DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA – FEBRUARY 15: Jeb Burton, driver of the #8 LS Tractor Chevrolet, prepares to pit during the NASCAR Xfinity Series NASCAR Racing Experience 300 at Daytona International Speedway on February 15, 2020, in Daytona Beach, Florida. Photo by Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Making the first of a handful of starts for the JR Motorsports team Jeb Burton won the first stage of Saturday’s NASCAR Racing Experience 300 Xfinity Series opener at Daytona International Speedway and led a race-best 26 laps only to get tangled in a late-race accident that derailed his shot a career-first victory.
DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA – FEBRUARY 15: Noah Gragson, driver of the #9 Bass Pro Shops/BRCC Chevrolet, poses with the winner’s decal on his car in Victory Lane after winning the NASCAR Xfinity Series NASCAR Racing Experience 300 at Daytona International Speedway on February 15, 2020, in Daytona Beach, Florida. Photo – Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images
NoahGragson gets his long-awaited victory in wild Daytona shootout
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – It was a first for Noah Gragson. It was more of the same for Dale Earnhardt Jr.
When a wreck on the backstretch at Daytona International Speedway ended Saturday’s NASCAR Racing Experience 300, Gragson was in the lead, and when the driver of the No. 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolet crossed the finish line under caution, he claimed his long-awaited first victory in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
HOMESTEAD, FLORIDA – NOVEMBER 16: Daniel Hemric, driver of the #8 myblu Chevrolet, drives during practice for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on November 16, 2019, in Homestead, Florida. Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images
Sunday was bittersweet for Daniel Hemric.
After finishing 12th in his final run in the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet, Hemric was crowned Sunoco Rookie of the Year in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.
Next year, however, Hemric won’t be driving in the Cup series, having been replaced in his RCR ride by two-time NASCAR Xfinity Series champion Tyler Reddick. Hemric will compete in 21 races for JR Motorsports in the Xfinity Series in 2020.
“Yeah, I’m really pumped up starting right to getting to work on that deal,” Hemric said after the Ford EcoBoost 400. “It’s kind of a breath of fresh air knowing I’ve got the opportunity to go back and… having runs like tonight make me go into the offseason knowing I can compete and race at this level.”
Hemric finished 25th in the final standings in his first season at NASCAR’s top level.
“It’s the little things when you have a season like we’ve had that get you over that emotional hump,” he said. “I mean, I passed a seven-time champion (Jimmie Johnson) on the last lap of a 60 lap run at Homestead. Those are little victories you find in the light at the end of the tunnel in years like this.”
HOMESTEAD, FLORIDA – NOVEMBER 16: Tyler Reddick, driver of the #2 Tame the Beast Chevrolet, celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the NASCAR Xfinity Series Ford EcoBoost 300 and the NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship at Homestead-Miami Speedway on November 16, 2019, in Homestead, Florida. Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images
HOMESTEAD, Fla. – With his girlfriend expecting a baby, Tyler Reddick confessed on Thursday that he had practiced changing diapers on a pet cat.
Now, after winning Saturday’s Ford EcoBoost 300 and his second straight NASCAR Xfinity Series championship at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Reddick gets to name the baby.
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA – SEPTEMBER 28: Tyler Reddick, driver of the #2 Emerson Chevrolet, stands on the grid during qualifying for the NASCAR Xfinity Series Drive for the Cure 250 presented by Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina at Charlotte Motor Speedway on September 28, 2019, in Charlotte, North Carolina. Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Richard Childress Racing announced Wednesday that 2018 NASCAR Xfinity Series champion and current Xfinity Series championship contender Tyler Reddick will take over the team’s No. 8 Caterpillar Chevrolet for the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season.