September 7, 2024 | By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service

Austin Hill wins wild NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Atlanta for season sweep

HAMPTON, Ga. — Seizing the lead for the first time on Lap 152 of 163 of Saturday’s Focused Health 250, Austin Hill stayed out front the rest of the way to win his fourth NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, his home track.

The 30-year-old driver from Winston, Georgia, won for the third time this season and completed a sweep of the two Atlanta races. Seven of Hill’s nine career series victories have come at drafting-style tracks.

“I’m speechless right now,” Hill said in Victory Lane. “Our Bennett Chevrolet had speed all day, but the handling just was not there the way that I would like. You come to these superspeedway-style events, and you want to have a car that’s trimmed out. You don’t worry too much about handling.

“But I thought handling was going to be an issue, and it definitely played a part today. We made some right moves at the right time between my spotter, Derek Kneeland, and me. We got up to second and when we had that restart (on Lap 150), I was contemplating ‘Do I go top, or do I go bottom?’

Hill got help from an unexpected source. He expressed surprise that he got a decisive push on the final lap from Toyota driver Corey Heim, who was making his first superspeedway start in the Xfinity Series.

Toyota driver Chandler Smith was equally surprised–and frustrated. Smith dropped to the bottom to attempt to pass Hill on the final circuit and briefly nosed past the front bumper of Hill’s No. 21 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet. Heim stayed with Hill on top.

“I expected my Toyota teammate to come with me, and he didn’t,” said Smith, who ultimately finished fourth in the No. 81 Joe Gibbs Racing Supra. “I’m kind of speechless.”

Heim, who finished fifth behind Smith, thought his best chance to win the race was to stay with Hill.

“He (Smith) had no run and no momentum, so why go to the bottom?” Heim explained.

After he pushed Hill clear of Smith, Heim tried a pass at the top of the track but brushed the outside wall and lost momentum. Parker Kligerman swept past Heim into second place, with AJ Allmendinger following.

Hill beat Kligerman to the finish line by 0.340 seconds, with Allmendinger in third, just 0.004 seconds behind Kligerman.

“Congrats to Austin Hill — he’s the master of this place,” said Kligerman, who matched his career-best finish in the series.

A multicar crash on Lap 145 dramatically altered the complexion of the race. Contact between the competitive cars of Justin Allgaier and Cole Custer ignited a six-car incident that collected the machines of Taylor Gray, Ryan Sieg, Riley Herbst and pole winner Jesse Love.

The wreck was particularly detrimental to Sieg, who is chasing Sammy Smith for the final spot in the 12-driver Xfinity Series Playoffs.

Sieg was running in the top 10 after making up a two-lap deficit–the result of an electrical issue in the opening laps–when the wreck occurred. He dropped from 10 to 44 points behind Smith, who overcame a pit-road safety violation penalty to finish seventh.

The incident sidelined both Allgaier and Custer, who are battling for the Regular Season Championship. Allgaier maintains a 34-point margin over the reigning series champion, but both Smith (67 points behind) and Hill (71 points) now have outside chances to overtake the leader.

NOTE: Post-race inspection was completed without issue in the Xfinity Series garage, confirming Austin Hill as the winner. The Nos. 26 and 31 will head to the NASCAR Research & Development Center in Concord, North Carolina, for further evaluation.



NASCAR Xfinity Series Race Number 24
Race Results for the Focused Health 250 - Saturday, September 7, 2024
Atlanta Motor Speedway - Hampton, GA - 1.54 - Mile Paved

Total Race Length - 163 Laps - 251.02 Miles

Provided by NASCAR Statistics - Saturday, 9/7/2024 @ 05:53 PM Eastern

Fin Str Car Driver Team Laps Stage 1 Pos Stage 2 Pos Pts Status Tms Laps Playoff Pts
1 4 21 Austin Hill Bennett Transportation Chevrolet 163 2 10 50 Running 1 12 5
2 16 48 Parker Kligerman Big Machine Spiked Coolers Chevrolet 163   35 Running  
3 6 16 AJ Allmendinger Campers Inn RV Chevrolet 163  1 44 Running 2 40 1
4 8 81 Chandler Smith Wheelers Toyota 163 9 8 38 Running 2 28
5 21 26 Corey Heim(i) Toyota Racing Development Toyota 163   0 Running  
6 1 2 Jesse Love # Samsara Chevrolet 163 5 6 42 Running 2 23
7 19 8 Sammy Smith Pilot Flying J Chevrolet 163  2 39 Running  
8 13 11 Josh Williams Alloy Employer Services Chevrolet 163   29 Running  
9 18 9 Brandon Jones Menards/Jeld-Wen Chevrolet 163 7  32 Running  
10 7 20 Ryan Truex The Toyota Gazoo Racing Toyota 163   27 Running  
11 37 91 Kyle Weatherman Brand South Africa Chevrolet 163   26 Running  
12 17 31 Parker Retzlaff FUNKAWAY Chevrolet 163   25 Running  
13 22 15 Lawless Alan(i) Deal Badger Ford 163   0 Running  
14 15 5 Anthony Alfredo Beyond Type 1 Chevrolet 163   23 Running  
15 26 44 Brennan Poole Hackett Truck Sales Chevrolet 163   22 Running  
16 28 28 Kyle Sieg North Country Ford Ford 163   21 Running  
17 35 42 Leland Honeyman # RANDCO Industries Chevrolet 163   20 Running 1 1
18 27 35 Mason Maggio(i)  Chevrolet 163   0 Running  
19 24 29 Blaine Perkins Pritchard Injury Firm Ford 163   18 Running  
20 25 92 Nick Leitz Precision Measurements Inc. Chevrolet 163   17 Running  
21 34 43 Ryan Ellis Pella Windows and Doors Chevrolet 163   16 Running  
22 33 14 David Starr Saniserv/Byron Superstore Chevrolet 163   15 Running  
23 30 45 Garrett Smithley Vet The Vote Chevrolet 163   14 Running  
24 20 27 Jeb Burton NORMA Precision Ammunition Chevrolet 162   13 Running  
25 5 18 Sheldon Creed CW Sports Toyota 160 4  19 Running 1 1
26 9 98 Riley Herbst Monster Energy Ford 158 3 4 26 Running  
27 12 97 Shane Van Gisbergen # Quad Lock Chevrolet 157  9 12 Running  
28 2 19 Taylor Gray(i) Operation 300 Toyota 154 10 7 0 Suspension 1 12
29 36 51 Jeremy Clements Fly and Form Structures Chevrolet 149   8 Suspension  
30 10 7 Justin Allgaier Hellmann's Chevrolet 146 1 5 23 Accident 1 19 1
31 3 00 Cole Custer Autodesk/Haas Automation Ford 144 8 3 17 Accident 2 27
32 14 39 Ryan Sieg Sci Aps Ford 144   5 Accident  
33 32 53 Morgen Baird Alro Steel Ford 142   4 Running  
34 23 07 CJ McLaughlin Main Street Auto Chevrolet 112   3 Engine  
35 29 38 Matt DiBenedetto ReMA Ford 80   2 Oil Line  
36 11 1 Sam Mayer High Rock Vodka Chevrolet 77 6  6 Accident  
37 31 74 Dawson Cram(i) Mike Harmon Racing Chevrolet 18   0 Engine  

Time of Race: 2 Hrs, 7 Mins, 5 Secs. Average Speed: 118.514 MPH Margin of Victory: 0.340 Seconds

Stage 1 Top 10: 7, 21, 98, 18, 2, 1, 9, 00, 81, 19
Stage 2 Top 10: 16, 8, 00, 98, 7, 2, 19, 81, 97, 21

Failed to Qualify: None.

Caution Flags: 6 for 36 laps; Laps: 13-16 (#39 Stopped on Track [None]); 42-47 (Stage 1 Conclusion [5]); 79-87 (Stage 2 Conclusion / #1 Stopped on Track [39]); 99-104 (#97 Incident Turn 4 [39]); 110-115 (Debris on track [07]); 146-150 (#39, 19, 7, 00, 98, 2 Incident Turn 4 [Red Flag - 15:43] [27]).

Lead Changes: 12 among 9 drivers; J. Love # 1-15; S. Creed 16; J. Love # 17-24; J. Allgaier 25-43; A. Allmendinger 44-82; L. Honeyman # 83; T. Gray(i) 84-95; C. Smith 96-107; C. Custer 108-131; A. Allmendinger 132; C. Custer 133-135; C. Smith 136-151; A. Hill 152-163.

(i) Ineligible for driver points in this series

Next Race: September 14, 2024 - Watkins Glen International

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