Category: Xfinity

Sammy Smith wins wild return to Rockingham after Love’s DQ

Long after the checkered flag waved in the NASCAR Xfinity Series’ long-awaited return to Rockingham Speedway, Sammy Smith’s fortunes improved dramatically. Smith was awarded the victory in the North Carolina Education Lottery 250 after the No. 2 …

Long after the checkered flag waved in the NASCAR Xfinity Series’ long-awaited return to Rockingham Speedway, Sammy Smith’s fortunes improved dramatically.

Smith was awarded the victory in the North Carolina Education Lottery 250 after the No. 2 Chevrolet of ostensible race winner Jesse Love was deemed to have violated Rule 14.14.2.I-5.h, which covers trailing arm spacers and pinion angle shims.

“All mating surfaces of those parts need to be in complete contact with each other, and unfortunately they violated that rule and were disqualified,” said series director Eric Peterson.

The disqualification of Love’s car gave Smith his first victory of the season and the third of his career, as well as a $100,000 bonus as the winner of the final Xfinity Dash 4 Cash race of the season.

“It’s a tough way to win that, but I feel like we’ll take ’em any way we can get ’em,” Smith said after learning of Love’s disqualification. “We waited here to see what happens, but overall, it was a good day, and I’m very happy with the progress we’ve made recently. I’m kind of speechless, to be honest with you.”

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1428]

After Love climbed from his car at the finish line, the No. 2 Camaro rolled away from him down the banking and into the infield grass. Perhaps that was an omen of problems to come.

Love had just done a celebratory burnout after a magnificent restart in overtime propelled him to the apparent victory. He finished 0.691s ahead of Smith, but the margin was negated by the infraction, and the win went to the driver of the No. 8 JR Motorsports Chevrolet.

Before the infraction was discovered, Love was ecstatic to win at “The Rock.”

“Oh, my gosh, these fans are amazing,” said Love, who was all but drowned out by the cheers from the onlookers, who celebrated the return of the Xfinity Series to Rockingham for the first time since 2004. “What an amazing race track. Man, this racetrack’s right in my alley. It’s hammer down — you’ve got to be in the gas good today.

“I had such an incredible car… (On the final restart) I don’t know if I hit him (Smith) or if he stumbled… I had to get it done—we had too good of a piece.”

Unfortunately, the fastest car on Saturday couldn’t pass post-race inspection.

In a race that featured 14 cautions for 83 laps — with nine yellows occurring in the final stage — Parker Retzlaff finished second, a career best; Harrison Burton was third, giving AM Racing its best-ever Xfinity Series finish; and Brennan Poole came home fourth, scoring his second top five in the last four races.

Sunoco rookie Taylor Gray completed the top five. Austin Hill, Josh Williams, Jeb Burton, Daniel Dye and Jeremy Clements finished sixth through 10th respectively.

Kasey Kahne’s NASCAR return was cut short in front of the big crowd for Rockingham’s return. James Gilbert/Getty Images)

Ryan Sieg led a race-high 77 laps, battling Love for the lead in the final stage, but was collected in a massive lap 241 crash when Christian Eckes ran short of fuel on a restart and backed up the field behind him.

That wreck ruined the Dash 4 Cash hopes of the three other contenders for the bonus, Justin Allgaier, Carson Kvapil and Brandon Jones.

Nick Sanchez was out front for 52 circuits, including the first 44 of the race, but he, too, fell victim to the Lap 241 crash, which forced the first of two red-flag periods.

Carson Kvapil led 47 laps in the second stage as he and Love fought for the lead. Sanchez won Stage 1, and Dean Thompson scored the first-ever stage win for Sam Hunt Racing in Stage 2.

Fans who came to Rockingham anticipating a show weren’t disappointed. A workable second groove opened above the bottom lane, and drivers were even able to roll three-wide through the corners on occasion, though some of the attempts to do so produced regrettable outcomes.

Katherine Legge’s sixth Xfinity Series start — and her first since 2023 at Road America — came to an early end on lap 52, when hard contact from William Sawalich turned her No. 53 Chevrolet sideways in Turn 1.

Unable to avoid Legge’s spinning car, Kasey Kahne — making his first start in the series since 2017 — sustained damage to the right front of his No. 33 Chevrolet, with the blow sending Legge’s Camaro up the track into the outside wall, eliminating her from the race.

Legge had failed to qualify during time trials earlier in the day, but she arranged to take over JJ Yeley’s ride and started from the rear because of the driver change. She had already been lapped by then-leader Jesse Love when the accident occurred.

Kahne had to pit for repairs to the nose of his car and lost a lap in the process, but he recovered to finish 14th.

The No. 19 Toyota of Justin Bonsignore also was disqualified for lug nuts not installed in a safe and secure manner. Bonsignore had finished 36th of 38 drivers before the disqualification.

RESULTS

Kahne scratches NASCAR itch with Xfinity return at Rockingham

Nearly seven years removed from a successful NASCAR Cup Series career, Kasey Kahne grew nostalgic for pavement racing. It wasn’t just a whim. The 45-year-old from Enumclaw, Wash., actively worked on a deal to drive in Saturday’s North Carolina …

Nearly seven years removed from a successful NASCAR Cup Series career, Kasey Kahne grew nostalgic for pavement racing.

It wasn’t just a whim. The 45-year-old from Enumclaw, Wash., actively worked on a deal to drive in Saturday’s North Carolina Education Lottery 250 Presented by Black’s Tire NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Rockingham Speedway (4pm ET on CW, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

“Over the last year, I’ve been watching (NASCAR) more and more and wanting to see what it was like again and get those feelings that I had for so many years,” Kahne said. “That’s why I put this together. I did this all on my own so I could get back here and do this race.

And welcome back Kasey Kahne, too. James Gilbert/Getty Images

“I was very fortunate to get Hendrick Cars and Caravan Trailers and Curb Records behind me. Then RCR (Richard Childress Racing) wanted to do it with us. So it’s been a really cool partnership, but I put some work in to make it happen.”

Kahne is driving the No. 33 RCR Chevrolet with Andy Street as his crew chief.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1428]

Kahne’s NASCAR national series career began with a Xfinity Series start at Rockingham in 2002. Over the next 16 years, he accumulated 18 victories in the NASCAR Cup Series, eight in the Xfinity Series and five in the Craftsman Truck Series.

The grind of racing every week, however, took a toll on Kahne’s health, and after the 2018 season, he left the sport.

“As far as my health, I’m in a good place right now, because I don’t do this all the time,” said Kahne, who has maintained his competitive chops as a driver and team owner at the highest level of 410 sprint car racing.

“I don’t do the long races — it got worse as soon as the summer months came and every week after that it was draining me those last couple years I did it. So I saw 88 degrees (for Saturday’s race), and I thought, ‘That’s nice. I’m fine with that. I’m looking forward to it.’”

Kahne was 18th fastest in final Xfinity Series practice on Friday.

Larson positively trounces the Xfinity field at Bristol

Pole winner Kyle Larson brought a bazooka to Saturday’s shootout at Bristol Motor Speedway. His 37 opponents brought pea shooters to the Last Great Coliseum-or so it seemed, given the degree of domination Larson exhibited in winning the SciAps 300 …

Pole winner Kyle Larson brought a bazooka to Saturday’s shootout at Bristol Motor Speedway.

His 37 opponents brought pea shooters to the Last Great Coliseum—or so it seemed, given the degree of domination Larson exhibited in winning the SciAps 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series race.

The driver of the No. 17 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet led 277 of 300 laps in securing his first victory in two series starts this season, his second at Bristol and the 16th of his career. At the finish, there were only 12 cars on the lead lap.

Larson finished 2.054s ahead of Carson Kvapil, who passed series leader Justin Allgaier for second place in traffic on Lap 298. Allgaier held third and collected his record seventh $100,000 Xfinity Dash 4 Cash bonus as the highest finisher among four eligible drivers.

 

To Larson, the victory was a fitting tribute to his friend and PR representative, Jon Edwards, who passed away suddenly during the week leading up to the Bristol race weekend.

“It’s awesome,” said Larson, who finished second in Friday night’s NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race. “I wish I could have won last night—just came up a little bit short. It’s cool to get a win this weekend for Jon and everybody’s who’s been a part of his life.”

“We’ve got one more tomorrow (in Sunday’s Food City 500 NASCAR Cup race). There’d be nothing better than to cap it off with a Cup win for Jon and all of Hendrick Motorsports… I’ve got a great car there for [Sunday]. We’ve just got to execute like we did today.”

Kvapil matched his career-best finish, having run second at Dover last year. His No. 1 JR Motorsports Chevrolet was at its best in the closing laps.

“We just kept working on it and made it better and better every pit stop,” Kvapil said. “I felt like toward the end we had a pretty fast car, but there was just so much traffic, it was hard to really get into a good rhythm.”

Sammy Smith ran fourth, as JR Motorsports drivers took the three positions behind Larson and locked into Dash for Cash eligibility for next Saturday’s race at Rockingham, along with fifth-place finisher Brandon Jones of Joe Gibbs Racing.

Larson was cruising to a wire-to-wire victory in the first stage, having lapped Jeb Burton in the 14th position, when Sheldon Creed’s Ford spun sideways off Turn 4 after a bump from Dean Thompson’s Toyota.

Charging through the corner behind the spin, Brennan Poole couldn’t avoid Creed’s car, and his Chevrolet collided with Creed’s Mustang in a vicious crash that destroyed both machines and eliminated two of the four eligible Dash 4 Cash drivers from the race. Both drivers were evaluated and released from the infield care center. “For Brennan’s sake, it happens so quick,” Creed said. “And I was sitting right there in the middle of the track.”

NASCAR red-flagged the race for 14m8s, and Larson lost the 3.4s lead he held over second-place Justin Allgaier and the advantage of more than 10s over Connor Zilisch in third.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1428]

After the red flag was lifted, Larson and Allgaier paced the lead-lap cars to pit road—with the exceptions of Sam Mayer and Ryan Sieg, who stayed on the track and finished 1-2 in Stage 1 after a three-lap dash that ended on lap 85.

Larson finished third in Stage 1, and after Mayer and Sieg pitted during the break, Larson regained the top spot for a restart on lap 97. The clinic continued, with Larson winning Stage 2—his 17th stage win in the series—by nearly nine seconds over Allgaier.

After pit stops and wave-arounds, 16 drivers took the green flag for the final stage on the lead lap, and Allgaier snatched the top spot from Larson moments after the lap 182 restart.

It didn’t last. Ten circuits later, Larson gave Allgaier’s Chevy a bump in Turn 1, moved him up the track and shot past into the lead. Allgaier kept Larson within shouting range until the lapped car of Mason Massey blocked Allgaier’s line off Turn 4 and turned sideways near the start/finish line after contact between the Camaros.

Collected in the incident and eliminated from the race was the Toyota of William Sawalich, who had been running in the top 10.

For Allgaier, the Dash 4 Cash bonus was something of a consolation prize.

“I’m just bummed about the day a little bit, to come out of here in third,” he said. “You know, I had the mistake there with the lapped car, and I wish it had gone green, because it probably would have helped us…

“But to lock three of the four [JR Motorsports drivers] into the next Dash 4 Cash is huge. I got out front there, and I just felt like we needed a little bit more to keep up with Kyle. He was obviously really good, and his pace in traffic was phenomenal.”

Legge announces plans to run more NASCAR events

Katherine Legge is set to return to NASCAR competition with an entry in the Xfinity Series race at Rockingham Speedway. e.l.f Cosmetics will sponsor Legge’s effort in the No. 32 Chevrolet for Jordan Anderson Racing. Rockingham Speedway (April 19) …

Katherine Legge is set to return to NASCAR competition with an entry in the Xfinity Series race at Rockingham Speedway.

e.l.f Cosmetics will sponsor Legge’s effort in the No. 32 Chevrolet for Jordan Anderson Racing. Rockingham Speedway (April 19) will be the first of at least seven NASCAR races Legge is set to contest.

“I’ve never felt more empowered than I do with e.l.f. by my side,” Legge said. “e.l.f. truly walks the walk when it comes to putting its community — and especially women in sports — in the, pun-intended, driver’s seat. I’m thrilled to work towards achieving my racing goals with my e.l.f. team alongside Team Chevy. I want to be respected as one of the best drivers in motorsport, and there is no better place to hone my skillset against the best of the best in front of the largest motorsport audience in the U.S. With the pivot to go all in on NASCAR, we are diversifying my own racing legacy as well as the paddock for future generations.”

Charlotte Motor Speedway (May 24) in the Xfinity Series will be one of the others. Her full schedule was not announced. She has made five career starts in the Xfinity Series.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1428]

e.l.f Cosmetics is shifting its attention to Legge’s NASCAR efforts after supporting her in the NTT IndyCar Series, specifically the Indianapolis 500, the last two seasons. A ride for this year’s Indianapolis 500 has not been announced for Legge, and it does not appear she will run the race now that she will enter the Xfinity Series race at Charlotte the same weekend.

Legge is also going to run select NASCAR Cup Series races. The first will be in Mexico City (June 15). However, the team Legge will run for was not announced.

“As they say in NASCAR, we have found our groove,” said Kory Marchisotto, chief marketing officer, e.l.f. Beauty. “Fueling Katherine’s dream to be one of the best motorsports drivers of all time is our mission. Inspiring young athletes to fast-track their own ambitions is our passion. Female NASCAR fans are more likely to watch sports on TV, listen on the radio and attend a live event than female fans of other sports. That’s our signal to lean the e.l.f. in with zero distance between us and the community.”

RACER was informed additional announcements and details for Legge’s upcoming events will be coming soon.

The 44-year-old Briton made her Cup Series debut at Phoenix Raceway on March 9. A spin with 98 laps to go made Legge the center of attention as she collected Daniel Suarez, who was running inside the top 10. However, Legge’s enthusiasm for with stock car racing was undaunted.

“I had somebody from another team call me … and say, part of me thought that you were going to say, ‘OK, I don’t want to do this anymore’ or ‘This isn’t for me,’” Legge told RACER. “I was like, ‘Hell no. You don’t know me very well, but all this does is make me dig my heels in and go, you know what, I’m going to prove everybody wrong, because I know that I’m a good race car driver and this was just a blip in the matrix.’”

Jones breaks 98-race Xfinity winless streak at Darlington

After diligently working through a 98-race winless streak over the last three NASCAR Xfinity Series seasons, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Brandon Jones reminded his competitors – and his fans – Saturday that he’s still a race winner and a title contender. The …

After diligently working through a 98-race winless streak over the last three NASCAR Xfinity Series seasons, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Brandon Jones reminded his competitors — and his fans — Saturday that he’s still a race winner and a title contender.

The well-liked 28-year-old Atlanta native took the lead on a re-start with 12 laps remaining in Saturday’s Sports Clips Haircuts VFW Help A Hero 200 at the historic Darlington (S.C.) Raceway – beating 2020 NASCAR Cup Series champion Chase Elliott to the finish line by a healthy 1.105s to hoist his first trophy since April, 2022 — a span of 98 races.

The 1.366-mile Darlington track may be nicknamed Too Tough To Tame, but it certainly presented a tamer race than the series produced a week ago on the typically wild and wooly Martinsville half-miler. This weekend featured 14 lead changes among nine drivers – none of the changes up front a result of overly aggressive driving.

Instead, strategy, a fast car and unwavering belief in himself and his team made the difference for Jones.

 

“It’s nice for my confidence … but it’s also to prove to the haters, and people that said I was incapable of doing it, wrong again,’’ said Jones, whose No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota led 24 of the races 137 laps.

“This place is freaking awesome; I love coming to Darlington, ‘’ he added, “Second win and just huge momentum. I knew we were on a high, just didn’t know when it was going to happen.’’

Justin Allgaier, who led the most laps (56) on the afternoon and won Stage 2, finished third in the No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet, followed by teammates Ross Chastain and rookie Carson Kvapil. The team, co-owned by NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr. and his sister Kelley Earnhardt Miller, had all five of its Chevys in the top 10 with rookie Connor Zilisch finishing sixth and Sammy Smith ninth.

Rookies punctuated the top 10 despite it being the first time most of them had ever raced at the famously challenging venue. In addition to Kvapil and Zilisch, rookies Christian Eckes and Nick Sanchez claimed seventh and eighth place with Smith and veteran Sheldon Creed rounding out the top 10.

Harrison Burton’s AM Racing team won the opening stage and JGR’s Taylor Gray was credited with the Xfinity Fastest Lap (160.706mph) of the day.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1428]

“I am proud of Brandon Jones, I know how hard the kid has worked. He’s done a good job and I’m happy to see him get to victory lane’’ said the reigning series champion Allgaier, who has now tied NASCAR Hall-of-Famer Mark Martin with nine-consecutive top 10s in Xfinity Series races at Darlington.

Allgaier has finished top 10 in six of the last seven races of 2025, including back-to-back victories at Las Vegas and Homestead-Miami in March and a runner-up finish at Atlanta in February.

“Disappointed,’’ Allgaier conceded of his Darlington day, however, noting his Chevy’s speed was good and the team overcame an early race pit road miscue.

“We were able to get the track position back, at least for the most part, but clean air was too important today. When we were up front, we had it. I really needed the long runs and just didn’t have that at the end of the race today. Proud of everybody on our BRANDT Chemical Chevrolet. We’re on a heckuva run with top fives right now.’’

The series’ popular Dash 4 Cash incentive program returns with next week’s SciApps 300 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway (5 p.m. ET, The CW Network, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

The highest finisher among Richard Childress Racing’s Austin Hill, Haas Factory Team’s Creed, Allgaier and Alpha Prime Racing’s Brennan Poole will win the Dash 4 Cash $100,000 bonus check from Xfinity, having earned eligibility based on their results in the Martinsville (Va.) Speedway race last week.

Next week marks the first spring race at Bristol since 2019. Christopher Bell was the race winner.

Hill takes shock Xfinity victory amid Martinsville dogfight

The speedway that robbed Austin Hill of a spot in the NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship 4 two years ago gave him a gift on Saturday. Diving underneath a trio of wrecking cars in the final corner of overtime at Martinsville Speedway, Hill beat …

The speedway that robbed Austin Hill of a spot in the NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship 4 two years ago gave him a gift on Saturday.

Diving underneath a trio of wrecking cars in the final corner of overtime at Martinsville Speedway, Hill beat perennial bridesmaid Sheldon Creed to the finish line by 0.190s to win Saturday’s US Marine Corps 250, giving Richard Childress his 100th win in the series and earning a $100,000 Dash 4 Cash bonus for the unlikely winner.

The ending of the race couldn’t have been more appropriate, given the rash of cautions that peppered green-flag action in the final stage. The ending also left 29th-place finisher Taylor Gray with thoughts of vengeance and 10th-place finisher Sammy Smith with an ostensible target on his back.

After the 14th caution for Matt DiBenedetto’s spin in Turn 2 sent the race to overtime, Gray lined up behind Smith, the leader, and used his bumper to wrest the top spot from Smith—returning the favor from the previous restart on lap 249 of 256.

Gray, seeking his first Xfinity Series win, held the lead until Turn 3 of the final lap, when Smith charged into the corner, spun Gray’s No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota and knocked it into the outside wall.

Hill hit the No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet of Justin Allgaier from behind, sent him crashing into Smith. Hill sneaked through on the bottom, bringing Creed with him, as Allgaier held on for third. In the surprising victory, Hill led less than a quarter mile before taking the checkered flag.

“I chose the bottom because of how rough everybody was on restarts,” Hill said of the overtime. “I had to do what I had to do on the last lap. On that restart, it just got wild. We were definitely leaning on each other, and getting into (Turn) 3, I knew we were all going to get beating and banging, and I just drove it in as deep as I could.

“They all hit each other, and I hit the No. 7 (Allgaier) a little bit and dumped him off and got on the apron there and came home with the win… Man, I’m in disbelief that we’re in Victory Lane right not. It’s unbelievable. I actually said at the end of the race that I hated this place because of all the beating and banging that was going on—and to top it off, we won a hundred grand!”

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1428]

After 14 cautions for 104 laps, pole winner Connor Zilisch’s sweep of the first two stages seemed a distant memory. Zilisch, however, didn’t figure in the outcome after a series of spins and contact with the outside wall eliminated him from contention.

Gray took the lead for the second time on lap 183 and held it for 66 circuits and a series of six restarts. But Smith lined up behind the No. 54 Toyota for the restart on lap 249 and moved Gray for the lead.

Smith’s charge into Gray’s Toyota on the final lap was more egregious.

“I feel like we had the best car all day,” said Gray, who suffered a similar fate in a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series loss to Christian Eckes last year. “I can’t thank everyone at Joe Gibbs Racing enough. We brought a really fast Operation 300 Toyota GR Supra.

“Just unfortunate—it’s the same story I’ve lived here for the past two Martinsville race in a row. It sucks, but it is what it is. Long year.”

Smith acknowledged that the last lap maneuver was over the top. He and Gray had a testy exchange after the race.

“I’m not proud of that, but if the roles were reversed, he would have done the same thing,” Smith said. “He’s got no respect for me… He was flipping me off on the red flag (for a multicar wreck that caused the 12th caution), swore at me. It was definitely uncalled for.

“I’m not proud of it, but he would have done the exact same thing. That’s what I told him.”

Brennan Poole finished fourth after the melee, joining Hill, Creed and Allgaier as eligible contenders for the next Dash 4 Cash bonus, to be contested April 12 at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Sam Mayer was fifth, followed by Dean Thompson, Daniel Dye, Ryan Sieg, Kris Wright and Smith.

Zilisch, who finished 28th, led a race-high 100 laps to 87 for Gray. Creed, still seeking his first Xfinity victory, finished second for the 14th time, extending his record number of runner-up results for a non-winner.

Coincidentally, it was contact from Creed that denied Hill a spot in the Championship 4 in the fall race of 2023—when both drivers raced for RCR.

In a cosmic sense, the ledger was balanced with Hill’s win on Saturday.

Allgaier strikes Homestead-Miami gold with $100k Xfinity victory

In one of the most dramatic finishes of the season, JR Motorsports’ Justin Allgaier took the lead on the final lap of overtime and held off his former teammate Sam Mayer for the win – the ultimate dash for cash as it were in the Hard Rock Bet 300 at …

In one of the most dramatic finishes of the season, JR Motorsports’ Justin Allgaier took the lead on the final lap of overtime and held off his former teammate Sam Mayer for the win – the ultimate dash for cash as it were in the Hard Rock Bet 300 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

For much of the day, it looked like former NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson would answer his win in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race Friday night at the track with a victory on Saturday. He led a dominant 132 of the 201 laps and held a 15s advantage on the field when a caution flag flew with eight laps remaining, bunching up the field for that final overtime restart.

Larson chose the bottom lane for the restart with second place Mayer opting to pull his No. 41 Haas Factory Team Ford directly behind Larson’s No. 17 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet instead of on the front row alongside him. Just as the green flag flew for that final two laps, Mayer’s car hit the rear of Larson’s and knocked Larson’s Chevrolet out of shape.

As that happened, the outside line of Richard Childress Racing’s Austin Hill and Allgaier zoomed forward with Hill taking the race lead. A lap later, Allgaier caught Hill and got around him for the victory – his first top five in 16 previous Homestead races and the second straight win for the reigning series champion, matching a trophy-haul at Las Vegas last week.

Hill finished third after Mayer passed him as well on the last lap.

“Just a testament to this team,” the 39-year-old Allgaier said. “Honestly, it was looking like it was one those days that wasn’t our day. We got behind but were able to persevere and to get this Chevrolet to Victory Lane is special.

“I just feel like this place has gotten me so many times.

“I was actually bummed to see the caution flag come out but it worked out in my favorite.” Allgaier added. “I’m bummed I maybe got the [weekend] triple from Kyle [Larson] because I think he’s going to have a great shot at [winning] it tomorrow. But we were at the right place at the right time and I’m really proud of this race team.”

The final caution flag came for a spin by polesitter Taylor Gray. At the time, only five drivers were on the lead lap.

The last series of pit stops proved pivotal to those pursuing Larson. Twelve cars came out on the lead lap eager to see what they could do in the closing sprint toward the checkered.

Larson, who won the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race on Friday night looked well on his way to try and join Kyle Busch as the only drivers in NASCAR history to sweep three national series race wins in one weekend. In fact, he showed up in South Florida for the NASCAR weekend fresh off a sprint car win earlier in the week.

The outcome was understandably a huge disappointment for Larson, the frustration evident on his face as he climbed out of his Chevrolet on pit lane after the race.

“I’ve lived through it a number of times here, obviously a bummer to have another Homestead race play out that way,” said Larson, who finished fourth.

“I can’t go when my rear tires are off the ground,” he said of the contact from Mayer’s car on the restart. “I did everything I thought I could and the No. 41 just lagged back and slammed the [expletive] of me. Bummer, but cool to have had that big lead at the end.

“Loved to have gotten a win for everybody at the No. 17-car. They don’t get to race all the time so it’s good we can run up front. Got one more opportunity at this [in the No. 17-car] in a few weeks and see if we can get it done then.”

While the first half of Saturday’s race had all five of the day’s caution flags, Larson essentially put it in cruise control for the final 100 laps – and pulled a zip code ahead of Mayer who doggedly pursued all afternoon.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1428]

“I unfortunately got to his [Larson] bumper a little too early,” Mayer said of the contact with Larson on that final restart. “He went really, really late in the box, just played games and that’s what you’ve got to do at this level to get the advantage. But he just waited really long and I wasn’t ready for him to wait that long.

“Anytime you’re finishing second you’re super bummed out but that’s a good day. We’re going to keep it going and try to get better.”

Not only did Allgaier get a trophy to take home, but he also won the first $100,000 Dash 4 Cash bonus check from series sponsor Xfinity. He, Mayer, third place finisher Hill and 10th place finisher Jesse Love were all eligible for the extra pay based on their finishes last week at Las Vegas.

The second of the four Dash 4 Cash races is next Saturday at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway with Allgaier, Mayer, Hill and Haas Factory Team’s Sheldon Creed – the fifth-place finisher eligible for the next $100,000 bonus. The top finisher among the quartet will claim the cash.

Love, JGR’s Brandon Jones and rookies Nick Sanchez, Daniel Dye and Carson Kvapil rounded out the top 10.

Allgaier is now the first series driver with multiple wins in 2025 and takes a 29-point lead in the championship standings over Mayer.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series returns to competition next Saturday evening with the Marine Corps 250 at Martinsville Speedway (5 p.m. ET on the CW Network, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Aric Almirola in the defending race winner in the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.

Allgaier holds off Almirola for first Xfinity win at Las Vegas

On Friday night, Justin Allgaier saw the Eagles in concert. On Saturday, he was flying. Holding off Aric Almirola over a 102-lap green-flag run, Allgaier finally claimed victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway after finishing second four times at the …

On Friday night, Justin Allgaier saw the Eagles in concert. On Saturday, he was flying.

Holding off Aric Almirola over a 102-lap green-flag run, Allgaier finally claimed victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway after finishing second four times at the 1.5-mile track.

Allgaier’s victory in The Liuna! was his first of the season, the 26th of his career and the 90th for JR Motorsports in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. The reigning series champion crossed the finish line 1.067s ahead of Almirola, who lost ground trying to run the outside lane with just over three laps left.

The decisive moment in the race, however, may have come much earlier. Allgaier lost the lead to Almirola during an exchange of pit stops midway through the final stage, but he regained it in traffic on lap 152 and remained out front the rest of the way.

With the victory, Allgaier qualified for the first Xfinity Dash4Cash race next Saturday at Homestead-Miami Speedway, along with third-place finisher Jesse Love, fourth-place Austin Hill and fifth-place Sam Mayer. The highest finisher among the four earns a $100,000 bonus.

Almirola isn’t scheduled to run the Homestead race.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1428]

“It was amazing,” said Allgaier. “This whole team—I just can’t say enough. Aric and I were going at it. Hats of to him; he ran a heck of a race…

“Rick Brandt (of sponsor Brandt) was here last night. He took us to a great concert, Eagles concert … Everyone at JR Motorsports, I can’t say enough about how proud I am of what we have here. It’s been special.”

After Allgaier took the lead on lap 152, he opened an advantage of more than two seconds over Almirola, who spent the next 40 laps whittling the margin down to a car-length. But Almirola couldn’t find a way past Allgaier in the closing laps.

“You always hate to finish second, but Justin and that team was I felt like the class of the field today,” Almirola said. “We were close, but they could just take off so much faster than I could. I think that’s really the difference.

“I thought my only hope was to cycle in front of him on the green-flag stop, and we did, but I just got caught up behind some lapped traffic there that I misjudged. I wasn’t sure which way they were going, and he got by me and built such a big gap that I used my stuff up trying to get back to him.”

The green-flag stops in the final stage proved costly to Sunoco rookie Connor Zilisch, who streaked into the lead on lap 100 and held it until Allgaier nosed ahead at the start/finish line on lap 127.

 

During the stops on lap 145, however, Zilisch drew a speeding penalty and served a pass-through that dropped him to the back of the lead lap. He rallied to finish ninth, the last driver on the lead lap.

Allgaier led 102 of the 200 laps, followed by Almirola (51) and Zilisch (28). Brandon Jones, Ryan Seig, Harrison Burton, Zilisch and Sheldon Creed completed the top 10.

Allgaier, who won the first stage by 8.262s and finished second in Stage 2, took over the series lead by 19 points over Love.

Almirola muscles by three-wide to snatch Phoenix Xfinity win

Aric Almirola made a dramatic last-lap pass in overtime to claim the win in Saturday’s GOVX 200 NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Phoenix Raceway, making door-to-door contact with Hendrick Motorsports’ Alex Bowman in the final two turns. The 0.045s …

Aric Almirola made a dramatic last-lap pass in overtime to claim the win in Saturday’s GOVX 200 NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Phoenix Raceway, making door-to-door contact with Hendrick Motorsports’ Alex Bowman in the final two turns. The 0.045s margin of victory was the second-closest finish in the track’s history.

Almirola led 25 laps on the afternoon, but his last-lap move to the checkered flag was the only one he led in the final 50 laps of the 208-lap event. His No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota emerged from a four-wide battle for the lead on the final restart with two laps remaining, then finally overtook Bowman less than 200 feet from the finish line.

It was the eighth career NASCAR Xfinity Series victory for the 40-year-old Tampa native, who has been racing part-time for JGR after retiring from full-time NASCAR Cup Series competition two years ago.

“I just knew I needed to get from there to here first,” Almirola said, standing by his car at the start-finish line. “I knew I was going to use him up a little bit, but was trying to win the race. I feel like it was warranted. I didn’t feel like I did anything overly egregious. I just throttled up, and it was a drag race to the start-finish line.”

Bowman, who drives the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, was making his first Xfinity start of the year for the team. He started on the pole, led the first 70 laps of the race, and won the opening stage. After the race, he expressed frustration over the contact between his Chevrolet and Almirola’s Toyota.

“I would have hoped he would have given me a lane on exit,” said the Arizona native. “He just exited like I wasn’t there. He was better than us for sure, but I was just trying to capitalize on that restart and try to win the race. I got shoved into the fence, and the race car is destroyed. Bummer for that, but hats off to the HendrickCars.com crew.”

Almirola’s teammate Brandon Jones finished third, followed by owner-driver Ryan Sieg and reigning NASCAR Xfinity Series champion Justin Allgaier, whose No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet led a race-best 130 laps and was out front on that final overtime restart.

Allgaier, who won the second stage, was understandably disappointed in both the restart and race outcome.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1428]

He got a good jump to the green flag on the restart but was quickly swallowed up in the four-wide battle out front. The result was particularly gut-wrenching considering he was also leading late in the track’s spring race last year when he had a tire problem with only five laps remaining and instead suffered a DNF.

“I thought the No. 19 (Almirola) was pretty good at the end of the run, and we were pushing pace when the caution came out,” Allgaier said. “I kind of knew we were a sitting duck. They blew all the marbles off the top [of the track] right in front of us leaders, and we just picked up a ton of trash on our tires.

“Just got into [Turn] 1 and had no grip,” he said of the restart. “I’m just sad about the finish for our Brandt Chevrolet. I thought it was really, really good. I thought we had the car to beat there.

“This one is going to hurt. I feel like the last three laps of this place have hated me over the last couple years. Even though we won a championship [here] last fall, it seems like no matter what, the last few laps haven’t been our deal. We’ll go back to the drawing board. Nothing to hang our heads about.”

JGR rookie Taylor Gray, Haas Factory Team’s Sam Mayer, Kaulig Racing rookie Christian Eckes, Richard Childress Racing’s Jesse Love, and Big Machine Racing rookie Nick Sanchez rounded out the top 10.

A trio of race frontrunners was taken out on lap 63 when Daytona season opener winner Austin Hill said he misjudged the lower wall and careened back up the racetrack, collecting Haas driver Sheldon Creed and Sam Hunt Racing’s Dean Thompson.

“I just messed up and misjudged the inside wall, and that might be the dumbest move that ever happened to me in racing,” Richard Childress Racing driver Hill said. “I feel bad for those guys. It was 100 percent my fault. Just a misjudgment on my part.”

The accident was not only a big impact on the wall for Hill but also had an impact on the championship standings, dropping him to fourth place heading into Las Vegas Motor Speedway next week.

Love holds a two-point edge over Allgaier atop the standings.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series returns to competition next Saturday in the LiUNA! at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (4:30 p.m. ET on CW, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). John Hunter Nemechek is the defending race winner.

Legge hopeful for more opportunities in NASCAR

Katherine Legge wants to do ‘all the things’ when it pertains to finding more opportunities in racing and that includes NASCAR. Legge will make her ARCA Menards Series debut on February 15 at Daytona International Speedway with Sigma Performance …

Katherine Legge wants to do ‘all the things’ when it pertains to finding more opportunities in racing and that includes NASCAR.

Legge will make her ARCA Menards Series debut on February 15 at Daytona International Speedway with Sigma Performance Services (SPS). It will be her first time competing on the oval at Daytona. However, it will not be her first time in a stock car, as she has made five starts in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.

But as Legge has prepared for her Daytona debuts, she has made the media rounds. During a stop on the ‘Good Game’ podcast with Sarah Spain, it was mentioned that Legge would attempt the Memorial Day weekend double between the NTT IndyCar Series and NASCAR. However, as Legge told RACER’s Marshall Pruett, there are no solid plans for that to happen, and she’s focused on earning her way through the NASCAR process to be able to compete on all types of racetracks.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1428]

“I think we’ve probably got to take it one step at a time and see how we’re going to get there,” Legge said. “I want to do all of the things. I want to do the Daytona 500. I want to do the Coca-Cola 600. I want to do more NASCAR. I want to do more IndyCar. I want to do more sports cars.

“I’m non-discriminatory. I think it would be very cool. I’m no Kyle Larson; I wish I was. I watched him at the Chili Bowl and in that moment, I felt very insignificant and just in awe of the amount of talent that he has. But, you know, wouldn’t that be cool? I think that would be cool. So, never say never. Let’s put it like that.”

Legge made four starts in the Xfinity Series in 2018. In the years since, she’s made one more start, which was in 2023. Four of those five starts came on road courses, with the other being the Richmond Raceway short track.

A motorsports veteran, Legge has competed successfully in various racing disciplines. In 2005, she triumphed in Long Beach in Toyota Atlantic, becoming the first woman to win a major open-wheel race in North America. In 2023, she became the fastest woman qualifier in the Indianapolis 500’s history.

But competing in stock car racing is becoming her new favorite, and Legge sees the benefits of being a versatile driver now with stock car experience.

While best known for her open-wheel and sports racing drives, Legge has been making forays into stock cars for some time too. Jared East/Motorsport Images

“Yes, I am,” Legge said about being game to drive anything. “And again, it’s making me a better driver and it’s actually been one of the coolest experiences that I think I’ve ever done.”

Andy Lally offered an assist to get Legge ready. She had mentioned to Lally during a celebration in Asheville, N.C., for Spencer Pumpelly’s 50th birthday that she was heading to Charlotte for a seat fitting. Lally, who has competed in NASCAR, offered to go with her.

“So, he went with me and told me where I needed to sit and all the good stuff,” Legge said. The team was awesome. I turned up for the seat fit; they were organized and on it, everything went so smoothly. I was like, ‘This is weird. This never happens. What is going on? It’s like I’m living in an alternate universe.’ Everything went so smoothly and I loved everybody. They were fantastic. I was like, this is cool.”

The two-day test at Daytona last month went well, too. Legge and the team were among the top 15 fastest of the 70 teams participating in the test. Again noting how organized everything was with the team and how good the car was, Legge called the day “one of the best days” she’s had.

“I thought it was the coolest thing,” Legge said. “I love driving stock cars. I drove Xfinity a handful of times a few years ago, and I wanted to get back to doing more. In NASCAR, you need to earn a license. So, I’m qualified in NASCAR’s eye to drive on road and street courses and then probably the short ovals in lower-power cars. But you can’t just show up and say, you know what, I want to do the Daytona 500. Because NASCAR will go, you’re funny. Unless you’re Helio Castroneves, in which case they’re like, yeah, sure, we’ll make up a new rule for you.”

Legge has seen other open-wheel drivers have to prove themselves in NASCAR, getting more opportunities to move upward. Danica Patrick and AJ Allmendinger were the two she specifically mentioned. The ARCA race at Daytona is one of those chances for Legge, and she admittedly is as nervous as excited to compete.

“I hope I’m good,” Legge said. “And I hope I’m good enough that NASCAR will go, OK, now you’re qualified to do the next and the next thing, and I can build on that if the opportunity arises.

“But whatever happens, again, it’s going to make me a better driver. It’s increasing my resume, and who doesn’t want to do these cool things? I just count my lucky chickens. But I’m excited.”