The 2024 Sport Clips Haircuts VFW Help a Hero 200 was the 23rd stock car race of the 2024 NASCAR Xfinity Series, and the 42nd iteration of the event. The race was held on Saturday, August 31, 2024, at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina, a permanent egg-shaped racetrack. The race was scheduled to be contested over 147 laps but was extended to 150 laps due to an overtime finish. Christopher Bell, driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, would stay consistent throughout the race, after scoring the pole, leading 108 laps and winning after leading when A. J. Allmendinger got a flat tire on the final lap, bringing out the caution. This was Bell's nineteenth career NASCAR Xfinity Series win, and his second of the season. To fill out the podium, Cole Custer, driving for Stewart-Haas Racing, and Sheldon Creed, driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, would finish 2nd and 3rd, respectively.

Report Background

Darlington Raceway is a race track built for NASCAR racing located near Darlington, South Carolina. It is nicknamed "The Lady in Black" and "The Track Too Tough to Tame" by many NASCAR fans and drivers and advertised as "A NASCAR Tradition." It is of a unique, somewhat egg-shaped design, an oval with the ends of very different configurations, a condition which supposedly arose from the proximity of one end of the track to a minnow pond the owner refused to relocate. This situation makes it very challenging for the crews to set up their cars' handling in a way that is effective at both ends.

Surface issues Darlington Raceway was last repaved following the May 2007 meeting (from 2005 to 2019, there was only one meeting; the second meeting was reinstated in 2020), and from 2008 to 2019, there was one night race. In 2020, a day race returned to the schedule, and instead of two races (one Xfinity and one Cup) during the entire year, the track hosted six races (three Cup, two Xfinity, and one Truck). The circuit kept repairing the circuit with patches during each summer before the annual Cup race in September. The circuit's narrow Turn 2 rapidly deteriorated with cracks in the tarmac allowing water to seep in the circuit. In July 2021, the circuit repaved a six hundred foot section at the entrance of Turn 2 and ending at the exit of the turn to repair the tarmac and resolve the issue for safety and to reduce the threat of weepers and surface issues in that section of the circuit.

Entry list (R) denotes rookie driver. (i) denotes driver who is ineligible for series driver points.

# Driver Team Make 00 Cole Custer Stewart–Haas Racing Ford 1 Sam Mayer JR Motorsports Chevrolet 2 Jesse Love (R) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 5 Anthony Alfredo Our Motorsports Chevrolet 07 Greg Van Alst SS-Green Light Racing Chevrolet 7 Justin Allgaier JR Motorsports Chevrolet 8 Sammy Smith JR Motorsports Chevrolet 9 Brandon Jones JR Motorsports Chevrolet 11 Josh Williams Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 14 Chad Finchum SS-Green Light Racing Ford 15 Joey Logano (i) AM Racing Ford 16 A. J. Allmendinger Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 17 Chase Elliott (i) Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 18 Sheldon Creed Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 19 Joe Graf Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 20 Christopher Bell (i) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 21 Austin Hill Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 26 Corey Heim (i) Sam Hunt Racing Toyota 27 Jeb Burton Jordan Anderson Racing Chevrolet 28 Kyle Sieg RSS Racing Ford 29 Blaine Perkins RSS Racing Ford 30 Noah Gragson (i) Rette Jones Racing Ford 31 Parker Retzlaff Jordan Anderson Racing Chevrolet 35 David Starr Joey Gase Motorsports Chevrolet 38 Matt DiBenedetto RSS Racing Ford 39 Ryan Sieg RSS Racing Ford 42 Leland Honeyman (R) Young's Motorsports Chevrolet 43 Ryan Ellis Alpha Prime Racing Chevrolet 44 Brennan Poole Alpha Prime Racing Chevrolet45 Garrett Smithley Alpha Prime Racing Chevrolet 48 Parker Kligerman Big Machine Racing Chevrolet 51 Jeremy Clements Jeremy Clements Racing Chevrolet74Dawson Cram (i)Mike Harmon RacingChevrolet 81 Chandler Smith Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 88 Carson Kvapil JR Motorsports Toyota 91 Kyle Weatherman DGM Racing Chevrolet 92 Ross Chastain (i) DGM Racing Chevrolet 97 Shane van Gisbergen (R) Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 98 Riley Herbst Stewart–Haas Racing FordOfficial entry list

Practice The first and only practice session was held on Saturday, August 31, at 10:35 AM EST, and would last for 20 minutes. Austin Hill, driving for Richard Childress Racing, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 30.013, and a speed of .

Pos.#DriverTeamMakeTimeSpeed121Austin HillRichard Childress RacingChevrolet30.013163.849230Noah Gragson (i)Rette Jones RacingFord30.058163.604331Parker RetzlaffJordan Anderson RacingChevrolet30.073163.522Full practice results

Qualifying Qualifying was held on Saturday, August 31, at 11:05 AM EST. Since Darlington Raceway is an intermediate racetrack, the qualifying system used is a single-car, one-lap system with only one round. Drivers will be on track by themselves and will have one lap to post a qualifying time, and whoever sets the fastest time will win the pole.

Christopher Bell, driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, would score the pole for the race, with a lap of 29.828, and a speed of .

Dawson Cram was the only driver who failed to qualify.

Qualifying results Pos.#DriverTeamMakeTimeSpeed120Christopher Bell (i)Joe Gibbs RacingToyota29.828164.865218Sheldon CreedJoe Gibbs RacingToyota29.925164.33131Sam MayerJR MotorsportsChevrolet29.965164.111416A. J. AllmendingerKaulig RacingChevrolet30.119163.272581Chandler SmithJoe Gibbs RacingToyota30.159163.056621Austin HillRichard Childress RacingChevrolet30.164163.02979Brandon JonesJR MotorsportsChevrolet30.178162.953898Riley HerbstStewart–Haas RacingFord30.261162.506931Parker RetzlaffJordan Anderson RacingChevrolet30.278162.4151048Parker KligermanBig Machine RacingChevrolet30.280162.404118Sammy SmithJR MotorsportsChevrolet30.285162.3771226Corey Heim (i)Sam Hunt RacingToyota30.329162.1421339Ryan SiegRSS RacingFord30.372161.912145Anthony AlfredoOur MotorsportsChevrolet30.404161.7421519Joe Graf Jr.Joe Gibbs RacingToyota30.451161.4921617Chase Elliott (i)Hendrick MotorsportsChevrolet30.451161.4921727Jeb BurtonJordan Anderson RacingChevrolet30.461161.4391815Joey Logano (i)AM RacingFord30.466161.4131991Kyle WeathermanDGM RacingChevrolet30.490161.286207Justin AllgaierJR MotorsportsChevrolet30.512161.1692100Cole CusterStewart–Haas RacingFord30.513161.1642238Matt DiBenedettoRSS RacingFord30.538161.032232Jesse Love (R)Richard Childress RacingChevrolet30.633160.5332492Ross Chastain (i)DGM RacingChevrolet30.700160.1822551Jeremy ClementsJeremy Clements RacingChevrolet30.747159.9382697Shane van Gisbergen (R)Kaulig RacingChevrolet30.751159.9172788Carson KvapilJR MotorsportsChevrolet30.753159.9062844Brennan PooleAlpha Prime RacingChevrolet30.803159.6472930Noah Gragson (i)Rette Jones RacingFord30.834159.4863011Josh WilliamsKaulig RacingChevrolet30.991158.6783128Kyle SiegRSS RacingFord31.023158.5153229Blaine PerkinsRSS RacingFord31.073158.2603342Leland Honeyman (R)Young's MotorsportsChevrolet31.137157.934Qualified by owner's points3443Ryan EllisAlpha Prime RacingChevrolet31.361156.8063535David StarrJoey Gase MotorsportsChevrolet31.390156.6613645Garrett SmithleyAlpha Prime RacingChevrolet31.424156.4923714Chad FinchumSS-Green Light RacingFord31.445156.3873807Greg Van AlstSS-Green Light RacingChevrolet31.798154.651Failed to qualify3974Dawson Cram (i)Mike Harmon RacingChevrolet31.650155.374Official qualifying resultsOfficial starting lineup

Race results

Stage 1 Laps: 45 Pos.#DriverTeamMakePts120Christopher Bell (i)Joe Gibbs RacingToyota0221Austin HillRichard Childress RacingChevrolet9316A. J. AllmendingerKaulig RacingChevrolet8448Parker KligermanBig Machine RacingChevrolet7518Sheldon CreedJoe Gibbs RacingToyota668Sammy SmithJR MotorsportsChevrolet577Justin AllgaierJR MotorsportsChevrolet4814Chad FinchumSS-Green Light RacingFord3900Cole CusterStewart–Haas RacingFord21081Chandler SmithJoe Gibbs RacingToyota1 Stage 2 Laps: 45 Pos.#DriverTeamMakePts118Sheldon CreedJoe Gibbs RacingToyota10220Christopher Bell (i)Joe Gibbs RacingToyota0316A. J. AllmendingerKaulig RacingChevrolet848Sammy SmithJR MotorsportsChevrolet757Justin AllgaierJR MotorsportsChevrolet6600Cole CusterStewart–Haas RacingFord5721Austin HillRichard Childress RacingChevrolet4848Parker KligermanBig Machine RacingChevrolet3930Noah Gragson (i)Rette Jones RacingFord01017Chase Elliott (i)Hendrick MotorsportsChevrolet0 Stage 3 Laps: 57 Pos.St.#DriverTeamMakeLapsLedStatusPts1120Christopher Bell (i)Joe Gibbs RacingToyota150108Running022100Cole CusterStewart-Haas RacingFord1500Running423218Sheldon CreedJoe Gibbs RacingToyota15030Running5041617Chase Elliott (i)Hendrick MotorsportsChevrolet1500Running05118Sammy SmithJR MotorsportsChevrolet1500Running446232Jesse Love (R)Richard Childress RacingChevrolet1500Running3172697Shane Van Gisbergen (R)Kaulig RacingChevrolet1500Running308581Chandler SmithJoe Gibbs RacingToyota1500Running309621Austin HillRichard Childress RacingToyota1500Running4110207Justin AllgaierJR MotorsportsChevrolet1500Running37111519Joe Graf Jr.Joe Gibbs RacingToyota1500Running26122492Ross Chastain (i)DGM RacingChevrolet1500Running0131048Parker KligermanBig Machine RacingChevrolet1500Running34142788Carson KvapilJR MotorsportsChevrolet1500Running23152930Noah Gragson (i)Rette Jones RacingFord1500Running0163011Josh WilliamsKaulig RacingChevrolet1500Running21171727Jeb BurtonJordan Anderson RacingChevrolet1500Running20181339Ryan SiegRSS RacingFord1500Running19192238Matt DiBenedettoRSS RacingFord1500Running18202844Brennan PooleAlpha Prime RacingChevrolet1500Running17213443Ryan EllisAlpha Prime RacingChevrolet1500Running16223128Kyle SiegRSS RacingFord1500Running15233342Leland Honeyman (R)Young's MotorsportsChevrolet1500Running14243535David StarrJoey Gase MotorsportsChevrolet1500Running13251226Corey Heim (i)Sam Hunt RacingToyota1500Running026145Anthony AlfredoOur MotorsportsChevrolet1500Running1127416A.J. AllmendingerKaulig RacingChevrolet1490Running262831Sam MayerJR MotorsportsChevrolet14911Running9293807Greg Van AlstSS-Green Light RacingChevrolet1490Running8303645Garrett SmithleyAlpha Prime RacingChevrolet1481Running7312551Jeremy ClementsJeremy Clements RacingChevrolet1460Running63279Brandon JonesJR MotorsportsChevrolet1460Running5333714Chad FinchumSS-Green Light RacingFord1420Running7343229Blaine PerkinsRSS RacingFord1330Running335898Riley HerbstStewart-Haas RacingFord1290Running236931Parker RetzlaffJordan Anderson RacingChevrolet1250Running1371991Kyle WeathermanDGM RacingChevrolet540Accident1381815Joey Logano (i)AM RacingFord120Engine0

Standings after the race

Drivers' Championship standings Pos Driver Points 1 Justin Allgaier 843 2 Cole Custer 815 (-28) 3 Chandler Smith 761 (–82) 4 Austin Hill 745 (–98) 2 5 Sheldon Creed 704 (–139) 1 6 A. J. Allmendinger 700 (–143) 1 7 Riley Herbst 667 (–176) 8 Jesse Love 651 (–192) 9 Parker Kligerman 639 (–204) 1 10 Sammy Smith 605 (–238) 1 11 Ryan Sieg 595 (–248) 12 Shane van Gisbergen 562 (–281)Official driver's standings

Manufacturers' Championship standings Pos Manufacturer Points 1 Chevrolet 852 2 Toyota 823 (-29) 3 Ford 743 (–109) Note: Only the first 12 positions are included for the driver standings.

References