It’s the final road curse race of the season…and the end of another round of the playoffs with the Drive for the Cure 250 on the Roval at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

While the Cup Series drivers are not among the list of entrants; there are plenty of drivers looking to make the race with 42 teams for 38 starting spots.

Justin Allgaier and John Hunter Nemechek have won races in this round and are secured a spot in the round of eight.  Cole Custer is also assured a spot in the next round via points.  Austin Hill, Chandler Smith, Sammy Smith, Sheldon Creed, and Daniel Hemric are all currently above the cut line; while Parker Kligerman, Jeb Burton, Josh Berry, and Sam Mayer are below the cut line.

Earlier in the year NASCAR eliminated stage breaks for the road course races but since the Roval is a playoff race, the stage break cautions have returned and will play into the team’s strategy.

The drivers get a 20 minute practice session before they are divided into two groups for qualifying.

Boris Said is driving the number 17 car as he closes out his NASCAR career at age 61.

Conor Daly’s car is smoking heavily as he comes to pit road.  Daly reports that he missed a shift.

There were five playoff drivers in the top 10 at the end of practice with Justin Allgaier leading the field.

While they are divided into two groups for qualifying, the drivers will qualify as a group.

John Hunter Nemechek’s car has been pushed to the garage with a possible oil leak and will not make a qualifying run.

The number 17 car driven by Boris Said is smoking as the first session of qualifying ends.  Said was last in the group and is in danger of not making the race.

Conor Daly’s car had a transmission line leak which was repaired in time for qualifying.

Group B qualifying has been delayed after the track workers have to clean up oil that was dropped all over the course.

Due to time issues, there will be no round two of qualifying.

Sam Mayer put his number one car on the pole with teammate Justin Allgaier alongside on the front row for a JR Motorsports front row.

The starting lineup for the Drive for the Cure 250:
Sam Mayer
Justin Allgaier
Josh Berry
Daniel Hemric
Sheldon Creed
Parker Kligerman
Cole Custer
Austin Hill
Riley Herbst
Alex Labbe
Brandon Jones
Jordan Taylor
Kyle Weatherman
Kaz Grala
Jeremy Clements
Connor Mosack
Chandler Smith
Josh Bilicki
Jeb Burton
Sage Karam
Anthony Alfredo
Sammy Smith
Parker Retzlaff
Blaine Perkins
Ryan Sieg
Leland Honeyman
Brett Moffitt
Rajah Caruth
Stefan Parsons
Ryan Ellis
Myatt Snider
Brennan Poole
Josh Williams
Conor Daly
Joe Graf Jr
Kyle Sieg
Alex Guenette
John Hunter Nemechek

Boris Said, Preston Pardus, Devin Jones, and Andy Lally failed to qualify for the race.

After wrecking during practice John Hunter Nemechek will have to start the race from the back of the field.  Kyle Sieg, Ryan Sieg, Jeremy Clements, Conor Daly, and Josh Williams will also start the race from the back of the field after the crews made some unapproved adjustments to the cars.

With just 67 laps in the race, stages one and two are 20 laps each with stage three lasting 27 laps.  And the stage breaks return to the road course for the playoffs.  The drivers can run around 32 laps on a single load of fuel.

Sam Mayer brings the field down for the green flag start of the 17 turn road course race from the inside lane from the new restart zone in the chicane.  Mayer edges out Justin Allgaier in the chicane but Allgaier comes up to battle with his teammate for the lead and gets out in front.

Three of the four JR Motorsport drivers occupy the first three spots on the track.

Justin Allgaier leads lap number one.

Lap two, the top five are Justin Allgaier, Sam Mayer, Josh Berry, Sheldon Creed, and Daniel Hemric.

Tradition says that on a road course, to pit prior to the end of the stage; but with the playoffs and the importance of stage points it becomes a dilemma as to whether or not to short pit the end of the stage or go for the stage points.

Lap three, Justin Allgaier has a lead of over half a second on Sam Mayer; Josh Berry, Sheldon Creed, and Daniel Hemric round out the top five.

Lap four, John Hunter Nemechek is inside the top 30 in 28th after starting the race from the back of the field.  Nemechek is one of three drivers who have secured a spot in the next round of the playoffs.

Lap five, Justin Allgaier continues to lead the race with Sam Mayer in second; Josh Berry, Sheldon Creed, and Daniel Hemric rounding out the top five.

Sam Mayer and Justin Allgaier battle for the lead.  Sam Mayer takes the lead in the chicane.

Rajah Caruth gets turned around but gets the car righted and makes his mandatory stop on the track before continuing on after missing the chicane.

Lap eight, Sam Mayer has a lead of over half a second on Justin Allgaier; Josh Berry, Sheldon Creed, and Daniel Hemric round out the top five.

Lap 10, Sam Mayer has a half second lead on teammate Justin Allgaier; Josh Berry, Sheldon Creed, and Daniel Hemric round out the top five.

Lap eleven, Justin Allgaier is slowly closing the gap on leader Sam Mayer.  Allgaier is better on the oval portion of the track; while Mayer is better on the infield road course section of the track.

Jordan Taylor has to come to a stop before moving on after missing the chicane.

Lap 12, the top five are Sam Mayer, Justin Allgaier, Josh Berry, Daniel Hemric, and Sheldon Creed.

Lap 14, Sam Mayer continues to lead the race and is over a second in front of teammate Justin Allgaier; Josh Berry, Daniel Hemric, and Sheldon Creed round out the top five with 37 cars on the lead lap.

Lap 16, Sam Mayer has pulled out to a lead of over a second on Justin Allgaier; Josh Berry, Daniel Hemric, and Sheldon Creed rounding out the top five.

Lap 17, Sam Mayer is now over two seconds out in front of Justin Allgaier.

Lap 18, Josh Berry is the first driver to come down pit road short of the end of the stage; leaders stay out.

Just before pit road closes, Sam Mayer comes down pit road; Justin Allgaier stays out on the track and takes the lead.  Below the cut line, Mayer is focused on winning the race, not stage points.

Pit road is closed.

Justin Allgaier has a lead of over seven seconds on Daniel Hemric.

Justin Allgaier wins stage one…and another playoff point.

The top 10 at the end of stage one:
Justin Allgaier
Daniel Hemric
Sheldon Creed
Parker Kligerman
Austin Hill
Chandler Smith
Sammy Smith
Sam Mayer
Jeb Burton
Josh Bilicki

Josh Bilicki is the only driver in the top 10 not in the playoffs.

Drivers come down pit road for service with Justin Allgaier winning the race off of pit road.

Jeb Burton was caught speeding on pit road and will have to restart the race from the back of the field.

After staying out on the track, Sam Mayer brings the field down for the green flag start of stage two on lap 25 with teammate Josh Berry alongside.  Justin Allgaier restarts the race in twelfth place.  Mayer and Berry battle for the lead with Mayer getting out in front.

The top five are Sam Mayer, Josh Berry, Cole Custer, Riley Herbst, and Alex Labbe.

Lap 26, Justin Allgaier enters the top 10.

Lap 26, Sam Mayer has pulled out to a one second lead on Josh Berry; Cole Custer, Riley Herbst, and Alex Labbe round out the top five.  Some of the cars are showing some damage as the drivers battle for position.

There is some smoke coming form Sheldon Creed’s car.

Lap 28, Sam Mayer now has a lead of over a second on Josh Berry; Cole Custer, Riley Herbst, and Alex Labbe round out the top five.

All 28 laps run so far have been led by JR Motorsports drivers.

Lap 30, Sam Mayer continues to lead the race with Josh Berry in second; Cole Custer, Riley Herbst, and Alex Labbe round out the top five.  John Hunter Nemechek is in sixth place and Justin Allgaier is in eighth.

Lap 31, Sam Mayer has pulled out to a lead of over two and a half seconds on Josh Berry; Cole Custer, Riely Herbst, and Alex Labbe round out the top five.  There are 36 cars on the lead lap with all 38 drivers running on the track.

John Hunter Nemechek passes Alex Labbe for fifth.

Lap 33, Josh Berry is stopped up against the wall but gets the car moving again and the track stays green.  He falls to 13th place.

Lap 36, Sam Mayer is running away from the field with a lead of over five seconds on Cole Custer; Riley Herbst, John Hunter Nemechek, and Brandon Jones round out the top five with Justin Allgaier in sixth place.

Just three laps remain in stage two; Riley Herbst is the first driver to come down pit road to short pit the end of the stage.

Josh Berry is reporting some power steering issues.

Leader Sam Mayer leads several drivers down pit road including Justin Allgaier and Cole Custer.

John Hunter Nemechek is the new leader.  Conor Daly is slowed on the track with a flat tire after spinning out and brings out the caution flag.

John Hunter Nemechek wins stage two under caution.

The top 10 at the end of stage two:
John Hunter Nemechek
Daniel Hemric
Parker Kligerman
Sheldon Creed
Alex Labbe
Sammy Smith
Sam Mayer
Chandler Smith
Josh Bilicki
Stefan Parsons

At the end of stage two, Parker Kligerman, Sam Mayer, Jeb Burton, and Josh Berry are the four drivers below the cut line and in danger of being eliminated from the playoffs.

Justin Allgaier asks his crew chief whether or not they got all of the lug nuts tight on the tires.  The crew said they did but are double checking the cameras.

Drivers who did not short pit come down pit road for service with Daniel Hemric winning the race off of pit road.

Brandon Jones was caught speeding on pit road and will have to restart the race from the back of the field.

Sam Mayer is the leader and will bring the field to green for the start of stage three with Cole Custer alongside.  Mayer edges out for the lead and clears Custer; Justin Allgaier, Riley Herbst, and Kaz Grala round out the top five.

Just 24 laps remain in the race with Sam Mayer leading by over half a second on Cole Custer; Justin Allgaier, Riley Herbst, and Kaz Grala round out the top five.

With 22 laps to go, Sam Mayer has a lead of nearly a second and a half on Cole Custer; Justin Allgaier, Riely Herbst, and Kaz Grala round out the top five.  The crew is telling Mayer to “back it down” and save the tires.

Lap 50, just 17 laps remain in the race; Sam Mayer has a lead of over a second on Cole Custer; Justin Allgaier, Riley Herbst, and Kaz Grala round out the top five.

Leland Honeyman gets turned around in the chicane but the track stays green.

Laps down, Brett Moffitt is off the track.

With 16 laps remaining in the race, Sam Mayer has a second and a half lead on Cole Custer.

Stefan Parsons gets into the wall but gets the car moving again and the track stays green.

Fifteen to go, the battle is tight around the cut line with Sammy Smith just four points above the line, Daniel Hemric and Sheldon Creed are tied on the line and Parker Kligerman is just two points below the line.

With 12 laps remaining in the race, saying that they aren’t getting anywhere where they are, Justin Allgaier brings his car down pit road for some fresh tires and adjustments.  Allgeier has nothing to loose by making a pit stop.  Allgaier returns to the track in 21st place.

The caution flag comes out for debris on the track.

Sam Mayer leads a field of drivers down pit road for fresh tires.  Cole Custer wins the race off of pit road.  Justin Allgaier and Jeb Burton stay out on the track.

Jeb Burton brings the field down for the green flag restart with just eight laps remaining in the race.  Justin Allgaier misses the corner and slams Justin Allgaier into the wall bringing out the caution flag.  Blaine Perkins also gets into the wall.

Justin Allgaier takes his car to the garage and is out of the race.

Cole Custer is the leader with Sam Mayer in second.

Cole Custer brings the field down for the green flag restart with Sam Mayer alongside.  There ae just five laps remaining in the race.  Custer and Mayer go side by side in a battle for the lead with Custer edging out in front.

The top five are Cole Custer, Sam Mayer, Josh Berry, Riley Herbst, and Kaz Grala.

Ryan Ellis gets into the wall but the track stays green.

Four to go, Sam Mayer pressures Cole Custer as the battle continues.  Sam Mayer takes the lead.

Three to go, Sam Mayer has a one second lead on Cole Custer; Josh Berry, Riley Herbst, and Kaz Grala round out the top five.

Two to go, Sam Mayer has a second and a half lead on Cole Custer.

Sam Mayer takes the white flag with a near second and a half lead.

Sam Mayer wins his third race of the season and earns himself a spot in the round of eight.

Daniel Hemric, Parker Kligerman, Josh Berry, and Jeb Burton have all been eliminated from the playoffs.

The unofficial results of the Drive for the Cure 250:
Sam Mayer
Cole Custer
Josh Berry
Riley Herbst
Perker Kligerman
Kaz Grala
Daniel Hemric
John Hunter Nemechek
Austin Hill
Sheldon Creed
Sammy Smith
Chandler Smith
Ryan Sieg
Myatt Snider
Alex Labbe
Jordan Taylor
Brennan Poole
Stefan Parsons
Rajah Caruth
Josh Williams
Leland Honeyman
Parker Retzlaff
Jeremy Clements
Connor Mosack
Josh Bilicki
Kyle Weatherman
Sage Karam
Blaine Perkins
Brandon Jones
Anthony Alfredo
Joe Graf Jr
Kyle Sieg
Alex Guenette
Jeb Burton
Conor Daly
Ryan Ellis
Justin Allgaier
Brett Moffitt