The NASCAR Xfinity Series began the Round of 8 playoffs Saturday night from Kansas Speedway in the Kansas Lottery 300. The “Choose Cone Rule” returned for this race. Noah Gragson won the pole by a metric qualifying system along with Austin Cindric starting in second in the front row. Behind them were Daniel Hemric starting in third, and Ross Chastain in fourth. No cars went to the rear of the field.
#NASCARPlayoffs action from America's heartland is now GREEN! Find the action on NBCSN and https://t.co/593lUVrknA! #KSL300 pic.twitter.com/Ax6n3jjPjJ — NASCAR Xfinity (@NASCAR_Xfinity) October 17, 2020
Ten laps into the race, Matt Mills got sideways at turn two to bring out the first caution. The race restarted on lap 15, and on the same lap, Ross Chastain went four-wide to the lead when Austin Cindric got loose and made contact with Noah Gragson to bring out the second caution.
#NASCARPlayoffs contenders come together early!@NoahGragson and @AustinCindric collide causing extensive damage to both cars. pic.twitter.com/i4UHFQfoiD — NASCAR Xfinity (@NASCAR_Xfinity) October 17, 2020
During the caution, both Cindric and Gragson were on pit road for repairs. Ross Chastain chose the outside lane, and Brandon Jones was inside for the restart on lap 20. Gragson attempted to get back into the race but was ruled out under the damage vehicle policy and finished in last place. The restart lasted five laps before the competition caution came out on lap 26. Cindric got the free pass and was now three-laps down.
During the caution, the leaders stayed out while Cindric took his car to the garage. Ross Chastain was the leader and chose the outside lane with Brandon Jones went inside for the restart on lap 30. Chase Briscoe passed Chastain on the inside of turn three for the lead. Briscoe led the last fifteen laps to win stage one. During the caution, the leaders went to pit road for service, with Briscoe coming out first, followed by Burton. Briscoe chose the outside lane with Burton inside to start stage two on lap 52.
Stage 2 is underway as @JEarnhardt1 goes around! Catch all of the action on NBCSN and https://t.co/593lUVrknA! pic.twitter.com/xKRNzU6lKK — NASCAR Xfinity (@NASCAR_Xfinity) October 17, 2020
On the same lap, Chastain passed Burton for second place. After getting hit from behind by Joe Graft, Jr., Jeffrey Earnhardt spun to bring out the fifth caution. Briscoe once again chose the outside lane with Chastain inside for the restart on lap 57. Briscoe led the last 34 laps to win stage two. During the caution, the leaders came to pit road with Briscoe coming out first, followed by Brandon Jones. Briscoe chose the outside lane while Jones went inside to start the final stage on lap 97.
The final stage is green! Can @BrandonJonesRac beat stage one and two winner @ChaseBriscoe5? pic.twitter.com/FqowKagQA4 — NASCAR Xfinity (@NASCAR_Xfinity) October 18, 2020
Forty-seven laps into the final stage, teams began to make their scheduled pit stops, with Hemric, Chastain, and Haley the first to pit. Briscoe and Jones pitted four laps later. Ryan Sieg was the only car not to pit when Josh Reaume spun at turn four to bring out the caution for the seventh time. During the caution, Sieg, Moffitt, Haley, and Annett came to pit road. The race was set to resume on lap 161, but Joe Graf, Jr. had smoke coming from his car, keeping the race under yellow for three more laps. Briscoe chose the outside lane with Brandon Jones inside for the restart on lap 164.
Is this a #NASCARPlayoffs defining moment? 👀@RyanSiegRacing gets a timely caution while gambling on pit strategy! pic.twitter.com/jMgiDpyVjM — NASCAR Xfinity (@NASCAR_Xfinity) October 18, 2020
Four laps into the restart, Anthony Alfredo got loose and slid up the track making contact with Ross Chastain. Harrison Burton had spun to avoid the wreck, which brought out the eighth caution of the night. During the caution, most of the leaders stayed out, including Ryan Sieg. Chase Briscoe, Brandon Jones, and four others came to pit road. Ryan Sieg was the new leader and chose the outside lane with Justin Haley on the inside for the restart on lap 173.
CAUTION: @RossChastain suffers damage after contact from @anthonyalfredo, which also caused a @HBurtonRacing spin. pic.twitter.com/MunrJ0cdLe — NASCAR Xfinity (@NASCAR_Xfinity) October 18, 2020
A scary incident occurred on the restart. Justin Allgaier clipped Anthony Alfredo and sent him hard into the outside wall of turn one. He flipped upside down and slid along the wall as other cars scampered, trying to avoid the wreck. Six vehicles were involved in the crash, and the race quickly went to a red flag. Track crews were able to flip Alfredo’s car, and he climbed out of the car and gave two thumbs up. The red flag lasted over twelve minutes. Brandon Jones and three others went to pit road during the caution.
Take a look at the incident that brought out the red flag during the final stage at @kansasspeedway.@anthonyalfredo exited the vehicle under his own power. pic.twitter.com/pUk4FmN0WU — NASCAR Xfinity (@NASCAR_Xfinity) October 18, 2020
Ryan Sieg chose the outside lane with Justin Haley inside for the restart on lap 178. A lap into the restart, Briscoe went back into the lead. A spin by Myatt Snider brought out the caution again for the tenth time. During the caution, Sieg and five others came to pit road. Chase Briscoe chose the outside lane while Justin Haley took the inside for the restart with four laps left.
Briscoe led the last 18 laps to win his ninth race of the season by 1.199 seconds over Daniel Hemric and advances to the final four playoffs in Phoenix. Briscoe is now one win behind Sam Ard for the most wins in Xfinity Series history. Ard won ten races and the championship in 1983.
CHECKERED FLAG: @ChaseBriscoe5 wins the #KSL300 at @kansasspeedway! The win has guaranteed his spot in the championship race at @phoenixraceway! pic.twitter.com/ogOLc6WX0g — NASCAR Xfinity (@NASCAR_Xfinity) October 18, 2020
The rest of the top ten finishers were Ryan Sieg third, Justin Haley fourth, Austin Hill fifth, Josh Williams sixth, Brett Moffitt seventh, Michael Annett eighth, Brandon Jones ninth, and Justin Allgaier tenth. There were ten cautions for 46 laps and ten lead changes.
The Round of 8 playoff standings is Chase Briscoe first (ADV), Justin Allgaier second (+11), Brandon Jones third (+9), and Austin Cindric fourth (+2). Outside looking in are Justin Haley fifth (-2), Ross Chastain sixth (-12), Ryan Sieg seventh (-19), and Noah Gragson eighth (-33). The Xfinity Series will head to Texas Motor Speedway for race two of the Round of 8 playoffs in the O’Reilly Auto Parts 300 next Saturday, October 24th, at 4:30 pm on NBCSN.
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