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Austin Hill wins at Talladega, spoils Xfinity Series Playoff race

JHby: Jonathan Howard7 hours agoJondean25
Austin Hill
Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

The Georgia boy gets it done in Alabama! Austin Hill wins on a drafting track, once again, and plays spoiler in the NASCAR Playoffs. In the Xfinity Series Owners’ Championship, the 21 team has moved onto the Championship 4. Hill is no longer in the running for the Drivers’ Championship.

Talladega delivered on the drama, the hits, and the overtime finish. Early on, we saw playoff drivers in trouble. Sheldon Creed and Sam Mayer were taken out of the race in the first wreck along with other drivers.

The second big wreck of the evening involved William Sawalich, Connor Zilisch, and others. It took a few more cars out of the race. Sawalich has been transferred to a local hospital for further evaluation.

All evening, Austin Hill was on it. He swept the stages, won the race, and showed that he is still the man to beat on drafting tracks.

Austin Hill led the most laps, secured both stages – it was a repeat of so many other superspeedway wins he’s had before. Prior to the 2025 season, Talladega was the one track that had evaded him. Now, he’s a two-time winner, sweeping both races this season in the Xfinity Series.

Connor Zilisch and Justin Allgaier have locked into Phoenix already on points. That means that Martinsville is going to be even crazier than before. There are only two more spots up for grabs in the championship race and six drivers vying for those spots.

Austin Hill survives chaos at Talladega

Tonight’s race at Talladega had wrecks, it had close moments, and we even had an overtime that forced a few drivers to think twice about how much fuel they had in the car. It appeared that Austin Hill was running out as he crossed the finish line.

Carson Kvapil was so close to getting that first win. Justin Allgaier got right behind him coming out of Turn 4, and it appeared that they were going to get a run on Hill. The blocking was too good from Hill, and the JRM duo had to settle for P2 and P3.

There were a few surprise names in the top-10 of this race. With how much attrition there was, it is not surprising, but we have to give credit where credit is due. Caesar Bacarella scored a top-five, Blaine Perkins, Parker Retzlaff, and Leland Honeyman finished P6, P7, and P8, respectively.

So, Austin Hill came in and played spoiler after being eliminated from the NASCAR Playoffs. He still has an Owners’ Championship to race for. JRM now has two drivers locked into Phoenix and could realistically get one of their other two drivers in on points or with a win. When the checkered flag flies at Martinsville in a week, who will be moving on and who will be missing out on a chance at the championship?