Fireworks. The Fourth of July is known for them. But it was the fireworks on the track in the NASCAR Xfinity Series that caught the attention of the racing world tonight, in the Subway Firecracker 250 at Daytona International Speedway.
Qualifying for the race took place earlier in the afternoon, where two drivers still seeking their first Xfinity Series victories took the front row. Daniel Suarez (#18 Arris Toyota) became only the second Mexican driver to sit on pole in the series, and Brian Scott (#2 Shore Lodge Chevy) would start alongside. Eventually.
While most people this weekend were hoping for Mother Nature to stay away from their picnics, she instead decided to target Daytona International Speedway. Rain would delay the start of the Xfinity Series race by an hour after cancelling Sprint Cup Series qualifying. And though racing would soon begin, it came to a slow start.
Three cautions would slow the start for the Firecracker 250 in just the first fifteen laps. Three single-car incidents, involving Bobby Gerhart (#85 Lucas Oil Chevy), Cale Conley (#14 IAVA Chevy), and Derrike Cope (#70 Chevy) kicked off the race, but the fast pace came on quickly after, with lots of side-by-side racing among the leaders.
Brian Scott, in search of his first Xfinity Series victory, remained at the head of the pack for much of the race, with teammate Ty Dillon (#3 Yuengling Chevy) not too far behind. Meanwhile, Xfinity Series points leader Chris Buescher (#60 Bit-O-Honey Ford) struggled in the draft and was under threat of being lapped late in the race. However, Buescher would be saved by another spin by the struggling Cale Conley, bringing out a late race caution.
Resuming with a short fifteen laps to go, Brian Scott continued to lead. And then suddenly things got crazy as the big one, the famous big wreck at the superspeedway, hit with ten laps to go. A dozen drivers were involved in the wreck, including the top three drivers in points in the series. NASCAR threw the red flag to stop the field and clean up the mess, leading to a shootout at the finish.
After the red flag was lifted, a five-lap sprint race was set for the win at Daytona. As the sprint moved to its thrilling conclusion, a second big wreck marred the racetrack, this time as the leaders wreck down the backstretch. This ended the chances of winning for two of the most dominant cars of the race, Brian Scott and Elliott Sadler (#1 OneMain Financial Ford).
With so little time left in the race, the wreck set up what would be a Green-White-Checkered finish. Only nine cars remained on the lead lap, led by Sprint Cup Series regular Austin Dillon (#33 Rheem Chevy). And in the war of attrition, Austin Dillon would hold off a charging Elliott Sadler, even in a damaged car, and win the Subway Firecracker 250 at Daytona. Elliott Sadler would limp home second, with last year’s champion Chase Elliott (#9 NAPA Chevy) in third.
The next race for the NASCAR Xfinity Series will be Friday night at Kentucky Speedway. Coverage can be seen on NBCSN.
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