2015 Subway Firecracker 250

Last updated
2015 Subway Firecracker 250
Race details [1]
Daytona International Speedway.svg
Map of Speedway
Date July 4, 2015 (2015-07-04)
Official name 2015 Subway Firecracker 250
Location Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida
Course Tri-oval
Course length 2.5 miles (4.023 km)
Distance 104 laps, 260 mi (418.429 km)
Scheduled distance 100 laps, 250 mi (400 km)
Weather Cloudy
Average speed 132.804 mph (213.727 km/h)
Pole position
Driver Joe Gibbs Racing
Time 49.929
Most laps led
Driver Brian Scott Richard Childress Racing
Laps 84
Winner
No. 33 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing
Television in the United States
Network NBCSN
Announcers Rick Allen, Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte

The 2015 Subway Firecracker 250 was a NASCAR Xfinity Series race held at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida on July 4, 2015. The race was 14th iteration of the event and the 15th race of the 2015 NASCAR Xfinity Series. This would also be the first race since 2006 that NBC would telecast a NASCAR Xfinity Series race. Rookie Daniel Suárez won the pole while Brian Scott led the most laps. But it was Austin Dillon who would win the race in the end. [2]

Contents

Background

Daytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500, the most prestigious race in NASCAR as well as its season opening event. In addition to NASCAR, the track also hosts races for ARCA, AMA Superbike, IMSA, SCCA, and Motocross. The track features multiple layouts including the primary 2.500 mi (4.023 km) high-speed tri-oval, a 3.560 mi (5.729 km) sports car course, a 2.950 mi (4.748 km) motorcycle course, and a 1,320 ft (402.3 m) karting and motorcycle flat-track. The track's 180-acre (72.8 ha) infield includes the 29-acre (11.7 ha) Lake Lloyd, which has hosted powerboat racing. The speedway is operated by NASCAR pursuant to a lease with the City of Daytona Beach on the property that runs until 2054. [3] Dale Earnhardt is Daytona International Speedway's all-time winningest driver, with a total of 34 career victories (12- Daytona 500 Qualifying Races) (7- NASCAR Xfinity Series Races) (6- Busch Clash Races) (6- IROC Races) (2- Pepsi 400 July Races) (1- The 1998 Daytona 500).

Entry list

#DriverTeamMake
0 Harrison Rhodes (R) JD Motorsports Chevrolet
01 Landon Cassill JD MotorsportsChevrolet
1 Elliott Sadler Roush Fenway Racing Ford
2 Brian Scott Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
3 Ty Dillon Richard Childress RacingChevrolet
4 Ross Chastain (R)JD MotorsportsChevrolet
6 Bubba Wallace (R)Roush Fenway RacingFord
7 Regan Smith JR Motorsports Chevrolet
8 Blake Koch TriStar Motorsports Toyota
9 Chase Elliott JR MotorsportsChevrolet
13 Mark Thompson MBM Motorsports Dodge
14 Cale Conley (R)TriStar MotorsportsToyota
15 Scott Lagasse Jr. NTS Motorsports Chevrolet
16 Ryan Reed Roush Fenway RacingFord
18 Daniel Suárez (R) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
19 Jeff Green TriStar MotorsportsToyota
20 David Ragan (i)Joe Gibbs RacingToyota
22 Joey Logano (i) Team Penske Ford
24 Eric McClure TriStar MotorsportsToyota
25 John Wes Townley (i) Athenian Motorsports Chevrolet
26 Timmy Hill (i) JGL Racing Toyota
28 J. J. Yeley JGL RacingToyota
33 Austin Dillon (i)Richard Childress RacingChevrolet
37 Chris Cockrum Chris Cockrum Racing Chevrolet
39 Ryan Sieg RSS Racing Chevrolet
40 Derek White MBM MotorsportsDodge
42 Brennan Poole HScott Motorsports with Chip Ganassi Chevrolet
43 Dakoda Armstrong Richard Petty Motorsports Ford
44 David Starr TriStar MotorsportsToyota
51 Jeremy Clements Jeremy Clements Racing Chevrolet
52 Joey Gase Jimmy Means Racing Chevrolet
54 Erik Jones (i)Joe Gibbs RacingToyota
60 Chris Buescher Roush Fenway RacingFord
62 Brendan Gaughan Richard Childress RacingChevrolet
66 Benny Gordon PEG Racing Toyota
70 Derrike Cope Derrike Cope Racing Chevrolet
74 Mike Harmon Mike Harmon Racing Dodge
85 Bobby Gerhart Bobby Gerhart Racing Chevrolet
88 Kasey Kahne (i)JR MotorsportsChevrolet
89 Morgan Shepherd Shepherd Racing Ventures Chevrolet
90 Martin Roy King Autosport Chevrolet
92 Dexter Bean King AutosportChevrolet
97 Peyton Sellers (R) Obaika Racing Chevrolet
98 Aric Almirola (i) Biagi-DenBeste Racing Ford
Official Entry list

Qualifying

Rookie Daniel Suárez won the pole for the race with his time being 49.929. [4]

PosNo.DriverTeamManufacturerR1R2
118Daniel Suárez (R)Joe Gibbs RacingToyota49.83249.929
22Brian ScottRichard Childress RacingChevrolet49.93150.048
320David Ragan (i)Joe Gibbs RacingToyota50.12350.140
422Joey Logano (i)Team PenskeFord50.11250.164
554Erik Jones (i)Joe Gibbs RacingToyota50.05850.193
63Ty DillonRichard Childress RacingChevrolet50.09950.242
733Austin Dillon (i)Richard Childress RacingChevrolet50.05150.243
816Ryan ReedRoush Fenway RacingFord50.19250.351
962Brendan GaughanRichard Childress RacingChevrolet50.28450.381
101Elliott SadlerRoush Fenway RacingFord50.10550.398
119Chase ElliottJR MotorsportsChevrolet50.21650.446
1215Scott Lagasse Jr.NTS MotorsportsChevrolet50.21450.454
1360Chris BuescherRoush Fenway RacingFord50.286
146Bubba Wallace (R)Roush Fenway RacingFord50.302
157Regan SmithJR MotorsportsChevrolet50.306
1642Brennan PooleHScott Motorsports with Chip GanassiChevrolet50.395
1743Dakoda ArmstrongRichard Petty MotorsportsFord50.412
1826Timmy Hill (i)JGL RacingToyota50.497
1998Aric AlmirolaBiagi-DenBeste RacingFord50.541
2066Benny GordonPEG RacingToyota50.599
2188Kasey Kahne (i)JR MotorsportsChevrolet50.692
228Blake KochTriStar MotorsportsToyota50.692
2325John Wes Townley (i)Athenian MotorsportsChevrolet50.699
2401Landon CassillJD MotorsportsChevrolet50.712
2544David StarrTriStar MotorsportsToyota50.767
2685Bobby GerhartBobby Gerhart RacingChevrolet50.799
2792Dexter BeanKing AutosportChevrolet50.878
2828J. J. YeleyJGL RacingToyota50.888
2989Morgan ShepherdShepherd Racing VenturesChevrolet51.007
3090Martin RoyKing AutosportChevrolet51.038
3174Mike Harmon**Mike Harmon RacingDodge51.056
3239Ryan SiegRSS RacingChevrolet51.135
3370Derrike CopeDerrike Cope RacingChevrolet51.148
344Ross Chastain (R)*JD MotorsportsChevrolet51.153
350Harrison Rhodes (R)*JD MotorsportsChevrolet51.208
3651Jeremy Clements*Jeremy Clements RacingChevrolet51.215
3714Cale Conley (R)*TriStar MotorsportsToyota51.241
3852Joey Gase* **Jimmy Means RacingChevrolet51.401
3924Eric McClure*TriStar MotorsportsToyota51.458
4097Peyton Sellers (R)*Obaika RacingChevrolet51.945
Failed to Qualify, withdrew, or driver changes
4140Derek WhiteMBM MotorsportsDodge51.286
4219Jeff GreenTriStar MotorsportsToyota51.320
4337Chris CockrumChris Cockrum RacingChevrolet51.446
4413Mark ThompsonMBM MotorsportsDodge51.120
Official Starting grid

* – Made the field via owners points

** – Mike Harmon and Joey Gase had to go to the rear of the field. Gase had Unapproved adjustments and Harmon missed the drivers intro.

Race

The race was meant to start at around 7 pm Eastern but got delayed nearly two hours because of rain and started at nearly 9 pm Eastern instead. Outside pole sitter Brian Scott took the lead from pole sitter Daniel Suárez and Scott led the first lap of the race. The first caution did not take long as it flew on lap 3 when Bobby Gerhart spun off of turn 4 after he got turned by Joey Gase. The race would restart on lap 7. On the restart, Joey Logano took the lead from Scott but was immediately passed by Daniel Suárez and Suárez took the lead. On lap 9, the second caution would fly when rookie Cale Conley spun going into turn 3 after he got turned by Scott Lagasse Jr. The race would restart on lap 13. On the restart, Brian Scott took the lead from Suárez. On lap 15, the third caution would fly when Derrike Cope hit the outside wall in the tri-oval after he came across the nose of Austin Dillon. During the caution as the cars made their way to pit road, Jeremy Clements decided to come to pit road at almost the very last minute but Landon Cassill decided not to pit at the very last minute and the two made contact near the entrance and turned Cassill around in the process and gave both cars damage. The race would restart on lap 20. Eventually, the race would finally get its first green flag run of over 5 laps and went green for the next 62 laps. Eventually, green flag pitstops would begin on lap 56. Brian Scott pitted on that lap and gave the lead to Joey Logano. Logano pitted on lap 59 and gave the lead back to Scott after everything cycled through. On lap 59, a weird incident occurred when Scott Lagasse Jr's hood all of a sudden blew up and had to retire from the race.

Final laps

With 20 laps to go on lap 81, the 4th caution would fly when Cale Conley spun in turns 3 and 4. The race would restart with 15 laps to go with Scott leading. Scott was looking for his first ever Xfinity Series win of his career in his 190th start. But with 10 laps to go, the 5th caution would fly for the first big one of the race that occurred going into turn 1. It started when Ryan Reed got sideways by Ty Dillon and Reed turned down into Brendan Gaughan and Gaughan turned down into Bubba Wallace which caused Wallace to spin up right in front of the pack and take out more cars with him. A scary moment in the wreck also occurred when Brennan Poole went down to avoid a spinning Aric Almirola and Poole ended up sliding on the wet pavement and shot across the track and hit the outside wall head on in turn 1. Poole and everyone else were okay. The wreck collected a total of 14 cars. The wreck collected Bubba Wallace, Brennan Poole, Aric Almirola, Chris Buescher, Blake Koch, Ryan Reed, John Wes Townley, Brendan Gaughan, Daniel Suárez, Ty Dillon, Regan Smith, Joey Gase, Kasey Kahne, and Martin Roy. The race was red flagged for a short bit to clean up the mess. The race would restart with 5 laps to go. With 4 to go, Elliott Sadler went to take the lead from Brian Scott down the backstretch. Scott went up to block but cut across Sadler's nose and hit the outside wall and would cause the 2nd big one bringing out the 6th caution of the race and took out 15 cars. Joey Logano went down to avoid Scott but got turned by David Starr which caused the wreck. The cars involved were Brian Scott, Joey Logano, Harrison Rhodes, David Ragan, Ryan Sieg, David Starr, Dakoda Armstrong, Regan Smith, Erik Jones, Elliott Sadler, Chase Elliott, Joey Gase, Ross Chastain, Benny Gordon, and Martin Roy. The wreck would set up three attempts of a green-white-checkered finish with Austin Dillon as the new leader. On the restart, Dillon would take the lead from Dakoda Armstrong. On the final lap, the 7th and final caution would fly when Daniel Suárez spun down the frontstretch towards the tri-oval and it meant Austin Dillon would win. The race would be Dillon's first win of his Xfinity Series career at Daytona. Elliott Sadler, Chase Elliott, Kasey Kahne, and Benny Gordon rounded out the top 5 while Dakoda Armstrong, David Ragan, Erik Jones, Harrison Rhodes, and Ross Chastain rounded out the top 10. This would be Benny Gordon's first and only top 5 finish of his Xfinity Series career. This would be Harrison Rhodes' first top 10 of his Xfinity Series career. [5]

Race results

PosCarDriverTeamManufacturerLaps RunLaps LedStatusPoints
133Austin Dillon (i)Richard Childress RacingChevrolet1049running0
21Elliott SadlerRoush Fenway RacingFord1040running42
39Chase ElliottJR MotorsportsChevrolet1040running41
488Kasey Kahne (i)JR MotorsportsChevrolet1040running0
566Benny GordonPED RacingToyota1040running39
643Dakoda ArmstrongRichard Petty MotorsportsFord1040running38
720David Ragan (i)Joe Gibbs RacingToyota1040running0
854Erik Jones (i)Joe Gibbs RacingToyota1040running0
90Harrison Rhodes (R)JD MotorsportsChevrolet1040running35
104Ross Chastain (R)JD MotorsportsChevrolet1031running35
1126Timmy Hill (i)JGL RacingToyota1030running0
1260Chris BuescherRoush Fenway RacingFord1030running32
1316Ryan ReedRoush Fenway RacingFord1030running31
1422Joey Logano (i)Team PenskeFord1034running0
1518Daniel Suárez (R)Joe Gibbs RacingToyota1036running30
1697Peyton Sellers (R)Obaika RacingChevrolet1020running28
177Regan SmithJR MotorsportsChevrolet1020running27
188Blake KochTriStar MotorsportsToyota1020running26
1925John Wes Townley (i)Athenian MotorsportsChevrolet1010running0
2028J. J. YeleyJGL RacingToyota1010running24
2190Martin RoyKing AutosportChevrolet1010running23
2285Bobby GerhartBobby Gerhart RacingChevrolet1010running22
232Brian ScottRichard Childress RacingChevrolet10184running23
2424Eric McClureTriStar MotorsportsToyota1000running20
2562Brendan GaughanRichard Childress RacingChevrolet1000running19
263Ty DillonRichard Childress RacingChevrolet1000running18
2739Ryan SiegRSS RacingChevrolet970crash17
2851Jeremy ClementsJeremy Clements RacingChevrolet970running16
2944David StarrTriStar MotorsportsToyota960crash15
3052Joey GaseJimmy Means RacingChevrolet950crash14
3101Landon CassillJD MotorsportsChevrolet950running13
3214Cale Conley (R)TriStar MotorsportsToyota950running12
3374Mike HarmonMike Harmon RacingDodge950running11
346Bubba Wallace (R)Roush Fenway RacingFord900crash10
3598Aric Almirola (i)Biagi-DenBeste RacingFord900crash0
3642Brennan PooleHScott Motorsports with Chip GanassiChevrolet900crash8
3715Scott Lagasse Jr.NTS MotorsportsChevrolet580crash7
3870Derrike CopeDerrike Cope RacingChevrolet150crash6
3989Morgan ShepherdShepherd Racing VenturesChevrolet100overheating5
4092Dexter BeanKing AutosportChevrolet60vibration4
Official Race results

References

  1. "2015 Subway Firecracker 250" . Retrieved July 4, 2015.
  2. "Austin Dillon Wins NASCAR XFINITY Series Subway Firecracker 250" . Retrieved July 4, 2015.
  3. Lane, Mark (5 August 2018). "Little-known special district leases land under the Daytona International Speedway". Times Herald-Record . Archived from the original on October 21, 2020. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
  4. "Daniel Suarez Wins Pole for the 2015 Subway Firecracker 250 at Daytona". 4 July 2015. Retrieved July 4, 2015.
  5. "Austin Dillon wins crash-marred Firecracker 250" . Retrieved July 4, 2015.
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