After dancing with the Lady in Black last weekend, the NASCAR Xfinity Series heads to its second drafting track race in three weeks at Atlanta Motor Speedway for the Focused Health 250 on Saturday, September 7 at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network, the NBC Sports App, PRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
The 1.54-mile track will be hosting its sixth race since its reconfiguration in 2022. Since then, Atlanta has produced five different pole winners but just three different race winners, none of which came from the first starting position.
Superspeedway ace Austin Hill has won half of the Xfinity races at Atlanta over the last three seasons, capturing the checkered flag at least once in 2022, 2023, and 2024.
Across the track’s entire history, Kevin Harvick reigns supreme on the grounds of Hampton, GA. He holds the record for the most wins (five), most top fives (11), most top 10s (13), laps led (973), and race record speed (149.813 mph on 2/28/2015).
Kyle Busch holds the record for the most pole awards won at Atlanta with six, while Greg Biffle recorded the fastest qualifying lap in track history with a speed of 192.300 mph on Oct. 25, 2003.
As per standard superspeedway race procedures, drivers will not have any practice and will make their first laps during qualifying at 11 a.m. ET on Saturday, September 7.
Can anyone dethrone RCR’s Austin Hill at Atlanta?
Since moving to the drafting track configuration in 2022, Richard Childress Racing’s Austin Hill has won three of the five races at his home track of Atlanta Motor Speedway. And with the other two winners not being on the entry list (NASCAR Cup Series regulars Ty Gibbs and John Hunter Nemechek), this opens a door for a brand-new winner at the track if Hill is unable to repeat his result from February.
Hill’s teammate Jesse Love put on a show in his last outing in Atlanta. In his first visit to the track and his second weekend running in the Xfinity Series, Love earned the pole and led 157 of the 169 total laps ran in the race before running out of fuel at the end. He’ll want to return with a result more indicative of his performance and will most certainly be fast once again alongside his dominant running mate.
Statistically, the driver most poised to knock Hill out of Victory Lane this weekend would be Stewart Haas Racing’s Riley Herbst. The pilot of the No. 98 Ford Mustang is only second to Hill as it pertains to points accumulated at the track over the last five races. This is mightily impressive when considering Herbst acquired a DNF in one of those races and still has garnered more points than any other fulltime Xfinity series driver below him. Add in two top fives and three top 10s in that span, Herbst could be in the mix to cash in another win on the season.
It seems it’s only a matter of time before JGR’s Sheldon Creed grabs that elusive checkered flag. And with the third most points acquired and having led 55 laps in the last five races at Atlanta, it certainly wouldn’t be out of the question for it to happen this weekend. Acquiring another top-five finish at Darlington after leading the race prior to a late-race caution, Creed’s appetite for a win could not be any higher than it is heading into Saturday’s event. A fourth-place finish in the spring is certainly a result to be confident toward building off of, and he’ll look to do just that to reach Victory Lane by the end of 250 miles.
Creed’s teammate and the most recent winner at a superspeedway, Ryan Truex, could play spoiler once again and grab his third win of the season on a part-time schedule. Aside from Austin Hill and Riley Herbst, Truex has more top fives at Atlanta since its configuration than any other fulltime Xfinity Series driver (two) with just three starts. And with an average finish of 5.0, no other driver in the field holds a better value in that regard than the three-time winner in the field Hill (3.4)
Xfinity Series Playoff outlook following Darlington
With NASCAR Cup Series star Christopher Bell earning the win for Joe Gibbs Racing in last weekend’s race at Darlington, four spots still remain for the taking in the NASCAR Xfinity Playoff with only three races left in the regular season.
Eight drivers have secured their spot in the Playoff grid by virtue of wins, including Shane van Gisbergen, Justin Allgaier, Chandler Smith, Austin Hill, Sam Mayer, Cole Custer, Jesse Love, and Riley Herbst.
Currently, Sheldon Creed (+109), AJ Allmendinger (+105), Parker Kligerman (+44), and Sammy Smith (+10) occupy the final four spots that would place them into the Playoffs based on points accumulated over the season.
Ryan Sieg (-10), Brandon Jones (-132), and Anthony Alfredo (-149) stand as the first three drivers out of the Playoff picture, with the latter two likely needing a win in order to clinch a berth in the postseason.
Here is the Playoff picture heading into Atlanta:
| Rank | Driver | Vehicle | Points | Race Wins | Stage Wins | Playoff Pts | +/- Cutoff |
| 1 | Shane Van Gisbergen # | 97 | 562 | 3 | 2 | 17 | In On Wins |
| 2 | Justin Allgaier | 7 | 843 | 2 | 13 | 23 | |
| 3 | Chandler Smith | 81 | 761 | 2 | 5 | 15 | |
| 4 | Austin Hill | 21 | 745 | 2 | 3 | 13 | |
| 5 | Sam Mayer | 1 | 536 | 2 | 1 | 11 | |
| 6 | Cole Custer | 0 | 815 | 1 | 3 | 8 | |
| 7 | Riley Herbst | 98 | 667 | 1 | 2 | 7 | |
| 8 | Jesse Love # | 2 | 651 | 1 | 4 | 9 | |
| 9 | Sheldon Creed | 18 | 704 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 109 |
| 10 | AJ Allmendinger | 16 | 700 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 105 |
| 11 | Parker Kligerman | 48 | 639 | 0 | 1 | -4 | 44 |
| 12 | Sammy Smith | 8 | 605 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 13 | Ryan Sieg | 39 | 595 | 0 | 2 | 2 | -10 |
| 14 | Brandon Jones | 9 | 473 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -132 |
| 15 | Anthony Alfredo | 5 | 456 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -149 |
| 16 | Brennan Poole | 44 | 395 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -210 |
| 17 | Josh Williams | 11 | 375 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -230 |
| 18 | Leland Honeyman # | 42 | 344 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -261 |
| 19 | Parker Retzlaff | 31 | 338 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -267 |
| 20 | Jeb Burton | 27 | 335 | 0 | 0 | -5 | -270 |
| 21 | Jeremy Clements | 51 | 313 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -292 |
| 22 | Kyle Weatherman | 91 | 299 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -306 |
| 23 | Ryan Ellis | 43 | 292 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -313 |
| 24 | Blaine Perkins | 29 | 243 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -362 |
Xfinity Series Clinch Scenarios: Atlanta Motor Speedway
Here the Playoff clinch scenarios for the NASCAR Xfinity Series at Atlanta Motor Speedway:
Already Clinched
The following 8 drivers have clinched a spot in the 12-driver postseason field: Justin Allgaier, Cole Custer, Chandler Smith, Austin Hill, Riley Herbst, Jesse Love, Shane Van Gisbergen, Sam Mayer.
Can Clinch Via Points
If there is a repeat winner or a win by a driver who cannot advance to the playoffs, the following drivers could clinch by being 111 points above the 3rd winless driver in the standings. The same point requirements listed below would hold true if a new win comes from among Sheldon Creed or AJ Allmendinger.
- Sheldon Creed: Could only clinch with help
- AJ Allmendinger: Could only clinch with help
Can Clinch Via Win
The following drivers would clinch on their win alone:
- Sheldon Creed, AJ Allmendinger, Parker Kligerman, Sammy Smith, Ryan Sieg, Brandon Jones, Anthony Alfredo, Brennan Poole, Josh Williams, Leland Honeyman, Parker Retzlaff, Jeb Burton, Jeremy Clements, Kyle Weatherman, Ryan Ellis, Blaine Perkins
NASCAR Xfinity Series, Etc.
Brandon Jones to move to Joe Gibbs Racing full-time in 2025 – Brandon Jones will return to Joe Gibbs Racing in a multi-year agreement to drive for their Xfinity Series team beginning in 2025. Jones is no stranger to Joe Gibbs Racing or Toyota Racing after being a part of the team from 2018-2022.
Jones enjoyed a successful five-year run with Joe Gibbs Racing and Toyota that included Xfinity Series wins at Darlington Raceway, Kansas Speedway, Martinsville Speedway, and Phoenix Raceway. He qualified for the Playoffs all five years he was with JGR’s Xfinity Series program and finished a career-best sixth in the overall standings in 2020 on the strength of a three-win season.
The Atlanta native has won while driving a Toyota in multiple series. Jones scored three ARCA Menards Series wins and an ARCA Menards Series East victory driving for JGR. He also earned his first NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series win driving a Toyota Tundra at Pocono Raceway in 2020.
NASCAR PR
