Justin Allgaier took the checkered flag in Saturday's Desert Diamond West Valley 200 at ISM Raceway and clinched his spot into the Championship 4.
The No. 7 Brandt Chevrolet took the green flag in the 5th position and battled for his spot in the playoffs throughout the evening. Christopher Bell started on the pole and dominated the first two stages of the race. Allgaier finished second in both stages.
Before the green flag waved to start stage 3, Bell was penalized for speeding on pit road, sending him to the rear of the field on the restart. Allgaier inherited the lead and maintained until the end. Cole Custer found speed as well, but ran out of time. He cut Allgaier's lead from three seconds to .810 of a second.
"I just came up a little bit short, but I think that was the best run we've ever had at Phoenix in a long time," Custer said.
Justin Allgaier snapped a 39-race winless streak after leading a total of 85 laps, including the final 66. This was his first trip to victory lane this season and the 11th of his racing career.
"Hats off to everybody at Chevrolet and JR Motorsports. We had a hot rod today, maybe we wouldn't beat the 20, but he made a mistake and it was our race."
Cole Custer, Tyler Reddick, John Hunter Nemechek and Zane Smith rounded out the top five at ISM Raceway.
Joining Allgaier in the Championship 4 will be Christopher Bell, Tyler Reddick and Cole Custer.
The NASCAR Xfinity Series will be back in action one last time on Saturday, November 16. A champion will be named at Homestead-Miami Speedway at 3:30 PM ET on NBCSN.
