AJ Allmendinger Outduels Gray Gaulding on Final Lap to Take Stage 2 Win in Xfinity Race at Daytona
It looked like the underdog Gray Gaulding in the No. 07 SS Greenlight Racing Camaro was going to score the Stage 2 win in Friday night’s NASCAR Xfinity Series WaWa 250 at Daytona International Speedway. However, the Kaulig Racing trio of AJ Allmendinger, Ross Chastain and Justin Haley had other plans.
The teammates split Gaulding high and low on the final lap of the Stage. They would all work their way around Gaulding and it was Allmendinger that would score the Stage win. Chastain would finish second, while Haley — who scored the Stage 1 win — would finish third in Stage 2.
Gaulding held on for fourth, while Michael Annett finished the Stage in fifth.
Riley Herbst, Harrison Burton, Chase Briscoe, Austin Cindric and Ryan Sieg rounded out the top-10 finishers in a wild Stage 2.
There were two separate big crashes in this Stage. The first one was a 13-car melee, which took place on lap 30.
Shortly after the race restarted, a six-car pileup was triggered when Justin Allgaier cut a tire and spun across the track.
Stage and Playoff Points Awarded in Stage 1:
| Finish | Driver | Stage Points | Playoff Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | AJ Allmendinger | 10 | 1 |
| 2 | Ross Chastain | 9 | 0 |
| 3 | Justin Haley | 8 | 0 |
| 4 | Gray Gaulding | 7 | 0 |
| 5 | Michael Annett | 6 | 0 |
| 6 | Riley Herbst | 5 | 0 |
| 7 | Harrison Burton | 4 | 0 |
| 8 | Chase Briscoe | 3 | 0 |
| 9 | Austin Cindric | 2 | 0 |
| 10 | Ryan Sieg | 1 | 0 |
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Toby is the Founder, Editor and go-to man for TobyChristie.com. He is also the co-host of The Final Lap Weekly Podcast. Additionally, Toby is a NMPA (National Motorsports Press Association) award winning writer, and has followed NASCAR as a fan since 1993.