Joe Gibbs’ Xfinity Ace Circles Lack of ‘Real Estate’ for Restart Ruckus in Phoenix

NASCAR racing is known for its sheer competitive spirit. One that exceeds far beyond the boundaries of comradery, even for drivers on the same team. And this was the case at the Xfinity Series race on Saturday night. What could have been a solid outing for JGR on the day turned out to be an in-house rivalry between the drivers, Chandler Smith and John Hunter Nemechek.

It was clean at Phoenix for the most part, but with 58 laps to go, a late restart saw Chandler Smith ignite a big one. Nemechek was leading the charge at the restart but soon found himself in a swarm of faster cars. Trying to thread the needle, Smith also took his shot at passing his teammate, and next thing you know, he turned the #20 JGR car with a bump and sparked a big accident.

Chandler Smith explains his reasoning for wrecking his teammate’s car during a late restart in Phoenix

At first, it sure looked like a deliberate attempt by Smith to wreck the #20 car. However, given the circumstances of the race, every driver was looking to push for a better position, which ultimately triggered the incident that could have been avoided in the race. And this was the argument made by the JGR driver.

Speaking in the post-race interview, Smith shared his version of the incident that made him a villain for the race. He said, “It was definitely Phoenix; we will talk about it Monday for sure, but it’s just typical Phoenix restart. Everybody searching for real estate and everybody runs out of it. If you are at the wrong place and the wrong time, I hate it for those guys for sure though.”

The wreck not only took out Nemechek but also a total of thirteen cars on the grid. The incident sparked a change in the dynamics of the race and saw Smith and Justin Allgaier battle it out for the lead. After some good head-to-head with Smith, Allgaier was in clean air to take the win with just 5 laps to go, and this is where calamity struck for the JR Motorsports driver.

Allgaier lost his rear tire and saw his car spin around the track and then take a nasty hit on the wall. Essentially, he ended his potential winning run at the racetrack. Picking up the pieces was once again Chandler Smith, who capitalized on the opportunity and bagged himself his second win in the Xfinity Series.

John Hunter Nemechek was in the wrong place at the wrong time during the big incident at Phoenix Raceway

Smith made his case clear about how tight the spaces were for the drivers to make haste. The same rhetoric was shared by Nemechek, who, despite running in leading positions, succumbed to the chaotic restart. Sharing his experience of the big accident, he said, “I don’t know there was a little bit of contact, and next thing I knew, I was sideway, so part of it.”

He went on to add, “Just Phoenix restarts. Restarts are crazy here. Getting three wide, four wide, two wide, doesn’t really matter. Restarts are just nuts here with the dogleg and sometimes you’re in the wrong spot at the wrong time.” From winning the Xfinity race in Vegas to not being able to put out a fight for his spot in Phoenix, it was indeed a tough pill to swallow for the 26-year-old driver.

With this win at Phoenix Raceway, Smith managed to topple Austin Hill and secure the top spot in the driver’s standings. The Xfinity Series will be back in action after two weeks at COTA on March 23.

Read More: Xfinity Star Retaliates With Hilarious NASCAR Gibe to Scary “Eye Contact” Moment With John Hunter Nemechek