Christopher Bell is an Xfinity Series winner once again after a frantic overtime finish at Darlington Raceway.
Bell made his second start of the season and dominated. He won one stage and led 108 laps. He then took care of business in overtime to score his second win.
Cole Custer crossed the finish line in second. Sheldon Creed, who led 30 laps, finished third. Chase Elliott and Sammy Smith rounded out the top five.
MORE: Darlington Xfinity results after overtime
Christopher Bell beats Cole Custer in overtime for the win at Darlington in the Xfinity Series. #NASCAR pic.twitter.com/2fxtvB7mCL
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) August 31, 2024
Creed was in the lead with mere laps remaining in the race, and it appeared that he would capture his first Xfinity win. He had passed Bell with nine laps remaining and had started pulling away.
However, AJ Allmendinger slammed into the outside wall and sustained heavy damage. This brought out the caution and sent the race to overtime.
Bell's pit crew put him out front for the restart while Custer's crew put him into second place. Creed fell to third for the restart, which featured one car nearly crashing at the start-finish line.
Bell nearly wrecked during overtime after Custer hit the No. 20 from behind. Both drivers started to spin before collecting their cars and diving deep onto the apron. They somehow remained ahead of the field and continued to battle for the win.
Stage 1: Brandon Jones spun from 10th on the final lap of the first stage after contact from Shane van Gisbergen and brought out the caution.
Christopher Bell was in the lead and won the stage under caution. Austin Hill, AJ Allmendinger, Parker Kligerman, Sheldon Creed, Sammy Smith, Justin Allgaier, Chad Finch, Cole Custer, and Chandler Smith were all top 10.
Stage 2: Sheldon Creed won stage 2. His first stage win of the season. Christopher Bell, AJ Allmendinger, Sammy Smith, Justin Allgaier, Cole Custer, Austin Hill, Parker Kligerman, Noah Gragson, and Chase Elliott were in the top 10.
Notable: Shane van Gisbergen, making his second-ever Xfinity start at Darlington, showcased his continued progress. He raced around the top 10 in the early stages and worked his way up to sixth before the overtime restart. He crossed the line seventh.
Next: Xfinity Series teams continue the regular season with a trip to Atlanta Motor Speedway. They will compete on Saturday, Sept. 7, at 3 p.m. ET.