Herbst Rallies to Finish 10th at Martinsville
Monster Energy Driver Rebounds from Late-Race Incident to Score 12th Top-10 of Season
Date: Oct. 30, 2021
Event: Martinsville 250 (Round 32 of 33)
Series: NASCAR Xfinity Series
Location: Martinsville (Va.) Speedway (.526-mile oval)
Format: 250 laps, broken into three stages (60 laps/60 laps/130 laps)
Start/Finish: 16th / 10th (Running, completed 257 of 257 laps)
Point Standing: 11th with 2,121 points
Note: Race extended seven laps past its scheduled 250-lap distance due to a green-white-checkered finish.
Race Winner: Noah Gragson of JR Motorsports (Chevrolet)
Stage 1 Winner: Austin Cindric of Team Penske (Ford)
Stage 2 Winner: Noah Gragson of JR Motorsports (Chevrolet)
Overview:
Riley Herbst proved resilient in Saturday night’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. The driver of the No. 98 Monster Energy Ford Mustang finished an impressive 10th after getting collected in a multicar accident that left him 26th with less than 60 laps remaining. Prior to the accident on lap 194 that ensnared Herbst and four of his counterparts and led to a 10-minute and 47-second red flag stoppage, Herbst was running eighth. That track position went out the window as Herbst was forced to pit so his Monster Energy crew could fix some right-front damage and get him back onto the .526-mile with four fresh tires and fuel. Herbst methodically made his way forward, rejoining the top-10 on lap 227. He then survived two late-race restarts and held steady among the top-10 to collect his 12th top-10 finish of the season.
Riley Herbst, driver of the No. 98 Monster Energy Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:
“Proud of the No. 98 Monster Energy team for never giving up. We definitely had a car that could run up front, but that incident in the last stage really put us back in the pack. Luckily, we caught a break with a quick caution and raced our way back up into the top-10. Still got one more shot at the win in Phoenix.”
Notes:
● Herbst finished eighth in Stage 2 to earn three bonus points.
● Noah Gragson won the Martinsville 250 to score his fifth career Xfinity Series victory, his third of the season and his first at Martinsville. His margin over second-place Austin Cindric was .064 of a second.
● There were 13 caution periods for a total of 75 laps.
● Twenty-seven of the 40 drivers in the Martinsville 250 finished on the lead lap.
Next Up:
The NASCAR Xfinity Series season finale is Saturday, Nov. 6 at Phoenix Raceway. The championship race starts at 8:30 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by NBCSN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
