastain, the Darlington event produced strong outcomes for Michael Annett, rookie Riley Herbst and Ryan Sieg, all of whom recorded top-10 results, are 120 points or more above the top-12 cutline and have an opportunity to secure their spots for the postseason following next weekend’s doubleheader events at Richmond Raceway.

    Despite starting and finishing in 17th place while rallying from being involved in a multi-car wreck past the opening two laps, Brandon Brown extended his cushion with the 12th and final spot to the Playoffs by 45 points over Jeremy Clements, who finished 32nd due to electrical issues, and 51 over rookie Myatt Snider, who finished 10th and rallied from a three-race stretch of finishing outside the top 15.

    Other competitors who continue to trail the cutline by 84 or more points include Josh Williams, rookie Jesse Little, B.J. McLeod, Tommy Joe Martins and rookie Joe Graf Jr.

    The battle for the final spots to this year’s NASCAR XFINITY Series Playoffs will continue next weekend at Richmond Raceway for a doubleheader series weekend. The first Richmond race will occur on Friday, September 11, at 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN while the second Richmond race will occur on Saturday, September 12, at 2 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

  • 2020 Xfinity Series Playoff outlook after Daytona

    2020 Xfinity Series Playoff outlook after Daytona

    The 2020 NASCAR Xfinity Series regular-season stretch is winding down with four races remaining until the fifth annual Xfinity Playoffs commences. Following an eventful and wild conclusion to the Xfinity Series recent race at Daytona International Speedway on August 28, the battle for the final five vacant spots to the postseason continues to intensify entering the month of September.

    With his second series victory of this season and of his career, Justin Haley joins Chase Briscoe, Austin Cindric, Noah Gragson, rookie Harrison Burton and Brandon Jones as multi-winners throughout the first 22 races of this year’s Xfinity Series regular-season stretch. They, along with Justin Allgaier, remain the only competitors to be guaranteed a spot in the postseason based on winning throughout the regular season.

    The competitor who continues to emerge as the highest competitor in the standings based on points is Ross Chastain. For a moment, it appeared that Chastain had a race-winning strategy established on the final lap to clinch his spot in the Playoffs. Instead, it ended with contact with his Kaulig Racing teammate and race leader A.J. Allmendinger that knocked both out of contention entering the tri-oval. With a wrecked race car, Chastain was able to limp across the line in sixth place, though the result left him dejected. Nonetheless, with his 19th top-10 result, the Floridian moved from fourth to third in the regular-season standings and is 420 points above the top-12 cutline, leaving him a large cushion to make his second postseason appearance in the Xfinity Series.

    Next is Michael Annett, who is also coming off a strong result at Daytona. After running towards the front for the majority of the race and working with his JR Motorsports’ teammates, Annett was in race-winning position in between the Kaulig Racing competitors until he was collected in a last lap accident. Despite the damage, Annett was able to limp across the line in seventh place for his 13th top-10 result of this season. With the result and the stage points he collected, the Iowa native is 223 points above the cutline as he attempts to make his third appearance in the Playoffs.

    For rookie Riley Herbst, it was an up-and-down day at Daytona that started on a low note, when he and his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota team were hit with a pre-race inspection fraction due to an improperly mounted ballast. As a result, Herbst was docked 10 driver/owner points and raced at Daytona last weekend without his car chief. In addition, he started at the rear of the field and was assessed a drive-through penalty down pit road at the start. Despite the penalty, Herbst was able to rally his way back to the front to collect a bevy of stage points between the first two stages and dodge a multi-car accident on the final lap to finish in fourth place in front of teammate Harrison Burton. With his third top-five result of his rookie season and including the 10-point penalty, the Las Vegas native is still 142 points above the cutline in his bid to make his first Xfinity Playoffs as a title contender.

    Next is Ryan Sieg, who came into Daytona with an 88-point cushion above the cutline and with an opportunity to race his way into the Playoffs with a victory at one of his strongest tracks (finishing in the top five at Daytona on three occasions). Following a 23rd-place result at Daytona while finishing four laps behind the leaders, however, the points cushion decreased to 68 for the Georgia native, who recorded his seventh result outside the top 20 this season and as he continues to chase his third appearance in the postseason as a title contender.

    Finally, Brandon Brown continues to hold sole possession of the 12th and final spot to the Playoffs. For Brown, it was a rough outcome at a track deemed an opportunity for him to grab his first win and lock himself into the postseason battle. Though he finished in the top five in the first stage and collected a handful of stage points, his strong run ended when he was involved in a multi-car wreck on Lap 40 during the second stage. Trying to rally from his first incident, he was unable to avoid another multi-car wreck just shy of the halfway mark. Following his second incident, he was unable to continue and meet the minimum pace with a damaged race car as he settled in 26th place. Despite the result, Brown is 32 points above the cutline in his bid to make his first postseason appearance as a title contender.

    The top-two competitors who continue to trail Brown and the final spot inside the top-12 cutline in points are Jeremy Clements and Myatt Snider. Like Brown, both competitors emerged with disappointing outcomes at one of their best tracks to grab an upset win and make the Playoffs.

    For Clements, his pursuit for a win ended just shy of the halfway mark when he was involved in a multi-car wreck that involved Justin Allgaier and Brown. Finishing in 20th place and two laps behind the leaders, Clements only lost a point due to finishing six spots ahead of Brown as he trails him by 32 points in his bid to make his second postseason appearance as a title contender.

    For Snider, who started on pole position until he was eliminated in a multi-car wreck at Daytona in February, he was swept up in both multi-car wrecks just shy of the halfway mark of Friday night’s race at the superspeedway venue. Though he finished in 19th place for his 14th top-20 result of his rookie Xfinity season, he is still trailing the cutline by 58 points and in his bid to make his first Xfinity Playoffs as a title contender.

    Other competitors who continue to trail the top-12 cutline in the regular-season standings by 86 or more points include Josh Williams, rookie Jesse Little, Tommy Joe Martins, B.J. McLeod and rookie Joe Graf Jr.

    The battle for the final spots to the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs will continue at Darlington Raceway on September 5, which will occur at 12:30 p.m. ET on NBC.

  • Haley notches a thrilling win at Daytona

    Haley notches a thrilling win at Daytona

    At the start of the final lap of the Wawa 250 Powered by Coca-Cola at Daytona International Speedway, all three Kaulig Racing competitors led by A.J. Allmendinger and followed by Ross Chastain and Justin Haley were running at the front with an opportunity to win. When the checkered flag flew, two Kaulig competitors made contact and wrecked while the third competitor, Haley, escaped the carnage on the final lap to win at Daytona.

    The victory was Haley’s second of his Xfinity Series career, second of this season after winning his first Xfinity career race at Talladega Superspeedway in June and the fifth NASCAR win overall for Kaulig Racing.

    The starting lineup was based on three statistical categories: current owner points standings, the results from a previous Xfinity race and the fastest lap from a previous Xfinity race. With that, Chase Briscoe, coming off his victory at Dover International Speedway in part of a doubleheader weekend, started on pole position and was joined on the front row with Ross Chastain. 

    Rookie Riley Herbst was the only competitor to drop to the rear of the field due to an improperly mounted ballast discovered from his No. 18 Monster Energy Toyota Supra during the pre-race technical inspection, resulting in his car chief being ejected. In addition, he was assessed a pass-through penalty at the start of the race. Ryan Sieg, Josh Williams and Tim Viens retained their starting spots, but they all lost a pit stall selection for next weekend’s series race at Darlington Raceway due to multiple pre-race technical failures.

    When the green flag waved and the race started, Briscoe received a push from Austin Cindric at the start to jump to an early lead. The top-eight competitors led by Briscoe ran in a single-file lane following by a bevy of competitors racing in double lanes for one lap around the superspeedway venue as Briscoe led the first lap.

    The following lap, with Briscoe still leading, Cindric settled in second followed by Kaulig Racing’s Ross Chastain and Justin Haley while Joe Gibbs Racing’s Brandon Jones and Harrison Burton were running inside the top six. Anthony Alfredo was in seventh place ahead of Brandon Brown, Alex Labbe and Brett Moffitt while JR Motorsports’ four-car lineup led by Noah Gragson and including Justin Allgaier, Daniel Hemric and Michael Annett were running inside the top 16.

    By the fifth lap, Briscoe was still leading Cindric, Chastain and a bevy of cars racing in a single-file lane followed by a scattered pack racing in two lanes. Trailing the lead pack by more than 34 seconds was Herbst following his opening lap penalty.

    Shortly after, the first caution of the race flew when rookie Joe Graf Jr. spun across the tri-oval/frontstretch, made contact with the outside wall and damaged his car following contact with Jeffrey Earnhardt as Caesar Bacarella also sustained damage. Following his incident, Graf was limping his No. 08 Bucked Up Chevrolet Camaro back to pit road when the right-rear tire on his car shredded and left a multitude of debris scattered across Turn 2. The shredded right-rear tire and the damage to the right side of Graf’s car also left his car beyond repairable to continue.

    Following the incident, NASCAR declared the caution involving Graf, Earnhardt and Bacarella as the competition caution originally planned on the 10th lap. Under caution, few like Moffitt, Earnhardt, A.J. Allmendinger, Chad Finchum, Ryan Sieg and Herbst pitted while the rest led by Briscoe remained on track.

    When the race restarted under green on Lap 11, Briscoe jumped ahead on the outside lane and moved in front of Cindric’s No. 22 Odyssey Battery Ford Mustang on the inside lane to retain the lead through Turn 1. Entering Turn 2, however, Haley made a charge on the outside lane and started to battle with Cindric for the runner-up spot. 

    A lap later, just as Haley started to mount a challenge on Briscoe and Cindric for the lead, a rough start became worse for Bacarella as he wrecked on the backstretch and sustained heavy damage to the front nose of his No. 90 Alpha Prime/Maxim Chevrolet, thus brining out the second caution of the race. In addition, John Jackson was slowly limping back to pit road.

    Under caution, some like teammates Gragson, Hemric, Allgaier and Annett along with Moffitt, Allmendinger and Sieg pitted while the rest led by Briscoe remained on the track.

    The race restarted under green on Lap 17, and Briscoe jumped ahead and moved in front of Cindric with the lead again. In Turn 1, Burton mounted a challenge on the outside lane as he and Briscoe battled dead even for the lead. When the field returned to the tri-oval, Briscoe and his No. 98 Ford Performance Racing School Ford Mustang were ahead by a nose over Burton and his No. 20 Dex Imaging Toyota Supra with the entire pack running close behind the leaders.

    Two laps later, on Lap 20, Briscoe, who has led every lap thus far, was still ahead with the lead and in front of Cindric, Haley, Chastain, Alfredo and Brown. Not long after, Gragson, fresh off a one-year contract extension with JR Motorsports, started to move into the top five on the outside lane with his three teammates (Allgaier, Hemric and Annett) tucked behind. 

    On Lap 23, Haley emerged with the lead followed by teammate Chastain and Alfredo while Briscoe fell back to fourth place alongside Brown. 

    While the battling for the lead continued to intensify, the caution returned a lap later for an accident in Turn 1 involving Earnhardt, teammate B.J. McLeod and Kody Vanderwal, who came to rest below the Turn 1 infield grass with the hood raised above his No. 52 The Swag Spot Chevrolet. 

    Under caution, some like Alfredo, Labbe, rookie Jesse Little, Myatt Snider, Josh Williams, Timmy Hill, Sieg and Allmendinger pitted while the rest led by teammates Haley and Chastain remained on track.

    For the conclusion of the first stage, the field restarted under green for a one-lap shootout. At the start, Haley and his No. 11 LeafFilter Gutter Protection Chevrolet Camaro jumped ahead and moved in front of teammate Chastain on the inside lane while retaining the lead. In addition, he pulled away in Turn 1 before Cindric and Chastain came charging along with the pack through Turns 2 and 3. Despite the run, Haley was able to fend off the field to win the first stage on Lap 30 and for his third stage victory of the season. Chastain settled in second place followed by Cindric, Brown and Briscoe while Herbst, Gragson, Allgaier, Jones and Hemric were scored in the top 10.

    Under the stage break, the majority of the leaders pitted and Chastain emerged with the lead ahead of Briscoe and Haley. Following the pit stops, however, a number of competitors led by Hill, Labbe, Allmendinger, Williams, Moffitt, Sieg and Snider remained on track to occupy the top-seven positions.

    The second stage started on Lap 34 with Hill leading as Allmendinger quickly made his way to second place. Back in seventh place in Turn 2 while also gaining a draft back to the front was Chastain with teammate Haley and Cindric also making their move back to the front. With the competitors running close to one another in a pack, Allmendinger made his way into the lead followed by teammates Chastain and Haley on Lap 36.

    On Lap 40, with Allmendinger continuing to lead teammates Chastain and Haley followed by Cindric, the caution flew when contact from Briscoe and Jones, who was turning across the nose of Briscoe’s No. 98 Ford in Turn 3, resulted in Jones being spinning sideways as a multi-car erupted in Turn 4. The accident involved all four competitors from JR Motorsports (Gragson, Hemric, Allgaier and Annett) along with Moffitt, Labbe, Brown, Alfredo, Snider, Colby Howard and Tommy Joe Martins. 

    When the race restarted on Lap 45, Allmendinger retained the lead on the inside lane followed by Cindric and Chastain. Shortly after, the caution returned for a multi-car wreck in Turn 3 when Allgaier, who was trying to continue after being involved in the first multi-car wreck, spun after cutting a tire and triggered another multi-car wreck that involved Labbe, Joey Gase, Snider, Brown and Jeremy Clements. Following the wreck, the race was red-flagged for more than 11 minutes while the safety workers cleaned up the carnage area in Turn 3.

    When the race resumed under cautious pace and under green near the 50th lap, Allmendinger and Cindric battled for the lead through Turns 1 and 2. By then, Brown retired in the garage. Allmendinger, nonetheless, was able to retain the lead with his teammates Chastain and Haley tucked right behind. Meanwhile, Cindric dropped out of the top five after receiving no drafting help on the outside lane. 

    At the halfway mark, Lap 50, Allmendinger and his No. 16 Ellsworth Advisors Chevrolet Camaro were still leading teammates Chastain and Haley followed by Herbst and Burton. A few laps later, the caution returned due to debris on the backstretch. Under caution, some like Chastain, Allmendinger, Haley and Hemric pitted while others led by teammates Herbst and Burton remained on track.

    With five laps remaining in the second stage, Herbst moved in front of teammate Burton to emerge with the lead. Behind, Cindric, Allmendinger and Chastain wasted no time carving their way back to the front. The following lap, Gray Gaulding and his No. 07 Walk-Ons.com Chevrolet Camaro owned by Bobby Dotter started to challenge Herbst for the lead with Allmendinger behind.

    With three laps remaining in the stage, Gaulding emerged with the lead while Allmendinger started to challenge Herbst for second place on the outside lane. On the final lap of the stage, with his Kaulig Racing teammates tucked behind him, Allmendinger was able to pass Gaulding on the backstretch and hold on to win the stage for his second stage victory of the season and the fourth of his career. Teammate Chastain muscled his way to second place followed by teammate Haley, Gaulding and Annett. Herbst, Burton, Briscoe, Cindric and Sieg settled in the top 10. By then, 25 competitors were running on the lead lap. In addition, names like Justin Allgaier, Noah Gragson, Brett Moffitt and Brandon Brown were out of the race.

    Under the stage break, some like teammates Allmendinger, Chastain, Haley and Sieg remained on track while the rest led by Gaulding, Cindric and Briscoe pitted.

    With less than 40 laps remaining, the final stage commenced under green and Allmendinger moved in front of teammates Chastain and Haley to retain the lead. While Allmendinger and Chastain managed to clear the field, Haley was locked in a battle for third place with Sieg. Not long after, Sieg was black-flagged due to having a rear bumper cover loose on his No. 39 CMRroofing.com Chevrolet. 

    Remaining on track for three laps, Sieg made the turn to pit road to have the bumper cover addressed. At the same time, Hemric was also black-flagged to have a rear bumper replaced and addressed on his No. 8 Poppy Bank Chevrolet. Following his stop, however, Hemric was assessed a drive-through penalty on pit road for having too many crew members over the wall during his service.

    With 30 laps remaining and with the laps continuing to wind down, Allmendinger and his No. 16 Ellsworth Advisors Chevrolet Camaro continued to lead a 10-car breakaway running in a single-file lane. Teammates Chastain and Haley were in second and third followed by Briscoe, Josh Williams and Cindric. Annett, the lone JR Motorsports competitors in the top 10, was in seventh followed by Herbst, Burton and Gaulding.

    Five laps later, Allmendinger was still ahead of a 10-car breakaway followed by teammates Chastain and Haley while rookie Jesse Little, running in 11th place and leading the next wave of cars, was trailing by nine seconds. Another five laps later, with 20 laps remaining, Allmendinger continued to lead teammates Chastain and Haley, though all three Kaulig Racing Chevrolets were in question about having enough fuel to complete the race to its distance compared to their challengers behind them.

    Under 15 laps remaining, the top-10 competitors led by Allmendinger were separated by nearly four seconds while the 11th-place car led by Little was trailing by 20 seconds. Five laps later and with 10 laps remaining, the following competitors of Cindric, Briscoe, Annett and Herbst overtook Haley for position while Allmendinger and Chastain continued to lead. By then, 16 competitors were running on the lead lap and the top-nine competitors were ahead of 10th-place Williams by nearly 10 seconds.

    With five laps remaining and the top-nine competitors at the front still settling in a single-file line, nose to nose and bumper to bumper, Allmendinger was leading teammate Chastain while Cindric and Briscoe were behind.

    With two laps remaining, entering Turn 1, Chastain and Briscoe attempted to pull beneath Allmendinger for the lead, but Allmendinger kept his car ahead of the pack after blocking the run. Chastain and his No. 10 Nutrien Ag Solutions Chevrolet Camaro remained in second while Briscoe fell back to seventh. 

    When the final lap of the race started, Allmendinger was still leading and blocking Chastain, Cindric and Haley. Entering Turn 3, Chastain gained a run through Turn 2 and he attempted to make a move beneath Allmendinger for the lead and the win. Chastain ended up giving his teammate a bump in the turn that turned Allmendinger sideways as he spun with a multi-car wreck erupting that collected Chastain, Annett and Cindric. 

    In the midst of the wreck, Haley dodged the carnage involving his teammates and came out on top as he was able to cruise across the finish line to grab a thrilling victory at Daytona.

    The victory was Haley’s second at Daytona after he won his first NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona last July in a rain-shortened race while driving for Spire Motorsports. Including his three NASCAR Truck Series career victories in 2018, Haley has won six races across NASCAR’s three major division series. In addition, Haley’s last three victories across NASCAR have occurred on superspeedway venues.

    “An amazing effort by Kaulig Racing,” Haley said on the frontstretch on NBCSN. “Obviously, I hate that A.J. and Ross got together there. As you guys at home can see, [team owner] Matt Kaulig, [team president] Chris Rice, we built a team and a family. We all work as one. Extremely proud of this LeafFilter Gutter Protection crew. [I] Can’t believe it. Two superspeedway wins in a row. Gotta say something for [spotter] Kevin Hamlin on the booth, too. Just a little lucky there. We got shoved out and I was a little frustrated, but that’s why you never give up. These things are so unpredictable. An incredible effort today. We swept everything [stages and race win]. Extremely proud of everyone.”

    Haley’s victory at Daytona was also redemption from the Xfinity Series race at Daytona in July 2018, where Haley, driving for GMS Racing, made a bold three-wide pass for the win on Kyle Larson and Elliott Sadler entering the tri-oval for the win. While he was able to clear both competitors and streak across the finish line in first place, he completed his pass with his left-side tires crossing beneath the double yellow line zone. As a result, Haley was disqualified and demoted back to the last car on the lead lap while Larson was awarded the win.

    “[I] Parked it right here on the double yellow line [area] where I went down too low about two years ago in a Xfinity race,” Haley added. “A little humor there.”

    Behind Haley, Gray Gaulding tied his career-best result of second place in his 43rd series start followed by Briscoe, Herbst and Burton. Chastain, Annett and Cindric limped across the line in sixth, seventh and eighth while Williams and Little finished in the top 10. Allmendinger, who was unable to limp his car back to the finish line, ended his race in 15th place.

    Following the race, Allmendinger made the mandatory post-race trip to the infield care center. Both Kaulig Racing teammates, at the end, expressed no ill will towards one another with Chastain defending his move and attempt to win to lock himself into the Xfinity Playoffs.

    “Hopefully, we get some good ratings on that one,” Chastain said on pit road on NBCSN. “Terrible to run into your teammate like that. It must be my fault, though. It’s unfortunate, we did everything right all night. Man, we just got to win. This No. 10 car, Nutrien Ag Solutions. [I] Did everything right to be the best teammate I could. I haven’t always been. Last lap, I don’t back down and I’m gonna go for it. If I wasn’t there, if I watch the replay, but he got turned, so it wasn’t completely into the bumper. I hate it, man! It’s not gonna help me moving forward. It doesn’t matter how many races each of us run. We’re supposed to go for the win. Team rules the last 10 laps, and we all stayed committed. I hated that Justin got shoved out there with 10 or five [laps] to go. Coming to the checkered, what am I supposed to do? Just finish second? Not this guy.”

    “It’s the way it is,” Allmendinger added in the infield care center on NBCSN. “We’re proud of everybody at Kaulig Racing for building really fast Chevys. [I] Wanted to do everything I could to get that Ellsworth Advisors Chevy in Victory Lane. I try to take care of my teammates, but it is what it is. It’s for the win. Ross is going for the championship and going for a win there. I saw him get low and I thought he’d, maybe, take care of me a little bit, considering I was there. He’s going for the win. It is what it is. It’s just disappointing. We were gonna have another 1-2-3 Kaulig finish at Daytona. It’s part of life, it’s racing. More importantly, congrats to my little bro, Justin Haley, and at least getting a Kaulig Racing Chevy in Victory Lane. That’s the most important thing. We’re bringing more trophies home for Matt Kaulig and that’s all that matters. He’s going for the win. I get it.”

    There were nine lead changes for seven different leaders. The race featured eight cautions for 28 laps.

    With his top-10 result, Cindric continues to lead the regular-season series standings by 58 points over Briscoe.

    Results.

    1. Justin Haley, nine laps led, Stage 1 winner

    2. Gray Gaulding, two laps led

    3. Chase Briscoe, 22 laps led

    4. Riley Herbst, four laps led

    5. Harrison Burton

    6. Ross Chastain, one lap led

    7. Michael Annett

    8. Austin Cindric

    9. Josh Williams

    10. Jesse Little

    11. Vinnie Miller

    12. Colby Howard

    13. Brandon Jones

    14. Tommy Joe Martins

    15. A.J. Allmendinger – OUT, Accident, 58 laps led, Stage 2 winner

    16. Matt Mills, one lap down

    17. Mike Harmon, one lap down

    18. Tim Viens, one lap down

    19. Myatt Snider, one lap down

    20. Jeremy Clements, two laps down

    21. Anthony Alfredo, two laps down

    22. Timmy Hill, three laps down, four laps led

    23. Ryan Sieg, four laps down

    24. Daniel Hemric, eight laps down

    25. Chad Finchum – OUT, Engine

    26. Brandon Brown – OUT, Dvp

    27. Brett Moffitt – OUT, Accident

    28. Joey Gase – OUT, Dvp

    29. Justin Allgaier – OUT, Accident

    30. Alex Labbe – OUT, Accident

    31. Noah Gragson – OUT, Accident

    32. B.J. McLeod – OUT, Accident

    33. Jeffrey Earnhardt – OUT, Accident

    34. Kody Vanderwal – OUT, Accident

    35. John Jackson – OUT, Handling

    36. Caesar Bacarella – OUT, Accident

    37. Joe Graf Jr. – OUT, Accident.

    The NASCAR Xfinity Series will run its next scheduled race at Darlington Raceway on September 5 at 12:30 p.m. ET on NBC. 

  • 2020 Xfinity Series Playoff outlook following Dover doubleheader

    2020 Xfinity Series Playoff outlook following Dover doubleheader

    Following a pair of eventful NASCAR Xfinity Series races at Dover International Speedway, another name has been added to this year’s Playoff grid with five regular-season races remaining until the 12-car Playoff field is established.

    In a season that has had its share of the ups and the downs, veteran Justin Allgaier turned his season into good fortunes and at the right timing after he won the first Xfinity Dover event of a doubleheader weekend on Saturday, August 22, and for his first win since November 2019 at Phoenix Raceway. With the victory, Allgaier remains as the only Xfinity Series competitor to make every Xfinity Playoffs since its inception in 2016.

    While Allgaier won on Saturday, Chase Briscoe rallied from a wreck a day earlier to win for the sixth time this season following a late battle with Ross Chastain and Austin Cindric. The victory reignited Briscoe’s season-long momentum as he continues his pursuit for his first Xfinity Series championship and while his plans for next season remain undetermined.

    Through the first 21 races of this year’s Xfinity Series season, Allgaier and Briscoe are among seven competitors to be guaranteed spots in the Playoffs based on wining throughout the regular season. The list also includes regular-season points leader Austin Cindric, Noah Gragson, rookie Harrison Burton, Brandon Jones and Justin Haley.

    The first competitor who continues to emerge as the highest Xfinity competitor in points with no victories thus far is Ross Chastain. Though he came close on both occasions this weekend at Dover, finishing third on Saturday and second on Sunday, the Floridian has nine top-five results and 18 top-10 results under his belt, the most among the field despite having no victories yet this season. With five regular-season races remaining, Chastain and his No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet team are 388 points above the top-12 cutline and in prime position of making the Playoffs.

    Trailing behind him in points is veteran Michael Annett and his No. 1 JR Motorsports Chevrolet team. Following strong results in both Dover races, where he finished ninth on Saturday and eighth on Sunday, the Iowa native has 12 top-10 results under his belt this season and is 204 points above the cutline while he attempts to make his third Xfinity Playoffs as a title contender.

    The next two competitors in points are rookie Riley Herbst and Ryan Sieg. Like Annett, Herbst recorded a pair of top-10 results at the Monster Mile to tally his top-10 results this season to 12. He is currently 116 points above the cutline and looking to join teammate Burton in the battle for the series title and the Rookie-of-the-Year title. Sieg, on the other hand, left Dover with a pair of top-15 results and despite starting towards the front on Sunday. With a total of 12 top-15 results through the Dover doubleheader, Sieg is 88 points above the cutline and is five races away in making his third career appearance in the Xfinity Playoffs as a title contender.

    Finally, Brandon Brown continues to hold sole possession of the 12th and final spot to the Playoffs following a 14th-place run on Saturday and a 16th-place run on Sunday. While he started on the front row on Sunday, he struggled in keeping pace with the leaders and gaining more valuable stage points. Nonetheless, the Woodbridge, Virginia, native is ahead of the cutline by 31 points.

    The first two competitors who continue to trail the cutline are journeyman Jeremy Clements and rookie Myatt Snider. After finishing in the top 15 on Saturday and the top 20 on Sunday, Clements is 31 points behind the cutline. Snider, on the other hand, recorded a pair of top-20 results at the Monster Mile as he trails by 58 points.

    Among other competitors who continue to trail the cutline by 96 or more points include Josh Williams, rookie Jesse Little, B.J. McLeod, rookie Joe Graf Jr. and Tommy Joe Martins.

    The battle for the final spots to the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs continues next weekend on August 28 at Daytona International Speedway, which will air at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

  • Briscoe snaps a one-month dry spell; rallies to win at Dover

    Briscoe snaps a one-month dry spell; rallies to win at Dover

    From a wreck on Saturday to a win on Sunday, Chase Briscoe capped off an up-and-down weekend at Dover International Speedway by winning the second Drydene 200 event on August 23 in a backup car and following a late battle with Ross Chastain. The victory was Briscoe’s sixth of the season, first since early July at Indianapolis and the eighth of his NASCAR Xfinity Series career.

    The starting lineup was based on the results from Saturday’s first Xfinity race at Dover, where only the top-15 finishers were inverted. With that, Brett Moffitt, who finished 15th on Saturday, started on pole position and was joined on the front row with Brandon Brown.

    Chase Briscoe started at the rear of the field after moving to a backup car along with Daniel Hemric due to a driver change. Anthony Alfredo, Jeffrey Earnhardt, Alex Labbe and Vinnie Miller also dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments. Noah Gragson and Myatt Snider retained their starting spots for Sunday’s event, but both lost their pit stall selection for next week due to two pre-race technical failures.

    When the green flag waved and the second Xfinity Dover race commenced, Moffitt jumped to an early advantage through Turns 1 and 2. Justin Haley moved up to second place followed by rookie Riley Herbst while Brown fell back to fourth place in front of Noah Gragson. 

    By the third lap, Justin Allgaier, coming off his first win of this season at Dover on Saturday and who started 15th, moved up to eighth place. Ryan Sieg, on the other hand, fell back to 12th place behind rookie Harrison Burton while Austin Cindric was scored in 10th place.

    Following the first 10 laps, the first caution of the race flew due to an incident involving Earnhardt and Miller in the backstretch, where they made contact with one another and towards the outside wall before Miller made more contact against the Turn 3 outside wall. By then, Moffitt was still leading over Haley, Herbst, Gragson and Allgaier. Ross Chastain was in seventh place ahead of Cindric and Michael Annett while Burton was in 10th. Brandon Jones was in 14th, Chase Briscoe was in 16th and Alfredo, who rallied from power issues that forced him to start at the rear of the field, was in 20th ahead of Daniel Hemric.

    Under caution, few like Timmy Hill, Stephen Leicht, Matt Mills and Korbin Forrister pitted.

    When the race restarted around the Lap 15 mark, Moffitt retained the lead following a strong start. Haley and Herbst battled for second place while behind, Brown got loose underneath Gragson in Turn 3. Brown and Gragson were able to prevent their cars from spinning despite sliding sideways as they continued running inside the top 10. 

    Towards the front, Chastain took over second place followed by Herbst while Haley fell back to fourth in front of teammates Allgaier and Gragson. Meanwhile, Moffitt retained the lead through Lap 20 and when the competition caution flew.

    Under caution, only a few that included Brandon Jones, Hemric, Josh Williams, Stephen Leicht, Kody Vanderwal and Matt Mills pitted while the rest remained on track. Prior to the restart, Burton was sent to the rear due to a choose cone violation.

    When the race restarted on Lap 24, Moffitt and Chastain battled dead before Chastain emerged with the lead the following lap. Behind, Allgaier continued to muscle his way to the front after taking over third place from Herbst. In addition, Gragson passed Haley for fifth place while Cindric and Briscoe moved up to seventh and eighth. Hemric also emerged in the top 10 as he battled Brandon Brown for more.

    Following Lap 30, Chastain was ahead by nearly a second over Moffitt and more than a second over Allgaier. Behind, Jones, racing on fresh tires, was in 18th. Five laps later, Chastain extended his advantage to more than a second over Moffit and nearly two seconds over Allgaier. Gragson moved back up into the top five while Haley, Briscoe, Cindric and Hemric battled for sixth place.

    Another five laps later and with the laps in the first stage dwindling, Chastain continued to extend his advantage to more than two seconds over Allgaier and Moffitt. Proving he had a fast car throughout Saturday’s Xfinity Dover race and in the early stages of Sunday’s event, Chastain raced to his first stage victory of the season on Lap 45. Allgaier settled in second followed by Moffitt, Herbst and Gragson. Briscoe, Cindric, Haley, Hemric and Brown were scored in the top 10.

    Under the stage break, the leaders pitted and Jones emerged with the lead following a two-tire pit stop. Behind, Allgaier beat Chastain to exit in second place, but the first on four fresh tires. Following the stops, however, Herbst was sent to the rear of the field due to an uncontrolled tire violation.

    When the second stage started past the Lap 50 mark, Allgaier muscled ahead with the lead. Behind, Chastain and Briscoe made a three-wide move on Jones to move up followed by Cindric while Jones fell back to fifth place. In addition, Gragson took over seventh place from Hemric while Burton moved up to ninth ahead of Haley. Shortly after, Alfredo joined the battle as he battled Burton for a top-10 spot.

    While the batting around the track among multiple competitors continued to ensue, Allgaier was ahead by two-tenths of a second over Chastain and with Briscoe and Cindric trailing closely behind the two leaders. By Lap 60, the top-four competitors were ahead by more than a second over fifth-place Jones and more than two seconds over sixth-place Gragson.

    Past the Lap 60 mark, the caution returned due to an incident in Turn 2 involving Earnhardt and Herbst. Under caution, few that included Jeremy Clements, B.J. McLeod, Kody Vanderwal and Chad Finchum pitted while the rest remained on track.

    On Lap 69, the race restarted and the battle for the lead ignited between Allgaier, Chastain, Briscoe and Cindric. The following lap, Briscoe moved up to second place and he grabbed the lead the next lap. While Briscoe led his first lap of the day, Chastain and Cindric battled for third place followed by Gragson while Hemric moved up to sixth place after passing Jones.

    By Lap 80, Briscoe was ahead by six-tenths of a second over Allgaier while Chastain, Cindric and Gragson continued running inside the top five. Behind, Hemric and Jones were in sixth and seventh and Moffit was in eighth ahead of Haley and Burton. Alfredo was in 11th ahead of Brown and Michael Annet, Sieg was in 14th ahead of Snider and Herbst was in 16th.

    For the final 10 laps of the second stage, Briscoe was able to power away from the field and claim his fifth stage of the season on Lap 90. Allgaier settled in second followed by Chastain, Cindric and Gragson. Hemric, Jones, Moffitt, Burton and Haley were scored in the top 10.

    Under the stage break, the leaders pitted and Briscoe retained the lead after exiting pit road first following a four-tire stop followed by Cindric, Hemric, Chastain, Burton and Jones while Allgaier fell back to eighth place. The race went from bad to worse for Allgaier, who dropped to the rear of the field due to an uncontrolled tire violation. Labbe also dropped to the rear of the field due to crew member interference.

    With nearly 100 laps remaining, the final stage started and Briscoe retained the lead following a strong start on the outside lane. Chastain moved up to second place over Cindric while Burton moved up to fourth place over Hemric. Gragson and Jones also joined the battle involving Burton and Hemric.

    Three laps later and at the halfway mark on Lap 100, Briscoe was ahead by nearly a second over Chastain, who continued to run ahead of Cindric for the runner-up spot. Another 10 laps later and with 90 laps remaining, Briscoe was still leading by more than a second over Chastain and Cindric. Hemric and Burton settled in the top five ahead of Gragson, Annett, Jones, Herbst and Moffitt. Meanwhile, following his uncontrolled tire violation penalty, Allgaier raced his way back up to 14th behind Alfredo, Haley and Sieg. Brown was in 15th, Snider was in 17th and Clements was in 19th.

    With 80 laps remaining and while the laps continued to dwindle, Briscoe stabilized his advantage to nearly a second over Chastain with Cindric trailing by two seconds. Hemric trailed by less than four seconds while Burton trailed by more than four seconds. Gragson settled in sixth while Annett and Jones battled for seventh. Allgaier, meanwhile, was up to 11th.

    Twenty laps later and with 60 laps remaining, Briscoe extended his advantage to two seconds over Chastain followed by Cindric, Hemric and Burton. Behind, Allgaier was back in the top 10 as he was running in 10th place.

    With approximately 40 laps remaining and with only 11 cars on the lead lap, Hemric was the first of the lead-lap competitors to make a green flag pit stop for fresh tires and fuel to complete the race to its distance. Shortly after, Burton made the turn to pit road, but he was penalized for a commitment line violation after he locked up his tires, nearly slid while turning down the banking and failed to keep all four tires inside the pit road entrance line. Haley, not long after, pitted along with race leader Briscoe, Cindric, Moffitt and Chastain.

    While the pit stops under green continued to cycle through, Stefan Parsons spun while entering pit road. At the same time, Chastain and Briscoe made contact with one another as Chastain blocked and attempted to retain his spot ahead of Briscoe, who approached him with full speed, bumped him and struggled to navigate his way around Chastain’s No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet. Shortly after, Briscoe bumped and moved Chastain out of the way in Turn 3. 

    At the front, after Jones pitted, Gragson retained the lead ahead of Annett, Allgaier and Alfredo, but all needed to make a final pit stop to complete the race to its distance. Behind, Briscoe was in sixth ahead of Chastain, Cindric and Hemric.

    With less than 20 laps remaining, Annett was the leader after teammate Gragson pitted. Behind, Briscoe was ahead by less than two seconds over Chastain. Shortly after, Briscoe extended his advantage over Chastain after Chastain struggled to navigate his way through three lapped cars.

    With 12 laps remaining, Briscoe reassumed the lead after Annett pitted. By then, he was ahead by nearly three seconds over Chastain while Cindric started to close within Chastain for the runner-up spot.

    Under 10 laps remaining, Briscoe continued to stabilize his advantage to nearly three seconds over Chastain and Cindric. For the remainder of the race and with a decent advantage, Briscoe was able to navigate his way through lapped traffic and claim his sixth checkered flag of the season.

    The victory was the 17th in the Xfinity Series for Stewart-Haas Racing since joining forces with Fred Biagi as Briscoe currently leads the current Xfinity field with the most wins of this season (six). In addition, Briscoe recorded his third victory of this season with crew chief Richard Boswell and the 11th for Ford (ninth since June).

    “At the beginning of the race, as soon as we took the green [flag], I knew that I was gonna be really good,” Briscoe said on MRN. “The car was way better than what it was yesterday and really what I was looking for. I think we were able to finish sixth in the first stage from the back. I knew that if we could just get clean air, I was gonna be in really good shape. That long run, I felt like I was not the greatest, but just having clean air helped. The green flag cycle, I lost the race last year because I didn’t come to pit road hard enough. I still, obviously, gave up a lot of time to Ross [Chastain]. I got to get a lot better at that. I didn’t want a caution because I had such a big lead, but I was wanting a caution so I didn’t have to do green flag pit stops. Overall, super happy to get HighPoint.com back in Victory Lane. It feels like it’s been forever and it’s only been a month and a half. Hopefully, we can carry this momentum into the Playoffs.”

    While celebrating his win, Briscoe took a moment to address his on-track contact with Chastain.

    “Me and Ross, I feel like, always race really hard, but we normally keep it clean,” Briscoe added. “I knew that Ross would’ve did the exact same thing in my situation, especially if I’d done what I did off of pit road. I packed air on him, I didn’t hit him. I think once I packed air on him, he slowed up so much. I was so close, I hit him eventually, but I didn’t wreck him. I think he knew I wasn’t very happy after getting ran down the apron. I just moved him out of the way. He’s trying to win his first race of the year. His job is to not let cars pass him…that’s the same as my job. I did what I did.”

    Chastain finished in second place for his ninth top-five result of the season followed by Cindric, who has finished in the top five in the last nine Xfinity races. Despite the contact with Briscoe, Chastain expressed no hard feelings towards the race winner.

    “I’m just proud of this whole Moose Fraternity team, this No. 10 car, this Kaulig Racing group,” Chastain said. “We’ve been working at it. We didn’t have the speed to start the year. We had high expectations. We’ve been working as a group. I’m just proud that we came here with no practice and we had a car capable of winning both days. We just needed a few more things to go our way. I think if we came back and raced again tomorrow, we probably had one. We keep getting one spot better every day. Our changes overtime were incredible. They were exactly what I needed. Once the race went on, then I needed a little more. It’s one of those things, it’s tough right now…this whole Kaulig group is getting hot and getting fast at the right time.”

    “Obviously, a solid day,” Cindric added. “Not the best. We tried some things overnight. Probably the first doubleheader, we tried some things and it didn’t work. It didn’t help when we didn’t have track position. We weren’t able to work our way as forward as quickly we did yesterday on our PPG Ford Mustang. [We] Scored some solid points and move on to Daytona and try to have a little fun there.”

    Jones and Hemric rounded out the top five following stellar runs. Finishing in the top 10 were Gragson, Allgaier, Annett, Herbst and Moffitt as only the top-seven competitors finished on the lead lap. Following his pair of penalties, Burton finished in 11th place ahead of Haley.

    There were 12 lead changes for eight different leaders. The race featured five cautions for 24 laps.

    With his pair of podium results, Cindric continues to lead the regular-season series standings by 62 points over Briscoe and 97 over Gragson.

    Results.

    1. Chase Briscoe, 107 laps led, Stage 2 winner

    2. Ross Chastain, 24 laps led, Stage 1 winner

    3. Austin Cindric, one lap led

    4. Brandon Jones, eight laps led

    5. Daniel Hemric

    6. Noah Gragson, 11 laps led

    7. Justin Allgaier, 19 laps led

    8. Michael Annett, one lap down, five laps led

    9. Riley Herbst, one lap down

    10. Brett Moffitt, one lap down, 25 laps led

    11. Harrison Burton, one lap down

    12. Justin Haley, one lap down

    13. Anthony Alfredo, one lap down

    14. Ryan Sieg, one lap down

    15. Tommy Joe Martins, two laps down

    16. Brandon Brown, two laps down

    17. Alex Labbe, two laps down 

    18. Myatt Snider, three laps down

    19. Jeremy Clements, three laps down

    20. David Starr, three laps down

    21. Joe Graf Jr., three laps down

    22. Josh Williams, three laps down

    23. Jesse Little, three laps down

    24. Chad Finchum, four laps down

    25. B.J. McLeod, four laps down

    26. Colby Howard, four laps down

    27. Kody Vanderwal, four laps down

    28. Stefan Parsons, four laps down

    29. Jeffrey Earnhardt, five laps down

    30. Matt Mills, six laps down

    31. Stephen Leicht, eight laps down

    32. Korbin Forrister – OUT, Brakes

    33. Bayley Currey – OUT, Engine

    34. Timmy Hill – OUT, Overheating

    35. Kyle Weatherman – OUT, Suspension

    36. Vinner Miller – OUT, Accident

    The NASCAR Xfinity Series will run its next scheduled race at Daytona International Speedway on August 28, which will air at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

  • Clements to make 350th Xfinity start at Road America

    Clements to make 350th Xfinity start at Road America

    A lot is on the line for journeyman Jeremy Clements and his family-owned team approaching the final nine NASCAR Xfinity Series regular-season races of this year. For this weekend’s race at Road America, a track where he won at in upset fashion and secured his spot to the Playoffs in 2017, Clements aims to repeat the competitiveness, the pace and the road course magic he and his team exhibited from three seasons ago to propel himself back into title contention this season. Also in the midst of his battle for a postseason berth is the fact that he will making his 350th career start in the Xfinity Series (the only major division series in NASCAR he has ever raced in) when the green flag waves at Road America on Saturday, August 8.

    A native of Spartanburg, South Carolina, and who started his racing career by driving go-karts, Clements worked his way up in racing modifies and stock cars, winning feature events and track championships, before racing in Late Models and the ARCA Series. The 2003 season was where he made his first start within NASCAR’s three major division series at Pikes Peak International Raceway in Fountain, Colorado, and in the No. 71 Chevrolet for Young Racing in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. He started 35th and finished 31st in his series debut.

    It was not until 2007 when Clements returned to the series and competed in the final five races of the season, driving the No. 36 Chevrolet for McGill Motorsports. His best finish within his five starts was 23rd at Charlotte in October. Throughout the 2008 and 2009 racing seasons, Clements made select Xfinity starts in his family-owned team, Jeremy Clements Motorsports, while practicing and qualifying cars for Joe Gibbs Racing, notably at Kentucky in 2008 and at Iowa in 2009. Late in the 2009 season, Clements competed in six races in the No. 0 Chevrolet for JD Motorsports, where he earned a best result of 12th at Auto Club Speedway in October.

    Clements started the 2010 Xfinity Series season with plans of competing in the opening three races in the No. 0 Chevrolet for JD Motorsports. After failing to qualify for the season opener at Daytona, Clements scaled back to the No. 04 Chevrolet for JD Motorsports. Throughout the 2010 season and the 35-race schedule, he made 16 starts and failed to qualify for seven races. At Gateway in October 2010, Clements notched his first top-10 career result (10th place).

    For the 2011 season, Clements competed on a full-time basis with his family-owned team, Jeremy Clements Racing, and sporting the No. 51 alongside his car. He recorded nine top-20 results with a best finish of 14th in September. The following season, Clements returned for another full-time racing role. All of his starts came while driving for JCR, but his car number was 4 for Indianapolis Motor Speedway in July and at Richmond Raceway in September. During the two races where Clements ran the No. 4 car, Ty Dillon sported the No. 51 alongside his car under the Richard Childress Racing banner during his developing races in the series. Clements’ best results in 2012 were a pair of 10th-place finishes at Dover International Speedway in June and at Indianapolis. After the season concluded, Clements surpassed 100 career starts in the Xfinity Series.

    Clements started the 2013 season by finishing 33rd in the season opener at Daytona, but he was suspended indefinitely for using a racial slur during an ESPN interview. Missing the next two events, where Ryan Sieg drove Clements’ No. 51 car, Clements returned the following race at Bristol Motor Speedway in March and competed the rest of the 33-race schedule. His best results were a ninth-place finish at Talladega Superspeedway in May and a 10th-place finish during the inaugural race at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

    From 2014 to 2016, Clements remained as a full-time Xfinity Series competitor for his family-owned team and he notched a total of six top-10 results between the three seasons. His best runs were a fourth-place finish at Talladega in April 2016, a sixth-place result at Road America in June 2014 and a sixth-place result at Bristol in August 2016. His best points result between the three seasons was 14th in 2015. By then, he surpassed 200 Xfinity career starts.

    For the first 22 races of the 2017 Xfinity Series season, his seventh as a full-time competitor, Clements had recorded only one top-10 result, which was a seventh-place result at Iowa Speedway in June. The following race at Road America was where Clements rose to the occasion and shined under the spotlight as he was closing in towards race leader and rookie Matt Tifft in the final laps. Through Turns 12 and 13, Clements gained a big run to draw himself right to the rear bumper of Tifft’s No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry. In Turn 14, Clements attempted to pass Tifft for the lead when he got loose and collided into Tifft as both spun through the turn. With no caution falling, Clements was able to quickly straighten his No. 51 Chevrolet Camaro, take the lead and bolt away from the field for one final lap to achieve his first NASCAR triumph in his 256th career start. Of all the achievements that came with Clements’ victory, the biggest one of all was that the win clinched the journeyman and his team a spot in the 2017 Xfinity Series Playoffs with an opportunity to win his first NASCAR championship. For the remainder of the season, however, he finished no higher than 16th and settled in a career-best 12th place in the final standings.

    In 2018 and 2019, Clements achieved a total of six top-10 results, a best finish of fourth place at Bristol in August, and he missed the Playoffs during both seasons. His best points result was 14th in 2019. By then, he surpassed 300 career starts.

    This season, through the first 17 Xfinity Series races, Clements has achieved three top-10 results with a best result of third place at Pocono Raceway in June. With 11 top-15 results in total, Clements and his family-owned No. 51 Chevrolet team are currently 32 points below the top-12 cutline to secure a spot into this year’s Playoffs and for the second career time.

    Catch Clements’ milestone start at Road America on August 8 at noon ET on NBCSN.

  • 2020 Xfinity Series Playoff outlook after Texas

    2020 Xfinity Series Playoff outlook after Texas

    The NASCAR Xfinity Series recent race, Saturday’s My Bariatric Solutions 300 at Texas Motor Speedway, featured another repeat winner this season in an unexpected outcome, where it took approximately an hour after the race concluded for the official race winner to be declared. The battle for the final spots to the Playoffs, however, continued to tighten up with several key contenders struggling in the Lone Star state.

    With his third consecutive Xfinity Series victory of the season, Austin Cindric and the No. 22 Team Penske Ford Mustang team are establishing themselves as a potential championship threat for this season. Cindric’s victory was awarded to him following post-race technical inspection, when initial winner Kyle Busch was disqualified. With his third consecutive win, which was last made in the series in 2018 from Christopher Bell, Cindric joins Chase Briscoe as the only Xfinity competitors that have won three or more races this season. Both Ford competitors also remain as two of six drivers currently guaranteed a spot in the Playoffs by virtue of a regular-season win(s), a list that include Justin Haley, Brandon Jones, Noah Gragson and rookie Harrison Burton, who rallied from a five-race stretch of finishing no higher than 12th to post a top-five result.

    With six of 12 spots to the Playoffs still vacant, Ross Chastain retains one of the spots as the highest-winless competitor this season. A ninth-place result, to go along with a handful of stage points, and his 14th top-10 result has Chastain and the No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet team 297 points above the cutline while the Floridian attempts to make his second series postseason appearance.

    For Justin Allgaier, the majority of Saturday’s race at the Lone Star state had Allgaier and his No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet team scored as the leader. After leading a race-high 98 laps and winning both stages, it appeared that Allgaier would record his first victory of the season. His race-winning hopes, however, were dashed when he was penalized for a blend-rule violation in the final stage. Nonetheless, he was able to race his way back to a third-place result for his fourth top-five result, which keeps the Illinois veteran 228 points above the top-12 cutline.

    Teammate Michael Annett also had a decent run at Texas, where he collected stage points from both stages and settled in fifth when the checkered flag flew. With his third top-five result and his fifth consecutive top-10 result in recent weeks, Annett is 164 points above the cutline to make the Playoffs for the second consecutive year.

    While it was a good race for some, it was not the case for rookie Riley Herbst. Coming off two strong results at the Kentucky Speedway doubleheader, Herbst’s run was cut short early on the fourth lap when he was battling Gragson and made contact with the Turn 4 outside wall, an incident that would end his run in the garage. With a 36th-place result, the Las Vegas rookie and his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota team went from 69 points above the top-12 cutline to 60.

    Following an up-and-down doubleheader at Kentucky, Ryan Sieg’s race at Texas concluded midway due to suspension issues. The Tucker, Georgia, native and his No. 39 RSS Racing Chevrolet team remain inside the cutline by 58 points despite posting their seventh result outside the top 20.

    With last week’s doubleheader at Kentucky produced up-and-down results for Brandon Brown, Saturday’s run at Texas was a run that stabilized his position within the top 12. A 10th-place result, his fourth of the season, allowed the Woodbridge, Virginia, native to retain the 12th and final spot to the Playoffs by 31 points while he aims to make his first postseason appearance.

    If there is a competitor making recent strides and gaining ground towards the cutline to the Playoffs, it is Jeremy Clements and his family owned team based in Spartanburg, South Carolina. With an 11th-place result, his ninth top-15 finish of the season and fifth in a row, Clements trails Brown for the final Playoff spot by 31 points in his quest to qualify for his second postseason, first since 2017.

    Coming into Texas Motor Speedway and being 14 points below the cutline, Myatt Snider received an opportunity to race his way back into the top-12 cutline on the strength of eight top-15 results in his rookie Xfinity Series season. The Charlotte native, however, was involved in an early incident and could not recover as he settled in 34th place. In losing a spot in the standings to Clements along with a handful of points, Snider trails the cutline by 38 points.

    Other competitors who remain in contention for the Playoffs include rookie Jesse Little, Alex Labbe, Josh Williams, B.J. McLeod, rookie Joe Graf Jr., Chad Finchum and Vinnie Miller.

    The NASCAR Xfinity Series will run its next scheduled race of the season at Kansas Speedway on July 25, which will air at 5 p.m. ET on NBCSN.