by Derek Jackson
The NASCAR Xfinity Series kicks off the 2025 season Saturday with the United Rentals 300 (5 p.m. ET on the CW, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) – a potentially historical quest to see if Richard Childress Racing driver Austin Hill can win his fourth consecutive Daytona season-opener.
Should Austin Hill win Saturday evening, it would break a tie with NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr. who won the race three straight years from 2002-04. His father, the late fellow NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt, however, holds the all-time race record of five consecutive wins from 1990-94.
Not only has the Richard Childress Racing powerhouse won those races, but the team has won the pole position in six of the series’ last seven races at the big drafting tracks (at Daytona Beach, Talladega, Ala. and Atlanta).
Despite the impressive statistics, however, Hill can expect big time competition Saturday from the reigning NASCAR Xfinity Series champion Justin Allgaier, who won the summer Daytona race in 2023 and has finished in the Top 10 in six of the last seven races at the big track.
Of note, four of the last six series races at Daytona have ended under caution and four of the last five featured an overtime finish. Sixteen drivers have won the last 19 races at the track – the only two drivers with multiple wins in that time are Austin Hill and Justin Haley.
Qualifying for the United Rentals 300 is Saturday at 10 a.m. ET and available to watch on the CW App. Sam Mayer – who move from JR Motorsports to the Haas Factory Team – is the defending polesitter. The pole-winner has won only two of the last 30 NASCAR Xfinity Races at Daytona.
— NASCAR Wire Service —