The 2024 NASCAR Xfinity Series season received a delayed kick-off after rain moved the race to Monday. Like most Superspeedway races, big wrecks affected a lot of strong cars, and hence, not too much stock will be filed into overall finishing positions. With another drafting track this week at Atlanta, it will be important for teams to try to build off of strong runs or right the ship with a good run before setting out on an abbreviated West Coast swing.
- RCR #21 Austin Hill –
Daytona winner Hill stays on top after overcoming damage to win his third-straight season opener. He placed 2nd in Stage 1 and won Stage 2, securing 6 total playoff points. Next week we head to Atlanta, where Hill has a runner-up finish and two wins in the last four races. Winning back-to-back races to open the season would be a huge boost for Hill, who is looking for his first Championship 4 appearance.
- Kauling #16 AJ Allmendinger –
Allmendinger finished 10th at Daytona and placed inside the top 10 in both stages. That level of consistency should be expected all season and is why he stays at #2. Last year at Atlanta In the Cup Series, Allmendinger earned two top-20 finishes and placed 3rd in the summer race. In his last full-time Xfinity season in 2022, he placed 3rd and 10th in the two races at the track.
- Stewart-Haas #00 Cole Custer –
The 2023 Xfinity Champion finished 13th at Daytona after he was turned into the wall on the backstretch late in the race. Custer led six laps and placed 4th in Stage 2. It was the third-best finish of his career at Daytona. Custer placed third in the Atlanta summer race last season. He’s placed runner-up in the past but has never won at the track.
- JRM #7 Justin Allgaier –
Allgaier had a tough night at Daytona, as he spun down the back stretch on multiple occasions. He managed a strong run on the final restart and finished the night in 8th after placing top-10 in both stages. Allgaier has struggled in the Atlanta spring race in the past two years, wrecking out of both races. However, he won the race in 2021. In 16 races at the track, he has nine top-10 finishes.
- JGR #18 Sheldon Creed +2
Creed placed runner-up at Daytona behind his rival and former teammate Austin Hill. It was his second consecutive race, placing 2nd at the track. He’s now finished 2nd in three consecutive races going back to Martinsville and Phoenix last season. If he can keep a semblance of that consistency rolling this season, he is sure to be a contender.
- JRM #1 Sam Mayer -1
Mayer was involved in an early wreck and finished 36th at Daytona, wrecking out of the season opener a second year in a row. Atlanta was a track that Mayer had some strong runs at last season before he won his first race at Road America. He finished top-10 in both races and was 5th in the summer race. He’ll be looking for a bounce-back week as he tries to recapture his momentum from the end of last season.
- JRM #8 Sammy Smith -1
Sammy Smith had a good run at Daytona, finishing 2nd in Stage 2 and running near the front through a lot of the final stage. He was inside of the top 10 when he turned Ryan Sieg on the backstretch on the final lap, and he ended up collected in the wreck and finished 23rd. Smith led six laps in his debut with JR Motorsports. In his rookie season with Joe Gibbs Racing last year, Smith placed 17th in the spring Atlanta race and 10th in the summer. He’ll look to continue building on his runs at the track to bounce back this week.
- Stewart-Haas #98 Riley Herbst –
Herbst finished 6th at Daytona, matching his second-best career finish at the track. He currently sits 3rd in points and has been strong at Atlanta in the spring. He’s placed top 10 in each of the last three years and has back-to-back top-5 finishes in the spring race. Now that he’s broken the first-win barrier, Atlanta could be a candidate for him to earn his next victory. After missing the playoffs last season, the No. 98 team will be looking to lock in as early as possible.
- RCR #2 Jesse Love +4
Love got his Xfinity career off to a hot start in his debut, earning pole position and leading most of the way to a Stage 1 win. He was turned and got some damage early in Stage 2 and finished 20th. He wasn’t able to battle back with the same strength as his teammate Hill, but he showed he will have speed to be reckoned with early. Back on another drafting track this week, it will be interesting to see if RCR can repeat the feat and get back to victory lane.
- JGR #81 Chandler Smith –
Chandler Smith placed 5th in his Joe Gibbs Racing debut, earning the best finish of his Xfinity career on a drafting track. Last year with Kaulig, he did not have a single top-10 at a superspeedway. He had a good run at Daytona, moving up into the top 10 in the final stage, and managed to lead a lap. If that offers a hint as to what’s in store for Smith in 2024, he could be in for a big season.
- Big Machine #48 Parker Kligerman -2
Kligerman qualified well at Daytona and ran in the top 5 through most of Stage 1 before he was damaged and put off the lead lap in an early Stage 2 wreck. He finished 25th two laps down. His team has been building consistency as the No. 48 placed inside of the top 10 13 times in the back half of last season. Kligerman finished 4th in the Atlanta spring race last year and 8th in July. Getting his first top 10 of the year this week would go a long way toward building the 2024 season that he wants.
- Kauling #97 Shane Van Gisbergen –
SVG placed 12th in his Xfinity debut and was the highest-finishing rookie at Daytona. He was involved in the big Stage 2 wreck but received the free pass back onto the lead lap before the end of the stage. He turned Jeb Burton late and drove into a wreck shortly after but was able to drive back up through the field over the final run. Daytona was such a chaotic race. His performance this week at Atlanta and over the West Coast swing will be more important to his development on ovals.
Just Outside:
13. JRM #9 Brandon Jones -2
14. Jordan Anderson Racing #31 Parker Retzlaff –
15. Jordan Anderson Racing #27 Jeb Burton +1
16. Our Motorsports #5 Anthony Alfredo +2
17. Kaulig #11 Josh Williams -2
18. RSS # 39 Ryan Sieg -1
19. Alpha Prime #43 Ryan Ellis NR
20. RSS #29 Blaine Perkins NR
Dropped Out:
No. 19 Jeremy Clements
No. 20 Hailie Deegan
