Allgaier Advancing Onto Phoenix After Dramatic Martinsville Win

Photo Credit to Chris Graythen/Getty Images

NASCAR

Justin Allgaier Wins Martinsville, Chaos Behind Sets Xfinity Final 4

RIDGEWAY, Va. – 250 laps around Martinsville Speedway was a knockdown drag out affair to set the Xfinity Series Championship 4. The winner was not determined until the final run to the checkers, with Justin Allgaier just edging ahead of Sheldon Creed for the fourth Phoenix berth.

A caution gave polesitter Sammy Smith the opportunity to short-pit and flip Stage 1. The opening Stage win went to Justin Allgaier. The No. 18 soon regained the top spot to start Stage 2 however, doing everything in his power to capitalize in a must-win scenario. The 18 would take Stage 2 and teammate John Hunter Nemechek would clinch a Championship 4 berth on points. The final ticket to Phoenix would be set after Stage 3.

Championship favorites Cole Custer, John Hunter Nemechek, and Austin Hill all spent time out front in a caution-filled last Stage. A red flag for extended cleanup following a major incident out of turn two would send the cutoff race into a highly-anticipated overtime. Going into this two-lap dash, RCR teammates Hill and Sheldon Creed were in the top two spots, both needing a win to stay in the title hunt. Hill had nudged Nemechek out of the way moments before this caution flag flew.

Once the race finally got back going, a desperate Creed used up Hill on the last lap with the win in sight. Hill went spinning and Creed checked up in turn three, allowing Justin Allgaier to get a big run on the inside. The No. 7 would squeak ahead of the 2 by just 32-thousandths of a second. After RCR had this race in command with both of their cars, neither of them will contend for the Xfinity Series title in Phoenix.

Contact among the leaders caused an accordion-effect that stacked up most of the field coming to the checkers. The last Championship 4 spot went to Cole Custer, who crossed the line backwards and on fire.

“(Spotter) Eddie D’Hondt and (crew chief) Jim Pohlman, both of those guys kept telling me it’s not over and thank God it’s so good,” Allgaier said. “The fans that came here today, I don’t think I saw a single one sitting down coming to the start/finish line. I was just hanging on and trying to go as fast as I can. I hope that everyone that crashed on the front straightaway is alright, but man. This Hellmann’s car has been lights-out all year, it’s been as fast as Xfinity 10G for sure. I cannot say enough about the Hendrick engine shop, everyone at Chevrolet, all of our partners. Everyone at Hellman’s, Unilevel, Brandt Professional Agriculture, and HelloWater. We got a shot at going for a championship in Phoenix.”

“My wife drove up (here) today, my daughter’s last softball game was this afternoon, I got to watch the first one and she wanted to come here to be by my side, there’s nothing like it. This is an emotional one, I’ve wanted to win at Martinsville for a long time. Man I’ve been on the other end of that too many times. To be able to come out of here tonight with a win and a shot at the championship next week is so huge. Jim Pohlman, what an incredible crew chief, he’s done an amazing job. Pit crew was lights out too. I don’t even know who else to thank right now. This is incredible.”

Behind Allgaier and Creed, the Martinsville top-five were Sammy Smith, Riley Herbst, and Josh Berry. Daniel Hemric, Parker Retzlaff, Anthony Alfredo, Jeb Burton, and Parker Kligerman rounded out the top-10. Hear from a few of these drivers below.

Mayer, Nemechek, Allgaier and Custer are the 2023 Xfinity Series Championship 4. One of them is days away from being crowned a NASCAR champion. The title-deciding race will go green from Phoenix Raceway Saturday at 7:00 p.m. ET on USA, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. After drama peaked in the closing laps at Martinsville, can Phoenix deliver a worthy end to a chaotic postseason?

Written by Peter Stratta

Be sure to follow us on Twitter

Be sure to follow the writer on Twitter

Photo Credit to Chris Graythen/Getty Images