The 2023 Dead On Tools 250 was the 32nd stock car race of the 2023 NASCAR Xfinity Series, the final race of the Round of 8, and the 4th iteration of the event. The race was held on Saturday, October 28, 2023, in Ridgeway, Virginia at Martinsville Speedway, a 0.526 miles (0.847 km) permanent paper-clip shaped racetrack. The race was originally scheduled to be contested over 250 laps, but was extended to 256 laps, due to a NASCAR overtime finish. In a wild race that resulted in 15 cautions, Justin Allgaier, driving for JR Motorsports, would survive the chaos on the final lap, and hold off Sheldon Creed in a close finish to earn his 23rd career NASCAR Xfinity Series win, and his fourth of the season. He would also earn a spot in the Championship 4.[1] Sammy Smith would dominate the majority of the race, winning the second stage and leading a race-high 147 laps. After navigating through the field in the final stage, he would finish third.[2] To fill out the podium, Creed, driving for Richard Childress Racing, and Smith, driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, would finish 2nd and 3rd, respectively.
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 32 of 33 of the 2023 NASCAR Xfinity Series | |||
 | |||
| Date | October 28, 2023 | ||
| Official name | 4th Annual Dead On Tools 250 | ||
| Location | Martinsville Speedway, Ridgeway, Virginia | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 0.526 mi (0.847 km) | ||
| Distance | 256 laps, 134 mi (215 km) | ||
| Scheduled Distance | 250 laps, 131 mi (211 km) | ||
| Average speed | 55.294 mph (88.987 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Joe Gibbs Racing | ||
| Time | 20.035 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Sammy Smith | Joe Gibbs Racing | |
| Laps | 147 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 7 | Justin Allgaier | JR Motorsports | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | USA | ||
| Announcers | Rick Allen, Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | MRN | ||
The race was mostly known as an exciting battle for the final Championship 4 spot between Allgaier, Austin Hill, and Cole Custer. Coming into the race, the three drivers were only separated by four points. Both Custer and Hill were involved in the last lap wreck, but it would be Custer who would prevail by six points over Hill.[3] Sam Mayer, Allgaier, John Hunter Nemechek, and Custer would advance into the Championship 4. Hill, Sammy Smith, Creed, and Chandler Smith would be eliminated from championship contention.[4]
Background
editMartinsville Speedway is an International Speedway Corporation-owned NASCAR stock car racing track located in Henry County, in Ridgeway, Virginia, just to the south of Martinsville. At 0.526 miles (0.847 km) in length, it is the shortest track in the NASCAR Cup Series. The track is also one of the first paved oval tracks in NASCAR, being built in 1947 by H. Clay Earles. It is also the only race track that has been on the NASCAR circuit from its beginning in 1948. Along with this, Martinsville is the only NASCAR oval track on the entire NASCAR track circuit to have asphalt surfaces on the straightaways, then concrete to cover the turns.
Entry list
edit- (R) denotes rookie driver.
- (i) denotes driver who is ineligible for series driver points.
- (P) denotes playoff driver.
- (OP) denotes owner's playoffs car.
Practice
editFor practice, drivers will be separated into two groups, Group A and B. Both sessions will be 15 minutes long, and was held on Friday, October 27, at 5:00 PM EST.[5] Blaine Perkins, driving for Our Motorsports, would set the fastest time between both sessions, with a lap of 20.480, and an average speed of 92.461 mph (148.802 km/h).[6]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 02 | Blaine Perkins (R) | Our Motorsports | Chevrolet | 20.480 | 92.461 |
| 2 | 20 | John Hunter Nemechek (P) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 20.535 | 92.213 |
| 3 | 25 | Brett Moffitt | AM Racing | Ford | 20.584 | 91.994 |
| Full practice results | ||||||
Qualifying
editQualifying was held on Friday, October 27, at 5:35 PM EST.[5] Since Martinsville Speedway is a short track, the qualifying system used is a single-car, two-lap system with only one round. In that round, whoever sets the fastest time will win the pole.[7] Sammy Smith, driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, would score the pole for the race, with a lap of 20.035, and an average speed of 94.515 mph (152.107 km/h).[8]
Race results
editStage 1 Laps: 60
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 7 | Justin Allgaier (P) | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 10 |
| 2 | 00 | Cole Custer (P) | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 9 |
| 3 | 20 | John Hunter Nemechek (P) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 8 |
| 4 | 21 | Austin Hill (P) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 7 |
| 5 | 18 | Sammy Smith (R) (P) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 6 |
| 6 | 78 | Anthony Alfredo | B. J. McLeod Motorsports | Chevrolet | 5 |
| 7 | 98 | Riley Herbst | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 4 |
| 8 | 19 | Myatt Snider | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 3 |
| 9 | 16 | Chandler Smith (R) (P) | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 91 | Josh Bilicki | DGM Racing | Chevrolet | 1 |
Stage 2 Laps: 60
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 18 | Sammy Smith (R) (P) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 10 |
| 2 | 8 | Josh Berry | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 9 |
| 3 | 19 | Myatt Snider | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 8 |
| 4 | 2 | Sheldon Creed (P) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 7 |
| 5 | 26 | Kaz Grala | Sam Hunt Racing | Toyota | 6 |
| 6 | 31 | Parker Retzlaff (R) | Jordan Anderson Racing | Chevrolet | 5 |
| 7 | 16 | Chandler Smith (R) (P) | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 4 |
| 8 | 00 | Cole Custer (P) | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 3 |
| 9 | 9 | Brandon Jones | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 98 | Riley Herbst | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 1 |
Stage 3 Laps: 136
| Pos.[10] | St | # | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 7 | Justin Allgaier (P) | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 256 | 21 | Running | 50 |
| 2 | 8 | 2 | Sheldon Creed (P) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 256 | 1 | Running | 42 |
| 3 | 1 | 18 | Sammy Smith (R) (P) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 256 | 147 | Running | 50 |
| 4 | 4 | 98 | Riley Herbst | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 256 | 0 | Running | 38 |
| 5 | 12 | 8 | Josh Berry | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 256 | 0 | Running | 41 |
| 6 | 14 | 10 | Daniel Hemric (OP) | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 256 | 0 | Running | 31 |
| 7 | 10 | 31 | Parker Retzlaff (R) | Jordan Anderson Racing | Chevrolet | 256 | 0 | Running | 35 |
| 8 | 22 | 78 | Anthony Alfredo | B. J. McLeod Motorsports | Chevrolet | 256 | 0 | Running | 34 |
| 9 | 38 | 27 | Jeb Burton | Jordan Anderson Racing | Chevrolet | 256 | 0 | Running | 28 |
| 10 | 15 | 48 | Parker Kligerman | Big Machine Racing | Chevrolet | 256 | 0 | Running | 27 |
| 11 | 19 | 11 | Layne Riggs | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 256 | 9 | Running | 26 |
| 12 | 26 | 44 | Rajah Caruth (i) | Alpha Prime Racing | Chevrolet | 256 | 0 | Running | 0 |
| 13 | 34 | 28 | C. J. McLaughlin | RSS Racing | Ford | 256 | 0 | Running | 24 |
| 14 | 24 | 92 | Josh Williams | DGM Racing | Chevrolet | 256 | 0 | Running | 23 |
| 15 | 11 | 19 | Myatt Snider | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 256 | 1 | Running | 33 |
| 16 | 6 | 9 | Brandon Jones | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 256 | 0 | Running | 23 |
| 17 | 20 | 51 | Jeremy Clements | Jeremy Clements Racing | Chevrolet | 256 | 0 | Running | 20 |
| 18 | 5 | 20 | John Hunter Nemechek (P) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 256 | 54 | Running | 27 |
| 19 | 3 | 00 | Cole Custer (P) | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 256 | 1 | Running | 30 |
| 20 | 16 | 25 | Brett Moffitt | AM Racing | Ford | 256 | 0 | Running | 17 |
| 21 | 9 | 21 | Austin Hill (P) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 255 | 22 | Accident | 23 |
| 22 | 31 | 02 | Blaine Perkins (R) | Our Motorsports | Chevrolet | 255 | 0 | Accident | 15 |
| 23 | 18 | 91 | Josh Bilicki | DGM Racing | Chevrolet | 255 | 0 | Accident | 15 |
| 24 | 32 | 43 | Ryan Ellis | Alpha Prime Racing | Chevrolet | 245 | 0 | Transmission | 13 |
| 25 | 17 | 1 | Sam Mayer (P) | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 244 | 0 | Accident | 12 |
| 26 | 29 | 45 | Jeffrey Earnhardt | Alpha Prime Racing | Chevrolet | 244 | 0 | Accident | 11 |
| 27 | 30 | 08 | Chad Finchum | SS-Green Light Racing | Ford | 244 | 0 | Accident | 10 |
| 28 | 23 | 26 | Kaz Grala | Sam Hunt Racing | Toyota | 243 | 0 | Accident | 15 |
| 29 | 33 | 38 | Joe Graf Jr. | RSS Racing | Ford | 240 | 0 | Running | 8 |
| 30 | 35 | 35 | Chris Hacker (i) | Emerling-Gase Motorsports | Chevrolet | 237 | 0 | Radiator | 0 |
| 31 | 25 | 24 | Connor Mosack (R) | Sam Hunt Racing | Toyota | 232 | 0 | Radiator | 6 |
| 32 | 27 | 6 | Brennan Poole | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | 218 | 0 | Engine | 5 |
| 33 | 36 | 53 | Akinori Ogata (i) | Emerling-Gase Motorsports | Chevrolet | 217 | 0 | Oil Line | 0 |
| 34 | 21 | 4 | J. J. Yeley | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | 207 | 0 | Accident | 3 |
| 35 | 13 | 39 | Ryan Sieg | RSS Racing | Ford | 203 | 0 | Steering | 2 |
| 36 | 7 | 16 | Chandler Smith (R) (P) | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 187 | 0 | Accident | 7 |
| 37 | 37 | 07 | Devin Jones | SS-Green Light Racing | Chevrolet | 131 | 0 | Engine | 1 |
| 38 | 28 | 29 | Kyle Sieg | RSS Racing | Ford | 40 | 0 | Accident | 1 |
| Official race results | |||||||||
Standings after the race
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References
edit- ^ Barnes, Caleb (October 28, 2023). "Justin Allgaier Beats Sheldon Creed in Overtime Thriller". Frontstretch. Retrieved October 28, 2023.
- ^ Glover, Luken (October 28, 2023). "Sammy Smith Leads Career-High Laps at Martinsville, Falls Short of Championship 4". Frontstretch. Retrieved October 28, 2023.
- ^ Christie, Toby (October 28, 2023). "Video: Allgaier Wins After RCR Teammates Austin Hill and Sheldon Creed Get Into It". TobyChristie.com. Retrieved October 28, 2023.
- ^ Spencer, Reid (October 28, 2023). "Justin Allgaier clinches Xfinity Series Championship 4 spot in dramatic finish". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Wire Service. Retrieved October 28, 2023.
- ^ a b "2023 NASCAR Xfinity Series Martinsville Speedway Race Page". Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
- ^ "Practice Results: 2023 NASCAR Xfinity Series Dead On Tools 250 at Martinsville". TobyChristie.com. October 27, 2023. Retrieved October 27, 2023.
- ^ "2023 NASCAR Qualifying Procedures". Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
- ^ Kornhoff, Taylor (October 27, 2023). "Sammy Smith Takes 1st Career Xfinity Pole at Martinsville". Frontstretch. Retrieved October 27, 2023.
- ^ "Qualifying Results: 2023 NASCAR Xfinity Series Dead On Tools 250 at Martinsville". TobyChristie.com. October 20, 2023. Retrieved October 27, 2023.
- ^ "2023 Dead On Tools 250 - Racing Reference". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved October 28, 2023.