After some rain and snow postponed the NASCAR Xfinity Series Auto Club Speedway race from Saturday to Sunday, John Hunter Nemechek became the last winner on the two-mile circuit – a special moment as his father, Joe Nemechek, won the first NASCAR Cup Series pole in the history of Auto Club Speedway.
His win marked the third of his Xfinity Series career and his second with Joe Gibbs Racing (his first with JGR was in 2021 when he ran select races for the team).
Nemechek is off to a hot start in his first full time season with Joe Gibbs Racing behind the wheel of the No. 20 Toyota. In the season opener at Daytona, he pulled off a runner-up finish and then backed it up by snagging the checkered flag last weekend at Auto Club.
Now he heads to Las Vegas where he’s put up some good stats in the Xfinity Series. In his four starts, he’s posted one top five and two top 10s with a best finish of second in 2019.
If he were to win this weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, it wouldn’t be the first time in his career that he posts back-to-back victories. He first pulled off consecutive wins in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series in 2017 at World Wide Technology Raceway and Iowa Speedway, then again in 2021 with wins at Charlotte Motor Speedway and Texas Motor Speedway.
NASCAR Xfinity Series
Next Race: Alsco Uniforms 300
The Place: Las Vegas Motor Speedway
The Date: Saturday, March 4
The Time: 4:30 p.m. ET
The Purse: $1,716,356
TV: FS1, 3:30 p.m. ET
Radio: PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 300 miles (200 Laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 45),
Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 90), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 200)
The NASCAR Xfinity Series takes on Sin City
To keep the West Coast swing alive, the NASCAR Xfinity Series will be heading to Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the Alsco Uniforms 300 on Saturday, March 4 at 4:30 p.m. ET on FS1, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR radio.
This will be the 32nd NASCAR Xfinity Series race at the Nevada track, producing 22 different race winners and 18 different pole winners. Six races have been won from the pole or first starting position, most recently by Chase Briscoe in 2020.
JR Motorsports’ Justin Allgaier has made his name known at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, currently holding the Xfinity Series records for most top fives (nine), most top 10s (14), most lead lap finishes (15) and most laps completed (3,329).
NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin leads the NASCAR Xfinity Series in wins at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with four (1999, 2005, 2008 and 2011).
Allgaier’s JRM teammate, Josh Berry, is the track’s most recent winner (2022) – his second victory on the 1.5- mile oval.
Berry is not the only previous winner entered in this weekend’s Alsco Uniforms 300. He is also joined by Kyle Busch (2016, 2019), who will be piloting the No. 10 Chevrolet for Kaulig Racing and Tyler Reddick (2019) who will be driving the No. 24 Sam Hunt Racing Toyota.
This weekend’s practice is scheduled for Friday, March 3 at 6:35 p.m. ET followed by qualifying at 7:05 p.m. ET.
Who’s taking home the jackpot?
Although there are three previous winners entered in this weekend’s Xfinity Series race, there could be a different driver who hits the jackpot on Saturday.
Kaulig Racing’s Daniel Hemric has hit the Las Vegas track quite a few times and has put up some good numbers. In his nine starts, he’s posted four top fives and six top 10s. In last season’s March Las Vegas race, he snagged a third-place finish.
JR Motorsports’ Brandon Jones is no stranger to racing in Sin City. He’s made 12 starts, posting two top fives and nine top 10s. In both Las Vegas races last season, he finished within the top-10.
Sunoco Rookie class in full swing
With a top-five finish last weekend at Auto Club, Chandler Smith stays atop the Sunoco Rookie of the Year class with 76 points, putting him in fourth in the overall standings.
Parker Retzlaff slides in behind Chandler Smith with 51 points and currently sits 11th in the overall standings.
Sammy Smith and Blaine Perkins take up the third and fourth place spots in the rookie class, respectively. Smith finished 19th at Auto Club and goes into Vegas with 44 points. Perkins rounds out the class with seven points.
Chandler Smith and Sammy Smith will be making their debuts at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in the Xfinity Series this weekend. Retzlaff and Perkins go into the weekend with one start each – Retzlaff finished in 21st (2022) and Perkins finished 20th in 2021.
NASCAR Xfinity Series, Etc.
Triple duty for Kyle Busch – NASCAR Cup Series star Kyle Busch will be pulling not double, but triple duty this weekend at his home track, Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
He will kick off his weekend behind the wheel of the No. 51 Kyle Busch Motorsports Chevrolet in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. He has made six Truck Series starts at Las Vegas, posting three wins, five top fives and six top 10s.
He will then climb into the No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. In his 15 NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at Las Vegas, he has posted two wins, five top fives and six top 10s.
Busch will close out the weekend in his No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet for his 24th Cup Series start at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. In his previous 23 starts, he’s posted one win (2009), 11 top fives and 14 top 10s.
