Xfinity teams close out the West Coast swing Saturday at Phoenix Raceway.
This is the 45th Xfinity race at the 1-mile track since 1999. Sammy Smith is the defending spring race winner. Cole Custer won last season’s finale at Phoenix and the championship.
Custer, Smith, Justin Allgaier, Brandon Jones and William Byron are the drivers on the entry list with Xfinity wins at Phoenix. Kyle Busch holds the Xfinity record for Phoenix wins with 11 but will not be in the lineup to pursue his 12th.
Austin Hill remains the only driver with a playoff spot after he won at Daytona and Atlanta. Las Vegas winner John Hunter Nemechek is only running a part-time Xfinity schedule and he will back in the lineup Saturday to pursue his second win in two weeks.
Details for Saturday’s Xfinity race at Phoenix
(All times Eastern)
START: The command to start engines will take place at 4:38 p.m. ... The green flag is scheduled to wave at 4:47 p.m.
PRE-RACE: Driver introductions will take place at 4 p.m. ... Pastor Chad Allen from North Bible Church will give the invocation at 4:30 p.m. ... James Rambo Smith, award-winning gospel performer and United States Army veteran, will perform the national anthem at 4:31 p.m.
DISTANCE: The race is 200 laps (200 miles) on the 1-mile track.
STAGES: Stage 1 ends at Lap 45. Stage 2 ends at Lap 90.
STARTING LINEUP: Phoenix starting lineup
TV/RADIO: FS1 will broadcast the race at 4:30 p.m. ... Pre-race coverage begins with NASCAR RaceDay on FS1 at 3:30 p.m. ... Motor Racing Network coverage begins at 4 p.m. … SiriusXM NASCAR Radio will have the MRN broadcast.
FORECAST: Weather Underground: Mostly sunny skies with a high of 76 degrees and a 5% chance of rain. High of 73 degrees and no chance of rain at the start of the Xfinity race.
LAST TIME: Cole Custer started from the pole and led 38 laps before finishing 12th. Justin Allgaier won the first two stages but finished 36th after a multi-car crash with 21 laps remaining in the race. Rookie Sammy Smith led 92 laps and won his first career Xfinity race. Ryan Truex finished second. Sheldon Creed finished third after recovering from a flat tire and a spin with 51 laps to go. Riley Herbst and Chandler Smith rounded out the top five.