Justin Allgaier clinches his first NASCAR Xfinity Series championship as Herbst wins at Phoenix
Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images
AVONDALE, Ariz. — In one of the most remarkable comebacks in recent memory, longtime fan favorite Justin Allgaier at last claimed the NASCAR Xfinity Series championship trophy Saturday night at Phoenix Raceway – coming from a lap-down mid-race in a back-up car to hoist the shiny hardware.
Stewart-Haas Racing’s Riley Herbst’s No. 98 Ford passed Allgaier’s No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet for the NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship Race win on the last lap of double-overtime for his second win of the season and joined the new series champ Allgaier in twin celebratory burnouts on the front stretch of the mile-track.
“I said all weekend, I don’t know what the plan is, but HE has a reason for everything and tonight is true of that, this is mind-blowing, it really is,” said Allgaier, his voice already hoarse and strained from screaming in happiness, but the smile unshakable as his young daughters came in for a hug for dad.
“This team never gave up. [Crew chief] Jim Pohlman and his leadership skills are second to none. He told me all weekend that we were going to have a chance and we tried to give it away every way we could.”
It was an emotional outcome for the 38-year old Allgaier, who joked that he was just trying to make the race exciting for the fans. He has qualified for the Championship 4 seven times, finishing runner-up twice including last year.
And now he could finally celebrate. Allgaier’s team owners, NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr. and his sister Kelly Earnhardt Miller joined Allgaier’s longtime sponsor Rick Brandt on pit road. They were overjoyed to congratulate their driver who overcame a weekend of obstacles to finally claim this historic moment – and it came on a night when the sport observed a moment of silence to honor another great champion, NASCAR Hall of Famer Bobby Allison, who passed away earlier Saturday.
The obstacles Allgaier faced happened well before the race’s green flag. His primary car was destroyed in a crash four laps into Friday’s opening practice session after running over oil on track from another car that ultimately forced four drivers into back-ups for the race. The car swap meant Allgaier started last in the 38th car field Saturday night, but the always upbeat 14-year veteran of the series, had moved into the top 10 by lap 26.
Then, after all that work, Allgaier was called for a re-start violation on Lap 101 and sent down pit road for a penalty … only to be called for speeding on the way out and penalized withanother trip down pit road – both penalties served during green flag racing. After the penalties, Allgaier dropped to 35th on-track and was a lap down on Lap 107 of the scheduled 200-lapper.
He got a huge break in fortune with a caution period with 45 laps remaining – opting to stay out and get back on the lead lap. He stayed in the top-10 and worked his way forward – moving from sixth place to second on the first overtime restart. He started on the front row of the second overtime restart, but was passed on the final lap by Herbst for the race win. Allgaier’s second place finish still good enough to land the championship, however.
It marked the third career win for the 25-year old Las Vegas native Herbst, who crossed the line .247-second ahead of Allgaier and led a dominating 167 of the 213 laps.
“I knew we were going to have a fast race car, these guys have been working on this race car and I knew we were going to be really really fast,” said Herbst, whose SHR team is closing at the conclusion of the season. “It’s been a really tough week at the shop, really emotional time. I’m forever grateful to every man and woman at Stewart-Haas Racing they gave me a really fast car today and I can’t thank everyone enough.”
It was actually fellow championship contender – reigning champ Cole Custer – who mounted the most consistent challenge to Herbst. He ran up front for most of the race, just off the pace of his SHR teammate and ultimately finished eighth in the No. 00 SHR Ford – his effort answered last year’s title with a runner-up in this year’s championship standings.
The other two championship contenders, Kaulig Racing’s A.J. Allmendinger and Richard Childress Racing’s Austin Hill finished ninth and 10th. And as disappointed as the three title contenders were in not claiming the season championship, each conceded the night had a positive ending with their longtime competitor Allgaier finally getting that trophy after 14 years of competition in the series.
“I’m really happy for Justin, that was a long time coming,” said Custer, who will compete in the NASCAR Cup Series fulltime next season. “He’s definitely a deserving champion and they ran a great race, especially there at the end.”
Hill, making his first Championship 4 appearance, agreed with the sentiment.
“Justin Allgaier has been doing this for a really long time and to see him finally get it done, I’m really happy for him and happy for his family,” he said. “He’s a great guy to be around, a great competitor.
“He’s going to be a great champion for the Xfinity Series. I’ve enjoyed racing that 7 team all season long. If I couldn’t have gotten the championship, I’m glad he was the one that got it done.”
NASCAR Xfinity Series Race Number 33
Race Results for the NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship - Saturday, November 9, 2024
Phoenix Raceway - Avondale, AZ - 1. - Mile Paved
Total Race Length - 213 Laps - 213. Miles
Provided by NASCAR Statistics - Saturday, 11/9/2024 @ 10:25 PM Eastern
Fin Str Car Driver Team Laps Stage 1 Pos Stage 2 Pos Pts Status Tms Laps Playoff Pts
1 3 98 Riley Herbst Monster Energy Ford 213 1 1 60 Running 7 167 7
2 37 7 Justin Allgaier (P) BRANDT Chevrolet 213 6 10 35 Running 4 4
3 38 20 Aric Almirola (P) He Gets Us Toyota 213 9 3 44 Running
4 21 88 Connor Zilisch Jarrett 25 Years Chevrolet 213 6 38 Running
5 4 81 Chandler Smith QuickTie Toyota 213 2 41 Running
6 6 2 Jesse Love # Whelen Chevrolet 213 10 4 39 Running 1 6
7 2 18 Sheldon Creed Friends of Jaclyn Foundation Toyota 213 3 2 47 Running 4 20
8 7 00 Cole Custer (P) Andy's Frozen Custard/Haas Automation Ford 213 7 5 29 Running 2 7
9 9 16 AJ Allmendinger (P) Celsius Chevrolet 213 7 28 Running
10 5 21 Austin Hill (P) Bennett Transportation Chevrolet 213 4 27 Running 1 5
11 8 1 Sam Mayer 10X Health Chevrolet 213 5 8 35 Running
12 17 97 Shane Van Gisbergen # WeatherTech Chevrolet 213 25 Running
13 1 19 William Sawalich(i) Starkey/Soundgear Toyota 213 8 9 0 Running
14 31 48 Parker Kligerman Big Machine Spiked Coolers Chevrolet 213 23 Running 1 2
15 15 8 Sammy Smith Pilot Flying J Chevrolet 213 22 Running
16 16 27 Jeb Burton AO Smith Chevrolet 213 21 Running
17 13 10 Daniel Dye(i) Champion Container Chevrolet 213 0 Running 1 2
18 33 9 Brandon Jones Menards/Klearvue Cabinetry Chevrolet 213 19 Running
19 24 15 Dylan Lupton Lupton Excavation Ford 213 18 Running
20 22 51 Jeremy Clements Alliance Driveway Solutions Chevrolet 213 17 Running
21 32 91 Josh Bilicki Rita's Ice Chevrolet 213 16 Running
22 25 29 Blaine Perkins Ashurst American Honey Ford 213 15 Running
23 23 28 Ryan Sieg Sci Aps Ford 213 14 Running
24 28 44 Brennan Poole Macc Door Systems Chevrolet 213 13 Running
25 20 43 Ryan Ellis Tablo Chevrolet 213 12 Running
26 11 38 Matt DiBenedetto ReMA Ford 213 11 Running
27 34 35 Joey Gase Donate Life AZ Chevrolet 213 10 Running
28 30 07 Patrick Emerling MMI Tank Chevrolet 212 9 Running
29 29 39 Kyle Sieg Tap and Sons Ford 212 8 Running
30 36 53 Garrett Smithley Dozer Winch Parts.com Ford 212 7 Running
31 26 42 Leland Honeyman # Distributor Wire & Cable Co Chevrolet 210 6 Running
32 27 92 Dawson Cram(i) Trade With The Pros Chevrolet 209 0 Running
33 19 11 Josh Williams Alloy Chevrolet 208 4 Running
34 10 31 Parker Retzlaff FUNKAWAY/REALTREE Chevrolet 204 3 Accident
35 18 26 Jeffrey Earnhardt(i) Synergy Modular Toyota 169 0 Engine
36 12 5 Anthony Alfredo Dead On Tools Chevrolet 152 1 Accident
37 35 14 Greg Van Alst Prescott Tire Pros Chevrolet 108 1 Suspension
38 14 45 Stefan Parsons(i) Prime Bites Mini Muffins Chevrolet 61 0 Accident
Time of Race: 2 Hrs, 24 Mins, 20 Secs. Average Speed: 88.545 MPH Margin of Victory: 0.247 Seconds
Stage 1 Top 10: 98, 81, 18, 21, 1, 7, 00, 19, 20, 2
Stage 2 Top 10: 98, 18, 20, 2, 00, 88, 16, 1, 19, 7
Failed to Qualify: None.
Caution Flags: 7 for 53 laps; Laps: 47-54 (Stage 1 Conclusion [44]); 63-74 (#5, 14, 45 Incident Turn 1 [28]); 78-82 (#81 Spin Turn 1 [91]); 92-100 (Stage 2 Conclusion [39]); 156-162 (#5 Incident Turn 1 [27]); 199-205 (#42 Incident Turn 4 [19]); 207-211 (#31 Incident Turn 2 [35]).
Lead Changes: 21 among 8 drivers; W. Sawalich(i) 0; S. Creed 1-6; R. Herbst 7; S. Creed 8-9; R. Herbst 10-49; J. Allgaier (P) 50; R. Herbst 51-54; C. Custer (P) 55-59; R. Herbst 60-78; J. Allgaier (P) 79; S. Creed 80-89; R. Herbst 90-145; C. Custer (P) 146-147; S. Creed 148-149; D. Dye(i) 150-151; P. Kligerman 152-153; R. Herbst 154-199; J. Allgaier (P) 200; A. Hill (P) 201-205; J. Love # 206-211; J. Allgaier (P) 212; R. Herbst 213.
(i) Ineligible for driver points in this series
Next Race: January 1, 1900 -
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FINAL NASCAR XFINITY SERIES STANDINGS
NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship
UNOFFICIAL Provided by NASCAR Statistics - Saturday, 11/9/2024 @ 11:03 PM Eastern UNOFFICIAL
Rank Driver Car Starts GL Points Ldr Nxt Race Wins Stage Wins Playoff Pts
1. Justin Allgaier (P) 7 33 3 4035 0 0 2 16 0
2. Cole Custer (P) 00 33 1 4029 -6 6 2 4 0
3. AJ Allmendinger (P) 16 33 -1 4028 -7 1 1 2 0
4. Austin Hill (P) 21 33 -3 4027 -8 1 4 6 0
5. Chandler Smith 81 33 0 2314 -1721 1713 2 7 0
6. Sheldon Creed 18 33 0 2264 -1771 50 0 1 0
7. Riley Herbst 98 33 1 2254 -1781 10 2 4 0
8. Jesse Love # 2 33 -1 2247 -1788 7 1 4 0
9. Sam Mayer 1 33 0 2205 -1830 42 3 2 0
10. Parker Kligerman 48 33 0 2190 -1845 15 0 1 0
11. Sammy Smith 8 33 0 2185 -1850 5 1 0 0
12. Shane Van Gisbergen # 97 33 0 2157 -1878 28 3 2 0
13. Ryan Sieg 28 33 0 856 -3179 1301 0 2 0
14. Brandon Jones 9 33 0 696 -3339 160 0 0 0
15. Anthony Alfredo 5 33 0 641 -3394 55 0 0 0
16. Brennan Poole 44 33 0 572 -3463 69 0 0 0
17. Aric Almirola (P) 20 14 0 560 -3475 12 3 6 0
18. Josh Williams 11 33 0 515 -3520 45 0 0 0
19. Jeb Burton 27 33 0 512 -3523 3 0 0 0
20. Jeremy Clements 51 33 1 477 -3558 35 0 1 0
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