The 2023 Road America 180 was the 20th stock car race of the 2023 NASCAR Xfinity Series, and the 14th iteration of the event. The race was held on Saturday, July 29, 2023, in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin at Road America, a 4.048 miles (6.515 km) permanent road course. The race was originally scheduled to be contested over 45 laps, but was extended to 49 laps due to a NASCAR overtime finish. In an incredible overtime finish that saw the leaders make numerous mistakes, Sam Mayer, driving for JR Motorsports, would take advantage of those mistakes, and held off Parker Kligerman on the final lap to earn his first career NASCAR Xfinity Series win.[1] Justin Allgaier would dominate the entire race, winning both stages and leading a race-high 42 laps, before he spun in turn 8 with two laps to go. To fill out the podium, Kligerman, driving for Big Machine Racing, and Austin Hill, driving for Richard Childress Racing, would finish 2nd and 3rd, respectively.
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 20 of 33 of the 2023 NASCAR Xfinity Series | |||
 | |||
| Date | July 29, 2023 | ||
| Official name | 14th Annual Road America 180 | ||
| Location | Road America, Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 4.048 mi (6.515 km) | ||
| Distance | 49 laps, 198 mi (318 km) | ||
| Scheduled Distance | 45 laps, 182 mi (293 km) | ||
| Average speed | 65.265 mph (105.034 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Kaulig Racing | ||
| Time | 1:10.574 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Justin Allgaier | JR Motorsports | |
| Laps | 42 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 1 | Sam Mayer | JR Motorsports | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | NBC | ||
| Announcers | Dave Burns (play-by-play), Jeff Burton and Dale Jarrett (color commentators), Kevin Lee and Matt Yocum (pit reporters) | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | MRN | ||
Background
editRoad America is a motorsport road course located near Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin on Wisconsin Highway 67. It has hosted races since the 1950s and currently hosts races in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, IndyCar Series, IMSA SportsCar Championship, Sports Car Club of America GT World Challenge America and Trans-Am Series and the MotoAmerica Superbike Championship.
Entry list
edit- (R) denotes rookie driver.
- (i) denotes driver who is ineligible for series driver points.
Practice
editThe first and only practice session was held on Friday, July 28, at 4:00 PM CST, and would last for 50 minutes.[2] Justin Allgaier, driving for JR Motorsports, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 1:12.360, and an average speed of 110.100 mph (177.189 km/h).[3]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 7 | Justin Allgaier | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 1:12.360 | 110.100 |
| 2 | 98 | Riley Herbst | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 1:13.276 | 109.343 |
| 3 | 10 | A. J. Allmendinger (i) | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 1:13.385 | 109.254 |
| Full practice results | ||||||
Qualifying
editQualifying was held on Friday, July 28, at 5:00 PM CST.[2] Since Road America is a road course, the qualifying system is a two group system, with two rounds. Drivers will be separated into two groups, Group A and Group B. Each driver will have multiple laps to set a time. The fastest 5 drivers from each group will advance to the final round. The fastest driver to set a time in that round will win the pole.[4] A. J. Allmendinger, driving for Kaulig Racing, would score the pole for the race, with a lap of 1:10.574, and an average speed of 111.606 mph (179.612 km/h).[1]
Race results
editStage 1 Laps: 22
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 7 | Justin Allgaier | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 10 |
| 2 | 00 | Cole Custer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 9 |
| 3 | 10 | A. J. Allmendinger (i) | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 0 |
| 4 | 20 | John Hunter Nemechek | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 7 |
| 5 | 24 | Sage Karam | Sam Hunt Racing | Toyota | 6 |
| 6 | 98 | Riley Herbst | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 5 |
| 7 | 26 | Kaz Grala | Sam Hunt Racing | Toyota | 4 |
| 8 | 21 | Austin Hill | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 3 |
| 9 | 1 | Sam Mayer | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 18 | Sammy Smith (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 1 |
Stage 2 Laps: 12
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 7 | Justin Allgaier | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 10 |
| 2 | 00 | Cole Custer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 9 |
| 3 | 24 | Sage Karam | Sam Hunt Racing | Toyota | 8 |
| 4 | 10 | A. J. Allmendinger (i) | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 0 |
| 5 | 1 | Sam Mayer | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 6 |
| 6 | 26 | Kaz Grala | Sam Hunt Racing | Toyota | 5 |
| 7 | 8 | Josh Berry | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 4 |
| 8 | 48 | Parker Kligerman | Big Machine Racing | Chevrolet | 3 |
| 9 | 18 | Sammy Smith (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 2 |
| 10 | 91 | Josh Bilicki | DGM Racing | Chevrolet | 1 |
Stage 3 Laps: 15
| Pos.[5] | St | # | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | 1 | Sam Mayer | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 49 | 2 | Running | 48 |
| 2 | 17 | 48 | Parker Kligerman | Big Machine Racing | Chevrolet | 49 | 0 | Running | 38 |
| 3 | 14 | 21 | Austin Hill | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 49 | 0 | Running | 37 |
| 4 | 6 | 24 | Sage Karam | Sam Hunt Racing | Toyota | 49 | 0 | Running | 47 |
| 5 | 4 | 98 | Riley Herbst | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 49 | 0 | Running | 37 |
| 6 | 13 | 8 | Josh Berry | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 49 | 0 | Running | 35 |
| 7 | 9 | 26 | Kaz Grala | Sam Hunt Racing | Toyota | 49 | 0 | Running | 39 |
| 8 | 11 | 91 | Josh Bilicki | DGM Racing | Chevrolet | 49 | 0 | Running | 30 |
| 9 | 1 | 10 | A. J. Allmendinger (i) | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 49 | 5 | Running | 0 |
| 10 | 33 | 9 | Brandon Jones | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 49 | 0 | Running | 27 |
| 11 | 32 | 11 | Daniel Hemric | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 49 | 0 | Running | 26 |
| 12 | 19 | 27 | Jeb Burton | Jordan Anderson Racing | Chevrolet | 49 | 0 | Running | 25 |
| 13 | 34 | 39 | Ryan Sieg | RSS Racing | Ford | 49 | 0 | Running | 24 |
| 14 | 20 | 31 | Parker Retzlaff (R) | Jordan Anderson Racing | Chevrolet | 49 | 0 | Running | 23 |
| 15 | 26 | 6 | Brennan Poole | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | 49 | 0 | Running | 22 |
| 16 | 23 | 78 | Anthony Alfredo | B. J. McLeod Motorsports | Chevrolet | 49 | 0 | Running | 21 |
| 17 | 25 | 02 | Blaine Perkins (R) | Our Motorsports | Chevrolet | 49 | 0 | Running | 20 |
| 18 | 3 | 7 | Justin Allgaier | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 49 | 42 | Running | 39 |
| 19 | 21 | 44 | Brad Perez | Alpha Prime Racing | Chevrolet | 49 | 0 | Running | 18 |
| 20 | 38 | 4 | Kyle Weatherman | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | 49 | 0 | Running | 17 |
| 21 | 18 | 92 | Josh Williams | DGM Racing | Chevrolet | 49 | 0 | Running | 16 |
| 22 | 29 | 53 | Patrick Emerling | Emerling-Gase Motorsports | Chevrolet | 49 | 0 | Running | 15 |
| 23 | 35 | 38 | Joe Graf Jr. | RSS Racing | Ford | 49 | 0 | Running | 14 |
| 24 | 28 | 35 | Stanton Barrett | Emerling-Gase Motorsports | Toyota | 49 | 0 | Running | 13 |
| 25 | 30 | 66 | Dexter Stacey | MBM Motorsports | Toyota | 49 | 0 | Running | 12 |
| 26 | 12 | 2 | Sheldon Creed | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 49 | 0 | Running | 11 |
| 27 | 31 | 51 | Jeremy Clements | Jeremy Clements Racing | Chevrolet | 49 | 0 | Running | 10 |
| 28 | 22 | 45 | Leland Honeyman | Alpha Prime Racing | Chevrolet | 45 | 0 | Transmission | 9 |
| 29 | 7 | 19 | Connor Mosack (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 44 | 0 | Rear Gear | 8 |
| 30 | 2 | 00 | Cole Custer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 41 | 0 | Accident | 25 |
| 31 | 10 | 18 | Sammy Smith (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 41 | 0 | Accident | 9 |
| 32 | 27 | 28 | Kyle Sieg | RSS Racing | Ford | 39 | 0 | Brakes | 5 |
| 33 | 37 | 08 | Alex Labbé | SS-Green Light Racing | Ford | 38 | 0 | Accident | 4 |
| 34 | 8 | 20 | John Hunter Nemechek | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 31 | 0 | Accident | 10 |
| 35 | 36 | 43 | Ryan Ellis | Alpha Prime Racing | Chevrolet | 25 | 0 | Accident | 2 |
| 36 | 15 | 25 | Brett Moffitt | AM Racing | Ford | 23 | 0 | Hub | 1 |
| 37 | 16 | 16 | Chandler Smith (R) | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 20 | 0 | Accident | 1 |
| 38 | 24 | 07 | Katherine Legge | SS-Green Light Racing | Chevrolet | 9 | 0 | Mechanical | 1 |
| Official race results | |||||||||
Standings after the race
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References
edit- ^ a b Watson, Wyatt (July 28, 2023). "AJ Allmendinger Scores Road America Xfinity Pole". Frontstretch. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
- ^ a b "2023 NASCAR Xfinity Series Road America Race Page". Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
- ^ "Practice Results: 2023 NASCAR Xfinity Series Road America 180". TobyChristie.com. July 28, 2023. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
- ^ "2023 NASCAR Qualifying Procedures". Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
- ^ "2023 Road America 180 - Racing Reference". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved July 29, 2023.