Two rookies. Both named Smith, both in the win column early in the season. It was the slightly younger Sammy Smith who first won three weeks ago (March 11) at Phoenix Raceway. Saturday (April 1) at Richmond Raceway, it was Chandler Smith scoring his first career victory in the ToyotaCare 250.
John Hunter Nemechek finished second after mounting a huge comeback from being a lap down early in the race. Josh Berry looked like the man to beat for much of the final stage, but had to settle for third. Kaz Grala had by far his best finish of the season, fourth. Cole Custer rounded out the top five.
The race was exciting and unpredictable, as five different drivers led at least 20 laps during the 250-lap event. Berry seemed to have the race in hand when a late caution for Jeremy Clements led to pit stops and a few more cautions. On the final restart it was Smith on the outside and Nemechek on the inside, with Berry looking on from row two. Smith held off the field and brought home his first career victory.
The Winners
Smith earned some sweet redemption with this win. Four weeks ago (March 4) at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Smith led 118 laps and was the dominant car. But a long green flag run saw Smith use up his tires and get passed for the lead coming to the white flag. The 20-year-old from Talking Rock, Georgia once again led the most laps, but this time he came away a winner.
Nemechek fought through some adversity and still had a chance to win. Early in the race, he and Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Sammy Smith both stayed out under caution while the rest of the field came in for fresh rubber. This led to the JGR duo getting used up and eventually lapped before the end of the stage. Nemechek was in position to get the free pass, Smith spent the rest of the day trying to get his lap back.
Nemechek would march on up the scoring pylon for the rest of the race. With 22 to go he restarted on the outside of the front row and was able to take the lead from Berry. Then on the next caution, he chose the inside lane at the last possible instant. This allowed Smith to get in front of him and the rest is history.
Berry had a great points day, outscoring everyone but Smith. He showed great speed on long runs all day and looked poised to win until the Clements yellow with 34 to go.
Grala has shown speed at times this season but didn’t have a great finish to show for it, until now. The Sam Hunt Racing driver scored points in stage two…
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