NASCAR Xfinity Series

Martinsville madness ends in Childress conflict

3 Mins read
Credit: Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images

Sheldon Creed‘s tenure at Richard Childress Racing does not end until after the 2023 NASCAR Xfinity Series season ends at Phoenix Raceway, but the team probably does not have a farewell party planned following Saturday’s Martinsville Speedway debacle.

Creed entered Martinsville needing a win to qualify for the Championship Round while team-mate Austin Hill maintained his position in the top four, and both seemed to be on the right path to at least achieve their individual goals as they began overtime sharing the front row. Both ended up being eliminated entirely after Creed attempted a last-ditch pass on Hill for the lead going into the final two corners, following a series of bumps between the two, enabling Justin Allgaier to sneak by when Creed ran wide and in front of Hill.

Hill was turned by John Hunter Nemechek as the pack bunched up in turn three, triggering a pile-up while Creed tried to recover. However, in a repeat of the Daytona race in August, he lost the drag race to the finish to Allgaier. Despite finishing second, Creed was too far back on points to advance while Allgaier and Cole Custer—the latter finishing backwards and on fire due to the wreck—leapfrogged Hill to take the final two spots. Custer was only a point ahead of Hill on the final lap, and secured the fourth seed as Hill was relegated to twenty-first.

The second-place finish adds yet another entry to Creed’s growing list of heartbreaks in the Xfinity Series. He has yet to win in the division, which sticks out in comparison to Hill who entered the series alongside him but already has six victories and won the 2023 regular season championship. Both drivers had clashed at fellow short track Bristol to start the playoffs, seemingly enflaming some tensions that might have surfaced during their two seasons together. Doing little to alleviate the perception that Hill was receiving preferential treatment over Creed, RCR vice president Andy Petree confronted him after the race while team owner Richard Childress went as far as to remark that he has “had drivers drive for me but nobody as stupid as Sheldon Creed.”

Hill also expressed his frustration with his soon-to-be-ex-partner, sarcastically applauding at the #2 pit box and prompting crew chief Jeff Stankiewicz to respond he is not the driver. In his interview with NBC, he added he was “excited for [Creed] to go to his next venture over at Gibbs and I won’t have to worry about him anymore.” Creed has long been rumoured to be joining Joe Gibbs Racing for 2024, though the team has not made an announcement.

Creed argued Petree would not have been so defensive if he and Hill swapped places, and admitted his role as the number two driver was “probably part of the reason I’m leaving.”

“If I wanted to guarantee myself a win, I’d do what Ty did last year and spin [Hill] out,” he continued, alluding to Ty Gibbs turning his JGR colleague Brandon Jones for the win at the 2022 Martinsville Xfinity race despite already being locked into the Championship Four. Interestingly, that incident also allowed Allgaier to make the final round. “I moved him up and gave him a fighting shot. He had a fighting shot. I can’t control the #20 spinning him out in three and four.”

Race results

FinishStartNumberDriverTeamManufacturerLapsStatus
127Justin AllgaierJR MotorsportsChevrolet256Running
282Sheldon CreedRichard Childress RacingChevrolet256Running
3118Sammy SmithJoe Gibbs RacingToyota256Running
4498Riley HerbstStewart-Haas RacingFord256Running
5128Josh BerryJR MotorsportsChevrolet256Running
61410Daniel HemricKaulig RacingChevrolet256Running
71031Parker RetzlaffJordan Anderson RacingChevrolet256Running
82278Anthony AlfredoB.J. McLeod MotorsportsChevrolet256Running
93827Jeb BurtonJordan Anderson RacingChevrolet256Running
101548Parker KligermanBig Machine Racing TeamChevrolet256Running
111911Layne RiggsKaulig RacingChevrolet256Running
122644Rajah Caruth*Alpha Prime RacingChevrolet256Running
133428C.J. McLaughlinRSS RacingFord256Running
142492Josh WilliamsDGM RacingChevrolet256Running
151119Myatt SniderJoe Gibbs RacingToyota256Running
1669Brandon JonesJoe Gibbs RacingToyota256Running
172051Jeremy ClementsJeremy Clements RacingChevrolet256Running
18520John Hunter NemechekJoe Gibbs RacingToyota256Running
19300Cole CusterStewart-Haas RacingFord256Running
201625Brett MoffittAM RacingFord256Running
21921Austin HillRichard Childress RacingChevrolet255Accident
223102Blaine PerkinsOur MotorsportsChevrolet255Accident
231891Josh BilickiDGM RacingChevrolet255Accident
243243Ryan EllisAlpha Prime RacingChevrolet245Transmission
25171Sam MayerJR MotorsportsChevrolet244Accident
262945Jeffrey EarnhardtAlpha Prime RacingChevrolet244Accident
273008Chad FinchumSS-Green Light RacingFord244Accident
282326Kaz GralaSam Hunt RacingToyota243Accident
293338Joe Graf Jr.RSS RacingFord240Running
303535Chris Hacker*Emerling-Gase MotorsportsChevrolet237Radiator
312524Connor MosackSam Hunt RacingToyota232Radiator
32276Brennan PooleJD MotorsportsChevrolet218Engine
333653Akinori Ogata*Emerling-Gase MotorsportsChevrolet217Oil Line
34214J.J. YeleyJD MotorsportsChevrolet207Accident
351339Ryan SiegRSS RacingFord203Steering
36716Chandler SmithKaulig RacingChevrolet187Accident
373707Devin JonesSS-Green Light RacingChevrolet131Engine
382829Kyle SiegRSS RacingFord40Accident
DNQ66Timmy HillMBM MotorsportsToyota
Bold – Currently in playoffs
Underline – Eliminated from playoffs
Italics – Competing for Rookie of the Year
* – Ineligible for points
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Justin is not an off-road racer, but he writes about it for The Checkered Flag.
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