Phoenix Xfinity results: Aric Almirola scores dramatic win over Alex Bowman

AVONDALE, Ariz. — Aric Almirola and Alex Bowman made contact racing for the win before Almirola nipped Bowman at the finish line to end a chaotic overtime in Saturday’s Xfinity race at Phoenix Raceway.

Bowman finished second. Brandon Jones was third, Ryan Sieg placed fourth in a backup car and Justin Allgaier completed the top five.

Allgaier was headed for the win before Nick Leitz’s accident brought out the caution and sent the race to overtime.

On the overtime restart, Allgaier led with Almirola starting next to him. Allgaier got loose off Turn 2 and drifted up, forcing Almirola higher. That allowed Bowman to squeeze between Jones and Allgaier to take the lead on the backstretch.

“When I saw (Bowman) drive around both of us, I was like, ‘Oh, there it goes,'” Almirola said.

He moved into second before the start of the final lap.

“Being able to get clear off of (Turn) 2, I felt pretty good,” Bowman said. “I think (Almirola) got close enough to get me loose … with the air and just kind of pulled me back to him. Wish (Turns) 3 and 4 went differently.”

Almirola got underneath Bowman’s car entering Turn 3. As they exited Turn 4, Almirola’s car got loose and came up the track, hitting Bowman and sending Bowman into the wall.

Said Almirola: “We went down in Turn 1 (on the final lap), I was able to close the gap and then at that point going down into Turn 3, I knew I just wanted to try to loosen him up.

“I was not going to crash him. … That’s not how I race. So I wasn’t going to go in there and just wipe him out, but I certainly tried to pack air on him and get loose, which I was able to do.

“Then at that point, it’s just about throttling up and racing to the start/finish line. It’s a drag race from there. I felt like if we rub fenders and smash the fence a little bit, no big deal. We’re racing for the win.”

Earlier in the race, Austin Hill was eliminated when he hit the inside wall in Turn 4 as he was following Sammy Smith.

“I just misjudged the inside wall,” Hill told the CW Network. “That might be the dumbest move I’ve ever had in racing.”

Sheldon Creed and Dean Thompson were collected in that incident. Hill finished 37th in the 38-car field. Thompson was 38th and Creed was 36th.

A week after failing to qualify at COTA, Parker Retzlaff finished 11th Saturday — his best result since finishing 11th at Sonoma last June.

#NASCAR … A week after he didn’t make the Xfinity race at COTA, Parker Retzlaff drove his Alpha Prime car to an 11th-place finish Saturday at Phoenix — his best series finish since June. Here is what he said about the performance and bouncing back from last weekend. pic.twitter.com/ODyBHXjAsX

— Dustin Long (@dustinlong) March 9, 2025