DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Rain has pushed the remainder of Friday night’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Daytona International Speedway to a Saturday finish.
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Pole-starter AJ Allmendinger is scored as the leader of the Wawa 250, which ran 19 of the scheduled 100 laps before showers and nearby lightning forced a stoppage. The event is scheduled to resume Saturday at 12:30 p.m. ET (NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
Allmendinger, driver of Kaulig Racing’s No. 16 Chevrolet and the series’ most recent winner, has led 15 of the 19 laps so far. Fellow front-row starter Noah Gragson led the other four laps in the JR Motorsports No. 9 Chevy before sliding back to 17th place at the time of the red flag.
Christopher Bell, making his second Xfinity Series start of the season in the No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, is second in the current order. Myatt Snider runs third with defending series champ Austin Cindric fourth and Brett Moffitt fifth.
Brandon Jones is the race’s only retiree. Debris on the grille of the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota caused an overheating issue, and the car was pushed back to the garage after completing just 17 laps. Jones will be credited with last place in the 40-car field, marking his fourth DNF in the last six races.
The 250-mile race is the 23rd of 33 events for the Xfinity Series this year, and stages are scheduled to end on Laps 30, 60, with 100 laps making the full scheduled distance. Just four races remain in the regular season.
The remainder of the Xfinity Series event will be an afternoon opener to the NASCAR Cup Series’ regular-season finale, the Coke Zero Sugar 400, scheduled for 7 p.m. (7 p.m. ET, NBC, MRN, SiriusXM). Saturday’s race will set the 16-driver playoff field that will vie for the NASCAR Cup Series championship in a 10-race elimination-style Playoff format that concludes Nov. 7 at Phoenix Raceway.
Contributing: Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service