Cole Custer, driver of the No. 00 NASCAR Ford Mustang Dark Horse, could have cruised to victory at Kansas Speedway on September 28th, 2024, if not for the No. 20 Toyota TRD Supra of Aric Almirola and the No. 81 Supra of Chandler Smith.
Almirola made the race-winning pass on Lap 197 of 200. All Custer could do was stand back and watch as Almirola’s taillights receded on the way to the victory, and late-race contact with Smith certainly didn’t help Custer’s case. Smith pinched Custer into the outside wall while the two racers were vying for the lead, opening up the door for Almirola to squeeze by and win the race.
Custer was understandably frustrated after the race and discussed the contact with Smith on Pit Road, although he wasn’t overly impressed with the pleased of the conversation.
“Everybody wants to try and talk afterwards,” Custer said. “At the end of the day, he put me in the fence, and he’s going to pay for it.”
The next-best NASCAR Ford driver was the No. 98 Mustang of Riley Herbst, who finished 10th. Custer is still ranked first in the Playoff standings, while Herbst slots in eighth.
| Finish | Start | Car Number | Driver | Team | Laps Run | Laps Led | Car |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | 20 | Aric Almirola (P) | He Gets Us Toyota | 200 | 16 | Toyota TRD Supra |
| 2 | 3 | 00 | Cole Custer (P) | CW on NXT Ford | 200 | 48 | Ford Mustang |
| 3 | 2 | 81 | Chandler Smith (P) | QuickTie Toyota | 200 | 114 | Toyota TRD Supra |
| 4 | 4 | 88 | Connor Zilisch | KOA/RTIC Chevrolet | 200 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 5 | 15 | 18 | Sheldon Creed (P) | Friends of Jaclyn Foundation Toyota | 200 | 0 | Toyota TRD Supra |
| 6 | 1 | 9 | Brandon Jones | Menards/Schultz Chevrolet | 200 | 4 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 7 | 10 | 21 | Austin Hill (P) | Bennett Transportation Chevrolet | 200 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 8 | 22 | 97 | Shane Van Gisbergen # (P) | Safety Culture Chevrolet | 200 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 9 | 7 | 2 | Jesse Love # (P) | Whelen Chevrolet | 200 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 10 | 16 | 98 | Riley Herbst (P) | Monster Energy Ford | 200 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
| 11 | 18 | 11 | Josh Williams | Call 811 Chevrolet | 200 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 12 | 8 | 48 | Parker Kligerman (P) | Big Machine Spiked Coolers Chevrolet | 200 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 13 | 5 | 1 | Sam Mayer (P) | QPS Employment Group Chevrolet | 200 | 18 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 14 | 24 | 38 | Matt DiBenedetto | ReMA Ford | 200 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
| 15 | 20 | 5 | Anthony Alfredo | Ferguson Chevrolet | 200 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 16 | 12 | 39 | Ryan Sieg | Sci Aps Ford | 200 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
| 17 | 14 | 16 | AJ Allmendinger (P) | Morris-Shea Bridge Co. Inc. Chevrolet | 199 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 18 | 28 | 44 | Brennan Poole | Macc Door/DoorLink Chevrolet | 199 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 19 | 29 | 43 | Ryan Ellis | Snapchat Chevrolet | 199 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 20 | 25 | 14 | JJ Yeley | MPV Express Ford | 199 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
| 21 | 23 | 31 | Parker Retzlaff | EasyCare Chevrolet | 199 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 22 | 13 | 8 | Sammy Smith (P) | TMC Transportation Chevrolet | 199 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 23 | 19 | 27 | Jeb Burton | BG Products Chevrolet | 198 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 24 | 21 | 28 | Kyle Sieg | RSS Racing Ford | 198 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
| 25 | 38 | 42 | Leland Honeyman # | Hardscape Contractors Chevrolet | 198 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 26 | 33 | 91 | Kyle Weatherman | Crav'n Flavor Chevrolet | 197 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 27 | 26 | 51 | Jeremy Clements | Impel Union Chevrolet | 197 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 28 | 32 | 29 | Blaine Perkins | Crocodile Cloth Ford | 197 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
| 29 | 36 | 74 | Ryan Vargas | Mike Harmon Racing Chevrolet | 196 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 30 | 35 | 07 | Patrick Emerling | BB Roofing Chevrolet | 196 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 31 | 17 | 26 | Corey Heim(i) | Endava Toyota | 195 | 0 | Toyota TRD Supra |
| 32 | 34 | 35 | Joey Gase | Branson.com Chevrolet | 194 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 33 | 31 | 15 | Logan Bearden | AirBox Ford | 190 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
| 34 | 30 | 10 | Daniel Dye(i) | Race to Stop Suicide Chevrolet | 189 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 35 | 27 | 92 | Dawson Cram(i) | Trade with the Pros Chevrolet | 174 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 36 | 9 | 7 | Justin Allgaier (P) | BRANDT Chevrolet | 73 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 37 | 37 | 45 | Brad Perez | APEX Coffee Roasters Chevrolet | 61 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro |
| 38 | 11 | 19 | Taylor Gray(i) | Operation 300 Toyota | 45 | 0 | Toyota TRD Supra |
# – Rookie
i – Points ineligible
* – Part-time driver
P – Playoffs eligible
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