Gragson Takes Martinsville Grandfather Clock

Noah Gragson on his way to winning Martinsville

(MARTINSVILLE, VA – OCT 30, 2021 – RIS) NASCAR'S oldest track, Martinsville Speedway, saw the Championship Four selected for the 2021 NASCAR Xfinity Series with Noah Gragson racing cleanly to the win to earn a spot racing for the season ending championship next weekend at Phoenix Raceway. Joining Gragson in the Chapionship Four group racing for the season crown are Austin Cindric, second-place finisher at Martinsville, and AJ Allmendinger, plus Daniel Hemric, who earned his place at the table without winning a single race this season.

Gragson led 153 laps of the 157 run with a pair of overtime restarts adding to the race distance while Cindric ran at the front for 64 laps. Daniel Hemric led two of the final restarts, but Gragson got the lead, followed by Cindric and the two finished just a half length apart at the checkered flag.

Rookie phenom Ty Gibbs suffered wheel hop several times in the race, eventually falling back to the last car on the lead lap at the finish, leading only 16 laps.

Austin Cindric won his twelfth stage of the season, leading the entire first stage, then Gragson took the second stage.

On the final restart, Gragson led, with Cindric following and Sam Mayer challenging Hemric. Gragson washed high in the last turn, allowing Cindric the inside line but Gragson held on for a win by only 0.064 second over Cindric. Hemric held on for third, with Mayer and Allgaier filling out the top five finishers.

"It's been a rough season – we got an opportunity – we're still in it," exulted a happy Gragson. "Second win here at Martinsville – this is Martinsville – we're going to the final four baby!"

Noah, AJ, Daniel, Cindric in the championship four – four different teams - 

Austin Cindric commented after the race that the team "actually had to re-establish our track position after stage one with all of those cars flipping stages, so almost got a chance to win the race there. It’s tough when you’re trying to race for a championship. I said it after Bristol. I have one way I intend on having to race for a championship and I feel like that’s as close as you can get to clean racing. Noah earned it. Noah deserved it. I think a couple more laps and the 22 car would be in Victory Lane."

Cindric commented on Hemric's finish, saying: " Come on. This guy has won stages. He's led laps. He put himself in position. He put his team on his back today, made the right choice on the choose for points racing purposes only. The only reason I had a chance to win this race today is because Daniel had to points race and I didn't."

Unofficial Results: 2nd Annual Dead On Tools 250, October 30, 2021, Martinsville Speedway, 0.526 Mile Paved

Fin, Str, Driver, Car, Laps, St1, St2, Tms Led, Laps Led, Playoff Pts, Pts, Status
1) 9, Noah Gragson (P), No. 9 Bass Pro Shops/TrueTimber BRCC Chevrolet, 257, 7, 1, 6, 153, 6, 54, Running
2) 1, Austin Cindric (P), No. 22 Carquest Auto Parts Ford, 257, 1, 5, 1, 64, 1, 51, Running
3) 7, Daniel Hemric (P), No. 18 Poppy Bank Toyota, 257, 2, 6, 1, 18, , 48, Running
4) 11, Sam Mayer #, No. 8 Big Machine/John5 Chevrolet, 257, , , , , , 33, Running
5) 5, Justin Allgaier (P), No. 7 Hellmann's Fridge Hunters Chevrolet, 257, 3, , , , , 40, Running
6) 8, Brandon Jones (P), No. 19 Menards/Dupont Air Filtration Toyota, 257, , , , , , 31, Running
7) 3, AJ Allmendinger (P), No. 16 Hyperice Chevrolet, 257, 4, 7, , , , 41, Running
8) 25, Alex Labbe, No. 36 rousseau/Prolon/Globocam Chevrolet, 257, , , , , , 29, Running
9) 18, Jeremy Clements, No. 51 Spartan Waste/Fox Sports Chevrolet, 257, , 9, , , , 30, Running
10) 16, Riley Herbst, No. 98 Monster Energy Ford, 257, , 8, , , , 30, Running
11) 22, Josh Williams, No. 92 Alloy/Sleep Well/StarTron Chevrolet, 257, , , , , , 26, Running
12) 23, Landon Cassill, No. 4 Voyager Chevrolet, 257, , , , , , 25, Running
13) 12, Myatt Snider, No. 2 TaxSlayer Chevrolet, 257, , 10, , , , 25, Running
14) 30, Colin Garrett, No. 26 Veterans Grow America Toyota, 257, , , , , , 23, Running
15) 32, Joe Graf Jr., No. 07 CoverSeal Chevrolet, 257, , , , , , 22, Running
16) 28, JJ Yeley, No. 17 Alcova Mortgage Chevrolet, 257, 9, , , , , 23, Running
17) 31, Jade Buford #, No. 48 Big Machine Spiked Coolers Chevrolet, 257, , , , , , 20, Running
18) 38, Preston Pardus, No. 90 Danus Utilities Chevrolet, 257, , , , , , 19, Running
19) 13, Brett Moffitt, No. 02 Dead On Tools Chevrolet, 257, 10, , , , , 19, Running
20) 10, Harrison Burton (P), No. 20 DEX Imaging Toyota, 257, , 2, 2, 2, , 26, Running
21) 37, Stephen Leicht, No. 61 Janiking The King of Clean Toyota, 257, , , , , , 16, Running
22) 27, Jeffrey Earnhardt, No. 0 Combat Waterfowl Chevrolet, 257, , , , , , 15, Running
23) 34, Ryan Ellis, No. 99 Keen Parts Chevrolet, 257, , , , , , 14, Running
24) 36, David Starr, No. 66 BrettBaier.com/Books Toyota, 257, , , , , , 13, Running
25) 26, Natalie Decker, No. 23 The Manson Brothers Chevrolet, 257, , , , , , 12, Running
26) 33, Akinori Ogata(i), No. 78 Pneumatic Tools Toyota, 257, , , , , , 0, Running
27) 2, Ty Gibbs #, No. 54 Smile Coin Toyota, 257, , 3, 3, 16, , 18, Running
28) 29, Josh Berry #, No. 31 Bommarito.com/Solid Rock Carriers Chevrolet, 256, 5, , , , , 15, Running
29) 35, Matt Mills, No. 5 J.F. Electric Chevrolet, 255, , , , , , 8, Running
30) 39, Spencer Boyd(i), No. 52 Sparrow Dynamics Chevrolet, 254, , , 1, 4, , 0, Running
31) 14, Ryan Sieg, No. 39 CMR Construction and Roofing/A-Game Ford, 253, 6, , , , , 11, Running
32) 21, Ryan Vargas #, No. 6 Swann Communications Chevrolet, 249, , , , , , 5, Running
33) 4, Justin Haley (P), No. 11 LeafFilter Gutter Protection Chevrolet, 222, , , , , , 4, Brakes
34) 24, Kyle Weatherman, No. 47 DaaBin Chevrolet, 221, , , , , , 3, Running
35) 20, Bayley Currey(i), No. 15 TeamJDMotorsports.com Chevrolet, 212, , , , , , 0, Running
36) 17, Brandon Brown, No. 68 Larry's Lemonade Chevrolet, 204, , , , , , 1, Accident
37) 15, Jeb Burton, No. 10 Nutrien Ag Solutions Chevrolet, 194, , 4, , , , 8, Accident
38) 6, Michael Annett, No. 1 PFJ Veterans Salute Chevrolet, 192, 8, , , , , 4, Accident
39) 40, Mike Harmon, No. 74 FindlayCadillac/Lerner&RoweAttorneys Chev, 38, , , , , , 1, Overheating
40) 19, Tommy Joe Martins, No. 44 Gilreath Farms Red Angus Chevrolet, 36, , , , , , 1, Rear Gear
(i) Ineligible for driver points in this series, (#) Rookie, (P) Playoffs

Time of Race: 2 Hrs, 10 Mins, 48 Secs.
Race Length: 257 Laps 135.182 Miles
Average Speed: 62.01 MPH
Margin of Victory: 0.064 Seconds

Stage 1 Top 10: 22, 18, 7, 16, 31, 39, 9, 1, 17, 02
Stage 2 Top 10: 9, 20, 54, 10, 22, 18, 16, 98, 51, 2

Comments: Noah Gragson has won the Dead On Tools 250 at Martinsville Speedway, his fifth career victory in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.

Prior to the start, the following vehicle(s) dropped to the rear of the field under penalty for the reason indicated: No. 07, 61 (Unapproved Adjustments), No. 74 (Driver Change).

Failed to Qualify: (1) 13 Timmy Hill(i).

Caution Flags: 13 for 75 laps;
Laps: 16-20 (No.90 Spin Turn 4 [78]);
32-35 (Competition [90]);
49-53 (Possible Fluid On Track [74]);
62-68 (Stage 1 Conclusion [8]);
122-130 (Stage 2 Conclusion [90]);
151-155 (Debris Turn 2 [None]);
180-184 (No.99 Spin Turn 2 [8]);
187-192 (No.2, 39 Incident Turn 2 [78]);
194-200 (No.52, 1, 98, 10, 02 Incident Turn 2 [Red Flag: 00:10:47] [07]);
202-207 (No.9, 54, 20, 22 Incident Turn 4 [99]);
219-224 (Debris Backstretch [61]);
245-249 (No.11 Spin Turn 4 [78]);
251-255 (No.31, 98 Incident Turn 4 [54]).

Lead Changes: 13 among 6 drivers;
A. Cindric (P) 1-64;
N. Gragson (P) 65-124;
H. Burton (P) 125;
N. Gragson (P) 126-130;
H. Burton (P) 131;
N. Gragson (P) 132-179;
T. Gibbs # 180;
S. Boyd(i) 181-184;
T. Gibbs # 185-191;
N. Gragson (P) 192;
T. Gibbs # 193-200;
N. Gragson (P) 201-231;
D. Hemric (P) 232-249;
N. Gragson (P) 250-257.

Mobil 1 Driver of the Race: Noah Gragson, No.9

Sunoco Rookie of the Race: Sam Mayer, No.8

Unofficial Point Standings:
Pos)   Driver        Car   Starts        GL     Points        Ldr    Nxt    Race Wins  Stage Wins Playoff Pts
1) Noah Gragson (P)       9       32     5       4000  0       0       3       4       17
2) Austin Cindric (P)      22     32     -1      4000  0       0       5       12     44
3) Daniel Hemric (P)       18     32     1       4000  0       0       0       9       16
4) AJ Allmendinger (P)   16     32     -2      4000  0       0       5       11     50
5) Justin Allgaier (P)      7       32     -2      2258  -1742 1742  2       3       21
6) Justin Haley (P)         11     31     -1      2207  -1793 51     1       5       15
7) Brandon Jones (P)     19     32     0       2204  -1796 3       0       1       3
8) Harrison Burton (P)   20     32     0       2157  -1843 47     0       2       8
9) Myatt Snider    2       32     1       2154  -1846 3       1       0       5
10) Jeb Burton     10     32     -1      2148  -1852 6       1       1       9
11) Riley Herbst   98     32     0       2121  -1879 27     0       0       1
12) Jeremy Clements     51     32     0       2107  -1893 14     0       0       0
13) Ty Gibbs #     54     18     0       663    -3337 1444  4       3       0
14) Ryan Sieg       39     32     0       623    -3377 40     0       0       0
15) Michael Annett        1       25     0       607    -3393 16     0       0       0
16) Brandon Brown       68     32     0       603    -3397 4       1       0       5
17) Josh Berry #  31     22     0       540    -3460 63     2       1       0
18) Josh Williams 92     31     0       526    -3474 14     0       0       0
19) Alex Labbe     36     32     1       495    -3505 31     0       0       0
20) Tommy Joe Martins 44     32     -1      484    -3516 11     0       0       0
21) Brett Moffitt   02     30     0       466    -3534 18     0       1       0
22) Landon Cassill        4       32     0       465    -3535 1       0       0       0
23) Jade Buford # 48     31     0       431    -3569 34     0       0       0
24) Kyle Weatherman    47     29     0       330    -3670 101    0       0       0
25) Jeffrey Earnhardt    0       28     0       324    -3676 6       0       0       0