NASCAR Xfinity Series: 2018 Coca-Cola Firecracker 250 results – Kyle Larson wins a shootout
By Asher Fair
Kyle Larson may have crossed the finish line in second place, but he earned his third victory of the 2018 NASCAR Xfinity Series season at Daytona International Speedway.
Full-time NASCAR Cup Series driver Kyle Larson entered the 2018 Coca-Cola Firecracker 250 having earned two victories in three Xfinity Series races so far this season driving the #42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet.
Despite the fact that he crossed the finish line in second place and was not ruled the race winner right when the race ended, Larson, who started the race in seventh, made it three for four by winning the Coca-Cola Firecracker 250 at the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida.
Coming to the checkered flag, Larson and JR Motorsports’ Elliott Sadler were battling and rubbing for the lead when GMS Racing’s Justin Haley made a bold move to the inside and cleared them both before taking the checkered flag…and supposedly winning the race.
Here is a video of the thrilling finish of the race.
HEARTBREAK FOR JUSTIN HALEY. Kyle Larson WINS in Daytona as NASCAR rules the No. 24 car went below the yellow line.
Posted by NASCAR on FOX on Friday, July 6, 2018
Haley won the 105-lap race, which was scheduled to be a 100-lap race but went into overtime, by 0.111 seconds over Larson in second place. However, after he did so, NASCAR ruled that the pass he made on Larson and Sadler was illegal because he went below the double yellow line to do it.
As a result, Larson was ruled the official race winner over Sadler, who finished just 0.005 seconds behind in second place in his #1 Chevrolet. Because he was penalized for his illegal pass, Haley had to settle for 18th.
While the finish of this race may be deemed controversial by a sizable chunk of NASCAR’s fanbase, especially those who don’t like full-time Cup Series drivers racing in Xfinity Series races, a rule is a rule and NASCAR had no choice but to enforce it. Haley can only learn from this small yet huge mistake and move forward.
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Joe Gibbs Racing’s Christopher Bell was the highest finishing Toyota driver in the race. He finished in third place in his #20 Toyota. Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney was the highest finishing Ford driver in the race. He finished in fourth in his #22 Ford.
The race featured a total of 11 lead changes among five drivers. Aside of Larson, who won stages one and two of the race before going on to win it, a total of four drivers led at least one lap of the races. Those six drivers were Sadler, Blaney, Haley and Cole Custer. Larson and Blaney tied for the most laps led among all drivers. Both drivers led 39 laps of the race. Race polesitter Ryan Preece did not lead any of the race’s laps and finished in 39th place with an overheating issue after completing only 51 laps.
The race also featured a total of six caution flag periods for 29 laps. Four of those caution flag periods took place as a result of on-track incidents, while the other two caution flag periods took place as a result of the endings of stages one and two. The race also featured one red flag period for a massive crash that took place on lap 82. Of the 40 drivers who started the race, only 22 finished it, and of the 22 drivers who actually finished it, 18 did so on the lead lap.
Here are the full race results of the 2018 Coca-Cola Firecracker 250 at Daytona International Speedway.
| Rank | Driver | Car, Team, Manufacturer |
| 1 | Kyle Larson | #42, Chip Ganassi Racing, Chevrolet |
| 2 | Elliott Sadler | #1, JR Motorsports, Chevrolet |
| 3 | Christopher Bell | #20, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota |
| 4 | Ryan Blaney | #22, Team Penske, Ford |
| 5 | Kaz Grala | #61, Fury Race Cars LLC, Ford |
| 6 | Shane Lee | #3, Richard Childress Racing, Chevrolet |
| 7 | Timmy Hill | #66, MBM Motorsports, Toyota |
| 8 | Daniel Hemric | #21, Richard Childress Racing, Chevrolet |
| 9 | Justin Allgaier | #7, JR Motorsports, Chevrolet |
| 10 | Ross Chastain | #4, JD Motorsports, Chevrolet |
| 11 | Michael Annett | #5, JR Motorsports, Chevrolet |
| 12 | Brandon Jones | #19, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota |
| 13 | Ryan Truex | #11, Kaulig Racing, Chevrolet |
| 14 | Chad Finchum | #40, MBM Motorsports, Toyota |
| 15 | Alex Labbe | #36, DGM Racing, Chevrolet |
| 16 | J.J. Yeley | #38, RSS Racing, Chevrolet |
| 17 | Spencer Boyd | #76, SS-Green Light Racing, Chevrolet |
| 18 | Justin Haley | #24, GMS Racing, Chevrolet |
| 19 | Vinnie Miller | #01, JD Motorsports, Chevrolet |
| 20 | Matt Tifft | #2, Richard Childress Racing, Chevrolet |
| 21 | Mike Harmon | #74, Mike Harmon Racing, Chevrolet |
| 22 | Ray Black Jr. | #99, B.J. McLeod Motorsports, Toyota |
| 23 | Jeff Green | #93, RSS Racing, Chevrolet |
| 24 | Josh Williams | #90, DGM Racing, Chevrolet |
| 25 | Cole Custer | #00, Stewart-Haas Racing, Ford |
| 26 | Ryan Reed | #16, Roush Fenway Racing, Ford |
| 27 | Ryan Sieg | #39, RSS Racing, Chevrolet |
| 28 | Garrett Smithley | #0, JD Motorsports, Chevrolet |
| 29 | Chase Elliott | #23, GMS Racing, Chevrolet |
| 30 | Brandon Hightower | #55, JP Motorsports, Toyota |
| 31 | Tyler Reddick | #9, JR Motorsports, Chevrolet |
| 32 | Joey Gase | #35, Go Green Racing, Chevrolet |
| 33 | Austin Cindric | #60, Roush Fenway Racing, Ford |
| 34 | Jeremy Clements | #51, Jeremy Clements Racing, Chevrolet |
| 35 | David Starr | #52, Jimmy Means Racing, Chevrolet |
| 36 | B.J. McLeod | #15, JD Motorsports, Chevrolet |
| 37 | Blake Jones | #78, B.J. McLeod Motorsports, Toyota |
| 38 | Caesar Bacarella | #8, B.J. McLeod Motorsports, Chevrolet |
| 39 | Ryan Preece | #18, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota |
| 40 | Josh Bilicki | #45, JP Motorsports, Toyota |
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The next race on the 2018 NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule is the Alsco 300. That race, which is the second race called the Alsco 300 so far this season, is scheduled to take place on Friday, July 13 at 7:30 p.m. ET. It is scheduled to be broadcast live on NBC Sports Network from Kentucky Speedway at that time.