Noah Gragson Ties All-Time Xfinity Series Record

JR Motorsports driver Noah Gragson won at Texas Motor Speedway on September 24 after surviving the battle of attrition and building up a sizable lead over Austin Hill. This victory punched his ticket to the Round of Eight and tied an all-time Xfinity Series record.

Gragson’s win at Texas Motor Speedway was his fourth consecutive. This run also included wins at Darlington Raceway, Kansas Speedway, and Bristol Motor Speedway. Gragson became only the second-ever driver to win four consecutive Xfinity Series races. He joined Sam Ard, who set the record back in the 1983 season.

Ard’s run took place near the very end of 1983. He kicked it off at South Boston Speedway before returning to Victory Lane at Martinsville Speedway. Ard’s streak continued with wins at Orange County Speedway and Charlotte Motor Speedway. However, it came to an end when Jack Ingram won at Hickory Speedway.

The four-win streak did not mark Ard’s only trips to Victory Lane. He turned in a dominant season in the No. 00 Oldsmobile. He won 10 races, twice as many as Ingram, and he posted 30 top-10 finishes in 35 races. Ard ended the year as the champion after finishing second behind Ingram during the inaugural 1982 season.

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Gragson Extended His JR Motorsports Record

The fourth consecutive win tied the all-time Xfinity Series record, and it set up Gragson to potentially break the tie with Ard. He will now head to Talladega Superspeedway and try to sweep the season after winning the spring race at the Alabama track.

While Gragson still has another week remaining before he can try to set the all-time record for consecutive Xfinity Series wins, he can enjoy other historic achievements. He has extended JR Motorsports’ record for the most wins in a single season, the most wins by a single driver in organization history, and the record for most consecutive wins.

Gragson entered the 2022 season with five career wins. He had two during the 2020 season and then he set a new mark in 2021 with three trips to Victory Lane. He has since more than doubled this career mark with wins at Phoenix Raceway, Talladega Superspeedway, Pocono Raceway, Darlington Raceway, Kansas Speedway, Bristol Motor Speedway, and Texas Motor Speedway.

There is one more JR Motorsports record that Gragson could potentially chase down during the remaining six Xfinity Series races. Teammate Justin Allgaier holds the team record for the most laps led in a single season, which he set in 2020 with 1,008.

Gragson now has 736 after leading 85 laps at Texas Motor Speedway, putting him 272 behind the driver of the No. 7. This is not a small mark, but Gragson could realistically top it considering that he has led more than 50 laps in five races. He also led more than 100 during the trip to Phoenix.

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The Playoff Standings Took an Interesting Turn

Records are important when considering the legacies of NASCAR drivers, but Gragson’s focus remains on something else. His goal is to reach the finale at Phoenix Raceway and fight for a championship.

He took a major step toward achieving this goal by winning at Texas Motor Speedway and securing his spot in the Round of Eight. He had a strong day while some other contenders dealt with major setbacks.

Jeremy Clements was the first to face a problem. The No. 51 Chevrolet lost power, which sent him to the garage and ended his day. Sam Mayer had an issue of his own after hitting the wall, but he salvaged an eighth-place finish.

The biggest issue was a massive wreck during the final stage. This incident collected other playoff drivers in Justin Allgaier, Daniel Hemric, and Brandon Jones. All three had to head to the infield care center for evaluation, and they all finished outside of the top 25.

AJ Allmendinger, the regular-season champion, had issues of his own. He was caught up in one of the wrecks, which forced him to go to his pit stall multiple times for repairs. He also had a tire that began to go down with two laps remaining in the race, but he held on and finished fourth overall. This was his 24th top-10 finish of the year.

There are two races remaining in the Round of 12, and there are multiple drivers in danger of elimination. Mayer and Ryan Sieg are both one point above the cutline. Riley Herbst is one point below the cutline after a fifth-place finish while Hemric is eight points below. Jones is 13 points back of the cutline while Clements is in the worst position at 29 points below.

Multi-race winners sit in the best position. Gragson is secure in the Round of Eight while Allmendinger sits 47 points above the cutline. Ty Gibbs (+46), Austin Hill (+30), Josh Berry (+20), and Allgaier (+20) round out the drivers with some solid points totals.

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