Who Can Stop Austin Hill At Atlanta?

HAMPTON, Ga. — Can anyone break Austin Hill’s stranglehold on EchoPark Speedway?

Jesse Love has won the pole position for the last three races at recently-christened EchoPark Speedway but hasn’t won a race there.

In fact, Love has been an excellent stalking horse for teammate Austin Hill, who has underscored Richard Childress Racing’s absolute dominance at the 1.54-mile track by winning the last three races and five of the last six — all since the repaving and reconfiguration was completed in 2022.

The only driver to have won NASCAR Xfinity Series races on all three drafting tracks — EchoPark, Daytona and Talladega — Hill, a Georgia native, will try to win his fourth straight event at his home track in Friday night’s Focused Health 250.

Hill’s presence at the front of the field is a given, but what about those chasing him? Defending series champion Justin Allgaier, a winner at EchoPark in 2021, finished second to the No. 21 RCR Chevrolet in February by 0.216 seconds.

“We came close here in the spring, and I know we are going to have that same speed again with our (No. 7) Chevrolet Friday night,” said Allgaier, who leads the Xfinity Series standings by 82 points over Hill in second. “JRM (JR Motorsports) has always had really strong speedway cars, which definitely gives added confidence anytime we go to a drafting track.

“Hopefully, we can keep our nose clean all night long, work well with our teammates, and be up front fighting for the win when it counts.”

Aric Almirola, third in the February race, is back for another try in the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. In a part-time role this season, Almirola has a victory at Phoenix Raceway and four top-six finishes in six Xfinity starts.