Austin Hill Avoids the Chaos And Wins Martinsville Xfinity Race

After restarting seventh on an overtime restart, Austin Hill avoided the chaos unfolding around him to slip past the leaders coming to the checkered flag and earn his second win of the season in dramatic fashion at Martinsville Speedway.

Hill was excited after the finish and said, “I chose the bottom just because of how rough everybody was on restarts, and I just had to do what I had to do there on the last lap,” Hill told CW. “We didn’t have the fastest car,… but that last restart, it just got wild… Man, this is awesome, I got a perfect place for this grandfather clock.”

  Sheldon Creed followed him through to second. Justin Allgaier finished third, while Brennan Poole and Sam Mayer completed the top five finishers.

Rookies Dean Thompson and Daniel Dye scored solid finishes of sixth and seventh, respectively, with Ryan Sieg finishing eighth and Kris Wright ending up behind them.

Sammy Smith, who opened the door for Hill to win with his aggressive move on Taylor Gray in the final corner, rounded out the top 10 finishers.

While the race concluded with total chaos, pole winner Connor Zilisch led wire-to-wire in a relatively calm stage one slowed only once for caution when Corey Day and Harrison Burton tangled entering turn 1.

After winning the race off pit road following the end of stage one, Brandon Jones found himself up front ahead of Zilisch to open stage two. While Jones’ fortunes appeared to be changing, bad luck once again struck him as Garrett Smithley spun directly ahead of him and Zilisch.

Unofficial Results: US Marine Corps 250, March 29, 2025 - Martinsville Speedway
Fin, Str, Driver, Car, Laps, St1, St2, Tms Led, Laps Led, Playoff Pts, Pts, Status
1) 3, Austin Hill, No. 21 Bennett Transportation Chevrolet, 256, 7, , 1, 1, 5, 44, Running
2) 18, Sheldon Creed, No. 00 Friends of Jaclyn Ford, 256, , , 1, 2, , 35, Running
3) 6, Justin Allgaier, No. 7 BRANDT Chevrolet, 256, 4, 8, 1, 5, , 44, Running
4) 29, Brennan Poole, No. 44 Prime Bites Mini Muffins Chevrolet, 256, , , , , , 33, Running
5) 16, Sam Mayer, No. 41 Audibel Ford, 256, , , , , , 32, Running
6) 12, Dean Thompson #, No. 26 Thompson Pipe Group Toyota, 256, 10, , , , , 32, Running
7) 9, Daniel Dye #, No. 10 Champion Container Chevrolet, 256, , 4, , , , 37, Running
8) 13, Ryan Sieg, No. 39 Sci Aps Ford, 256, , , , , , 29, Running
9) 30, Kris Wright, No. 5 First National Bank Corp Chevrolet, 256, , , , , , 28, Running
10) 10, Sammy Smith, No. 8 Pilot Chevrolet, 256, 8, , 1, 6, , 31, Running
11) 38, Jeb Burton, No. 27 Celsius Chevrolet, 256, , , , , , 26, Running
12) 27, Parker Retzlaff, No. 4 Prime Bites Protein Brownie Chevrolet, 256, , , , , , 25, Running
13) 15, Aric Almirola, No. 19 Young Life Toyota, 256, 5, 6, 1, 7, , 35, Running
14) 23, Jeremy Clements, No. 51 Kevin Whitaker Chevrolet Chevrolet, 256, , , , , , 23, Running
15) 34, Garrett Smithley, No. 14 Military 250 Chevrolet, 256, , , , , , 22, Running
16) 33, Patrick Staropoli, No. 24 SYFOVRE Toyota, 256, , , , , , 21, Running
17) 26, Josh Williams, No. 11 Alloy Employer Services Chevrolet, 256, , 7, , , , 24, Running
18) 24, Ryan Ellis, No. 71 Sweetwater Construction Chevrolet, 256, , , , , , 19, Running
19) 22, Blaine Perkins, No. 31 FVP Verified Proven Chevrolet, 256, , 10, , , , 19, Running
20) 2, Carson Kvapil #, No. 1 Roto-Rooter Chevrolet, 256, 2, 2, , , , 35, Running
21) 8, Corey Day, No. 17 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet, 256, , , , , , 16, Running
22) 7, Brandon Jones, No. 20 Menards/Patriot Lighting Toyota, 256, 3, , 1, 22, , 23, Running
23) 32, Brad Perez, No. 45 KSDT CPA Chevrolet, 256, , , , , , 14, Running
24) 5, Harrison Burton, No. 25 Dead On Tools Ford, 256, , , , , , 13, Running
25) 31, Mason Maggio, No. 53 Flitz Polish Ford, 256, , , , , , 12, Running
26) 28, Matt DiBenedetto, No. 99 ReMA Chevrolet, 256, , , , , , 11, Running
27) 14, William Sawalich #, No. 18 Soundgear Toyota, 256, , 3, 1, 4, , 18, Running
28) 1, Connor Zilisch #, No. 88 Carolina Carports Chevrolet, 256, 1, 1, 3, 100, 2, 29, Running
29) 11, Taylor Gray #, No. 54 Operation 300 Toyota, 256, 6, 9, 4, 87, , 15, Running
30) 37, Carson Ware, No. 07 Costa Oil Chevrolet, 254, , , , , , 7, Running
31) 25, Thomas Annunziata, No. 70 Bayshore Mortgage Chevrolet, 252, , , , , , 6, Running
32) 20, Nick Sanchez #, No. 48 Big Machine Vodka Spiked Coolers Chevrolet, 232, , 5, , , , 11, Accident
33) 21, Myatt Snider, No. 91 Tree Top Chevrolet, 232, , , , , , 4, Accident
34) 19, Christian Eckes #, No. 16 LeafFilter Gutter Protection Chevrolet, 231, 9, , 1, 22, , 5, Accident
35) 35, Kyle Sieg, No. 28 Lightingsouthwest.com Ford, 231, , , , , , 2, Accident
36) 36, Greg Van Alst, No. 35 CB Fabricating Chevrolet, 229, , , , , , 1, Running
37) 4, Jesse Love, No. 2 Whelen Chevrolet, 216, , , , , , 1, Accident
38) 17, Anthony Alfredo, No. 42 Dude Wipes Chevrolet, 110, , , , , , 1, Engine
(i) Ineligible for driver points, (#) Rookie

Race Length: 256 Laps, 134.656 Miles
Time: 2 Hrs, 27 Mins, 56 Secs.
Average Speed: 54.615 MPH
Margin of Victory: 0.190 Seconds

Fastest Lap Bonus: No. 8, lap 240, 20.487 sec

Stage 1 Top 10: 88, 1, 20, 7, 19, 54, 21, 8, 16, 26
Stage 2 Top 10: 88, 1, 18, 10, 48, 19, 11, 7, 54, 31

Comments: Austin Hill won the US Marine Corps 250 at Martinsville Speedway, his twelfth 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(s) indicated: Nos. 07, 2, 27, 35, 70, 91 (unapproved adjustments).

Failed to Qualify: (2) 74 Dawson Cram, 66 Tyler Tomassi.

Cautions: 14 for 104 laps;
Laps: 55-67 (Nos. 17, 25 Incident Turn 2 / Stage 1 Conclusion [31]);
82-88 (No. 14 Spin Frontstretch [99]);
96-101 (No. 26 Spin Turn 1 [70]);
122-132 (Stage 2 Conclusion [24]);
141-147 (Nos. 25, 70 Incident Turn 2 [14]);
155-160 (Nos. 1, 41 Incident Frontstretch [53]);
177-183 (No. 88 Spin Turn 2 [28]);
192-197 (No. 07 Spin Turn 2 [35]);
201-208 (No. 25 Spin Turn 4 [71]);
211-215 (No. 26 Spin Turn 2 [71]);
218-228 (Nos. 1, 2 Incident Turn 1 [17]);
233-238 (Nos. 48, 16, 91, 28, 11, 25 Incident Backstretch [Red Flag: 00:11:27] [17]);
243-248 (No. 18, 88, 51 Incident Turn 4 [07]);
250-254 (No. 99 Spin Turn 2 [88]).

Lead Changes: 14 among 10 drivers;
C. Zilisch # 1-61;
B. Jones 62-83;
C. Zilisch # 84-88;
J. Allgaier 89-93;
C. Zilisch # 94-127;
A. Almirola 128-134;
T. Gray # 135-148;
S. Creed 149-150;
T. Gray # 151-156;
C. Eckes # 157-178;
W. Sawalich # 179-182;
T. Gray # 183-248;
S. Smith 249-254;
T. Gray # 255;
A. Hill 256.

Zilisch completed the sweep of the stages by winning stage two ahead of a top five full of rookies in Carson Kvapil, William Sawalich, Dye and Nick Sanchez. As a result of running long to claim the stage, Zilisch would find himself restarting 13th with an already damaged car to start the final stage.

After a strong pit stop and an excellent start to stage 3, Gray claimed the lead and began to control the pace of the race. While Gray held strong out front, the question of when to put on that last set of tires came the forefront of every crew chief’s mind, especially as a series of cautions unfolded within the closing 75 laps.

Restarting third as the second car on the inside behind Gray, Smith moved Gray up the track in turn 1 and slipped past to claim the lead. Before Smith could round turn 4 and take the white flag, a caution for a Matt DiBenedetto spin set up yet another climactic restart, this one in overtime.

In overtime, Gray returned the favor to Smith and reclaimed the lead coming to the white flag looking to earn his first career win. Unfortunately for Gray, a big move by Smith entering the final set of corners sent both drivers up the track, allowing Hill to push Allgaier up the track and subsequently pass all three leaders coming to the flag, improbably winning both the race and the Dash 4 Cash bonus.

The Xfinity drivers next head to Darlington next week on the annual throwb

Unofficial Points: Boys and Girls Club of the Blue Ridge 200 - Martinsville Speedway
Rank, Driver, Car, Starts, GL, Points, Ldr, Nxt, Race Wins, Stage Wins, Playoff Pts
1) Corey Heim, 11, 5, 0, 229, 0, 0, 2, 4, 14
2) Ty Majeski, 98, 5, 0, 209, -20, 20, 0, 1, 1
3) Chandler Smith, 38, 5, 0, 193, -36, 16, 0, 0, 0
4) Daniel Hemric, 19, 5, 3, 175, -54, 18, 1, 0, 5
5) Stewart Friesen, 52, 5, 0, 167, -62, 8, 0, 0, 0
6) Tyler Ankrum, 18, 5, 0, 164, -65, 3, 0, 1, 1
7) Grant Enfinger, 9, 5, -3, 157, -72, 7, 0, 0, 0
8) Layne Riggs, 34, 5, 0, 148, -81, 9, 0, 0, 0
9) Jake Garcia, 13, 5, 0, 137, -92, 11, 0, 0, 0
10) Ben Rhodes, 99, 5, 1, 131, -98, 6, 0, 1, 1
11) Kaden Honeycutt, 45, 5, -1, 130, -99, 1, 0, 0, 0
12) Tanner Gray, 15, 5, 0, 123, -106, 7, 0, 0, 0
13) Giovanni Ruggiero #, 17, 5, 0, 119, -110, 4, 0, 0, 0
14) Matt Mills, 42, 5, 1, 98, -131, 21, 0, 0, 0
15) Rajah Caruth, 71, 5, 3, 97, -132, 1, 0, 0, 0
16) Andres Perez De Lara #, 77, 5, 3, 97, -132, 0, 0, 0, 0
17) Matt Crafton, 88, 5, -3, 97, -132, 0, 0, 1, 1
18) Jack Wood, 91, 5, -2, 91, -138, 6, 0, 1, 1
19) Connor Mosack #, 81, 5, 3, 90, -139, 1, 0, 0, 0
20) Dawson Sutton #, 26, 5, 1, 85, -144, 5, 0, 0, 0
21) Spencer Boyd, 76, 5, 2, 77, -152, 8, 0, 0, 0
22) Bayley Currey, , 3, -5, 68, -161, 9, 0, 0, 0
23) Frankie Muniz #, 33, 5, -3, 68, -161, 0, 0, 0, 0
24) Toni Breidinger #, 5, 5, 1, 62, -167, 6, 0, 0, 0
25) Luke Fenhaus, , 3, -1, 54, -175, 8, 0, 0, 0
26) Josh Reaume, , 3, 0, 47, -182, 7, 0, 0, 0
27) Nathan Byrd, 02, 5, 0, 39, -190, 8, 0, 0, 0
28) Lawless Alan, 1, 1, -28, 31, -198, 8, 0, 0, 0
29) Jason White, , 1, -1, 29, -200, 2, 0, 0, 0
30) Johnny Sauter, , 1, -1, 29, -200, 0, 0, 0, 0
31) Justin Carroll, 90, 2, 3, 28, -201, 1, 0, 0, 0
32) Timmy Hill, , 1, -2, 26, -203, 2, 0, 0, 0
33) Norm Benning, 6, 2, -2, 24, -205, 2, 0, 0, 0
34) Stefan Parsons, , 1, -2, 19, -210, 5, 0, 0, 0
35) Luke Baldwin, 66, 1, -35, 15, -214, 4, 0, 0, 0
36) Matthew Gould, 44, 1, -36, 14, -215, 1, 0, 0, 0
37) Keith Mcgee, , 2, -4, 12, -217, 2, 0, 0, 0
38) Stephen Mallozzi, , 2, -3, 9, -220, 3, 0, 0, 0
39) Cody Dennison, 2, 1, -39, 7, -222, 2, 0, 0, 0
40) Michel Disdier, , 1, -4, 6, -223, 1, 0, 0, 0
41) Alan Waller, 22, 1, -41, 6, -223, 0, 0, 0, 0
42) Akinori Ogata, , 1, -5, 5, -224, 1, 0, 0, 0
43) Clay Greenfield, , 1, -5, 4, -225, 1, 0, 0, 0
44) Ryan Roulette, 67, 1, -44, 2, -227, 2, 0, 0, 0
45) Parker Kligerman, , 1, -6, 1, -228, 1, 0, 0, 0
46) Kyle Busch(i), , 1, -6, 0, -229, 1, 1, 1, 0
47) Kyle Larson(i), , 1, -6, 0, -229, 0, 1, 0, 0
48) Justin Haley(i), , 2, -6, 0, -229, 0, 0, 0, 0
49) Ross Chastain(i), , 1, -6, 0, -229, 0, 0, 0, 0
50) William Sawalich(i), , 3, -6, 0, -229, 0, 0, 0, 0
51) Michael Mcdowell(i), , 2, -6, 0, -229, 0, 0, 0, 0
52) Brandon Jones(i), , 1, -6, 0, -229, 0, 0, 0, 0
53) William Byron(i), 07, 1, -53, 0, -229, 0, 0, 0, 0
54) Mason Maggio(i), , 1, -7, 0, -229, 0, 0, 0, 0
55) Corey Day(i), 7, 3, -7, 0, -229, 0, 0, 0, 0
56) Patrick Staropoli(i), 84, 1, -56, 0, -229, 0, 0, 0, 0
57) Bryan Dauzat, , 0, -8, 0, -229, 0, 0, 0, 0
 -Ldr/-Nxt = Points behind Leader/Next higher, (i) Ineligible for driver points in this series