Austin Hill won the wild Xfinity Series race at Atlanta, but it was the multi-car crash that took up the limelight because of how much it altered the results of the race. On Lap 145, contact between Justin Allgaier and Cole Custer caused a massive six-car wreck, which included Taylor Gray, Ryan Sieg, Riley Herbst, and Jesse Love. But how did this take place?

Footage suggests that Dale Jr.’s veteran driver was the initiator in bringing out the first red flag of the race. He tried side-drafting off of Cole Custer for a second place, and the next thing you know, there’s a big wreck.

Custer, who was also battling hard with Allgaier in the button lane, shared his version of the crash as he talked to Bob Pockrass, “Just we barely touched. I mean, we didn’t even have any smoke or anything; it blew his right front, I guess. It’s just part of the racing; you’re just side draft this hard as you can, and if you don’t, he’s gonna clear you the next corner. It’s just tough racing and just the part of it.” But what did Allgaier have to say about it?

In an interview with Frontstretch, he stated, “Just really stinks to end their race that way and obviously have other cars get involved. If it was just him [Custer] and I, and we both crashed, it wouldn’t be probably as big of a deal. But the fact that a bunch of more cars got involved, obviously not ideal.” Additionally, he also stated that he was ‘beyond surprised’ that just a little bit of contact between their cars led to such a huge mess.

The wreck particularly affected Sieg, who was busy trying to outclass Sammy Smith for the final spot in the 12-driver Xfinity Series Playoffs. Sieg was in the top 10 when the multi-car incident occurred. He then dropped from 10 to 44 points behind Sammy Smith.

The whole incident also reminds us of Justin Allgaier, Brandon Jones, and Sammy Smith’s multi-car wreck in Kansas last year. It took place in the first lap of the final stage. As Sheldon Creed and Sammy Smith made contact, No. 18 then made contact with Justin Allgaier’s car, which spun, and later, Jones’s car also spun.

But with the Xfinity Series race at Atlanta, while Custer didn’t blame Allgaier for what happened, NASCAR fans surely weren’t happy with the incident. What did they say?

Justin Allgaier faces the wrath of the angry NASCAR fans

During the stage 1 run, Allgaier used a similar tactic to get in the lead and grab the stage win. However, this time around, his plan didn’t work after trying to battle Custer into a side draft. “That’s on Allgaier being inpatient. No reason to be running like that now,” a fan wrote.

As Custer explained, the No. 7 Chevy might have had a flat tire, which nullified the driver’s ability to turn the corner. Instead of making the corner, Allgaier drifted up the track straight after a slight contact with the No. 19 of Taylor Gray, who was coming up with all the momentum and speed, couldn’t hit the brakes in time, and eventually wrecked into the #7 JRM Chevy. But fans weren’t buying into any of this. A fan wrote, “And once again Allgaier doesn’t take accountability!”

Although Atlanta is a 1.5-mile oval, it does have those high-banking corners that allow drivers to race in the draft, like the superspeedways. Unlike Talladega or Daytona, here it’s tough to get a second lane going, and the single file runs are usually that drivers prefer at this particular venue. But Allgaier, with a good race car, took his chances riding solo in the middle lane and forcing the issue on every corner to make a pass. One might say that is a winning strategy, but for a fan, it was a recipe for disaster. “Only a matter of time before Allgaier was gonna cause huge wreck.”

Cole Custer, Riley Herbst, and hometown favorite Chandler Smith were genuine contenders for the Atlanta win before they caught up in the crash. Moreover, Ryan Seig, who was trying to stay afloat in the race to win the first race of round of 16, ended the race way below the playoff contenders. Sharing disappointment and calling it Karma for Allgaier, a fan wrote, “7 got what he deserved, Unfortunately cost many others as well.🥴.”

While people criticized Justin Allgaier, there were a few fans who supported him. “People realize you need to side draft to pass right? Everyone blaming the 7 for trying to win,” wrote one social media user.

What are your thoughts on the crash, and was Justin Allgaier in the wrong for trying to make the pass on Cole Custer from the middle lane? Let us know in the comments below.