DANIEL HEMRIC EARNS SECOND CONSECUTIVE TOP-FIVE FINISH WITH THIRD-PLACE RUN AT HOMESTEAD
Date: February 27, 2021 Event: Contender Boats 250 (Round 3 of 33) Series: NASCAR Xfinity Series Location: Homestead-Miami Speedway (1.5-mile oval) Format: 167 laps (Stages: 40 laps / 40 laps / 87 laps) Start / Finish: 2nd / 3rd (Running, 179 of 179 laps) Point Standing: 3rd (117 points, -30 points out of first) Race Winner: Myatt Snider Stage 1 Winner: AJ Allmendinger Stage 2 Winner: Austin Cindric Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-40)
Daniel Hemric started Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Homestead-Miami Speedway from the second position and finished third in stage one.
After starting on the outside of row one, Hemric settled into the runner-up spot in the early going. As the laps went by, the Poppy Bank Toyota Supra was too tight and resulted in Hemric slipping back to fourth by the time the first caution waved on Lap 26.
While pitting on Lap 27, a miscue on pit road resulted in Hemric falling all the way to 32nd for the ensuing restart.
The Kannapolis, North Carolina native restarted 32nd with 10 laps remaining in the first stage and he quickly charged his way back through the field. Hemric’s impressive rally back towards the front saw him climb all the way to third by the time the stage ended on Lap 40.
Following the stage, crew chief Dave Rogers called Hemric back to pit road for four fresh tires and fuel.
Stage 2 Recap (Laps 41-80)
Hemric started sixth and finished 11th in stage two.
Contact with another car early in the second stage resulted in Hemric falling to the back half of the top 10 before a caution on Lap 68. During the caution period, Rogers elected to keep Hemric on track while several other cars pitted. The strategy moved the No. 18 Supra to eighth for a restart with six laps to go in stage two.
Over the final laps of the stage, Hemric fell back to 11th as cars on fresher tires were able to maneuver their way by.
The Poppy Bank team elected to pit for four tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment during the caution following the stage.
Stage 3 Recap (Laps 81-179)
Hemric started ninth in the final stage and finished fourth in Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Early in the final stage, Hemric ran as high as third before a lengthy green-flag stint saw the Poppy Bank Supra slide down to eighth before a caution on Lap 165.
Prior to an overtime restart, all of the leaders pitted for four fresh tires and fuel. Hemric exited pit road in ninth but jumped to eighth after choosing to restart in the outside lane.
On the first overtime restart, Hemric whipped high as the field raced into turn one. He gained three positions by the time he made his way through turn one, but a caution slowed the race and the momentum he had established.
The Poppy Bank Supra lined up sixth – the third car in the outside lane – for the second attempt at an overtime restart. Hemric again used the outside lane’s momentum to move up two positions to finish the race in fourth.
After the race, the second place car was disqualified, therefore moving Hemric up to third place in the final finishing order.
Additional Notes
Hemric’s third-place finish is his second top-five finish in three races so far this season.
Brandon Jones led the four-car Joe Gibbs Racing effort with a second-place finish. Hemric was third and their teammates Ty Dillon and Harrison Burton finished 37th and 39th, respectively.
Daniel Hemric, driver of the No. 18 Poppy Bank Toyota Supra Can you describe the end of that race from your vantage point and what were the restarts like during the race? “Those restarts were a saving grace for everyone on this Poppy Bank Toyota Supra. We had a really good short run car, but not a very good car after 12 to 15 laps. We thought that with experience and such that we could overcome it to be better than we were, but we just struggled. I was happy to see those short runs. I felt like our first launch on the first green-white-checkered was better. I think we were going to lineup to have a run for the lead down the backstretch and the caution flew and I just got boxed in on the second one. I thought we had the top rolling, but it didn’t work out. All in all, I’m really proud of everybody on this Toyota Supra team.” Next Up: The NASCAR Xfinity Series heads west for next weekend’s race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The race will be broadcast live Saturday, March 6 at 4:30 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1, PRN Radio and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
-JGR-