2017 Sparks Energy 300

The 2017 Sparks Energy 300 was the ninth stock car race of the 2017 NASCAR Xfinity Series season and the 26th iteration of the event. The race was held on Saturday, May 6, 2017, in Lincoln, Alabama at Talladega Superspeedway, a 2.66 miles (4.28 km) permanent triangle-shaped superspeedway. The race took the scheduled 113 laps to complete. At race's end, Aric Almirola, driving for Biagi-DenBeste Racing, would take the lead with four to go and defend fiercely to win his third and to date, his only win of the season.[1] To fill out the podium, Elliott Sadler of JR Motorsports and Joey Logano of Team Penske would finish second and third, respectively.

2017 Sparks Energy 300
Race details
Race 9 of 33 in the 2017 NASCAR Xfinity Series
Date May 6, 2017
Official name 26th Annual Sparks Energy 300
Location Lincoln, Alabama, Talladega Superspeedway
Course Permanent racing facility
2.66 mi (4.28 km)
Distance 113 laps, 300.58 mi (483.736 km)
Scheduled Distance 113 laps, 300.58 mi (483.736 km)
Average speed 139.068 miles per hour (223.808 km/h)
Pole position
Driver Kaulig Racing
Time 52.188
Most laps led
Driver Justin Allgaier JR Motorsports
Laps 24
Winner
No. 98 Aric Almirola Biagi-DenBeste Racing
Television in the United States
Network FOX
Announcers Adam Alexander, Michael Waltrip, Kevin Harvick
Radio in the United States
Radio Motor Racing Network

Background

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The layout of Talladega Superspeedway, the venue where the race was held.

Talladega Superspeedway, originally known as Alabama International Motor Superspeedway (AIMS), is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base in the small city of Lincoln. The track is a tri-oval and was constructed in the 1960s by the International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France family. Talladega is most known for its steep banking and the unique location of the start/finish line that's located just past the exit to pit road. The track currently hosts the NASCAR series such as the NASCAR Cup Series, Xfinity Series and the Camping World Truck Series. Talladega is the longest NASCAR oval with a length of 2.66-mile-long (4.28 km) tri-oval like the Daytona International Speedway, which also is a 2.5-mile-long (4 km) tri-oval.

Entry list

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  • (R) denotes rookie driver.
  • (i) denotes driver who is ineligible for series driver points.
# Driver Team Make Sponsor
0 Garrett Smithley JD Motorsports Chevrolet Flex Seal
00 Cole Custer (R) Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Haas Demo Day
1 Elliott Sadler JR Motorsports Chevrolet OneMain Financial
01 Harrison Rhodes JD Motorsports Chevrolet Flex Tape
2 Ben Kennedy (R) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Rheem
3 Ty Dillon (i) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Bass Pro Shops, Tracker Boats
4 Ross Chastain JD Motorsports Chevrolet G&K Services
5 Michael Annett JR Motorsports Chevrolet Pilot Flying J
6 Bubba Wallace Roush Fenway Racing Ford Globe Life
7 Justin Allgaier JR Motorsports Chevrolet Hellmann's
07 Ray Black Jr. SS-Green Light Racing Chevrolet Double D Meat Co.
8 Jeff Green B. J. McLeod Motorsports Toyota Truckwork
9 William Byron (R) JR Motorsports Chevrolet Liberty University
11 Blake Koch Kaulig Racing Chevrolet LeafFilter Gutter Protection
13 Mark Thompson MBM Motorsports Toyota Phoenix Air
14 J. J. Yeley TriStar Motorsports Toyota Superior Essex
16 Ryan Reed Roush Fenway Racing Ford Lilly Diabetes
18 Daniel Suárez (i) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Peak
19 Matt Tifft (R) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Wastebits
20 Erik Jones (i) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Reser's Fine Foods
21 Daniel Hemric (R) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Blue Gate Bank
22 Joey Logano (i) Team Penske Ford Discount Tire
23 Spencer Gallagher (R) GMS Racing Chevrolet Allegiant Air
24 Scott Lagasse Jr. JGL Racing Toyota JGL Racing Young Guns
25 Chris Cockrum Chris Cockrum Racing Chevrolet Advanced Communications Group
28 Dakoda Armstrong JGL Racing Toyota WinField United
33 Brandon Jones Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Nexteer
39 Ryan Sieg RSS Racing Chevrolet Holley's Home Furnishings, Alabama Soda & Abrasive Blasting
40 Timmy Hill MBM Motorsports Dodge MBM Motorsports
42 Tyler Reddick Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet Broken Bow Records, Jason Aldean "They Don't Know"
48 Brennan Poole Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet DC Solar
51 Jeremy Clements Jeremy Clements Racing Chevrolet RepairableVehicles.com
52 Joey Gase Jimmy Means Racing Chevrolet Sparks Energy, Donate Life
62 Brendan Gaughan Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet South Point Hotel, Casino & Spa
74 Mike Harmon Mike Harmon Racing Dodge Veterans Motorsports Inc.
78 B. J. McLeod B. J. McLeod Motorsports Chevrolet Truckwork, Triple R Containers
88 Kasey Kahne (i) JR Motorsports Chevrolet Armour 150 Years
89 Morgan Shepherd Shepherd Racing Ventures Chevrolet Visone RV, Racing with Jesus
90 Martin Roy King Autosport Chevrolet Côté, Gamache Truck Center
98 Aric Almirola (i) Biagi-DenBeste Racing Ford Fresh From Florida
99 David Starr BJMM with SS-Green Light Racing Chevrolet Whataburger
Official entry list

Practice

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First practice

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The first practice session was held on Friday, May 5, at 10:30 AM CST, and would last for 55 minutes.[2] Blake Koch of Kaulig Racing would set the fastest time in the session, with a time of 49.722 and an average speed of 192.591 miles per hour (309.945 km/h).[3]

Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 11 Blake Koch Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 49.722 192.591
2 62 Brendan Gaughan Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 49.732 192.552
3 2 Ben Kennedy (R) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 49.784 192.351
Full first practice results

Second and final practice

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The second and final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Friday, May 5, at 12:30 PM CST, and would last for 55 minutes.[2] Brandon Jones of Richard Childress Racing would set the fastest time in the session, with a time of 52.381 and an average speed of 182.814 miles per hour (294.211 km/h).[4]

Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 33 Brandon Jones Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 52.381 182.814
2 11 Blake Koch Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 52.508 182.372
3 21 Daniel Hemric (R) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 52.623 181.974
Full Happy Hour practice results

Qualifying

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Qualifying was held on Saturday, May 6, at 9:30 AM CST.[2] Since Talladega Superspeedway at least 2 miles (3.2 km) in length, the qualifying system was a single car, single lap, two round system where in the first round, everyone would set a time to determine positions 13-40. Then, the fastest 12 qualifiers would move on to the second round to determine positions 1-12.[5]

Blake Koch of Kaulig Racing would win the pole, setting a time of 52.188 and an average speed of 183.490 miles per hour (295.299 km/h) in the second round.[6]

B. J. McLeod was the only driver to fail to qualify.

Full qualifying results

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Pos. # Driver Team Make Time (R1) Speed (R1) Time (R2) Speed (R2)
1 11 Blake Koch Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 52.465 182.522 52.188 183.490
2 88 Kasey Kahne (i) JR Motorsports Chevrolet 52.498 182.407 52.296 183.112
3 21 Daniel Hemric (R) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 52.636 181.929 52.491 182.431
4 2 Ben Kennedy (R) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 52.748 181.542 52.493 182.424
5 33 Brandon Jones Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 52.582 182.116 52.529 182.299
6 7 Justin Allgaier JR Motorsports Chevrolet 52.748 181.542 52.640 181.915
7 3 Ty Dillon (i) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 52.761 181.498 52.646 181.894
8 22 Joey Logano (i) Team Penske Ford 52.521 182.327 52.650 181.880
9 9 William Byron (R) JR Motorsports Chevrolet 52.777 181.443 52.676 181.791
10 20 Erik Jones (i) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 52.747 181.546 52.678 181.784
11 16 Ryan Reed Roush Fenway Racing Ford 52.701 181.704 52.884 181.076
12 48 Brennan Poole Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 52.607 182.029 53.338 179.534
Eliminated in Round 1
13 00 Cole Custer (R) Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 52.781 181.429 - -
14 1 Elliott Sadler JR Motorsports Chevrolet 52.800 181.364 - -
15 28 Dakoda Armstrong JGL Racing Toyota 52.813 181.319 - -
16 42 Tyler Reddick Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 52.839 181.230 - -
17 62 Brendan Gaughan Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 52.884 181.076 - -
18 18 Daniel Suárez (i) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 52.925 180.935 - -
19 19 Matt Tifft (R) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 52.928 180.925 - -
20 23 Spencer Gallagher (R) GMS Racing Chevrolet 52.945 180.867 - -
21 5 Michael Annett JR Motorsports Chevrolet 52.953 180.840 - -
22 6 Bubba Wallace Roush Fenway Racing Ford 53.102 180.332 - -
23 98 Aric Almirola (i) Biagi-DenBeste Racing Ford 53.170 180.102 - -
24 24 Scott Lagasse Jr. JGL Racing Toyota 53.421 179.255 - -
25 4 Ross Chastain JD Motorsports Chevrolet 53.490 179.024 - -
26 13 Mark Thompson MBM Motorsports Toyota 53.527 178.900 - -
27 25 Chris Cockrum Chris Cockrum Racing Chevrolet 53.557 178.800 - -
28 74 Mike Harmon Mike Harmon Racing Dodge 53.642 178.517 - -
29 0 Garrett Smithley JD Motorsports Chevrolet 53.663 178.447 - -
30 39 Ryan Sieg RSS Racing Chevrolet 53.772 178.085 - -
31 14 J. J. Yeley TriStar Motorsports Toyota 53.776 178.072 - -
32 99 David Starr BJMM with SS-Green Light Racing Chevrolet 53.836 177.874 - -
33 89 Morgan Shepherd Shepherd Racing Ventures Chevrolet 54.090 177.038 - -
Qualified by owner's points
34 07 Ray Black Jr. SS-Green Light Racing Chevrolet 54.139 176.878 - -
35 52 Joey Gase Jimmy Means Racing Chevrolet 54.164 176.796 - -
36 90 Martin Roy King Autosport Chevrolet 54.318 176.295 - -
37 40 Timmy Hill MBM Motorsports Dodge 54.359 176.162 - -
38 01 Harrison Rhodes JD Motorsports Chevrolet 54.378 176.101 - -
39 51 Jeremy Clements Jeremy Clements Racing Chevrolet 54.394 176.049 - -
Champion's Provisional
40 8 Jeff Green B. J. McLeod Motorsports Toyota 54.523 175.632 - -
Failed to qualify
41 78 B. J. McLeod B. J. McLeod Motorsports Toyota - - - -
Official qualifying results
Official starting lineup

Race results

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Stage 1 Laps: 25

Pos. # Driver Team Make Pts
1 98 Aric Almirola (i) Biagi-DenBeste Racing Ford 0
2 22 Joey Logano (i) Team Penske Ford 0
3 7 Justin Allgaier JR Motorsports Chevrolet 8
4 20 Erik Jones (i) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 0
5 11 Blake Koch Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 6
6 5 Michael Annett JR Motorsports Chevrolet 5
7 62 Brendan Gaughan Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 4
8 88 Kasey Kahne (i) JR Motorsports Chevrolet 0
9 14 J. J. Yeley TriStar Motorsports Toyota 2
10 39 Ryan Sieg RSS Racing Chevrolet 1

Stage 2 Laps: 25

Pos. # Driver Team Make Pts
1 7 Justin Allgaier JR Motorsports Chevrolet 10
2 3 Ty Dillon (i) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 0
3 88 Kasey Kahne (i) JR Motorsports Chevrolet 0
4 98 Aric Almirola (i) Biagi-DenBeste Racing Ford 0
5 20 Erik Jones (i) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 0
6 22 Joey Logano (i) Team Penske Ford 0
7 42 Tyler Reddick Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 4
8 5 Michael Annett JR Motorsports Chevrolet 3
9 19 Matt Tifft (R) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 2
10 2 Ben Kennedy (R) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 1

Stage 3 Laps: 63

Fin[7] St # Driver Team Make Laps Led Status Pts
1 23 98 Aric Almirola (i) Biagi-DenBeste Racing Ford 113 13 running 0
2 14 1 Elliott Sadler JR Motorsports Chevrolet 113 0 running 35
3 8 22 Joey Logano (i) Team Penske Ford 113 16 running 0
4 4 2 Ben Kennedy (R) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 113 5 running 34
5 10 20 Erik Jones (i) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 113 5 running 0
6 19 19 Matt Tifft (R) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 113 0 running 33
7 21 5 Michael Annett JR Motorsports Chevrolet 113 6 running 38
8 6 7 Justin Allgaier JR Motorsports Chevrolet 113 24 running 47
9 18 18 Daniel Suárez (i) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 113 1 running 0
10 40 8 Jeff Green B. J. McLeod Motorsports Toyota 113 18 running 27
11 31 14 J. J. Yeley TriStar Motorsports Toyota 113 0 running 28
12 30 39 Ryan Sieg RSS Racing Chevrolet 113 1 running 26
13 22 6 Bubba Wallace Roush Fenway Racing Ford 112 0 running 24
14 7 3 Ty Dillon (i) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 112 4 running 0
15 2 88 Kasey Kahne (i) JR Motorsports Chevrolet 112 18 running 0
16 35 52 Joey Gase Jimmy Means Racing Chevrolet 112 0 running 21
17 37 40 Timmy Hill MBM Motorsports Dodge 112 0 running 20
18 32 99 David Starr BJMM with SS-Green Light Racing Chevrolet 112 0 running 19
19 25 4 Ross Chastain JD Motorsports Chevrolet 112 1 running 18
20 16 42 Tyler Reddick Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 112 0 running 21
21 29 0 Garrett Smithley JD Motorsports Chevrolet 112 1 running 16
22 38 01 Harrison Rhodes JD Motorsports Chevrolet 112 0 running 15
23 15 28 Dakoda Armstrong JGL Racing Toyota 112 0 running 14
24 12 48 Brennan Poole Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 111 0 running 13
25 28 74 Mike Harmon Mike Harmon Racing Dodge 110 0 running 12
26 13 00 Cole Custer (R) Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 95 0 running 11
27 39 51 Jeremy Clements Jeremy Clements Racing Chevrolet 55 0 electrical 10
28 26 13 Mark Thompson MBM Motorsports Toyota 55 0 engine 9
29 11 16 Ryan Reed Roush Fenway Racing Ford 49 0 crash 8
30 17 62 Brendan Gaughan Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 49 0 crash 11
31 1 11 Blake Koch Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 49 1 crash 12
32 36 90 Martin Roy King Autosport Chevrolet 49 0 crash 5
33 27 25 Chris Cockrum Chris Cockrum Racing Chevrolet 49 0 crash 4
34 24 24 Scott Lagasse Jr. JGL Racing Toyota 48 0 crash 3
35 33 89 Morgan Shepherd Shepherd Racing Ventures Chevrolet 32 0 fuel pump 2
36 9 9 William Byron (R) JR Motorsports Chevrolet 32 0 crash 1
37 5 33 Brandon Jones Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 20 0 crash 1
38 3 21 Daniel Hemric (R) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 20 0 crash 1
39 20 23 Spencer Gallagher (R) GMS Racing Chevrolet 20 0 crash 1
40 34 07 Ray Black Jr. SS-Green Light Racing Chevrolet 7 0 engine 1
Failed to qualify
41 78 B. J. McLeod B. J. McLeod Motorsports Toyota
Official race results

Standings after the race

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References

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  1. ^ "Race Recap: Aric Almirola powers to NASCAR XFINITY Series win at Talladega". ESPN.com. 2017-05-06. Retrieved 2022-05-05.
  2. ^ a b c "2017 NASCAR XFINITY Talladega Race Info". ESPN.com. 2017-03-27. Retrieved 2022-05-05.
  3. ^ Velat, Frank (2017-05-05). "Blake Koch, Brandon Jones Fastest In Talladega XFINITY Practices". www.frontstretch.com. Retrieved 2022-05-05.
  4. ^ McFadin, Daniel (2017-05-05). "Brandon Jones, Blake Koch top final Xfinity practice at Talladega". NASCAR Talk | NBC Sports. Retrieved 2022-05-05.
  5. ^ "NASCAR Qualifying Rules". ESPN.com. 2018-02-07. Retrieved 2021-11-01.
  6. ^ "Blake Koch Swipes First XFINITY Pole At Talladega". www.frontstretch.com. 2017-05-06. Retrieved 2022-05-05.
  7. ^ "2017 Sparks Energy 300 - The Third Turn". www.thethirdturn.com. Retrieved 2022-05-04.
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2017 ToyotaCare 250
NASCAR Xfinity Series
2017 season
Next race:
2017 Hisense 4K TV 300