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Press Release | KAULIG RACING Lexington, N.C. (August 31, 2024) – Kaulig Racing announces NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (NCTS) Regular Season Champion and playoff contender, Christian Eckes, will join the team’s NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) driver lineup starting in 2025. The 23-year-old will take over the No. 16 Chevrolet, after the team announced AJ Allmendinger’s full-time return to the NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) earlier this month. In addition to competing for the NXS Championship, Eckes will compete for the NXS Rookie of the Year title. “Matt Kaulig and I have invested a lot of time thinking and planning for what the future of Kaulig Racing looks like,” said team president, Chris Rice. “We’re continuing to improve our Xfinity program, and we are making decisions to help us do that. Christian [Eckes] has proven himself in the Truck Series and we’re excited to have him take the next step in his career and be a part of our program beginning in 2025.” Eckes, currently scored second in NCTS driver standings, has earned three wins in the 2024 season, including a dominant victory at Nashville Superspeedway where he led all 150 laps. “Christian [Eckes] is one of the brightest young stars in our sport,” said team owner, Matt Kaulig. “He has shown over the last two years that he is ready to take the next step and we’re looking forward to seeing him grow into the future of Kaulig Racing.” “I’m extremely thankful and grateful for Matt Kaulig, Chris Rice and everyone involved for the opportunity to be a part of Kaulig Racing,” said Christian Eckes. “What they have been able to do as a company in just a few short years has been incredible. I’m looking forward to adding to that success in 2025 and beyond.” Partnership details for Eckes and the No. 16 Chevrolet will be announced at a later date. (Photo Courtesy Kaulig Racing)

NASCAR DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Sept. 4, 2024) — Between the action-packed racing of America’s No. 1 motorsport each weekend, NASCAR Studios will provide fans additional entertainment and insights throughout the 2024 NASCAR Playoffs with the launch of three new shows: NASCAR Inside the Playoffs (truTV and Max), NASCAR Daily (YouTube) and Drop the Jack (YouTube and podcast platforms). “NASCAR fans are the most passionate in the world and we want to deliver them quality options for additional entertainment, insight and analysis,” said John Dahl, NASCAR senior VP of content. “These new shows are a great complement to our existing options for NASCAR fans today, with popular media talent, industry insiders and rising voices eager to entertain and educate race fans however they prefer to consume content.” “This is going to be so much fun,” said Shannon Spake, who adds to a remarkable national broadcasting resume that spans more than two decades and multiple sports for networks including SPEED, ESPN and FOX Sports. “I get to talk about the sport I have been a part of for 20 years in two totally different settings, alongside some of my greatest friends and most respected peers in the industry. The fans have been so good to me over the years, and I’m excited to take them further inside the action of the postseason while staying up to speed on some of the fun and entertaining things unfolding away from the track.” A rundown of the three new shows is below: NASCAR Inside the Playoffs Thursdays, 7-8 p.m. ET on truTV and streaming on Max — Debuts Thursday, Sept. 5 NASCAR’s partnership with TNT Sports gets a head start before 2025 broadcast rights begin with the new weekly studio show NASCAR Inside the Playoffs, which will dissect the evolving postseason action through an unfiltered lens. The show is hosted by beloved veteran broadcasters Shannon Spake and Steve Letarte, along with up-and-coming media talent Dylan “Mamba” Smith. A rotating fourth voice of current and former drivers will join each week, beginning with two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Busch in the first two episodes. Jordan Bianchi, NASCAR reporter for The Athletic, will join to cover breaking news. NASCAR Daily Monday-Friday, 10 a.m. ET on YouTube and podcast platforms — Debuts Monday, Sept. 9 Balancing breaking news with entertaining conversation, Spake will infuse her perspective while welcoming regular guest appearances from drivers, industry personalities and other contributors in episodes running approximately 10 minutes every weekday morning. The show will also introduce a rotation of recurring segments that put a spotlight on different aspects of NASCAR and the fan experience, including checking in on the latest social media chatter, and a weekly sports betting segment featuring analyst Erica Renee Davis. Drop the Jack Thursdays, 3 p.m. ET on YouTube and podcast platforms — Debuts Thursday, Sept. 5 A new addition to the NASCAR podcast universe, Drop the Jack provides some of the Cup Series’ best pit crew athletes and other industry veterans a platform to engage in compelling conversations about the full spectrum of life at and away from the race track. Mamba Smith — a former full-time aspiring NASCAR driver turned rising media personality — will help guide these entertaining and emotional discussions with pit crew athletes Derrell Edwards, Michael Hicks, Jorden Paige and Paul Swan along with special guests. Execution of all three shows will run through the new NASCAR Productions home in Concord, North Carolina. NASCAR opened its new 58,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art production facility earlier this year as it continues to invest significantly in original content and live production capabilities for the league and its stakeholders. The 10-race, 16-driver NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs begin Sunday at Atlanta Motor Speedway (3 p.m. ET on USA, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Press Release | CHARLOTTE MOTOR SPEEDWAY NASCAR Cup Series legends and 2025 NASCAR Hall of Fame nominees Ricky Rudd and Carl Edwards will return to the famed Charlotte Motor Speedway to give the command as co-Grand Marshals for the Bank of America ROVAL™ 400 on Sunday, Oct. 13. NASCAR’s “Ironman” Ricky Rudd, renowned for his road course mastery, will take the stage to deliver the most famous words of racing. With six of his 23 Cup Series victories earned navigating through the strenuous turns of road courses nationwide, Rudd’s expertise is unquestioned. After concluding his illustrious 32-year Cup Series career in 1983, Rudd will return to America's Home for Racing to kick off the seventh running Bank of America ROVAL™ 400. “Road course racing has always suited my driving style, so while I never got to race on the ROVAL™, I’m excited to get to Charlotte and see what it’s all about,” Rudd said. “Being able to see the race, visit with the fans and give the command is going to be really special.” Edwards, a 28-time Cup Series winner is no stranger to Victory Lane at Charlotte Motor Speedway, including visits after his 2015 Coca-Cola 600 triumph and in the 2011 NASCAR All-Star Race. From his infamous backflips, his NASCAR Rookie of the Year honor in 2003 to being named NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver in 2007, Edwards will now add another ovation at the start of Sunday’s 109-lap road course feature. “I have a lot of good memories and a couple of trophies from my racing days at Charlotte Motor Speedway,” Edwards said. “I’m looking forward to being able to relive some of those moments and make some new ones this year.” Edwards and Rudd, who will be inducted into the 2025 NASCAR Hall of Fame class next year alongside the late Ralph Moody, will join forces to deliver the command to fire engines before drivers take on the newly renovated 17-turn, 2.28-mile course. With two reconfigured turns and 35 feet of elevation change, this year’s NASCAR Playoff cut-off race promises an exhilarating experience for both drivers and fans. “Racing at Charlotte Motor Speedway in the fall always feels like a bit of a NASCAR homecoming,” said speedway President and General Manager Greg Walter. “This year, that will be especially true with Ricky and Carl returning as co-grand marshals. It’s going to be a lot of fun to see them interact with the fans and experience the thrill of ROVAL™ racing in the Playoffs.” (Photo Courtesy Charlotte Motor Speedway)

THE ATHLETIC CHARLOTTE, N.C. — RFK Racing is progressing toward expanding to three full-time NASCAR Cup Series teams in 2025, a move that would likely include bringing aboard big-ticket sponsor Kroger as a team-wide sponsor for all three cars, and signing driver Ryan Preece, sources briefed on the move told The Athletic. The team, whose ownership group includes Cup champion Brad Keselowski, is expected to make an official announcement in the coming weeks. RFK under its previous name, Roush Fenway Racing, had as many as five full-time Cup teams before gradually downsizing to its current two-car configuration for drivers Keselowski and Chris Buescher. Keselowski, who joined the renamed team in a driver-owner capacity in 2022, has stated publicly that he’d like to see RFK expand — provided the timing was right, the appropriate sponsorship was secured and the team’s overall performance was on the upswing. “We don’t have any announcements that we’re ready to make, but hopefully we’ll have something to share with everybody here in the next month or so,” Keselowski told The Athletic on Wednesday during NASCAR playoff media day. “But nothing publicly that I’m ready to talk about.” The timing is now right with RFK having sufficient sponsorship in place and the team is competitive enough to justify making this move. Keselowski made the playoffs this season and won the spring race at Darlington, while Buescher won three races in 2023 and narrowly missed the 2024 playoffs. Kroger, one of the biggest supermarket chains in the United States, is considered one of the biggest sponsors within NASCAR to the extent that for four years it funded two full-time teams at JTG Daugherty Racing. That stint included serving as primary sponsor for two years with Buescher and three years with Preece when each drove for the team. Kroger and JTG are separating after a sponsorship partnership that dates back to 2010. The pending dissolution of the deal at the end of this year has made Kroger one of the more sought-after sponsors with several teams trying to solicit its backing. That RFK is likely securing Kroger is a big win for the company. Preece would join RFK after spending the 2023 and 2024 seasons with Stewart-Haas Racing. The 33-year-old has a best finish of third in 177 Cup starts. Whether RFK is actually acquiring or leasing a charter is unclear, but the new third team will not operate as an “open” car due to the financial hit that would entail as it would cost an additional several million dollars to run full-time without a charter. NASCAR and its teams are currently negotiating an extension to the charter agreement that is set to expire after the 2024 season. It is expected that NASCAR will increase the money paid to the teams, though the exact terms are still to be determined. Negotiations between NASCAR and the teams on a new charter agreement are ongoing. There is no definitive date on when a new charter agreement will be reached, but many within the industry believe a deal could be finalized in the coming weeks. (Photo Courtesy NASCAR)

NBC SPORTS CHARLOTTE — Martin Truex Jr. confirmed Wednesday that he will seek to make next year’s Daytona 500 and have former crew chief Cole Pearn atop the pit box. Truex said that his car number will be either No. 78 or No. 56. He won the 2017 Cup championship with the No. 78. He has used the No. 56 throughout his career and calls that “my number.” This season marks Truex’s 19th full-time season in Cup. The 44-year-old driver has 34 series victories but has never won the Daytona 500. He finished second to Denny Hamlin in 2016 by .010 seconds — the closest finish in Daytona 500 history. Truex said at NASCAR Cup playoff media day that a deal is “all but done” for him to drive in the 2025 Daytona 500. As for the car, Hamlin, co-owner of 23XI Racing, said Wednesday: “23XI and (Joe Gibbs Racing) are kind of looking at the options and figuring out what’s the best avenue for it. Certainly, having Martin in the 500 is going to be exciting.” Truex has said that he plans to drive some races next year, but relishes not having to be at the track every weekend. “I still love racing,” he said. “I still love driving cars. Just ready to not travel 40 weekends a year. That’s the only thing.” Partnering with Pearn will reunite a successful duo. With Pearn as his crew chief, Truex won 24 races and a championship between 2015-19. Pearn left the sport after the 2019 season. Pearn has made brief appearances in the sport since. He was a spotter for Truex in the 2021 playoff race at the Charlotte Roval. Pearn served one race as an engineer for Truex’s team in 2022 at Sonoma. Truex enters this year’s playoffs seeded 15th of 16 drivers. He has finished 24th or worse in nine of the last 12 races in the regular season. Truex’s playoff hopes were jeopardized when he crashed in the opening laps of last weekend’s Southern 500. He advanced by only six points. “I’d certainly like to be the guy on top with the most points, right?” said Truex, who is winless in his last 42 races. “That’s the best place to be, so I don’t think we’re in a great spot, by any means. “I think we have a good opportunity ahead of us, though. Great team and we’ve been really fast lately. Just need to execute, clean up a lot of mistakes, and a lot of that is on my end as well. We know what we need to do, we’ve done it before, and we’re excited to get going.” (Photo Courtesy NASCAR)

(Photo Courtesy NHRA) By Logan Morris Race day at the 70th Annual Toyota NHRA U.S. Nationals is the Drag Racing Super Bowl. ¨The Big Go¨ is where careers are defined and legacies are cemented. Clay Millican took home the coveted Wally in Top Fuel after defeating Steve Torrance. He ran a 3.792 ET at 327 MPH. The win undoubtedly is the biggest of Millican’s career, who took Rick Ware to the winner's circle. The win was made extra special because car owner Rick Ware was in attendance, and I had the chance to ask Millican just what it meant to have him there. “It was cool to call him last year and say we won but it's nothing like him being there. You know there's no replacement for that. I mean Rick bought into NHRA drag racing mainly because as a kid he wanted to be a Top Fuel driver.” (Photo Courtesy NHRA) In Funny Car, Austin Prock defeated Ron Capps to claim his first U.S. Nationals Wally. The win denied Ron Capps his third straight trip to the winner's circle. For Prock, the win was made just a little sweeter by beating the Don Prudhomme tribute Funny Car. The scheme was a tribute to the same livery that defeated Prock’s grandfather in 1973. I had the chance to ask Prock if that crossed his mind in the lead-up to the final run of the day. “No. Not that. I mean, there were all kinds of things crossing my mind, but I couldn't tell you a single one of them. I was in another world rolling up to that. I was kind of glad for that little break because when we rolled up there the first time, when we're supposed to run at four, I didn't really feel all that good, and I finally got in, I think it was because I was just so exhausted and that break gave me about 25 minutes to go sit up in the lounge, in the AC and finally cool off.“ (Photo Courtesy NHRA) In Pro Stock, Aaron Stanfield won his first U.S. Nationals Wally defeating Jeg Couglin Jr. Earlier in the day, he also won a Wally in Factory X. I asked Aaron if the pressure got to him at all. “I've built Sportsman engines and Factory stock and Factory X. There's definitely a lot of pressure. Then, my plates full. Yes, I think, as I do it more, I get a little more used to handling it. I think we did a really good job of not just me, but I don't think everyone understands just how much it takes to be able to run two cars at the top level and I've got some incredible people that are behind me and on both sides.” (Photo Courtesy NHRA) Finally, in Pro Stock Motorcycle, Gaige Herrera defeated Angie Smith with a run of 6.763 ET at 198.70 MPH. For Herrera, the win solidifies his absolute dominance of Pro Stock Motorcycle. I had the chance to ask him what his remaining goals are. “I still want to race pros and more. It has been my dream since I've been a little kid, you know, it's just one of those things I've never seen possible. So I don't plan on stopping racing it. It's just, you know, so much has been accomplished in a short time. It's hard to say setting goals, right? I would say my biggest goal now is just to make sure Matt [Smith] doesn't surpass Andrew [Hines] in World Championships, but other than that, I love riding motorcycles and I ain't gonna stop.” (Photo Courtesy NHRA) The NHRA returns to action September 12-15th in Reading, Pennsylvania.

By Adam Carabine While it looked like it might be a Kyle Larson-led parade to the finish line, the ending of the Southern 500 delivered anything but.   Chase Briscoe was in “kill mode,” as his crew chief Richard Boswell said, and he pulled out a victory at Darlington Raceway, earning himself a Crown Jewel win, and more importantly a spot in the NASCAR Playoffs.   Coming into the night, Briscoe was 20th in the regular season standings, sitting 144 points out of a playoff spot.  There was no possible way for him to point his way into the post-season.  A win was his only option, and he pulled it off in dramatic fashion.   The first stage played out as a battle between pole sitter Bubba Wallace and Kyle Larson – each with their own reasons to fight for a win.  Wallace was 21 points out of the playoffs, needing a solid run over Chris Buescher who, at the time, held onto the 16th and final spot.   Larson was in a close battle with Tyler Reddick for the Regular Season Championship, which comes with an extremely valuable 15 playoff point prize.    Chase Briscoe was running a solid race behind those two, but even a P2 finish wouldn’t be enough for his playoff hopes.  While Larson swept both stages, en route to a whopping 263 laps led on the day, Briscoe bided his time, waiting for his moment.   Despite a fast car, Tyler Reddick was having a rough day.  Reddick spoke over the radio to his team complaining of a stomach bug, saying he was worried about throwing up (and more) inside the car.  The team did their best to give him some medication during pit stops, but it was a grueling race for the driver of the 45 Toyota.   “I held on for dear life all night,” he said, adding that it was the worst he’s ever felt in a race.    Aside from a wreck on lap two involving Martin Truex Jr. and Ryan Blaney, the race stayed caution free (aside from stage breaks) until the final 50 laps.    As the race got closer to the end, the aggression rose – and so did the cautions.  For the most part the playoff contenders managed to steer clear of the carnage, but it was Ross Chastain who rained on Larson’s parade.   After a caution on lap 337, Chastain (who came into this race with his own point deficit to the playoff line) was the lone car that opted to stay out on old tires.  With Darlington known for chewing up tires, this was clearly a hail mary call.     Not only did Chastain get eaten up by everyone else on newer tires behind him, this allowed Chase Briscoe to make a gutsy three-wide pass for the lead.  Right after that move, he was told over the radio: “Way to be badass, brother, finish it off.”   There was one final caution, which led to an 8-lap shootout to the finish, and Briscoe stayed up front until the checkered flag.    “I definitely run better under heavy pressure for whatever reason.  I love that stuff, I love the Game 7 heavy pressure moment.  I feel like I do a lot better under those situations,” Briscoe said after the race.   With the win, Briscoe locked himself into the playoffs, and he knocked out Chris Buescher, Bubba Wallace and Ross Chastain.  Joe Gibbs Racing drivers Martin Truex Jr. and Ty Gibbs got the final two playoff spots on points alone.   With Kyle Larson getting shuffled back to finish 4th, he missed his chance at the Regular Season title, losing it by a single point to the ailing Tyler Reddick.   The NASCAR Playoffs kick off with the Round of 16 next week at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

(Photo Courtesy NHRA) By Logan Morris On Sunday, which at the 70th Anniversary of “The Big Go” is defined as ¨bump day¨, there was plenty of anticipation. Perhaps the most stunning development was that Top Fuel World Champion Doug Kalitta will miss the show on Monday after a difficult weekend. It may be surprising, but this weekend is historically known for triumphs and heartbreaks. The biggest feel-good moment came in the form of Funny Car driver, Paul Lee, defeating Bob Tasca III in the Pep Boys Funny Car All-Star Callout. The win serves as Lee’s first major win in a Funny Car. For Lee, the win serves as validation. “I've been an NHRA member since 1979. I'm old and I've been driving Funny Cars since 1988. So, they say it's a 36-year overnight success kind of thing, and that's what our goals are. Our goal is to build this team. Eight-month-old team. We're looking to build it to be a top-five car. That's our goal. We want to compete for the Championships. We're not just out here participating, we're out here to learn, make laps, and we want to win races.” The number one qualifier in Funny Car heading into Sunday is Austin Prock with a run of 3.855 ET at 328.38 MPH. Prock is looking to make his boss proud during the biggest drag race of the year. “As sad as it is, it's become normal lately. It sucks, you know, we all miss John Force out here and we want him back out here but it's just the way life's working right now. It's a shame and I miss them out here each and every day but he keeps telling me every time I talk to him, ´hold the fort down for me, Prock.´ So that's what we're trying to do. When we have results like we did so far this weekend, for our car and as a whole, at John Force Racing, I know he's smiling and I know he's proud. Our focus right now is to get John Force wins and try to go for a championship.” (Photo Courtesy NHRA) In Top Fuel, Brittany Force goes into race day at the top of the board with a 3.693 ET at 333.08 MPH. I had a chance to ask her how she handles the pressure of her current tough position in the points standings. “I feel like we do pretty well under pressure. There's been so many moments throughout my career for crew chiefs, the whole team, me as a driver, where we really step up. Then we've had moments where we've completely fallen on our face where it was me. I blame myself as a driver, crew chiefs have taken the blame, crew guys have taken the blame, so we've been on both sides of it. But overall, when it comes down to these really crucial moments, we seem to do pretty well” (Photo Courtesy NHRA) In Pro Stock, Greg Anderson is the number one qualifier, he ran a 6.575 ET at 207.88 MPH, and in Pro Stock Motorcycle, Gaige Herrera is the number one qualifier. He ran a 6.809 ET at 197.71 ET. Race day at the 70th annual Toyota NHRA U.S. Nationals kicks off on Labor Day at 11am ET.

By Adam Carabine For the first 53 years of its existence, the Southern 500 was run on Labor Day weekend. In 2004 the race was pushed to November to be the penultimate race of the season.  However, a year later, Darlington was forced down to a single date per year, and it stayed in the spring for 11 years.  In 2015, the Southern 500 finally returned to its traditional Labor Day weekend.   In its current iteration, the NASCAR playoffs have traveled to Darlington to kick off the playoff festivities.  Because of its place on the schedule, it lends itself to a certain strategy and style of racing.    With the Round of 16 set, you now have playoff drivers trying not to have a catastrophic failure and end their playoff runs.  You also have non-playoff drivers fighting for dignity, while also trying not to impact the playoff drivers in any way.   However, the Southern 500 is different this year.   This year, NASCAR opted to have a two-week break for the Summer Olympics in Paris, and this threw a wrench in some of the scheduling.  In order to keep the Southern 500 on its traditional Labor Day weekend, Darlington became the final race of the regular season.    It might not seem like a huge change at first, but consider the consequences:  Firstly, it’s the last chance for drivers outside of the playoff bubble to win their way in.  Can we expect a late hail-mary move from someone trying to get into the playoffs?   On the other side, you’ve got the drivers who are locked into the playoffs.  Suddenly, they’re no longer worried about losing ground in the playoffs, and the twinkle in their eyes may shine a little brighter as they fight for a Crown Jewel victory, the Southern 500.   Christopher Bell, who won the Xfinity race on Saturday, said: “The Round of 16 is all about not eliminating yourself.”  However, with it no longer being a playoff date, he added: “Especially Darlington, which is a crown jewel event, points are still important, and we are still racing for regular season positions, but a chance to win the Southern 500, I’m definitely going to go all out for it.”   “I’m excited about it being in the regular season, and I think it will up the aggression of the people who can afford it, like myself.  I want to win the Southern 500 and this is a great opportunity to lay it all out on the line and go for it.”   For someone like Josh Berry, who is 210 points outside of the playoffs, and needs a win to earn a spot, he’s expecting to see some different approaches as well.  “I think strategy-wise, it’s hard to say.  There’s probably going to be some more hail mary’s from people as they try to catch a break.  I’m sure if we get restarts in the end, it’ll get intense.”   Austin Cindric, who is locked in, said that he prefers when Darlington is the playoff opener.  “I think this is a great first race for the playoffs, because it does weed out a lot of mistakes.  This race, even with veteran drivers, it’s a lot of mistakes.”   Michael McDowell is also in a must-win situation, and he wasn’t convinced it would be all that different.  “To win here, you just have to have speed all night, you have to execute your pit stops perfectly, and you can’t have any penalties.  You’re always going to want tires, so I don’t see a scenario where you’re staying out or rolling the dice like that.”   Reigning Champion Ryan Blaney is also locked in, and he added: “When this race leads off the playoffs, it’s about not having a bad night.  Now, some guys who are locked in might take some more chances.  You’re not going to see guys staying out on old stuff, that just doesn’t happen here, you’re gonna pit.  But I think a lot of different pit strategies might come into play.  You could run super long, maybe short pit, maybe try to only two-stop the last stage.”    “You’re going to have some guys throw hail mary’s – and that’s the guys who are locked in.  And the guys who have to win, you’re going to have some pretty crazy strategies.  So I don’t mind either way, but teams are more likely to take chances in this race than they would if it was in the first round.”   Next year, the race will return to its normal spot as the playoff opener – so stay tuned, this could be a wild one.  The Cook Out Southern 500 runs at 6:00pm ET.

By Logan Morris Day two of the 70th annual Toyota U.S. Nationals signaled a change in conditions.  The blazing heat was traded for a much more comfortable temperature.  John Force Racing defined the second day, as they dominated in both Funny Car and Top Fuel. In Funny Car, Austin Prock had the quickest run of the weekend going 3.855 at 328.38MPH. If it holds through the end of qualifying, it would be Prock’s 10th No. 1 Qualifier of the 2024 campaign. In Top Fuel, Brittany Force continued her strong weekend as she remains the provisional No.1 Qualifier with a run of 3.693 at 333.08 in her Chevrolet Accessories dragster. She continues to build momentum in a pivotal weekend. As the other racing categories go, Greg Anderson currently sits atop the board with a 6.588, going over 206 MPH in Pro Stock. Erica Enders sits in second with 6.592 at 207.11 MPH. In Pro Stock Motorcycle, John Hall boldly moved to the No. 1 position with a run of 6.830 at 198.76. The run continues a strong weekend for Matt Smith Racing. Day three of the 70th annual Toyota NHRA U.S. Nationals kicks off at noon on Sunday.

By Adam Carabine It was a back-and-forth battle between the best two cars Saturday at Darlington, with Cup Series regular Christopher Bell earning his second Xfinity Series win in as many starts.   Sheldon Creed started P2, next to pole-sitter Bell, and the two of them battled for the lead all day.  While Bell led the majority of the laps (108 to Creed’s 30), it was a late caution that ruined Creed’s day.    Bell’s Number 20 Toyota was better on shorter runs, though wasn’t able to keep up the speed on longer runs.  With the final stage running nearly caution-free, teammate Creed in the JGR 18 Toyota erased a 3-second deficit over the course of about 25 laps, taking the lead with 8 to go.   At this point it looked like Sheldon Creed was on his way to earn his first ever career Xfinity win, something that has been plaguing him for quite some time.  He currently holds the record for the driver who has the most runner-up finishes, without having scored a win.    With 3 to go in the race, AJ Allmendinger had a tire go down and brought out the caution flag as he slammed into the Turn 1 wall.  With Darlington being a track that quickly eats up tires (Creed was running about 4 seconds slower than his fastest lap when the caution came out), there was no doubt that pitting was the right call for all of the leaders.   Unfortunately for the 18 team, a slow pit stop cost them a few spots on pit road, giving up the lead to Christopher Bell.  Cole Custer also passed them on pit road and started the final restart beside Bell on the front row.   “I’m obviously really bummed because today was our day, and I feel like I put on one of my best performances,” Creed said after getting out of the car.    Bell was aware that the final caution and subsequent overtime restart gifted him the opportunity to win.  “I had lost the race, there’s no doubt about it,” he told the media after the race.   It was a frustrating finish for Creed, who felt like the final result was out of his hands.   “I was optimistic at first, my pit crew had done really good all day, and I figured we’d come in first and leave first.  I needed to at least be on the front row, […] I’m bummed that I can’t control pit road.”   Christopher Bell was complimentary of Sheldon Creed in his post-race media availability, though he said he didn’t feel bad beating someone who has been searching for that elusive first win.   “As an Xfinity regular a couple years ago, I loved whenever the Cup guys came down.  You want to race against the best.  I want [Creed] to win, I think he deserves to win, but I want him to earn it.  I say that with all due respect, because he did earn it today, and unfortunately the yellow flag came out and he didn’t get the win.”   To his credit, Creed was still able to crack a smile despite a disappointing end to the race, poking fun at his record:   “Well, I’m glad I didn’t run second again.  At this point I’ll run third before I run second.”