XFINITY Series Circuit of The Americas

NASCAR XFINITY Series

Results

Focused Health 250

Saturday, March 23rd, 2024

Circuit of The Americas, Austin, Texas

  • 27 Chevrolet
  • 6 Ford
  • 7 Toyota

  • Circuit of The Americas
  • Focused Health 250
  • Pole Winner: Kyle Larson
  • Age: 31
  • Team : No. 17 - HendrickCars.com Chevrolet
  • Owner: Rick Hendrick
  • Crew Chief: Greg Ives
  • Kyle Larson won the Pole Award for the Focused Health 250 with a lap of 132.076 seconds, 92.946 mph.
  • This is his seventh pole in 115 NASCAR Xfinity Series races.
  • This is his first pole and first top-10 start in 2024.
  • This is his first pole in one races at Circuit of The Americas.
  • Shane Van Gisbergen (second) posted his second top-10 start of 2024 and his first in one race at Circuit of The Americas.
  • Ty Gibbs (third) posted his third top-10 start at Circuit of The Americas. It is his first in one race this season.
  • Shane Van Gisbergen (second) was the fastest qualifying rookie.

  • Saturday, March 23rd, 2024
  • NASCAR Wire Service - Holly Cain
Kyle Larson wins in an action-packed dash to the finish line

Kyle Larson was ultimately both patient and smart taking the lead on the final overtime lap to win an aggressive Featured Health 250 NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Circuit of The Americas (COTA), the first road course test for the series this year that earned an “A” for high-drama and close competition.

New Zealander Shane van Gisbergen and Austin Hill were duking it out for the lead – and pushing each other high off the race line as the field approached the checkered flag. With those two fending each other off, Larson drove his No. 17 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet low around both and was able to pull away to a 1.215-second victory – the only lap the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champ led all day around the 20-turn 3.51-mile road course.

Van Gisbergen finished second in the No. 97 Kaulig Racing Chevy but was accessed a 30-second penalty for exceeding track limits in that last lap battle with Hill, which ultimately put him in 27th. So Hill, driver of the No. 21 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet officially is scored runner-up.

Larson was all smiles climbing out of car, conceding he wasn’t surprised things got so aggressive in the end. He was one of the few cars – and only one among the leaders – to drop into pit lane on the final caution to get gas and had worked his way back up front.

“It feels really special because seems like every time we’ve run the 17-car – any of us four drivers – we’re always fast on track and somehow give it away,’’ Larson said. “Today I was definitely not the fastest, but we were patient. I knew the 21 [Hill] had shoved SVG [Van Gisbergen] through [turn] one and if he got to him it could get dicey.

“I was just trying to be patient. I was thinking when to make my move and when I saw him shoving him through [turns] 15 and 16, I thought this could get good and thankfully I cleared them off in that corner. Pretty crazy. Just wild there. … Really cool, just awesome to win here at COTA.’’

Neither Van Gisbergen nor Austin Hill were too happy with the final outcome – both their cars damaged from the aggressive beating and banging on the final lap. Asked if he would speak to Hill about the racing, Van Gisbergen said, “Yeah, I guess so.’’ But he was mostly positive about having a chance to win in only his fifth NASCAR Xfinity Series race of his career.

“It was a crazy race and the car got better and better,’’ Van Gisbergen said. “On that last restart he [Hill] just drove through me in [turn] one. I guess I stood up for myself. But it was pretty awesome racing with [teammate] A.J. [Allmendinger] and in the end just turned into a mess. That’s how it is.

“It was really fun. Wish I could have gotten through to the lead, but the car [Larson] just snuck through there. He was driving really well. A lot of fun.’’

While Van Gisbergen managed a smile for the post-race television interview, he definitely had to battle all afternoon – including with his Kaulig Racing teammate A.J. Allmendinger, a two-time winner of this COTA Xfinity Series race and the series’ best active road course driver.

They battled head-to-head for the final laps of the regularly scheduled race only for Allmendinger to get swept up and out in a three-wide attempt for the lead in Turn 1 during the first green-white-checkered flag period. He was running fifth at the time of the final caution that forced a second overtime start and ultimately finished 10th.

John Hunter Nemechek finished third, reigning series champion Cole Custer was fourth and Parker Kligerman rounded out the top five. Rookie Jesse Love, Austin Green, last week’s winner Chandler Smith, Sam Mayer and Allmendinger rounded out the top 10.

It was a particularly impressive day for Green, son of former Xfinity Series champion David Green, finishing eighth in his very first series start.

Big Machine Racing driver Kligerman earned his first stage win of the year claiming the Stage 1 victory. Brandon Jones seemingly won Stage 2 only to receive a penalty for cutting Turn 5 on the last lap of the stage. Second-place Stewart-Haas Racing’s Riley Herbst was instead awarded the Stage victory – his first of the season.

  • Drivers Entered: 40 (2 drivers will not make the race)
  • Laps Scheduled: 46
  • Laps Actual: 50 - NASCAR OVERTIME!
  • Margin of Victory: 01.354 Seconds
  • Time of Race: 2 Hours 21 Minutes 21 Seconds
  • Average Speed: 72.374
  • Cautions: 4 for 9 laps
  • Lead Changes: 13
  • Green Flag Passes: 1,991 (48.6 passes per green flag lap)

  • Circuit of The Americas
  • Focused Health 250
  • Race Winner: Kyle Larson
  • Age: 31
  • Team : No. 17 - HendrickCars.com Chevrolet
  • Owner: Rick Hendrick
  • Crew Chief: Greg Ives
  • Kyle Larson won the Focused Health 250, his 15th victory in 115 Xfinity Series races.
  • This is his first victory and first top-10 finish in 2024.
  • This is his first victory and first top-10 finish in one race at Circuit of The Americas.
  • Austin Hill (second) posted his second top-10 finish in three races at Circuit of The Americas. It is his fifth top-10 finish in 2024.
  • John Hunter Nemechek (third) posted his first top-10 finish in two races at Circuit of The Americas.
  • Jesse Love (sixth) was the highest finishing rookie.
  • Austin Hill leads the point standings by 9 points over Chandler Smith.
Kyle Larson celebrates in victory lane
Austin, Texas - March 23, 2024 : Kyle Larson, driver of the #17 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet, celebrates in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Xfinity Series Focused Health 250 at Circuit of The Americas.
Sean GardnerGetty Images
Focused Health 250 at Circuit of The Americas results
FIN ST # DRIVER MAKE TOT PTS FIN PTS STG PTS PO PTS LAPS LED X LED S1 S2 STATUS
10 5 16 AJ Allmendinger Chevrolet 38 27 11 0 50 20 3 8 3 Running
13 15 7 Justin Allgaier Chevrolet 24 24 0 0 50 0 0 0 0 Running
1 1 17 Kyle Larson Chevrolet 0 0 0 0 50 1 1 0 4 Running
5 12 48 Parker Kligerman Chevrolet 43 32 10 1 50 4 1 1 0 Running
37 28 6 Ty Dillon Chevrolet 0 0 0 0 33 0 0 0 0 Suspension
30 21 27 Jeb Burton Chevrolet 7 7 0 0 49 0 0 0 0 Running
33 38 43 Ryan Ellis Chevrolet 4 4 0 0 45 0 0 0 0 Accident
14 27 39 Ryan Sieg Ford 27 23 4 0 50 0 0 0 7 Running
29 32 91 Kyle Weatherman Chevrolet 8 8 0 0 50 0 0 0 0 Running
15 29 44 Brennan Poole Chevrolet 22 22 0 0 50 0 0 0 0 Running
4 8 00 Cole Custer Ford 42 33 9 0 50 0 0 0 2 Running
31 23 92 Josh Bilicki Chevrolet 11 6 5 0 48 0 0 9 8 Suspension
3 20 20 John Hunter Nemechek Toyota 0 0 0 0 50 0 0 0 0 Running
26 26 35 Alex Labbe Toyota 20 11 9 0 50 0 0 7 6 Running
2 11 21 Austin Hill Chevrolet 40 35 5 0 50 1 1 6 0 Running
16 18 9 Brandon Jones Chevrolet 21 21 0 0 50 1 1 0 0 Running
19 24 51 Jeremy Clements Chevrolet 18 18 0 0 50 0 0 0 0 Running
38 9 11 Josh Williams Chevrolet 1 1 0 0 24 0 0 0 0 Overheating
34 19 98 Riley Herbst Ford 20 3 16 1 45 2 1 5 1 Accident
12 30 5 Anthony Alfredo Chevrolet 25 25 0 0 50 0 0 0 0 Running
28 37 14 RC Enerson Chevrolet 9 9 0 0 50 0 0 0 0 Running
25 33 4 Patrick Gallagher Chevrolet 12 12 0 0 50 0 0 0 0 Running
32 7 18 Sheldon Creed Toyota 5 5 0 0 47 0 0 0 0 Running
24 3 19 Ty Gibbs Toyota 0 0 0 0 50 1 1 0 9 Running
22 36 29 Blaine Perkins Ford 15 15 0 0 50 0 0 0 0 Running
9 10 1 Sam Mayer Chevrolet 28 28 0 0 50 0 0 0 0 Running
17 6 26 Sage Karam Toyota 28 20 8 0 50 0 0 3 0 Running
8 4 81 Chandler Smith Toyota 30 29 1 0 50 0 0 0 10 Running
23 35 15 Hailie Deegan Ford 14 14 0 0 50 0 0 0 0 Running
11 17 31 Parker Retzlaff Chevrolet 33 26 7 0 50 0 0 4 0 Running
18 31 45 Brad Perez Chevrolet 19 19 0 0 50 0 0 0 0 Running
36 13 8 Sammy Smith Chevrolet 10 1 9 0 36 0 0 2 0 Accident
21 22 07 Daniil Kvyat Chevrolet 16 16 0 0 50 0 0 0 0 Running
20 34 42 Leland Honeyman Jr Chevrolet 17 17 0 0 50 0 0 0 0 Running
35 16 24 Ed Jones Toyota 2 2 0 0 42 0 0 0 0 Accident
6 14 2 Jesse Love Chevrolet 31 31 0 0 50 0 0 0 0 Running
27 2 97 Shane van Gisbergen Chevrolet 17 10 7 0 50 20 4 10 5 Running
7 25 32 Austin Green Chevrolet 30 30 0 0 50 0 0 0 0 Running

Race Infractions

Penalties imposed prior to or during the race.

Driver Infraction Penalty Lap Lap Assessed Flag
Anthony Alfredo Pre-Race to the Rear Unapproved Adjustments Tail End 0 0 White
Hailie Deegan Pre-Race to the Rear Unapproved Adjustments Tail End 0 0 White
Kyle Larson Pre-Race to the Rear Unapproved Adjustments Tail End 0 0 White
Sheldon Creed Pre-Race to the Rear Unapproved Adjustments Tail End 0 0 White
Ty Gibbs Pre-Race to the Rear Unapproved Adjustments Tail End 0 0 White
John Hunter Nemechek Pre-Race to the Rear Unapproved Adjustments Tail End 0 0 White
Justin Allgaier Pre-Race to the Rear Unapproved Adjustments Tail End 0 0 White
Daniel Hemric Pre-Race to the Rear Driver Change Tail End 0 0 White
Leland Honeyman Jr Pre-Race to the Rear Inspection Failure Tail End 0 0 White
Leland Honeyman Jr Pre-Race to the Rear Inspection Failure Pass Thru 0 1 White
Leland Honeyman Jr Speeding on pit road Pass Thru 1 2 Green
Ty Dillon Unspecified Short cut course - Turn 4 Pass Thru 2 3 Green
John Hunter Nemechek Unspecified Short cut course - Turn 4 Pass Thru 2 3 Green
Jeremy Clements Unspecified Short cut course - Turn 6 Pass Thru 5 5 Green
Ty Gibbs Unspecified Short cut course - Turn 6 Pass Thru 9 9 Green
Austin Hill Unspecified Short cut course - Turn 3 Pass Thru 11 12 Green
Austin Green Speeding on pit road Tail End 11 17 Green/Yellow
Ed Jones Unspecified Short cut course - Turn 4 Tail End 12 17 Green/Yellow
Ed Jones Pitting before pit road is open Tail End 12 17 Green/Yellow
Austin Green Pitting before pit road is open Tail End 12 17 Green/Yellow
Austin Green Speeding on pit road Tail End 12 17 Green/Yellow
Justin Allgaier Unspecified Short cut course - Turn 4 Tail End 13 17 Green/Yellow
Sam Mayer Unspecified Short cut course - Turn 4 Pass Thru 19 19 Green
Jeremy Clements Unspecified Short cut course - Turn 4 Pass Thru 21 21 Green
Daniel Hemric Unspecified Short cut course - Turn 4 Pass Thru 23 23 Green
Daniel Hemric Speeding on pit road Garage Pass Thru 23 0 Green
Jesse Love Speeding on pit road Tail End 27 34 Green/Yellow
John Hunter Nemechek Speeding on pit road Tail End 27 34 Green/Yellow
Blaine Perkins Speeding on pit road Tail End 27 34 Green/Yellow
Jesse Love Pitting before pit road is open Tail End 28 34 Green/Yellow
Jeremy Clements Unspecified Short cut course - Turn 4 Tail End 28 34 Green/Yellow
Brandon Jones Unspecified Short cut course - Turn 5 Tail End 30 34 Green/Yellow
Justin Allgaier Pitting before pit road is open Tail End 31 34 Yellow
Jeb Burton Pitting before pit road is open Tail End 31 34 Yellow
Jeb Burton Unspecified Short cut course - Turn 6 Pass Thru 36 36 Green
Sammy Smith Speeding on pit road Garage Pass Thru 36 0 Green
AJ Allmendinger Unspecified Short cut course - Turn 6 Tail End 46 48 Green/Yellow
Leland Honeyman Jr Pitting before pit road is open Tail End 46 48 Yellow
Leland Honeyman Jr Crewmember(s) over the wall too soon Tail End 46 48 Yellow
Shane van Gisbergen Unspecified Short cut course - Turn 4 - 30 Second Post Race Penalty Other - See Notes 49 50 Green
RC Enerson Unspecified Short cut course - Turn 4 - 30 Second Post Race Penalty Other - See Notes 50 50 Green