As Ford continues to search for its first win in the Xfinity Series this season, Cole Custer’s No. 00 NASCAR Ford Mustang Dark Horse looked like the one to make it happen at New Hampshire on June 22nd, 2024. He led the most laps – 114 – and proved that he had the speed to make him a threat, but a series of late-race cautions turned the tide against him.
Four restarts in the last 22 laps forced Custer to wear his race car out as he attempted to defend the top spot from the field. However, in the closing laps, he simply couldn’t do it anymore, ceding his position as the No. 18 Toyota TRD Supra of Sheldon Creed raced him hard and let the No. 20 Supra of Christopher Bell get by for the win.
“I would have done the same thing, you know, you’re racing for the win, it is what it is,” Custer said of the tight racing between him and Creed competing for the win on the final lap. “Man, it just stings. I felt like we had the best car of the day. And that’s not easy to do at these flat short tracks.”
He added, “Our guys brought such a fast car. But you get put in those late race restarts, eventually it’s probably not going to go your way. But I’m gonna re-live what I could have done. Just gotta keep digging. We’ve got the points lead, just gotta keep knocking on the door.”
Ryan Sieg was the next-best NASCAR Ford team, finishing sixth in the No. 39 Mustang, while Riley Herbst was the only other Blue Oval team to finish inside the top 10, finishing eighth in the No. 98 Mustang.
re | Start | Car Number | Driver | Team | Laps Run | Laps Led | Car |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 23 | 20 | Christopher Bell(i) | Mobil 1 Toyota | 203 | 43 | Toyota TRD Supra |
2 | 5 | 18 | Sheldon Creed | Friends of Jaclyn Foundation Toyota | 203 | 1 | Toyota TRD Supra |
3 | 1 | 0 | Cole Custer | Haas Automation Ford | 203 | 114 | Ford Mustang |
4 | 12 | 7 | Justin Allgaier | BRANDT Chevrolet | 203 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
5 | 38 | 88 | Carson Kvapil | Clarience Technologies Chevrolet | 203 | 24 | Chevrolet Camaro |
6 | 9 | 39 | Ryan Sieg | Sci Aps Ford | 203 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
7 | 8 | 48 | Parker Kligerman | Spiked Lite Coolers Chevrolet | 203 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
8 | 4 | 98 | Riley Herbst | Monster Energy Ford | 203 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
9 | 37 | 17 | Alex Bowman(i) | HendrickCars.com Chevrolet | 203 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
10 | 7 | 26 | Corey Heim(i) | Yahoo! Toyota | 203 | 0 | Toyota TRD Supra |
11 | 22 | 16 | AJ Allmendinger | Campers Inn RV Chevrolet | 203 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
12 | 6 | 8 | Sammy Smith | Pilot Flying J Chevrolet | 203 | 3 | Chevrolet Camaro |
13 | 15 | 2 | Jesse Love # | Whelen Chevrolet | 203 | 3 | Chevrolet Camaro |
14 | 29 | 9 | Brandon Jones | Menards/Watts Chevrolet | 203 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
15 | 2 | 81 | Chandler Smith | Smith General Contracting Toyota | 203 | 1 | Toyota TRD Supra |
16 | 21 | 44 | Brennan Poole | Frontline Fire Protection Chevrolet | 203 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
17 | 20 | 27 | Jeb Burton | Bommarito.com Chevrolet | 203 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
18 | 28 | 97 | Shane Van Gisbergen # | WeatherTech Chevrolet | 203 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
19 | 3 | 1 | Sam Mayer | 10X Health Chevrolet | 203 | 9 | Chevrolet Camaro |
20 | 11 | 5 | Anthony Alfredo | Steele Group/Anchor Advisors Chevrolet | 203 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
21 | 18 | 51 | Jeremy Clements | Impel Union Chevrolet | 203 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
22 | 25 | 19 | Justin Bonsignore | M3 Technology's Toyota | 203 | 3 | Toyota TRD Supra |
23 | 17 | 11 | Josh Williams | Alloy Employer Services Chevrolet | 203 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
24 | 13 | 21 | Austin Hill | Bennett Transportation Chevrolet | 203 | 2 | Chevrolet Camaro |
25 | 32 | 91 | Kyle Weatherman | DriveSmartWarranty.com Chevrolet | 203 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
26 | 24 | 31 | Parker Retzlaff | FUNKAWAY Chevrolet | 203 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
27 | 33 | 29 | Blaine Perkins | AutoParkit.com Ford | 203 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
28 | 35 | 35 | Glen Reen | New Wave Bath Chevrolet | 203 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
29 | 34 | 4 | Garrett Smithley | Trophy Tractor Chevrolet | 202 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
30 | 31 | 14 | Mason Massey(i) | Brunt Workwear Chevrolet | 202 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
31 | 19 | 28 | Kyle Sieg | Onsite Power Academy Ford | 201 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
32 | 30 | 15 | Hailie Deegan # | VIVA Tequila Seltzer Ford | 201 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
33 | 36 | 6 | Armani Williams | Doug Flutie Jr Fdn for Autism Ford | 198 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
34 | 27 | 7 | Patrick Emerling | Laquerre's Power Sports Chevrolet | 197 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
35 | 16 | 43 | Ryan Ellis | United Construction & Forestry Chevrolet | 196 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
36 | 26 | 92 | Nathan Byrd | ClearCore Solutions Chevrolet | 185 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
37 | 14 | 42 | Leland Honeyman # | RANDCO Industries Chevrolet | 95 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
38 | 10 | 38 | Matt DiBenedetto | Sci Aps Ford | 203 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
# – Rookie
i – Points ineligible
* – Part-time driver
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