Tag: Austin Hill

Hill set for four Cup Series races with Childress

Austin Hill will run four NASCAR Cup Series races this season with Richard Childress Racing, beginning at Texas Motor Speedway next week. Hill’s other three races with the team will be announced later. Hill will be in a third entry for the …

Austin Hill will run four NASCAR Cup Series races this season with Richard Childress Racing, beginning at Texas Motor Speedway next week. Hill’s other three races with the team will be announced later.

Hill will be in a third entry for the organization, the No. 33 Chevrolet, with sponsorship from United Rentals. A full-time competitor for Childress in the Xfinity Series, United Rentals has long supported Hill in NASCAR.

“United Rentals has supported me throughout all of the key moments of my racing career so far, which makes their involvement in my upcoming NASCAR Cup Series starts for Richard Childress Racing that much more special,” Hill said. “I’m happy to have another opportunity to race in the Cup Series for RCR. The amount of success that we’ve been able to accomplish together in the Xfinity Series makes me excited for this slate of races.

“It’s not going to be easy competing against the best drivers on Sundays, but I’m thankful to Richard, everyone at RCR, and United Rentals for allowing this Cup Series schedule to come to life. Racing a Next Gen Chevrolet at a mile-and-a-half will be a new challenge, but one that I’m looking forward to.”

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Hill has made six starts in the Cup Series since 2022, most of them with Childress affiliate team Beard Motorsports. However, his debut was in the No. 33 for Childress at Michigan International Speedway in August 2022. A 14th-place finish at Daytona in the summer race last year is Hill’s best effort in the series.

“We’re proud to represent a great brand like United Rentals and to be a part of their efforts to help Austin achieve success at the next level,” said Torrey Galida, president of RCR. “United Rentals is a longtime supporter of our sport, and they have done a superb job of using their relationship with Austin to achieve their business goals from an on-site activation and hosting standpoint.”

Austin Hill to run Cup Series races with Richard Childress Racing in 2024

Richard Childress Racing announced on Friday afternoon that Austin Hill will run select NASCAR Cup Series races in the No. 33 car in 2024.

[autotag]Austin Hill[/autotag] has been among the best drivers in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, and his success is paying off. On Friday afternoon, Richard Childress Racing announced that Hill will drive the No. 33 car in select NASCAR Cup Series races during the 2024 season. The 29-year-old driver’s first race will be at Texas Motor Speedway on April 14.

Hill made five Cup Series starts with Beard Motorsports in 2023, but his debut came in Richard Childress Racing’s third entry at Michigan International Speedway in 2022. The driver of the No. 33 car finished in 18th place, but his best finish came at Daytona International Speedway in 2023, where he ended up in 14th place.

The other races on Hill’s schedule were not announced, but Texas represents his first Cup Series event on a 1.5-mile track. The Richard Childress Racing driver has been a force in NASCAR over the last few years, and it will be fascinating to see him translate to the Cup Series. Maybe Hill’s efforts in 2024 could lead to a full-time opportunity in 2025.

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Xfinity superspeedway king Hill aces major fuel gamble at Atlanta

Sunoco rookie Jesse Love led almost all the laps, but in the end, it was his Richard Childress Racing teammate, Austin Hill, who had Saturday’s RAPTOR King of Tough 250 fall into his lap. For Hill, who won last week’s NASCAR Xfinity Series …

Sunoco rookie Jesse Love led almost all the laps, but in the end, it was his Richard Childress Racing teammate, Austin Hill, who had Saturday’s RAPTOR King of Tough 250 fall into his lap.

For Hill, who won last week’s NASCAR Xfinity Series season-opener at Daytona International Speedway, it was the continuation of a serendipitous start to 2024. Hill is the first driver since Tony Stewart in 2008 to win the first two events of an Xfinity season.

The victory was Hill’s third in the last four races at Atlanta Motor Speedway and the eighth of his career.

But victory for the driver of the No. 21 Chevrolet came at the expense of Love, who started from the pole, swept the first two stages and led 157 of 169 laps. Love ran out of fuel at the start of a two-lap overtime, as Hill grabbed the lead for the first time and held off eventual runner-up Chandler Smith by 0.106s.

 

The bottom line? Running behind the leaders in a single-file line, Hill was able to save more fuel than his teammate at the front of the pack. Hill had enough in his tank to stave off Smith who had pitted for fuel under caution on lap 164.

“I was really thinking we were down and out,” Hill said. “I was thinking the No. 2 (Love) was going to go get ‘em, and hey, if I can’t win, let my teammate win. We were riding there in fourth or fifth—whatever it was—I was saving fuel…”

On the overtime restart on lap 168, Hill’s car stumbled when he shifted from third to fourth gear.

“The No. 81 (Smith) hit me really hard, and that woke it back up, and I had enough fuel to complete the lap. But I’ve got to take this moment to congratulate, Jesse Love, my teammate. He ran an awesome race. To be a rookie and to lead that many laps, he should be sitting in Victory Lane right now.”

The coup de grace for Love came when the Ford of Ryan Sieg ran out of fuel on lap 161 of a scheduled 163 and stopped on the track in Turn 4. The caution extended the race by six laps and allowed a dozen cars to pit before the overtime restart.

Among those who took advantage of the fuel stop was New Zealander Shane van Gisbergen, who finished third in his second Xfinity Series start.

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“It’s almost comical,” Love said. “Man, I’m just so…proud of everybody on this Whelen car. It just wasn’t meant to be. Obviously, as a Christian, I’m not going to allow myself to question why we were under caution so long or what happened.

“I always try to take responsibility for everything, so I as a driver I should have saved more fuel. Man, I just didn’t want anybody to catch me off-guard. I thought I saved a ton. Man, that overtime or that caution just lasted forever.

“No matter what, I’m really proud of our guys. We had a great showing. Led a lot of laps man. It just wasn’t in store for us today.”

Van Gisbergen was delighted to be on the other side of the fuel equation.

“Pretty awesome,” he said. “Great job by (crew chief) Bruce (Schlicker) on the box there to pit us. I had so much fun. Just learning about it and running in the pack. Yeah, to be P3 in the second race in the WeatherTech Chevy is pretty awesome. I’m stoked.

“It’s just good to get a result and have a clean car, especially after last week (at Daytona) when I got involved in so much stuff. So, to have a clean race, not make too many mistakes, and complete every lap, we learned a lot. It was awesome.”

Riley Herbst, Love’s foremost challenger over the closing laps was among the first to run out of fuel—from the second position on lap 160. Cole Custer hit empty almost simultaneously, then Sieg, causing the fateful caution.

The gas shortage throughout the field scrambled the finishing order, leaving Sheldon Creed fourth and Parker Retzlaff fifth. Jeremy Clements, Anthony Alfredo, Jeffrey Earnhardt, Ryan Truex and Sammy Smith completed the top 10.

Note: Love is the first driver since Christopher Bell in 2017 to lead more than 100 laps in his first two Xfinity Series starts combined. Bell led 152 of 250 laps in his second start at Iowa. Love led 34 laps in his series debut last Monday at Daytona, giving him a total of 191 for the two races.

RESULTS

Austin Hill wins Xfinity race at Atlanta, opens 2024 with back-to-back victories

Austin Hill opens the 2024 season with back-to-back victories after winning the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series arrived at Atlanta Motor Speedway with a feeling of inevitably after [autotag]Austin Hill[/autotag] won the opening race of the season at Daytona International Speedway. Despite the late-race drama, plus a lack of speed, he put himself in position again. Hill beat Chandler Smith to win the Xfinity Series race at Atlanta in overtime after teammate Jesse Love ran out of fuel.

Love dominated the race at Atlanta but ran out of fuel on the final restart. Hill was pushed to the front by Smith, who held the No. 81 car behind him. The Richard Childress Racing driver had enough fuel to win and perform a burnout on the front stretch. Hill said in his post-race interview that Love should have won the race after he won the first two stages.

Yet, Hill found a way through the drama. After winning Atlanta, Hill became the first driver since Tony Stewart in 2008 to win back-to-back races to open an Xfinity Series season. The next time the series heads to a superspeedway race, that same inevitability will be felt again.

RAPTOR King of Tough 250 finishing order:

  1. No. 21 Austin Hill
  2. No. 81 Chandler Smith
  3. No. 97 Shane van Gisbergen
  4. No. 18 Sheldon Creed
  5. No. 31 Parker Retzlaff
  6. No. 51 Jeremy Clements
  7. No. 5 Anthony Alfredo
  8. No. 26 Jeffrey Earnhardt
  9. No. 19 Ryan Truex
  10. No. 8 Sammy Smith
  11. No. 1 Sam Mayer
  12. No. 2 Jesse Love
  13. No. 16 A.J. Allmendinger
  14. No. 9 Brandon Jones
  15. No. 98 Riley Herbst
  16. No. 00 Cole Custer
  17. No. 91 Kyle Weatherman
  18. No. 78 B.J. McLeod
  19. No. 48 Parker Kligerman
  20. No. 44 Brennan Poole
  21. No. 42 Leland Honeyman
  22. No. 39 Ryan Sieg
  23. No. 27 Jeb Burton
  24. No. 14 J.J. Yeley
  25. No. 43 Ryan Ellis
  26. No. 92 Nick Leitz
  27. No. 15 Hailie Deegan
  28. No. 7 Justin Allgaier
  29. No. 35 Joey Gase
  30. No. 29 Blaine Perkins
  31. No. 4 Dawson Cram
  32. No. 20 John Hunter Nemechek
  33. No. 07 Patrick Emerling
  34. No. 6 Garrett Smithley
  35. No. 38 C.J. McLaughlin
  36. No. 28 Kyle Sieg
  37. No. 11 Josh Williams
  38. No. 32 Jordan Anderson

Austin Hill wins third straight Xfinity Series opener at Daytona, full results

Austin Hill wins his third straight NASCAR Xfinity Series opening race at Daytona. Check out the full results and race recap from the night!

[autotag]Austin Hill[/autotag] has done it again. On Monday night, the NASCAR Xfinity Series finally ran its season-opening race at Daytona International Speedway, and Hill came out on top for a third straight year. The driver of the No. 21 car cruised to the checkered flag with a sizable lead over former teammate Sheldon Creed. There was no caution following a last-lap wreck.

Hill was involved in an earlier incident that caused damage to his right front and sped on pit road in the Final Stage. Despite his issues, the Richard Childress Racing driver still won the race. On the final lap, Ryan Sieg and Sammy Smith got together, triggering a wreck on the backstretch. Creed lost touch with Hill and cruised to a 0.591-second victory.

Now, the Xfinity Series will travel to Atlanta Motor Speedway for its second race of the season. It will be another superspeedway race, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see Hill go back-to-back to open the 2024 NASCAR season.

United Rentals 300 finishing order:

  1. No. 21 Austin Hill
  2. No. 18 Sheldon Creed
  3. No. 31 Parker Retzlaff
  4. No. 32 Jordan Anderson
  5. No. 81 Chandler Smith
  6. No. 98 Riley Herbst
  7. No. 20 John Hunter Nemechek
  8. No. 7 Justin Allgaier
  9. No. 9 Brandon Jones
  10. No. 16 A.J. Allmendinger
  11. No. 43 Ryan Ellis
  12. No. 97 Shane van Gisbergen
  13. No. 00 Cole Custer
  14. No. 29 Blaine Perkins
  15. No. 78 B.J. McLeod
  16. No. 6 Garrett Smithley
  17. No. 07 Patrick Emerling
  18. No. 36 Natalie Decker
  19. No. 44 Brennan Poole
  20. No. 2 Jesse Love
  21. No. 19 Ryan Truex
  22. No. 39 Ryan Sieg
  23. No. 8 Sammy Smith
  24. No. 5 Anthony Alfredo
  25. No. 48 Parker Kligerman
  26. No. 27 Jeb Burton
  27. No. 10 Daniel Dye
  28. No. 26 Sage Karam
  29. No. 51 Jeremy Clements
  30. No. 42 Leland Honeyman
  31. No. 4 Dawson Cram
  32. No. 92 Josh Bilicki
  33. No. 35 Frankie Muniz
  34. No. 11 Josh Williams
  35. No. 14 Daniel Suarez
  36. No. 1 Sam Mayer
  37. No. 15 Hailie Deegan
  38. No. 91 Kyle Weatherman

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Austin Hill clinches 2023 Xfinity Series regular season championship

Austin Hill has clinched the 2023 NASCAR Xfinity Series regular season championship at Kansas Speedway.

[autotag]Austin Hill[/autotag] entered the 2023 NASCAR season looking to improve upon an already successful rookie campaign and immediately showed he will be a force to be reckoned with all year. Hill won three times in the first five races of the season and then followed it up with another win at Pocono Raceway later in the summer. This all led up to Saturday afternoon at Kansas Speedway.

The Richard Childress Racing driver officially clinched the 2023 Xfinity Series regular season championship over John Hunter Nemechek at Kansas in the finale. Hill officially earned 15 playoff points, which equals out to three victories, for accomplishing the feat. It has been a massive season for the driver of the No. 21 car.

Now, Hill will enter the Round of 12 with 39 playoff points. The Richard Childress Racing driver has been one the most consistent drivers during the regular season and he has finally been rewarded with the highest honor at this point in the year. The chase for a first Xfinity Series title begins next weekend.

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Austin Hill talks about re-signing with Richard Childress Racing beyond 2023

Austin Hill discusses his decision to re-sign with Richard Childress Racing as the 29-year-old driver seeks his first Xfinity Series title.

It was announced on August 17 that [autotag]Austin Hill[/autotag] had signed a multi-year contract to remain with Richard Childress Racing in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. This came as a surprise due to Hill’s impressive 2023 season with four victories. In fact, the driver of the No. 21 car was linked to Kaulig Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series before the announcement.

Many believed that Hill was ready to make the jump to the Cup Series due to his performances with Richard Childress Racing; however, he decided to stick with the organization that gave him a chance in the Xfinity Series. Hill talked about his decision to re-sign with the race team in an interview reported by Motorsport.com.

“I’ve been talking to a lot of different teams, potentially about going  (NASCAR Cup Series) racing and I’ve actually came very close to going Cup racing,” Hill said. “At the end of the day, (Richard Childress) made it pretty tough on me, just because of the man he is and everything that we’ve done last season and this season together.”

“I’m very, very loyal to a fault. There’s a lot of things outside of just driving the race car that this just made sense to me. That’s one of the reasons it made it at the end of the day an easy decision to stay here with (Richard Childress Racing) and to keep building that momentum with them going forward.”

Hill certainly deserved the opportunity to go racing in the Cup Series but it is impossible to blame him for staying with Richard Childress Racing. The No. 21 team appears to be one of the championship favorites and Hill will have a good chance of being at Phoenix Raceway with a shot at lifting the trophy.

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Austin Hill signs multi-year deal with Richard Childress Racing, staying in Xfinity for 2024

Austin Hill has signed a multi-year deal with Richard Childress Racing, which keeps him in the NASCAR Xfinity Series for the 2024 season.

[autotag]Austin Hill[/autotag] and [autotag]Richard Childress Racing[/autotag] officially announced a multi-year extension that keeps the driver in the No. 21 Xfinity car for the 2024 NASCAR season. Hill currently leads the NASCAR Xfinity Series point standings over Joe Gibbs Racing driver John Hunter Nemechek with four wins, 13 top-5 finishes, and 17 top-10 finishes.

On paper, the Richard Childress Racing driver has been one of the best drivers in the Xfinity Series and will be one of the championship favorites in 2024. Hill was previously linked to Kaulig Racing as the organization is looking to replace Justin Haley in the No. 31 Cup car following his departure to Rick Ware Racing.

Overall, this seems like a strategic move for Hill when it relates to his future in the NASCAR Cup Series. There aren’t many premium seats available in NASCAR silly season and if there are some open for 2025, Hill could be one of the most pursued drivers in the lower ranks of the sport.

For now, Hill will continue to dominate the Xfinity Series as he pushes for his first NASCAR championship at Phoenix Raceway in November.

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Kaulig Racing should target these drivers for the No. 31 car in 2024

Kaulig Racing should target these drivers to replace Justin Haley in the No. 31 car for the NASCAR Cup Series starting in 2024.

[autotag]Kaulig Racing[/autotag] has an opening in the No. 31 car for their NASCAR Cup Series program after Justin Haley announced he would join Rick Ware Racing on a multi-year deal starting in 2024. It was a shocking development as both sides wanted to continue far into the future. Now, Kaulig Racing is tasked with finding Haley’s replacement, and which drivers make the most sense?

[autotag]Austin Hill[/autotag] is one of Kaulig Racing’s top targets for the No. 31 car and it is easy to understand why that is the case. Hill currently drives for Richard Childress Racing in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and sits as the points leader with four wins, 13 top-5 finishes, 17 top-10 finishes, and a 7.5 average finishing position. In this situation, Hill would stay in the Chevrolet camp and go into the perfect situation for both parties.

If Hill surprisingly doesn’t go to Kaulig Racing, there is another stellar option. [autotag]Chandler Smith[/autotag], a driver for the organization in the Xfinity Series, would be a natural fit after his first season with the race team. Smith currently sits seventh in the point standings with one win, five top-5 finishes, eight top-10 finishes, and a 15.4 average finishing position. Smith is bound to end up with Kaulig Racing in the Cup Series one day so why not next year?

Finally, there is an out-of-the-box idea that would make sense for Kaulig Racing. What about Big Machine Racing driver [autotag]Parker Kligerman[/autotag]? The driver of the No. 48 car runs in the Xfinity Series and currently sits 17 points below the cut-line. It would be a surprise to see Kligerman in the No. 31 car but he does have experience in the Cup Series. If Kaulig Racing is looking for a veteran driver, Kligerman could be an fascinating situation.

Either way, the No. 31 car for Kaulig Racing will be one to look out for during the remainder of NASCAR silly season. It represents one of the best rides available in the Cup Series and could give a driver in the lower ranks of the sport a great opportunity.

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Hill comes out on top of Pocono Xfinity fuel gamble

Austin Hill survived an early race pit road speeding penalty, gambled on fuel strategy and prevailed in an incredible wheel-to-wheel run to the checkered flag in overtime to claim his fourth NASCAR Xfinity Series victory of the season in the Explore …

Austin Hill survived an early race pit road speeding penalty, gambled on fuel strategy and prevailed in an incredible wheel-to-wheel run to the checkered flag in overtime to claim his fourth NASCAR Xfinity Series victory of the season in the Explore the Pocono Mountains 225 at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway on Saturday.

As important as the victory for the 29-year old Georgia-native, his good day combined with an uncharacteristically disappointing day for his closest rivals in the NASCAR Xfinity Series championship standings gave him a huge boost in the points with only seven races remaining to set the 12-driver playoff field. He trailed championship leader John Hunter Nemechek by 33 points before the green flag and took the checkered flag now only 13 behind.

On a dramatic – at times chaotic – overtime restart, Hill had to get around the day’s most dominant driver, JR Motorsports’ Josh Berry. His No. 21 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet was behind Berry on the restart and gave him a big push at the green flag, but Berry got loose and Hill got around him to lead his first lap on the afternoon.

Both Berry and his JRM teammate Justin Allgaier hit the wall in separate accidents on the final lap bringing out the yellow flag and the race ultimately ended under caution with Hill out front.

“We didn’t have the best car all day,’’ Hill said. “Andy (Petree) and all the guys back at RCR engines worked really hard. We got the car better. I thought we were maybe a top-five or top-seven car. I didn’t think we had anything for the leader today.

“On that restart he drove into one and got really loose into the entry. … We drag raced down the backstretch and once I cleared (Berry) I knew I just had to hit my marks.

“Such a special win,’’ he added. “Obviously with fuel saving, we didn’t know if we were going to make it and it was on my mind going into the Tunnel Turn (Turn 2) that I had to get back to the start/finish line. I had enough fuel to do a burnout so we saved enough.’’

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It was especially heartbreaking for Berry, who dominated all the race’s major statistics. For the first time in his career he swept both stage wins, and he started from pole position for the first time this year, leading a race high 51 of the 92 laps. He finished 24th after his No. 8 JRM Chevrolet trailed up track and into the wall racing Hill — bringing out the final caution that ended the race.

“Just a wild restart there,’’ said Berry, who will take over for retiring NASCAR Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick in the No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford next year.

“The No. 21 (Hill) was behind me and gave me a really good push but pushed me a little longer and harder than I wanted into Turn 1 and got me into the marbles. … I was able to battle back and race with him, tried to time the run, but got there a little quicker.

“Just a racing deal.,’’ he added. “Hate we didn’t get the finish we deserved today. Just really proud of the car we brought today and I know if we continue to have that kind of speed we’ll win plenty of races. Just a tough way to end but still a lot of positives from the day.’’

His JR Motorsports teammate Sammy Smith finished second to Hill, followed by former NASCAR Cup Series champion Chase Elliott, who was competing in his first NASCAR Xfinity Series race in two years – driving the No. 17 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet in a paint scheme honoring his team owner Rick Hendrick’s late son, Ricky Hendrick.

Stewart-Haas Racing’s Riley Herbst finished fourth, also coming out on the right side of fuel-save gamble. Kaulig Racing’s Daniel Hemric was fifth.

“We finished fourth and that’s what we needed at a track I don’t particularly love,’’ Herbst said. “Lucky to get out of here with a top-five.’’

The effort was good enough to keep Herbst in the points picture for the championship. He is ranked 12th – the final playoff transfer position – 26 points ahead of Parker Kligerman, who finished ninth Saturday.

Sammy Smith, Brandon Jones, Brett Moffitt, Kligerman and another NASCAR Cup Series regular, Daniel Suarez (Kaulig Racing) rounded out the top 10.

A mid-race incident with two of the three championship leaders – Nemechek and third place Cole Custer – changed the complexion on the regular season title chase. On a restart just over halfway through the race – with both Nemechek and Custer running inside the top 10 — Nemechek hit the wall and washed back across the track, his Toyota hitting Custer’s Ford. Custer was third in the championship entering the race.

Both teams made quick repairs to the cars, but they were non-competitive for the remainder of the race. Nemechek finished 32nd and Custer 33rd.

Seven races remain to set the 12-driver championship field. Next week the NASCAR Xfinity Series resumes action Saturday in the Henry 180 at Road America in Elkhart Lake, WI. (3 p.m. ET, NBC, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

RESULTS