The start of the NASCAR Xfinity Series got off to a hot and controversial start Saturday night when Austin Hill brought home the checkered flag on a crash-filled final lap of the Beef. It’s what’s for dinner. 300 at the Daytona International Speedway.
Sam Mayer had taken the lead on the final lap of extra time, but his aggressiveness cost him. He spun around, went flying, and flipped onto his roof, causing sparks to fly around several other drivers who were spinning and colliding with each other.
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Because Mayer was leading at the time of the accident, NASCAR had to determine who was in front once the caution flag fell. Hill was determined to be out front and took the win with John Hunter Nemechek finishing in second place. Justin Allgaier was placed in third place.
«As soon as the caution lights came on, I thought I had it, but it was very close,» Hill said, via NASCAR.com. «To be racing back-to-back here at Daytona, it’s really special. That’s three wins for me now, two at Xfinity, one in the truck here. We came from behind two different times.»
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«I hope everyone enjoyed it. It was great. I had a lot of fun. We won at Daytona! Let’s go!»
Mayer has been released from the NASCAR Infield Medical Center.
It’s a saving grace for Hill as he tried to qualify for the Daytona 500. He missed it because he got caught up in a late-night accident.
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Hill won the Xfinity race at Daytona last year. He won the truck race in 2019.
Associated Press contributed to this report.