Hattori Racing Enterprises’ Austin Hill rebounded last Friday night at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, using a final restart in the World of Westgate 200 to earn his first Playoff win of 2020. Hill started 11th and after a rough weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway prior, his eyes were on a win in Sin City.
Hill won this race last season, too, so he had that momentum on his side. Hill bested Sheldon Creed, who led a race-best 89 of 134 laps but ended up finishing runner-up.
Tanner Gray had a career night, finishing third, followed by Stewart Friesen and Chandler Smith. Playoff drivers Grant Enfinger, Zane Smith, Christian Eckes, Matt Crafton and Tyler Ankrum rounded out the top 10.
As far as the rest of the Playoff contenders go, Todd Gilliland finished 13th, Brett Moffitt was 15th and Ben Rhodes finished 23rd.
The Chevrolet Silverado 250 on Saturday (1 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) will be the final Round of 10 race, giving drivers one last chance to clinch their spot in the next round.
Saturday’s race will be 250.04 miles and 94 laps with Stage 1 ending on Lap 20 and Stage 2 ending on Lap 40.
Creed will lead the field to green with Hill joining him on the front row.
Clinch scenarios: ‘Dega drama
With Talladega as this season’s Round of 10 cutoff race, only Austin Hill has officially clinched a spot in the Round of 8 in the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series Playoffs with his win last weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Keep in mind, non-Playoff driver Sam Mayer took the checkered in Bristol as a result seven spots are still available.
Can clinch via Points
If there is a new winner, the following drivers could clinch by being ahead of the seventh winless driver in the standings
- Sheldon Creed: Would clinch with 10 points
- Brett Moffitt: Would clinch with 18 points
- Zane Smith: Would clinch with 23 points
- Grant Enfinger: Would clinch with 31 points
- Tyler Ankrum and Matt Crafton: Would clinch with 47 points
- Christian Eckes, Ben Rhodes and Todd Gilliland: Could only clinch with help
If there is a repeat winner, the following drivers could clinch by being ahead of the eighth winless driver in the standings. They would also clinch if there was a new winner among Sheldon Creed, Brett Moffitt, Zane Smith, Grant Enfinger, Tyler Ankrum, Matt Crafton or Christian Eckes and being ahead of the seventh winless driver in the standings.
- Sheldon Creed: Would clinch with three points
- Brett Moffitt: Would clinch with 12 points
- Zane Smith: Would clinch with 17 points
- Grant Enfinger: Would clinch with 25 points
- Tyler Ankrum and Matt Crafton: Would clinch with 41 points
- Christian Eckes: Would clinch with 50 points
- Ben Rhodes and Todd Gilliland: Could only clinch with help
Can clinch via Win
The following drivers would clinch on their win alone.
- Sheldon Creed, Brett Moffitt, Zane Smith, Grant Enfinger, Tyler Ankrum, Matt Crafton, Christian Eckes, Ben Rhodes and Todd Gilliland
NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series Playoff Outlook following Las Vegas:
| Rank | Driver | Points | Race Wins | Stage Wins | Playoff Pts | Pts from Cutoff |
| 1 | Austin Hill | 2,076 | 2 | 2 | 27 | In On Wins |
| 2 | Sheldon Creed | 2,115 | 3 | 7 | 28 | 52 |
| 3 | Brett Moffitt | 2,107 | 0 | 6 | 16 | 44 |
| 4 | Zane Smith # | 2,102 | 2 | 5 | 22 | 39 |
| 5 | Grant Enfinger | 2,094 | 3 | 1 | 19 | 31 |
| 6 | Tyler Ankrum | 2,078 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 15 |
| 7 | Matt Crafton | 2,078 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 15 |
| 8 | Christian Eckes # | 2,069 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 6 |
| 9 | Ben Rhodes | 2,063 | 1 | 1 | 14 | -6 |
| 10 | Todd Gilliland | 2,050 | 0 | 2 | 3 | -19 |
