Austin Hill wins emotional NASCAR road course thriller for RCR

Austin Hill delivered Richard Childress Racing an emotional breakthrough Saturday night, winning the inaugural United Rentals Driven to Serve 250 at Naval Base Coronado with a last-lap pass over Taylor Gray. The victory in San Diego was Hill’s first career NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series road course win and the 16th win of his series career in the No. 21 Chevrolet.

The race turned chaotic in the closing laps. Carson Kvapil was leading with three laps to go before Gray intentionally spun him out, setting up a final battle between Gray and Hill. Gray took the lead before the finish sequence, made contact with Hill as Hill moved ahead, and Hill held the top spot to the checkered flag. Gray finished second, Sheldon Creed was third, Kvapil fourth and Sammy Smith fifth. The race lasted nearly five hours.

The win carried extra weight for Richard Childress Racing, coming about four weeks after the team lost Cup Series driver Kyle Busch to complications from pneumonia. Hill said during the race that he spoke to Busch before making the decisive move, and the celebration in Victory Lane honored both the milestone and Busch’s memory. Hill’s burnout near Busch’s No. 8 logo flattened the rear tires on his car, forcing it to be towed to Victory Lane, and Richard Childress was visibly emotional afterward, saying Busch remained in the team’s hearts. The event also included a Lap 36 crash involving Sam Mayer, Anthony Alfredo and 23 other drivers that brought out a 43-minute red flag, along with an early caution tied to a loose manhole cover that affected Corey Day, who recovered to finish 10th.