Talladega Superspeedway, it’s a place where dreams can be realized or they can be dashed in equally quick strikes. For JR Motorsports racer Sammy Smith, his dream of advancing to the Round of 8 in the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs was answered by the 2.66-mile superspeedway in Alabama as he thundered across the finish line as the winner of Saturday’s United Rentals 250 in a wild overtime finish.
“It feels really good,” Smith said of the win, which locked his spot in the next round of the Playoffs. “We haven’t been the best all year. It’s been a struggle year, to be able to kind of get momentum these last couple of races has been really good. We made a change with crew chiefs, and kind of the whole team I think it was four races ago. We’ve clicked really well, but overall, yes, it feels really good to be locked into the Round of 8.”
RELATED: NASCAR Xfinity Series United Rentals 250 at Talladega Race Results
The 20-year-old driver surged past Riley Herbst on the final lap to lead his fifth and final lap of the race. Smith led the race on five different occasions and never held the top spot for more than one consecutive lap.
It was enough for the Iowa native to pick up his second career NASCAR Xfinity Series win, and it came in his 76th career start.
“It was tough,” Smith said of his race. “Stage 1 we weren’t the best. Stage 2, we were able to get the car a lot better. Got some good solid Stage Points, that was kind of our goal coming into it. Was to get good Stage Points. Luckily, we were able to get nine Stage Points there. That put us in a good position for track position at the end.”
Stage Points were the emphasis going into the day for good reason. Entering the day, Smith was the final driver on the Playoff Grid, and he was a staggering 23 points below the cutline after the opening race of the Round of 12. Now, he doesn’t have to worry about points next weekend at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL.
Ryan Sieg would record his second runner-up finish of the season, and he would be followed by Herbst, and Sheldon Creed, who actually got turned coming to the finish line.
Chandler Smith, who was second in the Playoff standings heading into the day, finished fifth in the No. 81 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota GR Supra.
Polesitter Jesse Love, Jeb Burton, David Starr, Brennan Poole, and Kyle Sieg rounded out the top-10 finishers in the event, which featured several hard crashes near the end of the race.
While it was a great day for the pair of drivers in the Playoffs with the last name Smith as Sammy Smith secured his advancement to the Round of 8 of the Playoffs, and Chandler Smith increased his point advantage to the Playoff cutline to 57 points with his fifth-place run, it was a rough afternoon for several other contenders for the championship.
Shane van Gisbergen was wiped out in a big crash on Lap 76, where he was shoved onto the apron, saved his car, but then was hooked in the right rear quarter panel, which triggered the multi-car melee.
Video: Shane Van Gisbergen Gets Hooked in Tri-Oval; Collects Eight Cars
After that crash was cleaned up, another one would ensue on Lap 93 as several other Playoff contenders were wadded up in the big one, including Jesse Love, AJ Allmendinger, Parker Kligerman, Cole Custer, Playoff No. 1 seed Justin Allgaier, and Austin Hill.
Video: Several Playoff Drivers Collected in 11-Car Melee Late at Talladega
While Allmendinger and Kligerman were able to rebound with their damage to finish 11th and 12th, it was a different story for Hill (24th), Allgaier (26th), and Custer (27th).
Here are the updated NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoff Standings with one race remaining in the Round of 12:
- Sammy Smith, locked in
- Chandler Smith, +57 points
- Austin Hill, +29
- Cole Custer, +28
- Sheldon Creed, +25
- Jesse Love, +15
- Riley Herbst, +13
- Sam Mayer, +10
- AJ Allmendinger, -10
- Justin Allgaier, -18
- Shane van Gisbergen, -21
- Parker Kligerman, -26
Next up for the NASCAR Xfinity Series is a stop at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL, where the field that will continue to compete for the NASCAR Xfinity Series championship in the Round of 8 will be set. That race is set for Saturday, October 12. That race will be televised on The CW beginning at 4PM ET.
