Aric Almirola found himself inches ahead of Justin Allgaier when the race’s deciding caution flew in overtime. As a result, Aric Almirola was declared the victor and drove his #98 Fresh From Florida Ford to victory lane. It was Almirola’s first win in the Xfinity Series this year and his second overall. The Florida native reflected on the win in his post-race interview.
“This feels so much better than that night when I really feel like I didn’t deserve the credit for winning,” Almirola said. “Winning here especially at Daytona is just a special special feeling. What a night. I thought we had a good car all night. The car was running good. We also had a good Mustang as soon as we got off the truck. It is the same Mustang we ran good with at Daytona in February. I am proud of all these guys. They gave me an awesome opportunity to drive this car for fun on certain weekends and I love it. It is so much fun, no pressure. I just get to go out and do my thing.”
Aric Almirola and Justin Allgaier were neck and neck while charging to the start finish line when the caution flag flew on lap 103. The three extra circuits were dolled out because a caution interrupted the regular scheduled finish. NASCAR implemented their version of overtime, giving the field a green, white, checkered sprint to the end. After reviewing videotape, NASCAR finally called Almirola the race winner several minutes later. Allgaier was extremely disappointed over the outcome.
“I’ve been short my entire life,” cracked Allgaier who was forced to settle for second. “Maybe that’s why I’m so normal about this. It depends on what angle you look at but it is what it is. I won’t lie to you this one’s going to hurt.”
Sprint Cup Series mainstay Joey Logano raced his #22 Discount Tire Ford to a fourth place finish. Logano led a race high 46 laps and had one of the fastest cars throughout the event. As a result, he found his way to the front of the pack on five different occasions. Ryan Sieg finished up the race in third. He matched his career best outcome which he tallied at this exact race two years ago.
David Ragan was in front of the field to start the overtime session. Ragan quickly lost his drafting participant and fell to the middle of the pack. Furthermore, he was subbing for Matt Tifft, who had just come out of brain surgery right before the race began. Ragan wiped out when he tried to block the outside lane on the final pass and finished in 21st with a crashed hot-rod.
The Firecracker 250 at Daytona International Speedway took two hours and 7 minutes to complete. The average speed of the field was 121.192 miles per hour and the margin of victory was nullified because of the event’s final caution. There also were eight cautions for 33 laps and eleven cars didn’t finish the race. Erik Jones was rewarded the Sunoco Rookie of the Race for his 10th place finish. Aric Almirola received the Mobil 1 Driver of the Race for his victory.
Final Running Order for the Subway Firecracker 250 at Daytona International Speedway:
- Aric Almirola, Ford, Biagi Den-Beste Racing
- Justin Allgaier, Chevrolet, JR Motorsports
- Ryan Sieg, Chevrolet, RSS Racing
- Joey Logano, Ford, Team Penske
- Brendan Gaughan, Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing
- Ryan Reed, Ford, Roush-Fenway Racing
- Jeff Green, Toyota, Rick Ware Racing
- Spencer Gallagher, Chevrolet, GMS Racing
- Chase Elliott, Chevrolet, JR Motorsports
- Erik Jones, Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing
- Ross Chastain, Chevrolet, JD Motorsports
- Dakoda Armstrong, Toyota, JGL Racing
- Garrett Smithley, Chevrolet, JD Motorsports
- Ty Dillon, Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing
- Ryan Ellis, Chevrolet, Rick Ware Racing
- Jeremy Clements, Chevrolet, Clements Racing
- JJ Yeley, Toyota, Tri-Star Motorsports
- Elliott Sadler, Chevrolet, JR Motorsports
- Joey Gase, Chevrolet, Means Racing
- Darrell Wallace Jr., Ford, Roush-Fenway Racing
- David Ragan, Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing
- Blake Koch, Chevrolet, Kaulig Racing
- Benny Gordon, Toyota, Tri-Star Motorsports
- Bobby Gerhart, Chevrolet, Gerhart Racing
- Scott Lagasse Jr., Chevrolet, Rick Ware Racing
- Brennan Poole, Chevrolet, Chip Ganassi Racing
- David Starr, Chevrolet, RSS Racing
- Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing
- Brandon Jones, Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing
- Corey LaJoie, Toyota, JGL Racing
- Mark Thompson, Toyota, MBM Racing
- Daniel Suarez, Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing
- Mario Gosselin, Chevrolet, King Autosport
- Ryan Preece, Chevrolet, JD Motorsports
- Morgan Shepherd, Chevrolet, Shepherd Racing Ventures
- Joe Nemechek, Toyota, NEMCO Motorsports
- Justin Marks, Chevrolet, Chip Ganassi Racing
- Alex Guenette, Chevrolet, Obiaka Racing
- Ray Black Jr., Chevrolet SS Green Light Racing
- B.J. McLeod, Ford, B.J. McLeod Motorsports
