After the Craftsman Truck Series yesterday which crowned Ty Majeski, the Phoenix Raceway (Arizona) presented this Saturday evening the 33rd and final event of the 2024 season of the NASCAR Xfinity Series. A race scheduled for 200 laps which saw Riley Herbst take victory while Justin Allgaier, 31, (photo above), took the title after a spectacular comeback.
Qualified in pole position, William Sawalich (Toyota/Joe Gibbs Racing) barely had time to savor his feat in the race, being overtaken in the first laps by the drivers of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford), a team which will ceasing operations on the series next year, Riley Herbst and Cole Custer.
The first stage took place without a single yellow flag, but two had to be waved during the 2nd stage. A first time on the 62nd lap due to a collision between Anthony Alfredo and Stefan Parsons which resulted in two penalty laps for Alfredo, the officials rightly considering that he had voluntarily sent Parsons into the wall. Surprised by the incident, Greg van Aalst also hit the wall after losing control of his Chevrolet. The interruption was very long and, shortly after the restart, it was a contact between two Joe Gibbs Racing teammates, Chandler Smith and Sheldon Creed, which caused the 2nd neutralization.
The third stage saw around sixty laps under green flags before seeing another brief yellow. However, nothing to disturb the domination of Herbst, who took 3 seconds from the rest of the peloton as soon as the restart was given. To the delight of fans of accidents and last-minute suspense, but to the great dismay of purists, another yellow flag appeared 3 laps from the end, following Leland Honeyman's spin, already 3 laps away leaders at the time of the incident.
The victory and the title were therefore decided in overtime. The 4 candidates for the title, namely Custer, Austin Hill, AJ Allmendinger and Justin Allgaier, having refueled and changed tires during the neutralization, it was noted that Allgaier's stop was abnormally long while Hill came out of the pits in the lead without receiving only two new tires.
The restart on the 201st lap did not last long, an accident involving Parker Retzlaff at the back of the pack sending the drivers into neutralization. The second restart in overtime was the right one, and, despite some bodywork friction, it was free of further incidents.
Logically, Riley Herbst won, crossing the finish line with a 0.247 second lead, after 2 hours 24 minutes of racing, over Justin Allgaier. Vice-champion in 2020 and 2023, Allgaier is the candidate for the title who experienced the most eventful weekend. The only JR Motorsports driver qualified for this championship finale was forced to start last (38th) and behind the wheel of a reserve car after damaging his No. 7 Chevrolet in an accident that occurred after he slid on a road. oil during free practice. Allgaier moved back into the Top 20 after 10 laps of racing and into the Top 5 at the end of the first stage.
Fighting for the first three places at the start of stage 2, he suffered a double penalty: for having changed lines before the start/finish line during a restart, then for having driven too fast in the pits on the way serve his penalty. He was thus relegated to 1 lap, in 29th place, before managing to return to the leaders' lap, thanks to a neutralization 43 laps from the end caused by Anthony Alfredo's contact with the wall.
Throughout the season, we have noticed a certain laxity of NASCAR officials in the application of certain regulations, in particular those concerning voluntary contacts. For the season finale this Saturday in Phoenix, the rules were strictly respected. Some like Allgaier thought they had paid a high price but it is perhaps the organization's desire to send the message in view of the 2025 season in terms of tightening the rules.
For Justin Allgaier, this title is the culmination of a magnificent season and an exceptional race this Saturday in Phoenix. Aric Almirola (Toyota/Joe Gibbs Racing) finished 3rd ahead of Connor Zilish, Chandler Smith, Jesse Love and Sheldon Creed. Custer, Allmendinger and Hill finished grouped in 8th, 9th and 10th positions. The last restart was fatal to their title hopes. For full race standings, click here.
Tomorrow afternoon (departure around 3:40 p.m.), the NASCAR Cup series will be in action. For his final career race as a full-time driver in NASCAR, Martin Truex Jr took pole position with his Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. The Ford/Team Penske of Joey Logano and Ryan Blaney (the 2023 champion), William Byron (Chevrolet/Hendrick Motorsports) and Tyler Reddick (Toyota/23XI Racing) are the drivers eligible for the 2024 title.
