Race 6 of 33: Hard Rock Bet 300 at Homestead-Miami Speedway
Track Specs: 1.5-mile oval / 201 laps
Race Winner: Justin Allgaier
Kvapil’s finish: 10th
Zilisch’s finish: 12th
Smith’s finish: 21st
Justin Allgaier
The driver of the No. 7 BRANDT Professional Agriculture/TradeMark Nitrogen Chevrolet scored his second consecutive NASCAR Xfinity Series victory in dramatic fashion on Saturday, capturing the checkered flag during NASCAR’s version of overtime at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Taking the final restart in fourth, Allgaier quickly went on the attack, utilizing the inside line to take the race lead and drive away with the 27th victory of his NXS career. With the win, Allgaier earned the $100,000 Dash 4 Cash bonus from Xfinity and qualified for next weekend’s Dash 4 Cash event at Martinsville Speedway. The triumph also moved Allgaier into a tie for ninth on the NXS all-time wins list with Jeff Burton and saw the JR Motorsports driver extend his lead in the series standings to 29 points over second place. Additionally, Allgaier has now scored multiple victories in a season for the sixth consecutive time, dating back to 2020.
“What an unbelievable day. I can’t believe that we were able to get a win here in Homestead. It’s just a testament to all of the hard work by Jim (Pohlman, crew chief) and all the men and women at JR Motorsports. This is such a special win and to do it with BRANDT and TradeMark Nitrogen on the car makes it mean even more. It’s just a really great day, especially since we are coming home with the Dash 4 Cash bonus. I can’t say thank you enough.”
Carson Kvapil
Carson Kvapil, driver of the No. 1 Bass Pro Shops/Clarience Technologies Chevrolet, rallied back from a penalty on the opening lap to bring home a top-10 finish at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Saturday afternoon. After taking his first laps on the 1.5-mile oval during practice, Kvapil qualified his Chevrolet in 14th position, where he would take the green for the 200-lap feature. Unfortunately, the pass-through penalty for jumping out of line just as the green flag waved saw the JR Motorsports driver rejoin the field at the back of the pack. Despite the loss of track position, the 21-year-old Mooresville, N.C. native went to work, racing his way back into the top 15 to take the green-and-white checkered flag in 12th. Crew chief Andrew Overstreet capitalized on a late-stage caution to bring the rookie driver down pit road for tires and fuel, which allowed him to start Stage Two on the front row. Kvapil held strong for the next 45 laps before setting his sights on the final stage. A final green-flag stop for adjustments saw Kvapil move through the field over the course of final stage, methodically racing into the top 10 to take the checkered flag in 10th.
“We had a tough start to the day after having to serve that penalty but this No. 1 team gave me a fast car capable of working through the field. I can’t thank them, Johnny Morris and everyone at Bass Pro Shops and Clarience Technologies enough for their support and we are going to move forward and be ready to go at Martinsville next week.”
Connor Zilisch
Connor Zilisch scored a 12th-place finish on Saturday afternoon at Homestead-Miami Speedway. After qualifying on the front row, the 18-year-old Mooresville native drove among the leaders for the first 45 laps before finishing the first stage just outside the top 10. Zilisch managed to work his way back into contention through the second stage, taking the second green-and-white checkered flag in fifth, earning valuable stage points. During the third and final stage, the driver of the WeatherTech Chevrolet was running inside the top 10 when he was hit with a pit-road penalty for a crew member over the wall too soon. The sequence of events ultimately knocked Zilisch off the lead lap and shuffled him back to 19th in the running order. Over the final 36 laps, Zilisch went on the charge and drive his way back to 12th position by the time the checkered flag waved.
“All the guys at JR Motorsports did a great job this weekend. We were just a little bit too loose, but Mardy (crew chief Mardy Lindley) and all the guys on the WeatherTech team kept working hard to make our car better. It stinks that we got that penalty because I thought we had a good chance to end up in the top-10 or maybe a few spots better. Congrats to Justin Allgaier and everyone on the BRANDT team on the win and the Dash 4 Cash bonus. It was a huge day for everyone at JR Motorsports for sure.”
Sammy Smith
Sammy Smith, driver of the No. 8 Allstate Peterbilt Chevrolet, started off Saturday afternoon’s NASCAR Xfinity Series event at Homestead-Miami Speedway on a strong note, as the JR Motorsports driver charged through the field in the final laps of the opening stage to secure the Stage One win. Smith went on to tally additional points at the conclusion of Stage Two and ran solidly inside the top 10 throughout the final stage until a flat tire under green in the closing laps derailed the young driver’s promising run.
Smith qualified 15th for the 200-lap event, but quickly worked his way into the top 10 and held strong there until a late-stage caution flag waved. While under caution, crew chief Phillip Bell made the strategy call to bring the driver of the Allstate Peterbilt Chevrolet down pit road for four fresh tires and fuel. Going back to green-flag racing with just four circuits remaining in Stage One, Smith Advanced from 32st to the race lead to take the green-and-white checkered flag in the top spot.
Taking the green for the start of Stage Two inside the top 10, Smith held strong, maintaining his track position throughout the 45-lap run to take the green-and-white checkered flag in ninth on lap 90.
Smith started the the third and final stage in ninth and battled hard for track position inside the top 10 until an unfortunate late-race flat tire forced the No. 8 Chevrolet to pit road for an unscheduled stop. In the end, Smith was ultimately scored with a 21st-place finish. With the result, Smith sits sixth in the championship standings, only three points outside the top five.
“Our Allstate Peterbilt Chevrolet had good speed today and it was good to come away with points and a stage win. The flat tire was unfortunate and I hate that it happened, but we’ll regroup and look ahead to Martinsville, one of my favorite tracks.”