SMITH CONTINUES TOP-FIVE STREAK, LEADS TOYOTA IN VEGAS
Four Supras in the top-15 led by Chandler Smith’s seventh straight top-five finish
LAS VEGAS (October 19, 2024) – Chandler Smith’s continued to put together a great Playoff run as the Georgia-native finished fourth to lead Toyota in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. It was Smith’s seventh consecutive top-five finish, which allowed him to remain in the top-four of the championship battle. He currently has an eight point advantage on the cutline heading into Homestead-Miami Speedway next weekend.
Smith led four Toyota GR Supras in the top-15, as teammate Sheldon Creed was scored ninth, Corey Heim finished 11th and Aric Almirola crossed the line in 13th.
Toyota Racing Post-Race Recap
NASCAR Xfinity Series
Las Vegas Motor Speedway
Race 30 of 33 – 301.5 Miles, 201 Laps
TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS
1st, AJ Allmendinger*
2nd, Ryan Sieg*
3rd, Justin Allgaier*
4th, CHANDLER SMITH
5th, Parker Kligerman*
9th, SHELDON CREED
11th, COREY HEIM
13th, ARIC ALMIROLA
33rd, TAYLOR GRAY
*non-Toyota driver
TOYOTA QUOTES
CHANDLER SMITH, No. 81 QuickTie Products Toyota GR Supra, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 4th
How would you evaluate a fourth-place run?
“We definitely maximized our day. This No. 81 QuickTie Products GR Supra was not as fast as Xfinity internet at the start of the race. It was an absolute handful – all I could do not to wreck by myself. Jeff Meendering (crew chief) was able to – we came in the stage one break and made a change and got it slightly better, and progressively got it slightly better all day. It just wasn’t at all what we expected coming into the weekend – wasn’t where we targeted or thought we would be – just with what we brought, we balanced everything off the Spring race and was not close to what we were during the Spring race. Definitely need to go back to the drawing board and be a little bit better. We need to be a little bit better these next two weeks for sure.”
SHELDON CREED, No. 18 Friends of Jaclyn Foundation Toyota GR Supra, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 9th
Had to start from the back, but you came through the field and ended up with a solid day. How was your race?
“Yeah, just a solid day from starting at the back. I thought we were going to be a little bit better with how it felt yesterday, but I don’t know, I got to like 17th or 18th and I got really tight there in stage one, and got tires and flipped – got a lot of track position there. Got to run third there at the beginning of stage two and then I would just get really tight, so I would fall really hard once I got tight. We kept making it better and better all night, but once the sun went down, we got even better and seemed to have decent fire-off speed and it lasted longer. I don’t know what we were racing for there at the end – ninth or 10th – and then the caution. Overall, solid day for our Friends of Jaclyn Foundation Supra. We had to work for it, but another top-10 on the year, and we will get ready for next week.”
About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for more than 65 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our more than 1,800 dealerships.
Toyota directly employs more than 63,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 47 million cars and trucks at our 12 manufacturing plants. By 2025, Toyota’s 13th plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles. With more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, Toyota currently offers 29 electrified options.
For more information about Toyota, visit www.ToyotaNewsroom.com.
