The 2018 Coca-Cola Firecracker 250 was the 16th stock car race of the

2018 NASCAR Xfinity Series file:Tyler Reddick Atlanta 2018.jpg, Chevy won the manufacturer's championship. The 2018 NASCAR Xfinity Series was the 37th season of the NASCAR Xfinity Series, a stock car racing series sanctioned by NASCAR in the United States. William By ...

season and the 17th iteration of the

event Event may refer to: Gatherings of people * Ceremony, an event of ritual significance, performed on a special occasion * Convention (meeting), a gathering of individuals engaged in some common interest * Event management, the organization of eve ...

. The race was held on Friday, July 6, 2018, in

Daytona Beach, Florida Daytona Beach is a coastal Resort town, resort city in Volusia County, Florida, United States. Located on the East Coast of the United States, its population was 72,647 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is part of the Deltona� ...

Daytona International Speedway Daytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, Daytona Beach, Florida, United States, about north of Orlando, Florida, Orlando. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500, the most prestigious race ...

, a 2.5 miles (4.0 km) permanent triangular-shaped superspeedway. The race was extended from its scheduled 100 laps to 105 due to a

NASCAR overtime The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...

finish. At race's end, a close, but controversial finish would see

Chip Ganassi Racing Chip Ganassi Racing, LLC (CGR), also sometimes branded as Chip Ganassi Racing Teams, is an American auto racing organization competing in the NTT IndyCar Series. They have formerly competed in the NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series, Global Rally ...

driver

Kyle Larson Kyle Miyata Larson (born July 31, 1992) is an American professional racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 5 Chevrolet ZL1 for Hendrick Motorsports, part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. ...

win his 11th career

NASCAR Xfinity Series The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level NASCAR Cup Series, Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a Undercard, support ...

win and his third of his part-time season. To fill out the podium,

Elliott Sadler Elliott William Barnes Sadler (born April 30, 1975) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 10 Chevrolet Camaro for Kaulig Racing. Sadler is one of 36 dr ...

JR Motorsports JR Motorsports (pronounced "Junior Motorsports") is an American professional stock car racing team based in Mooresville, North Carolina, co-owned by Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kelley Earnhardt Miller, L. W. Miller, L.W. Miller, and Rick Hendrick. It c ...

and Christopher Bell of

Joe Gibbs Racing Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) is an American professional stock car racing organization founded by Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs. His son, J. D. Gibbs, ran the team with him until his death in 2019. Founded in Huntersville, North Carolina, ...

would finish second and third, respectively. In a controversial ruling,

GMS Racing GMS Racing was an American professional stock car racing team that competed in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, ARCA Menards Series and the NASCAR Xfinity Series. GMS Racing previously competed in the NASCAR Xfinity Series from 2016 to 2019 ...

driver Justin Haley, who had initially won the race was instead disqualified from his win due to him passing Larson below the yellow line, moving him to the last position on the lead lap, which was 18th.

Background

is one of three

superspeedway Oval track racing is a form of motorsport that is contested on an oval-shaped race track. An oval track differs from a road course in that the layout resembles an oval with turns in only one direction, and the direction of traffic is almost uni ...

s to hold

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...

races, the other two being

Indianapolis Motor Speedway The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is a motor racing circuit located in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indianapolis, Indiana. It is the home of the Indianapolis 500 and the Brickyard 400, and and formerly the home of the U ...

and

Talladega Superspeedway Talladega Superspeedway (Alabama International Motor Speedway from 1969 to 1989) is a tri-oval superspeedway in Lincoln, Alabama. Built in 1969, the track has hosted a variety of racing events, primarily races sanctioned by NASCAR. The track is ...

. The standard track at Daytona International Speedway is a four-turn superspeedway that is 2.5 miles (4.0 km) long. The track's turns are banked at 31

degrees Degree may refer to: As a unit of measurement * Degree (angle), a unit of angle measurement ** Degree of geographical latitude ** Degree of geographical longitude * Degree symbol (°), a notation used in science, engineering, and mathematics ...

, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, is banked at 18 degrees.

Entry list

*Withdrew.

Practice

First practice

The first practice session was held on Thursday, July 5, at 1:05 PM EST, and would last for 50 minutes.

Ryan Reed Ryan Austin Payton Reed (born August 12, 1993) is an American professional stock car racing driver and driver coach. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, driving the No. 91 Chevrolet Silverado for McAnally-Hilgemann Ra ...

Roush Fenway Racing Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing, doing business as RFK Racing, is an American professional stock car organization that currently competes in the NASCAR Cup Series. One of NASCAR's largest racing teams in the 2000s and early 2010s, Roush formerly ...

would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 45.885 and an average speed of .

Second practice

The second and final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Thursday, July 5, at 3:05 PM EST, and would last for 50 minutes.

Chad Finchum James Chadwick Finchum (born September 22, 1994) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 66 Ford Mustang Dark Horse for Garage 66. He has also previously competed in t ...

MBM Motorsports Motorsports Business Management LLC, operating as MBM Motorsports, Garage 66, Power Source, and sometimes known as Carl Long Motorsports, is an American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the NASCAR Cup Series and NAS ...

would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 48.500 and an average speed of .

Starting lineup

Qualifying was originally going to be held on Friday, July 6, at 2:10 PM EST. However, rain would cancel the qualifying session, forcing

to resort to the rulebook to set up the lineup, using the current 2018 owner's points. As a result,

Ryan Preece Ryan Preece (born October 25, 1990) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 60 Ford Mustang (seventh generation), Ford Mustang Dark Horse for RFK Racing. Preece previous ...

won the pole.

Full starting lineup

Race results

Stage 1 Laps: 30 Stage 2 Laps: 30 Stage 3 Laps: 45

Notes

References

{{2018 NASCAR Xfinity Series 2018 NASCAR Xfinity Series NASCAR races at Daytona International Speedway July 2018 sports events in the United States 2018 in sports in Florida NASCAR controversies