Xfinity – Inside Circle Track

NASCAR Features Archive by category "Xfinity"

Jeremy Clements hoping to parlay Playoff eligibility into more support

Jeremy Clements experienced the highest of highs and the lowest of lows in the hours and days following his win in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at the Daytona International Speedway. The euphoria of winning on that form of racing’s biggest stage and earning a spot in the NASCAR Playoffs was soon replaced by the news that his car’s engine manifold had been deemed illegal at the NASCAR R&D Center. While the Spartanburg, SC driver and his family-owned team were allowed to keep the win, his Playoff eligibility was stripped along with crew chief Mark Setzer being suspended and fined….

Trevor Bayne “expects to win” in JGR Xfinity ride

Although some inside the sport of racing knew who he was already, Trevor Bayne exploded onto the motorsports radar of everyone who evenly remotely followed the sport in 2011 when he won the Daytona 500 in only his second NASCAR Cup Series start. It appeared to be a Cinderella story that was too good to be true for the then 20-year-old driver, and in some ways, it proved to be exactly that. The Knoxville native had, before 2011, spent a little more than a full season driving Toyotas in the NASCAR Xfinity Series for Michael Waltrip Racing. It was following…

Daniel Hemric ready to face the challenge of his new opportunity

For the better part of a decade, followers of NASCAR racing have thought that Daniel Hemric was a highly talented driver who was on the cusp of a major breakthrough season. That big win or that groundbreaking moment was due at any time was the belief of many. But when the Kannapolis, North Carolina driver landed a full-time ride in the NASCAR Cup Series in the No. 8 Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing in 2019, the results fell short of expectations. Hemric’s one and only full season at the top level of the sport netted no wins and only one…

Noah Gragson earns Xfinity Championship 4 spot with dramatic Martinsville win

October 30, 2021 By Reid Spencer NASCAR Wire Service MARTINSVILLE, Va. – To get to the Championship 4, you have to drive like a champion. That’s what Noah Gragson did on Saturday night in the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoff race Dead On Tools 250 at Martinsville Speedway. Faced with the necessity of winning the race to keep his NASCAR Xfinity Series title hopes alive, Gragson did just that, pulling off a dramatic pass of Daniel Hemric from the outside lane in the first attempt at overtime and holding off series leader Austin Cindric in the second extra period. With Cindric’s…

Brandon Brown secures first Xfinity Series victory at Talladega

Oct. 2, 2021 By Reid Spencer NASCAR Wire Service TALLADEGA, Ala. – As he crossed the finish line under caution on a dark race track, Brandon Brown surrendered to the emotion of his first victory in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. “Thank God,” Brown exulted. “We did it. We did it. We won!” On a day of unexpected victories at Talladega Superspeedway—a track where the unexpected sometimes seems commonplace—Brown had a narrow lead three-wide with Justin Allgaier and Brandon Jones at the previous scoring loop when NASCAR called the fifth caution of the race on Lap 102 for a multicar wreck…

Sam Mayer excited, nervous for Xfinity Series debut

One of the most highly touted young drivers in quite some time will make his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut the day after his 18th birthday this Sunday when he takes the green flag in the Pocono Green 225 at the Pocono Raceway. Sam Mayer will be driving the No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro for JR Motorsports at the triangle-shaped track located in eastern Pennsylvania. The Franklin, Wisconsin native was the youngest NASCAR sanctioned champion ever when he earned the title on the NASCAR K&N East Series back in 2019 at the age of 16. He was the winner of a NASCAR…

Decision to keep Austin Cindric in Xfinity Series for additional year paying off

There is sometimes a tendency to rush young race car drivers up to the highest levels of the sport too quickly. History offers numerous examples of those who were pushed up the ladder to the NASCAR Cup Series before they were ready then ultimately came crashing down. However, Team Penske fought the temptation to do that very thing with 22-year-old Austin Cindric after he was crowned the 2020 NASCAR Xfinity Series champion. Instead, the driver was left on that tour for another year to add to his experience level and to build confidence. Now five races into the 2021 season,…

Justin Allgaier enjoying off-season opportunities to race on dirt

The 5th annual Leftover at the 411 Motor Speedway was a two-day event contested on the Friday and Saturday immediately following the Thanksgiving holiday. The dirt racing venue played host to a total of more than 200 cars spread out over multiple divisions. One of the Schaeffer’s Oil Iron-Man Modified Series machines on the grounds of the Seymour, TN facility was driven by veteran NASCAR Xfinity Series competitor Justin Allgaier. The lure of racing on dirt during the NASCAR off-season proved to be too much for the 34-year-old driver to resist. With a busy Xfinity Series schedule throughout most of…

Jeremy Clements: “I just want to be competitive”

Jeremy Clements posted a solid season in 2019. The Spartanburg, SC native’s four top-10 finishes were more than he had scored in any single season of his career. Further, the driver who completed his ninth season as a NASCAR Xfinity Series regular had an average finishing position of 16.9 which was another career best. And consider too that the small family operation’s success came after getting a late start going into the campaign compared to their competitors. In the end, Clements managed a 14th place finish in the final Xfinity Series standings with a best race finish of fourth coming…

Mike Marlar hoping for more NASCAR opportunities

Mike Marlar is one of the most accomplished Dirt Late Model racers in America today. During the 2018 season he was crowned as the World of Outlaws Late Model Series champion which, added to major event victories such as his two Knoxville Late Model Nationals triumphs and his two Hillbilly 100 victories, gives the pilot of the No. 157 car a résumé that would be the envy of many in the sport. But even with all of those accomplishments, the Winfield, Tenn. driver wanted to add even more to his list of achievements. And this past summer, he did exactly…