Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)
By Aaron Bearden

Post-race review and analysis from the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. 

Who Won? 

Chase Briscoe. He surged to the lead on the final restart and drove off from there to claim his first win on an intermediate oval.

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Briscoe’s breakout performance

When the Xfinity Series descended upon Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the first race of 2020 on an intermediate oval, the series regulars saw it as an opportunity. With the ‘Big Three’ from 2019 all transitioned over to the NASCAR Cup Series, Sunday’s rain-delayed race offered a chance for someone new to make an early championship statement.

That someone turned out to be Stewart-Haas Racing sophomore Chase Briscoe – one of the few drivers to challenge the top trio in 2019.

Briscoe struggled early in his rookie Xfinity Series season, perhaps a side-effect of the dirt graduate’s limited asphalt experience compared to most in the field. He won over the summer months at Iowa Speedway, climbed up the standings and even threatened to make the Championship 4 before getting crashed out of the lead at Kansas Speedway.

The Hoosier was trapped in the background for the 2019 season finale but knew what his No. 98 team could accomplish.

“I knew what we were capable of last year even, at the end of the year,” Briscoe said in victory lane. “With Cole (Custer) and the Big Three moving up it definitely creates an opportunity to be that new guy.

“This was a good way to start off the season, especially on the West Coast. I’m looking forward to getting to Fontana.”

Briscoe is the second potential contender to rise up, joining Noah Gragson after the Nevadan’s win at Daytona International Speedway. The pair each made the playoffs in 2019, but collectively earned just one win as Christopher Bell, Tyler Reddick and Custer swallowed up victories and playoff points throughout the year.

The Big Three won 21 of 33 races in 2019, effectively removing all others from being considered more than a potential spoiler in the championship chase. Even veteran competitor Justin Allgaier took until the semifinal race to find victory lane.

With that trio gone, someone is going to have to step up. Briscoe hopes to be that guy, and in leading 89 laps and winning he made a strong case that he could be the one in Las Vegas. Briscoe believes this year will be pivotal to his career, and said before the season he could need as many as eight wins to prove himself worthy of a Cup Series ride in 2021.

One down, seven to go.

Cindric shows promise

Finishing 2.874 seconds behind Briscoe in second was Team Penske’s Austin Cindric, the only other Ford driver on the track.

Like Briscoe, Cindric is searching to prove himself worthy of a shot at a Cup Series opportunity. He’s also looking to show that he can excel on NASCAR’s many ovals, with each of his three national series victories to date coming on road courses.

Cindric looked up to the task of bringing home an oval win for much of the Sunday evening race, leading 39 laps and pacing the field prior to the final caution and subsequent restart. He ultimately lost the top spot to Briscoe on pit road, and couldn’t find a way around his fellow Ford prospect on the subsequent restart.

He ultimately settled for second and the promise of more opportunities to win in the future.

“Bridesmaid tonight (at Las Vegas Motor Speedway),” he tweeted. “If today is any indication, it’s going to be a fun year, but I can say with 100% certainty… I hate losing.” 

Cindric should have a chance to establish a playoff point advantage over the summer months. He’s proven to have road course prowess, and there are now five races on road courses with the addition of Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s Grand Prix circuit in July.

Finding the pace to carry promising runs like Sunday’s to victory could push Cindric from dark horse to a legitimate championship favorite.

Gragson and Snider’s controversial collision 

One week after earning his first Xfinity Series victory at Daytona, Noah Gragson found himself answering critics again after controversial contact in Las Vegas.

Gragson was attempting to drive through the field after suffering a speeding penalty on pit road in Sunday’s race when he collided with Myatt Snider’s No. 21 Chevrolet, sending the Richard Childress Racing prospect into a spin and bringing out the race’s final caution flag.

The Nevadan took advantage of the caution and rallied for a top-five at his home track, but he was left explaining a wreck that appeared it could be intentional after the race.

“We were trying to side-draft each other coming down late in the race,” Gragson told reporters afterward. “The cars are set up to be in the corners, so when you go through the trioval you don’t have very much load pretty much everywhere you go. The air when you’re going 190 mph just kind of sucked me up into him. I don’t know if he came down or if I went up.”

Few competitors seemed to buy Gragson’s explanation. Guest commentator Austin Dillon believed the contact to be purposeful, and fellow competitor J.J. Yeley called the description “funny” on Twitter.

Snider ended up finishing 16th after the crash, and quickly went to discuss the incident with Gragson on pit road afterward. The two appeared to disagree, and Gragson lifted his hand for a fist bump, but Snider walked off without acknowledging it.

He avoided discussing the incident in the aftermath of the race, save for posting a gif from “The Office” in response to video of Gragson’s description of the crash.

“I’m proud of the effort the team put in this weekend,” Snider said. “We had to overcome a lot, from spinning in practice on Friday, all the way through the late-race contact tonight. It shows what a strong team we have that we can bounce back every time.

Whether the incident leads to future issues between the duo remains to be seen. Gragson is competing for a championship with JR Motorsports, while Snider intends to split driving duties between Ryan Sieg Racing and Richard Childress Racing.

Other Notes

  • Ryan Sieg had a tremendous evening in Las Vegas, rising as high as second outside of pit stops and holding pace with the leaders before finishing third. The result was Sieg’s sixth top-five in 204 starts and his first on an intermediate oval.
  • Harrison Burton was the top finisher for Joe Gibbs Racing and Toyota for the second-consecutive week, following his Daytona runner-up with a fifth-place effort in Vegas. Burton’s working to dispel the sour taste associated with a subpar Truck Series season in 2019.
  • Daniel Hemric’s first race with JR Motorsports proved to be a disappointment, ending in 35th after he spun into the outside wall with what he’d reported a flat tire moments before the accident. He took the blame for not bringing the car to pit road undamaged afterward.
  • Kaulig Racing was due for a pair of strong top-10s but had to settle for a salvaged 10th from Ross Chastain and 12th from Justin Haley after the pair were each caught speeding on the final round of pit stops.
  • Josh Williams and Jesse Little each showed strong pace for underfunded organizations in Sin City, rolling to finishes of 13th and 14th.
  • Our Motorsports also continued to impress, coming home 15th in its second start with Brett Moffitt after spending a good portion of the day challenging for a position in the top 10.
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Aaron Bearden Boyd Gaming 300 Featured Las Vegas Motor Speedway NASCAR XFINITY Series