{"id":36779,"date":"2021-10-30T20:45:48","date_gmt":"2021-10-31T01:45:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/?p=36779"},"modified":"2021-11-08T19:03:48","modified_gmt":"2021-11-09T01:03:48","slug":"noah-gragson-snags-championship-4-spot-with-dramatic-martinsville-victory","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/2021\/10\/30\/noah-gragson-snags-championship-4-spot-with-dramatic-martinsville-victory\/","title":{"rendered":"Noah Gragson snags Championship 4 spot with dramatic Martinsville victory"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

Noah Gragson, driver of the #9 Bass Pro Shops\/TrueTimber\/BRCC Chevrolet, celebrates in the Ruoff Mortgage victory lane after winning the NASCAR Xfinity Series Dead on Tools 250 at Martinsville Speedway on October 30, 2021 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Photo by Logan Riely\/Getty Images)<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service<\/em><\/p>\n

MARTINSVILLE, Va. \u2013 To get to the Championship 4, you have to drive like a champion.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Noah Gragson, driver of the #9 Bass Pro Shops\/TrueTimber\/BRCC Chevrolet, drives during the NASCAR Xfinity Series Dead on Tools 250 at Martinsville Speedway on October 30, 2021 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Photo by Logan Riely\/Getty Images)<\/p><\/div>\n

That\u2019s what Noah Gragson did on Saturday night in the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoff race Dead On Tools 250 at Martinsville Speedway.<\/p>\n

Faced with the necessity of winning the race to keep his NASCAR Xfinity Series title hopes alive, Gragson did just that, pulling off a dramatic pass of Daniel Hemric from the outside lane in the first attempt at overtime and holding off series leader Austin Cindric in the second extra period.<\/p>\n

With Cindric\u2019s Ford to his inside, Gragson won a drag race off Turn 4 to the finish line by .064 seconds, the closest Xfinity Series finish ever at Martinsville Speedway.<\/p>\n

Gragson, who led a race-high 153 of 207 laps, got the lead after a restart on Lap 201, when he spun then-race-leader Ty Gibbs in a chain-reaction collision in Turn 4. After surrendering the top spot to Hemric on Lap 232, Gragson took advantage of a Lap 243 caution to regain the lead on the first overtime restart.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Noah Gragson, driver of the #9 Bass Pro Shops\/TrueTimber\/BRCC Chevrolet, celebrates with a burnout after winning the NASCAR Xfinity Series Dead on Tools 250 at Martinsville Speedway on October 30, 2021 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Photo by Brian Lawdermilk\/Getty Images)<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cThis team, this Bass Pro Shops team,\u201d said Gragson, who won for the third time this season and the fifth time in his career. \u201cIt\u2019s been a rough, rough season. We had a couple of wins there, at Darlington and Richmond. After that deal last weekend (crashing out in 35th place at Kansas), I was pretty fired up. I told my guys we still have an opportunity. We\u2019re still in it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m just so thankful. It\u2019s just such an awesome opportunity. My second win here at Martinsville (his first came in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series). Get to take home another clock\u2026This team is unbelievable. How about these badass fans out here?<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter the contact with the 54 (Gibbs)\u2014I didn\u2019t mean to get into him, I got hit in the back by the 22 (Cindric)\u2014it was just a bad deal.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Noah Gragson, driver of the #9 Bass Pro Shops\/TrueTimber\/BRCC Chevrolet, and crew pose for photos in the Ruoff Mortgage victory lane after winning the NASCAR Xfinity Series Dead on Tools 250 at Martinsville Speedway on October 30, 2021 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Photo by Logan Riely\/Getty Images)<\/p><\/div>\n

Gragson\u2019s victory was bittersweet for JR Motorsports. Though Gragson clinched a spot in next Saturday\u2019s Championship 4 race at Phoenix, his victory simultaneously eliminated teammate Justin Allgaier, ending a string of three straight appearances in the final four.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe played the safe strategy,\u201d said Allgaier, who finished fifth and would have advanced if Cindric or Hemric had won the race. \u201cWe talked about it before the race and thought that was the smart strategy\u2026 Hats off to the 9 guys\u2014same shop\u2014so at least we\u2019ve got one car going to the Playoff.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hemric came home third to earn the final Championship 4 berth by six points over Allgaier. Regular Season Champion AJ Allmendinger ran seventh, qualified on points and will race against defending series champion Cindric, Gragson and Hemric for the title.<\/p>\n

Eliminated from the Playoff along with Allgaier were Brandon Jones (sixth), Harrison Burton (who suffered damage in a wreck with Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Gibbs and finished 20th), and Justin Haley (who fell out of the race with brake problems after completing 222 laps).<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

A general view of racing as the sun sets during the NASCAR Xfinity Series Dead on Tools 250 at Martinsville Speedway on October 30, 2021 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Photo by Brian Lawdermilk\/Getty Images)<\/p><\/div>\n

Burton\u2019s waterloo came in the same Lap 201 incident when Gragson inadvertently turned Gibbs. With no way to avoid his teammate, Burton ran into Gibbs\u2019s Toyota and severely damaged the nose and front-left quarter panel of his Supra.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had a winning car today,\u201d Burton said. \u201cJust so many things have to go right in racing to win that it makes it challenging to do on the drop of a dime. We just had a couple things go wrong. It\u2019s just a bummer deal that we didn\u2019t get to show our speed at the end.<\/p>\n

\u201cWish we could have won this thing. I felt like we were definitely capable of it. Our times were better than the 9 (Gragson) and he won. We just needed to show it.\u201d <\/p>\n

Interviews:<\/h3>\n

NASCAR Xfinity Series Post-Race: Championship 4 drivers AJ Allmendinger (No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet), Austin Cindric (No. 22 Team Penske Ford), Daniel Hemric (No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota), race winner and Championship 4 driver Noah Gragson (No. 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolet)<\/p>\nhttp:\/\/racedaysa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/MEDIACENTER2MAR230OCT2021NXSaudio.mp3<\/a><\/audio>\n

 <\/p>\n

NASCAR Xfinity Series Race – 2nd Annual Dead On Tools 250<\/b><\/p>\n

Martinsville Speedway<\/b><\/p>\n

Martinsville, Virginia<\/b><\/p>\n

Saturday, October 30, 2021<\/b><\/p>\n

               1. (9)  Noah Gragson (P), Chevrolet, 257.<\/p>\n

               2. (1)  Austin Cindric (P), Ford, 257.<\/p>\n

               3. (7)  Daniel Hemric (P), Toyota, 257.<\/p>\n

               4. (11)  Sam Mayer #, Chevrolet, 257.<\/p>\n

               5. (5)  Justin Allgaier (P), Chevrolet, 257.<\/p>\n

               6. (8)  Brandon Jones (P), Toyota, 257.<\/p>\n

               7. (3)  AJ Allmendinger (P), Chevrolet, 257.<\/p>\n

               8. (25)  Alex Labbe, Chevrolet, 257.<\/p>\n

               9. (18)  Jeremy Clements, Chevrolet, 257.<\/p>\n

               10. (16)  Riley Herbst, Ford, 257.<\/p>\n

               11. (22)  Josh Williams, Chevrolet, 257.<\/p>\n

               12. (23)  Landon Cassill, Chevrolet, 257.<\/p>\n

               13. (12)  Myatt Snider, Chevrolet, 257.<\/p>\n

               14. (30)  Colin Garrett, Toyota, 257.<\/p>\n

               15. (32)  Joe Graf Jr., Chevrolet, 257.<\/p>\n

               16. (28)  JJ Yeley, Chevrolet, 257.<\/p>\n

               17. (31)  Jade Buford #, Chevrolet, 257.<\/p>\n

               18. (38)  Preston Pardus, Chevrolet, 257.<\/p>\n

               19. (13)  Brett Moffitt, Chevrolet, 257.<\/p>\n

               20. (10)  Harrison Burton (P), Toyota, 257.<\/p>\n

               21. (37)  Stephen Leicht, Toyota, 257.<\/p>\n

               22. (27)  Jeffrey Earnhardt, Chevrolet, 257.<\/p>\n

               23. (34)  Ryan Ellis, Chevrolet, 257.<\/p>\n

               24. (36)  David Starr, Toyota, 257.<\/p>\n

               25. (26)  Natalie Decker, Chevrolet, 257.<\/p>\n

               26. (33)  Akinori Ogata(i), Toyota, 257.<\/p>\n

               27. (2)  Ty Gibbs #, Toyota, 257.<\/p>\n

               28. (29)  Josh Berry #, Chevrolet, 256.<\/p>\n

               29. (35)  Matt Mills, Chevrolet, 255.<\/p>\n

               30. (39)  Spencer Boyd(i), Chevrolet, 254.<\/p>\n

               31. (14)  Ryan Sieg, Ford, 253.<\/p>\n

               32. (21)  Ryan Vargas #, Chevrolet, 249.<\/p>\n

               33. (4)  Justin Haley (P), Chevrolet, Brakes, 222.<\/p>\n

               34. (24)  Kyle Weatherman, Chevrolet, 221.<\/p>\n

               35. (20)  Bayley Currey(i), Chevrolet, 212.<\/p>\n

               36. (17)  Brandon Brown, Chevrolet, Accident, 204.<\/p>\n

               37. (15)  Jeb Burton, Chevrolet, Accident, 194.<\/p>\n

               38. (6)  Michael Annett, Chevrolet, Accident, 192.<\/p>\n

               39. (40)  Mike Harmon, Chevrolet, Overheating, 38.<\/p>\n

               40. (19)  Tommy Joe Martins, Chevrolet, Rear Gear, 36.<\/p>\n

Average Speed of Race Winner:  62.01 mph.<\/p>\n

Time of Race:  2 Hrs, 10 Mins, 48 Secs. Margin of Victory:  0.064 Seconds.<\/p>\n

Caution Flags:  13 for 75 laps.<\/p>\n

Lead Changes:  13 among 6 drivers.<\/p>\n

Lap Leaders:   A. Cindric (P) 1-64;N. Gragson (P) 65-124;H. Burton (P) 125;N. Gragson (P) 126-130;H. Burton (P) 131;N. Gragson (P) 132-179;T. Gibbs # 180;S. Boyd(i) 181-184;T. Gibbs # 185-191;N. Gragson (P) 192;T. Gibbs # 193-200;N. Gragson (P) 201-231;D. Hemric (P) 232-249;N. Gragson (P) 250-257.<\/p>\n

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led):  Noah Gragson (P) 6 times for 153 laps; Austin Cindric (P) 1 time for 64 laps; Daniel Hemric (P) 1 time for 18 laps; Ty Gibbs # 3 times for 16 laps; Spencer Boyd(i) 1 time for 4 laps; Harrison Burton (P) 2 times for 2 laps.<\/p>\n

Stage #1 Top Ten: 22,18,7,16,31,39,9,1,17,02<\/p>\n

Stage #2 Top Ten: 9,20,54,10,22,18,16,98,51,2<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service MARTINSVILLE, Va. \u2013 To get to the Championship 4, you have to drive like a champion. That\u2019s what Noah Gragson did on Saturday night in the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoff race Dead On Tools 250 at Martinsville Speedway. Faced with the necessity of winning the race to keep […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":676,"featured_media":36782,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[11],"tags":[407,16,181,511],"class_list":["post-36779","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nascar","tag-martinsville-speedway","tag-nascar","tag-nascar-xfinity-series","tag-noah-gragson"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racedaysa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/GettyImages-1350333194-scaled-e1636419412761.jpg?fit=640%2C427&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7hzTZ-9zd","jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36779","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/676"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36779"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36779\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":36788,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36779\/revisions\/36788"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36782"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36779"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36779"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36779"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}