TC Daily Pit Stop: Austin Hill Wins Daytona Xfinity Race, Sam Mayer Flips, Alex Labbe Grabs Ride for Two Races, and More from Saturday at Daytona

TC Daily Pit Stop: Sunday, February 19th, 2023

Joseph Srigley

Feb 19, 2023

PHOTO CREDIT: Craig White, TobyChristie.com

Austin Hill has now won back-to-back races at Daytona International Speedway – and although that may sound severely simplified, the Winston, Georgia-native’s path to his third career victory, was anything but.

After securing another pole for Richard Childress Racing at Daytona, Hill ran into some problems before the race got started when the radio on his No. 21 Chevrolet started throwing static. Pitting to fix the issue, NASCAR sent Hill to the rear for the start.

John Hunter Nemechek was awarded a second-place finish in his return to full-time competition in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, while Justin Allgaier’s dry spell at Daytona endured another close call, coming home third.

Parker Retzlaff was the highest-finishing rookie of the event, coming home in fourth for Jordan Anderson Racing. Myatt Snider, running a partial schedule for Joe Gibbs Racing completed the top five.

Riley Herbst, Joe Graf, Jr., Ryan Sieg, Cole Custer, and Justin Haley rounded out the top-10 finishers in the event.

RACE RESULTS

DRIVER STANDINGS

OWNER STANDINGS

Video: Sam Mayer Goes Upside Down from Lead on Final Lap of Xfinity Race at Daytona

When competing at any level at Daytona International Speedway, things can change in an instant. The final lap of Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series event is a perfect example of just that.

Sam Mayer, who was running in the runner-up position as the field took the final lap, was making his potentially race-winning move in turn two, getting around his JR Motorsports teammate Justin Allgaier.

However, within the next 10 seconds, the Franklin, Wisconsin native found himself upside down on the back straightaway, as a result of getting hooked in the right rear by eventual race-winner Austin Hill.

Luckily for Mayer, despite getting turned in front of the pack, was able to avoid getting hit by oncoming traffic at full speed, but collected multiple other cars, including Anthony Alfredo, Parker Kligerman, and Jade Buford.

Greg Van Alst Makes Last-Lap Pass to Capture Emotional First ARCA Victory at Daytona

PHOTO CREDIT: Craig White, TobyChristie.com

After a long off-season, the 2023 ARCA Menards Series has gotten underway with a bang at Daytona International Speedway, in one of the series’ most exciting superspeedway races in many years.

Greg Van Alst, a journeyman driver who came to the series’ annual pre-season test at Daytona in January without sponsorship, has parked his No. 35 Chevrolet SS in victory lane at the 2.5-mile superspeedway.

The 41-year-old driver was able to make an incredible move on the final lap of Saturday’s BRANDT 200, shooting to the outside of then-race-leader Jason White to make the final pass for the lead exiting the final corner.

Van Alst, who returned to the ARCA Menards Series two seasons ago after nearly two decades away from the series, was able to edge out Connor Mosack, who led a race-high 25 laps, back to the start-finish line, to capture an emotional first career victory.

Alex Labbe to Run No. 28 Entry for RSS Racing at Auto Club and Las Vegas

PHOTO CREDIT: Toby Christie, TobyChristie.com

After attempting the season-opening NASCAR Xfinity Series event for DGM Racing, Alex Labbé is planning to attempt the series’ next two events for RSS Racing, piloting the No. 28 Ford Mustang.

“Yeah, we’re running the No. 28 for RSS,” Labbe confirmed to TobyChristie.com. “We’ll replace Joe Graf Jr. in the No. 28. It should be fun. It’s the first time for me driving for another organization then DGM Racing. Can’t wait to see how it’s going to make out.”

According to Labbe, he will run next week’s race at Auto Club Speedway and the following event at Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the organization. And if all goes well, Labbe hopes to slide into the No. 28 RSS entry for a few more starts later in the season.

“California and Vegas, that’s what we’re planning on because Joe has what, five starts with Joe Gibbs? He has 28 with RSS. So, I’ll see later on — I guess we’ll see how it goes out West. I’d love to drive for them later on. We’ll see how it goes,” Labbe said.

11:00 AM ET: NASCAR RaceDay (Pre-Race Show): FS1
1:00 PM ET: NASCAR RaceDay (Pre-Race Show): FOX
2:30 PM ET: NASCAR Cup Series Daytona 500: FOX

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A guest post by

Joseph Srigley

Managing Editor of TobyChristie.com | Founder of Srigley Stats