Xfinity Breakdown: Lucky 7s Show Up for Justin Allgaier

Fighting through a multitude of adversity makes the blessings on the other side so much sweeter.

It seemed anything that could go wrong for Justin Allgaier this weekend did go wrong at Phoenix Raceway. From sliding in oil and hitting the wall in practice to getting penalized twice and going a lap down, the No. 7 JR Motorsports driver did not have things going his way.

Until, that is, Anthony Alfredo hit the wall unexpectedly.

The caution midway through Saturday’s (Nov. 9) final stage meant Allgaier could get back on the lead lap. From there, the push to the front was on; once he reached the top 10, no other championship contender could hold Allgaier off with his fresher tires and exceptional long-run speed.

But just when it looked like the title was in the bag, Allgaier coming back to pass all challengers, adversity struck again with an overtime caution that allowed Championship 4 contenders to sneak back in front on pit road.

On the first overtime restart, Allgaier was lined up behind Austin Hill and Cole Custer. He snuck past them to get into second before the caution flag waved again.

Then, on the final restart, Allgaier muscled his way to the front. Once he was sure to be well clear of the other title-contending drivers, he didn’t fight too hard with Riley Herbst for the lead. As a result, Allgaier won the NASCAR Xfinity Series championship at Phoenix Raceway while Herbst won the race.

Custer, AJ Allmendinger and Hill finished second through fourth, respectively, in the standings.

Winners

After seven times of being in the Championship 4, Allgaier somehow found a way to get it done in 2024. It was a very emotional win for his team and family.

What’s interesting about this season is Allgaier had the worst average finish in his full-time Xfinity career. Granted, it was only 13.5, so it wasn’t too far off the mark from previous years.

Allgaier had six crashes this year and a rough stretch from the fall Atlanta Motor Speedway race through Talladega Superspeedway. His best result in that span was a 17th at Watkins Glen International.

Yet the team never gave up, and Allgaier finished the year with five straight top 10s, including three top fives. It’s a testament to the grit and determination the veteran and his team had to come out on top.

Herbst, meanwhile, was the class of the field, leading 167 laps en route to his second victory of the year. It was certainly his best performance of the season, perhaps even his career.

Though Stewart-Haas Racing didn’t win the championship with Custer, it has to feel good to end its Xfinity run with a race win. Plus, SHR has an Xfinity title with Custer in 2023. Its drivers have earned 26 wins in the past eight years and closed out its time in Xfinity on a high note.

One final shoutout here to Connor Zilisch, who fiercely battled Custer for position before the race went into overtime. He ended up in fourth and looks to have a promising future in Xfinity.

Lastly, the fans are winners, as they got to see some good passes and an exciting finish. Allgaier is a fan favorite, too, so it was all around a positive close to the season.

Losers

Custer, Hill and Allmendinger aren’t necessarily losers, as they gave it their all, but they aren’t winners. In the first overtime restart, Hill on older tires held the high line ahead of Custer and Allgaier. It allowed Allgaier to go by both drivers before the caution came out.

They finished eighth, ninth and 10th, several spots behind the No. 7. While it wasn’t what they wanted, they still gave a valiant effort. Also, Hill and Allmendinger earned wins in the Round of 8 to get them in title contention, which was a bit surprising. Hill is mostly known for his superspeedway skills, while Allmendinger hadn’t won up to that point.

So it wasn’t all bad for them. But if you ain’t first, you’re last.

Alfredo did not have a good result, or race for that matter. While racing with Stefan Parsons in stage two, it appeared Parsons squeezed Alfredo up into the wall. They both came back down across the track, and Alfredo tagged the right rear of Parsons, sending him hard into the outside wall.

Alfredo was held two laps on pit road for the incident, and though he said it wasn’t intentional, he agreed with NASCAR on the ruling.

Later, with less than 50 laps to go in the race, the No. 5 appeared to cut a tire and hit the wall hard, putting him out of the race.

Alfredo told Frontstretch that it didn’t look like he would return to Our Motorsports, so it definitely wasn’t the ending he wanted for his otherwise respectable season. Alfredo had two top fives, seven top 10s and closed out the year 15th in the standings.

Paint Scheme of the Week

I went to college originally to be a teacher, so any paint scheme that has children or handprints on it tugs at my heartstrings.

Josh Williams‘ No. 11 Ryan Seacrest Foundation Chevrolet was adorned with colored handprints of the children he visited in the hospital. It also had what looks like some hand-drawn children on the sides, along with Williams’ picture (that also looked hand-drawn).

Williams finished five laps down in 33rd after the team had to change a battery.

Also, an honorable mention for Blaine Perkins‘ No. 29 Bud Ashurst American Honey car, which featured honey and honeycomb on the sides. Very sweet for Perkins, who ran 22nd.

Last one in 2024! 🏁

Green flag at 7:30 EST on @TheCW. pic.twitter.com/a9VoPvhyFY

— Blaine Perkins (@BlainePerkins21) November 9, 2024

Fuel for Thought

I know this race was mostly about the championship, but it seemed that the CW announcers really emphasized the title contenders more than any others.

Specifically, the champion, Allgaier, was talked about quite a bit, especially in the second half of the race.

Yes, I know it’s important to show when Allgaier moved down before the start/finish line on a restart. But did we have to see the full onboard of him driving down pit road? This penalty was under green-flag conditions.

As if one time wasn’t enough, when Allgaier performed his second pass through, the broadcast again showed a full screen of his vantage point.

At least just put it in the corner if you’re going to show it, and let fans see the rest of the racing.

Another thing I wondered out loud about was the second overtime finish. Now, I know it’s the last couple of laps and everything is on the line, but after he cut the dogleg, Allgaier moved up and into Jesse Love, with Herbst also getting contact on the outside of Love.

It’s not so much the finish that I questioned but rather the call. On the white-flag lap, when Herbst got by Allgaier for the lead, the announcers commended Allgaier for it as he didn’t need to win the race.

That’s true, but he still made contact with Love on the restart, which I felt was a bit avoidable. The announcers mentioned that contact but Love was also racing for the lead and race win, too, and became an innocent victim in what was an aggressive championship chase around him. I felt the announcers could have at least held Allgaier responsible in that moment.

Where to Next

The 2024 season may be over, but 2025 will be here before you know it. Xfinity teams will head back to Daytona International Speedway on Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025, with TV coverage provided by The CW.

Follow Joy Tomlinson on X at @JT_GiantsFan