Talladega Superspeedway continued its stretch of chaos-filled races in the NASCAR Xfinity Series Saturday (Oct. 18). But when the smoke cleared on the United Rentals 250, it was a familiar face – Austin Hill – who came out on top.
Hill survived a race filled with consistent carnage, numerous wrecks that took out half the field. 21 of the 38 cars finished on the lead lap; most of the rest had their cars doubling as scrap metal inside the garage.
Coming up just short to Hill was Carson Kvapil, earning the runner-up spot after a spirited effort in NASCAR Overtime. Kvapil’s JR Motorsports teammate Justin Allgaier came home third with Christian Eckes and Caesar Bacarella rounding out the top-five finishers. Allgaier and Connor Zilisch, who had an eventful day, both clinched spots in the Championship 4 on points.
But this race belonged to Hill, completing the season sweep while earning his fourth win of the year.
“We slowed the pace down a lot leading the pack, nobody was really making a move,” Hill told The CW postrace. “With how the last half of the season has went, I knew I was still in the owner’s championship, that’s one thing I want to do for Richard Childress.”
Hill’s opportunity arose after early crashes sent numerous drivers home early with heavy damage. William Sawalich, involved in a wreck late in stage two, was transported to a local hospital after a big crash entering turn 1.
Indeed, the race will be defined by the numerous Big Ones that laid waste to several title contenders. The first came near the end of stage one, shortly after lap 15 when Jeb Burton got into Brandon Jones. Among the 10 cars involved were Sheldon Creed and Sam Mayer, both of the Haas Factory Team playoff drivers.
Neither driver was able to continue on in the race.
On the ensuing restart, the field tried its best to get by both Richard Childress Racing drivers to no avail, with Hill coming across the line to win stage one as Allgaier edged out Jesse Love for second.
In stage two, Love continued his stellar start and track position, taking the lead back and holding serve in charge at the front. Allgaier made a move on Love that brought Chevrolet teammates Hill and Nick Sanchez ahead before the aforementioned crash that broke the field apart.
After a red flag and lots of cleanup, the field came back to the green with Allgaier and Hill fighting each other for the lead. Hill got the better of Allgaier on the final lap, jumping to the outside in turn 1 to sweep both stages.
Kaulig Racing then moved themselves to the front at the start of stage three, with Daniel Dye leading some of the first laps in his Xfinity Series career alongside teammate Eckes. Hill would then navigate his way back to the front, bringing the field to the top line for the next 20-plus laps.
The field would finally get moving with less than five laps to go, as Love was forced low while three-wide racing broke out behind him. That’s when the last serious wreck occurred, as Sammy Smith and Almirola made contact resulting in a crash that gave several hard hits to both Almirola and Dye.
With all the stoppages, drivers were running close on fuel as sunset loomed in the distance. Smith would run out of gas during the caution but miraculously managed to get his service done right as the field was approaching pit road exit.
On the final restart, several drivers had their chance at Hill to no avail. Leland Honeyman, Garrett Smithley and Kvapil all had serious cracks at it but the RCR driver fended off each and every run on route to victory lane.
NASCAR Xfinity Series United Rentals 250 Unofficial Results
There are two races to go for Xfinity Series teams. Next up is the IAA and Ritchie Bros. 250 at Martinsville Speedway. Coverage from Martinsville will air on The CW Oct. 25 at 7:30 p.m. ET.
Thomas is in his first year covering NASCAR at Frontstretch. A Bay Area NASCAR fan for over 15+ years, he found his love for the sport through Jeff Gordon.
Thomas has enjoyed several trips to Sonoma Raceway in his time and currently covers college football in the Bay Area, also writing about the California Golden Bears.