COLE CUSTER | RILEY HERBST
Martinsville NASCAR Xfinity Series Advance
NASCAR Xfinity Series Overview
- Event: National Debt Relief 250 (Round 32 of 33)
- Date: Saturday, Nov. 2
- Location: Martinsville (Va.) Speedway
- Layout: .526-mile oval
- Time/TV/Radio: 4 p.m. EDT on CW/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Cole Custer Notes of Interest
- Cole Custer is back in familiar colors this weekend as his iconic No. 00 Haas Automation Ford Mustang Dark Horse paint scheme returns for Saturday’s race at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. He’s coming off a solid second-place result at Homestead-Miami Speedway and hopes to keep the momentum rolling as he looks to claim his spot in next week’s Championship 4 at Phoenix Raceway. After qualifying fourth at the 1.5-mile Homestead oval last weekend, Custer wasted no time taking the lead in the race. He led four times for 67 laps overall en route to finishes of fifth and third, respectively, in the first two stages. While the runner-up finish in the race wasn’t the win he was looking for to lock him into the Championship 4, Custer heads to the Martinsville Round of 8 cutoff race solidly above the top-four cutline with a 28-point advantage over fifth-place Chandler Smith, the first driver on the outside looking in. Last year’s Martinsville race ended in chaotic fashion as Custer crossed the finish line backwards and on fire to earn a 19th-place finish that locked him into the Championship 4 on points. He went on to win his first career NASCAR Xfinity Series championship the following week at Phoenix.
- Saturday’s National Debt Relief 250 will mark Custer’s fourth Xfinity Series start at Martinsville. His best finish of third was earned in April 2023, when he started on the pole and led five laps. This past April, he finished eighth after starting second. Custer does have a dozen previous Martinsville outings outside of the Xfinity Series – six apiece in the NASCAR Cup Series and Craftsman Truck Series. In the Cup Series, the 26-year-old from Ladera Ranch, California, has a best Martinsville finish of 13th in October 2020, and his most recent outing in October 2022 resulted in a 14th-place finish. Best of Custer’s six Truck Series races at Martinsville from 2014 through 2016 was his fourth-place finish from the pole after leading a race-high 96 of 200 laps in the October 2015 race. That was behind the wheel of the No. 00 JR Motorsports entry, which he also drove to a seventh-place finish from the third starting position in the October 2016 Martinsville race, in which he led 17 laps.
- Custer arrives at Martinsville fourth in the playoff standings behind AJ Allmendinger and Austin Hill, who already locked themselves into the Championship 4 via their victories at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Homestead, respectively. The remaining two Championship 4 spots are up for grabs between six drivers. Justin Allgaier holds down the third position, seven points ahead of Custer and his 28-point cushion over fifth-place Chandler Smith. Smith is joined below the cutline by Jesse Love, Sam Mayer and Sammy Smith. If one of those four locks himself into the Championship 4 with a win Saturday, that would leave just one remaining Championship 4 spot for Custer, Allgaier and the remaining drivers below the cutline to vie for.
Riley Herbst Notes of Interest
- Riley Herbst and the No. 98 Monster Energy team head to Saturday’s National Debt Relief 250 looking to continue another strong run to end the season, like he did in 2023. The Las Vegas native is coming off a strong, sixth-place result last Saturday at Homestead-Miami Speedway and arrives at Martinsville after back-to-back top-10s. Herbst entered the Martinsville race last season on a three-race top-10 streak, and he survived the mayhem of that race to bring home a fourth-place finish for the No. 98 Monster Energy team. Entering his final two races with Stewart-Haas Racing, Herbst hopes to end his time in the No. 98 Ford Mustang Dark Horse on a high note after what will be 132 total starts behind the wheel. During that time, Herbst has seen two victories – Oct. 14, 2023 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and July 20 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. In addition, he’s won two poles, scored 64 top-10s, and led 323 laps. Not having to focus on the championship points battle, Herbst and the team have nothing to lose and everything to gain as they look to add another win to the history books for Stewart-Haas before the team closes its doors at the end of the season.
- Saturday’s National Debt Relief 250 will be Herbst’s ninth at Martinsville in the Xfinity Series. Five of his eight previous starts there resulted in top-10 finishes. Prior to his third-place finish in October 2022, in which he fought valiantly for the win and avoided mayhem in the final laps, he posted a pair of sixth-place finishes there – in October 2020 and April 2022, respectively. He finished the aorementioed fourth last October and 10th in October 2021.
- Herbst has come to excel on the short tracks in the Xfinity Series, as was evident the previous two seasons. In the four races at tracks less than a mile in length in 2022, Herbst scored three top-fives, starting with his fifth-place run in the April race at Richmond. He finished fifth at the half-mile Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway concrete oval in September and third in November at Martinsville. There was no slowing him down in 2023. Of the four short tracks in 2023, Herbst scored a pair of top-10s during the second-half of the season – eight in September’s Bristol night race and fourth in October’s Martinsville race. This season, Herbst earned two 13th-place finishes – March 30 at Richmond and Sept. 20 at Bristol, in addition to his runner-up finish at the .875-mile Iowa Speedway oval in Newton. Herbst’s Xfinity Series career started on a strong note on short tracks when the Las Vegas native drove to a sixth-place finish in his first career Xfinity Series start in June 2018 at Iowa.
Cole Custer, Driver of the No. 00 Haas Automation Ford Mustang Dark Horse
You’re heading into the final race of the Round of 8 with a 28-point advantage over the top-four cutline and two spots up for grabs in the Championship 4. Do you feel a sense of safety with that significant points gap between you and fifth-place Chandler Smith?
“Martinsville is going to be crazy. No matter what – it is always going to be crazy. We have to bring our best stuff there because you never know who is going to win and that could leave only one spot on points. We just have to go out there and be our best. I think being the team that we are, we’ll be in the fight. The No. 00 Haas Automation team was in this same spot last year, and despite a chaotic ending, we made it to the Championship 4 and went on to win a championship. You can have some comfort in that points advantage, but anything can happen. Those four guys below the cutline are going to be fighting to win and find their way in. I’m nervous heading into this weekend, but I know our team can get it done.”
Martinsville is such a polarizing track for drivers because of how difficult it can be. Both of your starts there last year in the Xfinity Series were strong, with a best finish of third last April. Do you enjoy racing at Martinsville?
“For sure. I really enjoy going to Martinsville. With that said, I’ve never been so nervous for a race as I was heading into that second Martinsville race last year. It was a cutoff race and the nerves were crazy. I have those same feelings this year. Ever since I first went to Martinsville in the Truck Series, I’ve always loved racing there. It’s definitely a place that you will love when everything is going well and hate when it starts going bad – mostly because when it’s bad, it’s really bad. We had a strong car last April to finish third and, honestly, our car in the fall was just as good. There was just so much on the line in that race. Then, to cross the finish line backwards and on fire, it was just one of those crazy Martinsville endings. Even with the nerves, I’m excited to go there and not only race for the iconic grandfather clock trophy, but also a spot in the Championship 4.”
Riley Herbst, Driver of the No. 98 Monster Energy Ford Mustang Dark Horse
With only two races left in the 2024 season, reflect on your time at Stewart-Haas Racing as you look ahead to the future.
“Stewart-Haas Racing has been such a good time in my career. This place saw my growth. I’m not the same driver who walked through those doors in 2021. I went from a kid who no one thought deserved a ride to an Xfinity Series winner. My growth may have been slow. There may have been some bumps in the road. But, it’s my journey and I’m proud of it. All of the people I’ve worked with at Stewart-Haas over the years have helped me grow into the driver I am today. I can’t thank the team, the people, Ford Performance, and Monster Energy enough for always believing in me during this time. We’ve had a strong four seasons together, and while it’s bittersweet to see it come to an end with the team closing, I’m grateful for the time I’ve had here and everything that I’ve learned.”
Martinsville has been a strong track for you despite some roller coaster races in your career. On top of that, you’ve finished third and fourth in the past two fall races at Martinsville, respectively. Are you excited to head back there this weekend to race for a grandfather clock?
“Martinsville has always been a tough one for me to tackle, but it’s like that for every driver in the field. You can have the best of days there and the worst. I’ve been on both sides of it but, overall, I really do enjoy going to this track. It’s like the short tracks that we all grew up racing on, so it’s familiar to a lot of guys in the garage. Short-track racing is always fun for me, but Martinsville is where you’re really beating and banging to try and get a win. At the end of the day, it’s about staying out of trouble and being there
