The official 2023 United Rentals 200 NASCAR XFINITY Series race lineup, determined by qualifying results, shows the starting positions of all drivers at Phoenix Raceway.
Saturday, March 11th, 2023
Phoenix Raceway, Phoenix, AZ
High school senior Sammy Smith made the most of the fastest car in Saturday’s United Rentals 200, becoming the youngest NASCAR Xfinity Series winner Phoenix Raceway at age 18.
In a race that featured 11 cautions for 69 laps, Smith held off teammate Ryan Truex after a restart with 15 of 200 laps left to give Joe Gibbs Racing its 16th victory at the 1.0-mile track.
Smith led a race-high 92 laps, including the last 52, taking the lead from Kyle Busch on Lap 149. To secure his first victory in the series in his 13th start, Smith had to survive restarts on Laps 157, 177 and 186.
"That was tough with all of those restarts—and going against some of the best," said Smith, who takes his high school classes online. "I just have to thank everybody on Pilot/Flying J, Toyota, JGR guys and everybody on this 18 team for giving me an awesome car. This is awesome.
"This is a dream come true, and I did know that at some point this was coming. It took a lot of hard work and a lot of great people around me. Without all of these guys, I wouldn’t be here."
In a part-time role with JGR, Truex matched his career-best finish after restarting seventh on Lap 186.
"That was a good restart at the end," Truex said. "I thought I could at least try to make it exciting. Congrats to Sammy—he was the class of the field all day. His car was so good. He could really kind of do whatever he wanted.
"Sammy was just a little bit faster, but I’ll try again next time."
Sheldon Creed ran a miraculous third after spinning and losing track position on Lap 148 to cause the ninth caution. Creed got help from Kaulig Racing teammates Busch and Chandler Smith, who tangled on the last lap while racing for fourth.
Smith got the better of the exchange, finishing fifth to Busch’s ninth.
Busch and Chandler Smith weren’t the only teammates who traded paint on Saturday. JR Motorsports’ Josh Berry spun off the bumper of Sam Mayer on Lap 84 and fought back to finish eighth.
Justin Allgaier, who won the race’s first two stages, crashed hard on Lap 178 after contact from JR Motorsports teammate Brandon Jones and Sam Hunt Racing’s Kaz Grala. The accident eliminated Allgaier and set up Smith’s triumphant run to the checkered flag.
Riley Herbst ran fourth. John Hunter Nemechek recovered from a restart penalty—dipping below the yellow line on the apron before the start/finish line—to come home sixth. Austin Hill was seventh, followed by Berry, Busch and Daniel Hemric.
Mayer finished 11th and pole winner Cole Custer 12th.
Hill leads the series standings by 30 points over second-place Nemechek.
ST | # | DRIVER | MAKE | SPD | TIME | BHND | SPONSOR | TEAM | CREW CHIEF |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 00 | Cole Custer | Ford | 129.959 | 27.701 | 0.000 | Haas Automation | Stewart-haas Racing | Jonathan Toney |
2 | 7 | Justin Allgaier | Chevrolet | 129.706 | 27.755 | 0.053 | hellowater | Jr Motorsports | Jim Pohlman |
3 | 11 | Daniel Hemric | Chevrolet | 129.287 | 27.845 | 0.144 | Cirkul | Kaulig Racing | Jason Trinchere |
4 | 20 | John Hunter Nemechek | Toyota | 129.227 | 27.858 | 0.157 | Safeway / Albertsons | Joe Gibbs Racing | Ben Beshore |
5 | 2 | Sheldon Creed | Chevrolet | 129.176 | 27.869 | 0.168 | Whelen | Richard Childress Racing | Jeff Stankiewicz |
6 | 16 | Chandler Smith | Chevrolet | 129.023 | 27.902 | 0.201 | Quick Tie Products, Inc. | Kaulig Racing | Bruce Schlicker |
7 | 8 | Josh Berry | Chevrolet | 128.783 | 27.954 | 0.253 | Jarrett Logistics Systems | Jr Motorsports | Taylor Moyer |
8 | 21 | Austin Hill | Chevrolet | 128.760 | 27.959 | 0.258 | United Rentals | Richard Childress Racing | Andy Street |
9 | 39 | Ryan Sieg | Ford | 128.535 | 28.008 | 0.307 | CMRroofing.com | Rss Racing | Mike Scearce |
10 | 98 | Riley Herbst | Ford | 128.480 | 28.020 | 0.319 | Monster Energy | Stewart-haas Racing | Richard Boswell |
11 | 18 | Sammy Smith | Toyota | 128.475 | 28.021 | 0.320 | Pilot Flying J | Joe Gibbs Racing | Jeff Meendering |
12 | 19 | Ryan Truex | Toyota | 128.128 | 28.097 | 0.396 | Toyota Genuine Parts | Joe Gibbs Racing | Jason Ratcliff |
13 | 26 | Kaz Grala | Toyota | 127.982 | 28.129 | 0.428 | Fire Department Coffee | Sam Hunt Racing | Allen Hart |
14 | 1 | Sam Mayer | Chevrolet | 127.923 | 28.142 | 0.441 | Accelerate Pros Talent | Jr Motorsports | Mardy Lindley |
15 | 31 | Parker Retzlaff | Chevrolet | 127.923 | 28.142 | 0.441 | Bommarito Automotive Group | Jordan Anderson Racing | Joshua Graham |
16 | 27 | Jeb Burton | Chevrolet | 127.914 | 28.144 | 0.443 | Bommarito.com / EasyCare | Jordan Anderson Racing | Shane Whitbeck |
17 | 25 | Brett Moffitt | Ford | 127.782 | 28.173 | 0.472 | AM Technical Solutions | Am Racing | Joe Williams |
18 | 02 | Kyle Weatherman | Chevrolet | 127.637 | 28.205 | 0.504 | our motorsports | Our Motorsports | Teddy Brown |
19 | 43 | Ryan Ellis | Chevrolet | 127.610 | 28.211 | 0.510 | Rolling Plains Construction | Alpha Prime Racing | Michael Brandt |
20 | 92 | Josh Williams | Chevrolet | 127.380 | 28.262 | 0.561 | Call 811 / Alloy Employer | Dgm Racing | Bryan Berry |
21 | 9 | Brandon Jones | Chevrolet | 127.371 | 28.264 | 0.563 | Menards / Barracuda Pumps | Jr Motorsports | Jason Burdett |
22 | 28 | Kyle Sieg | Ford | 127.262 | 28.288 | 0.587 | RSS Racing | Rss Racing | Brad Parrott |
23 | 45 | Leland Honeyman Jr | Chevrolet | 126.729 | 28.407 | 0.706 | Klean Freak Body Wipes | Alpha Prime Racing | Frank Kerr |
24 | 38 | Joe Graf Jr | Ford | 126.716 | 28.410 | 0.709 | GTECHNIQ | Rss Racing | Steve Addington |
25 | 78 | Anthony Alfredo | Chevrolet | 126.640 | 28.427 | 0.726 | TICKET SMARTER | Bj Mcleod Motorsports | Pat Tryson |
26 | 08 | Gray Gaulding | Ford | 126.516 | 28.455 | 0.754 | Panini NFT | Ss-green Light Racing | Jason Miller |
27 | 51 | Jeremy Clements | Chevrolet | 126.511 | 28.456 | 0.755 | Fox Sports / Spartan Waste | Jeremy Clements Racing | Mark Setzer |
28 | 6 | Brennan Poole | Chevrolet | 126.187 | 28.529 | 0.828 | JD Motorsports | Jd Motorsports | Kase Kallenbach |
29 | 74 | Dawson Cram | Chevrolet | 125.931 | 28.587 | 0.886 | Lerner & Rowe Injury Lawyers | Chk Racing | Ryan Bell |
30 | 91 | Garrett Smithley | Chevrolet | 125.383 | 28.712 | 1.011 | DozerWinchParts.com | Dgm Racing | Mario Gosselin |
31 | 44 | Jeffrey Earnhardt | Chevrolet | 125.270 | 28.738 | 1.037 | Gas POS / BZ Mart | Alpha Prime Racing | Michael Groves |
32 | 4 | Bayley Currey | Chevrolet | 125.209 | 28.752 | 1.051 | Mikes Weather PageFirman | Jd Motorsports | Wayne Carroll Jr |
33 | 35 | Joey Gase | Toyota | 124.762 | 28.855 | 1.154 | Sci Aps | Emerling Gase Motorsports | Paul Clapprood |
34 | Patrick Emerling | 124.723 | 28.864 | 1.163 | |||||
35 | 07 | Blaine Perkins | Chevrolet | 124.451 | 28.927 | 1.226 | Swift | Ss-green Light Racing | Mark Hillman |
36 | 24 | Connor Mosack | Toyota | 123.860 | 29.065 | 1.364 | Toyota Racing Development | Sam Hunt Racing | Kris Bowen |
37 | 10 | Kyle Busch | Chevrolet | 0.000 | 0.000 | 27.701 | LA Golf | Kaulig Racing | Alex Yontz |
38 | 48 | Parker Kligerman | Chevrolet | 0.000 | 0.000 | 27.701 | Big Machine Racing Spiked | Big Machine Racing | Patrick Donahue |
*39 | Timmy Hill | 124.275 | 28.968 | 1.267 |
* Did Not Qualify (DNQ) for race.