Custer Breaks Through For Pocono Xfinity Score

LONG POND, Pa. – Cole Custer topped a late-race shootout to finally break Ford Performance’s winless drought in the NASCAR Xfinity Series Saturday at Pocono Raceway.

Custer led 25 laps in the Explore the Pocono Mountains 225, but it was a four-lap dash to the finish that proved to be the difference, as the defending series champion battled tooth-and-nail with rival Justin Allgaier.

After Shane van Gisbergen spun in turn two with help from Sam Mayer on lap 83, Custer lined up as the leader on the outside lane for the final restart, with Allgaier’s Chevrolet to his left flank.

The green flag waved and saw Allgaier win the race to turn one, but the perennial Xfinity Series veteran carried too much speed through the apex of the turn and washed up on corner exit.

That allowed Custer to get a run back to the inside, crossing Allgaier over on approach to the famed ‘Tunnel Turn,’ and once Custer completed the pass he never looked back.

Custer went on to a .670-second victory over Allgaier, marking his 14th career series victory and first since he won both the race and the championship at Arizona’s Phoenix Raceway back in November.

The eight-month layoff between wins made Saturday a meaningful one for Custer, despite the fact that he came into the 2.5-mile ‘Tricky Triangle’ as the regular season point leader.

“This means so much. These guys have worked so hard this year and just haven’t gotten that final result. It is awesome to get it here at Pocono,” said Custer in victory lane. JT [crew chief Jonathan Toney] and these guys have been working so hard. I have told people that we are the points leader, but I have never been so frustrated being the points leader because we hadn’t gotten a win yet.

“To get that today, and knowing everything these guys have done to bring a really fast piece here, means a lot and I think we can really take it to them in the playoffs.”

After Sheldon Creed earned the pole and led the first seven laps of the race, Allgaier made quick work of the No. 18 Toyota, with a run off of turn three allowing him to pass for the lead on the eighth rotation.

Allgaier went on to easily win stage one, before varying strategy plays shuffled the deck for much of the middle stages.

Custer won the race off pit road at the first stage break, allowing him to quickly pass rookie Jesse Love – who stayed out to gain track position – for the top spot when stage two got underway on lap 26.

The 26-year-old from Ladera Ranch, Calif., dominated the second stage, before William Byron stayed out to lead the start of the final stage after an earlier flat tire.

Green-flag pit stops led to several different drivers spending time out front before Allgaier regained command of the field at lap 67, hoping to stretch his fuel 42 laps to the finish

That plan went awry after Stephen Mallozzi, who was making his Xfinity Series debut with Joey Gase Motorsports, stalled on the backstretch to bring out the sixth caution of the race with 21 laps left.

Allgaier led coming to the ensuing restart, with a host of drivers pitting for fuel behind him while Custer lined up fourth, planning to give Allgaier drafting help down the frontstretch.

That plan worked and Allgaier and Custer went to first and second, with Custer lying in wait until nine to go, when he got a run off the exit of turn one to pass Allgaier down Long Pond Straightaway.

Allgaier pulled a crossover move in the Tunnel Turn, but couldn’t make the momentum stick, allowing Custer to take the lead for good.

Van Gisbergen’s spin paved the way for the sprint to the finish, but Allgaier rued his entry to turn one afterward as one of the keys to his ultimate defeat.

“I just feel like we had the best car all day, and at the end our older tires were the difference-maker,” lamented Allgaier. “We did all the right things and William gave me a great push on the last restart, but it’s just really hard to keep the right front [tire] on it on a long run.

“Just stinks to come out of here second; it’s going to sting for a while,” he added. “Looking back on it, I wish I would have done things a little differently on the exit of [turn] one, so it’s really frustrating to leave here without the trophy.”

Byron rallied back from his early issues to finish third, followed by Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Creed and Taylor Gray, who closed out the top five.

Sixth through 10th were A.J. Allmendinger, Austin Hill, Parker Kligerman, Sammy Smith, and Mayer.

Our Motorsports’ Anthony Alfredo was poised for a top 10 before being shuffled back in the final laps, ending up 14th. An uncontrolled tire penalty left Love 22nd after he led seven laps on the afternoon.

Eight total cautions slowed the pace for 30 laps, with the race being completed in two hours, eight minutes, and 26 seconds at an average speed of 105.110 mph.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series season continues Saturday, July 20 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway as NASCAR stock cars return to the 2.5-mile oval for the first time in four years.

Broadcast coverage of the Pennzoil 250 at the Brickyard is slated for 3:30 p.m. ET, live on USA, the IMS Radio Network, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.