A late-race caution for a wreck involving Jeffrey Earnhardt sent most of the lead-lap cars – including leader Larson – down pit road but Almirola’s No. 28 RSS Racing team elected to stay on the track.
By Turn 4 on the restart with 15 of 79 laps remaining, Almirola passed Alex Labbe to take the lead and then faced a hard-charging Larson who was closing fast.
On Lap 72, Larson went way wide entering Turn 11 after hitting one of the tire bundles and lost the runner-up spot to A.J. Allmendinger. Almirola ended up clearing Allmendinger by 1.868 seconds to secure the victory.
The win is the fourth in Almirola’s career and first since the 2017 season.
“This is so special, it’s hard to explain,” Almirola said. “I know it’s an Xfinity win, it’s not a Cup win, but after (Circuit of the Americas) I said I didn’t think I should run any more road course races in the Xfinity car. It makes me look like a wanker and I lose self-confidence going into Sunday.
“But this is a track I’ve run good at my whole career. I don’t know what it is about this place, but I love racing here.”
Larson held on to finish third, Ty Gibbs was fourth and Parker Kligerman rallied to finish fifth.
Asked after the race what happened in the Turn 11 incident, Larson said, “I just got too greedy. I clipped the tire (bundle) which knocked the wheel out of my hand and then after that the toe was off.”
Completing the top-10 were Cole Custer, Justin Allgaier, Austin Hill, Sammy Smith and Sam Mayer.
Race winner Aric Almirola, RSS Racing, Ford Mustang
Photo by: Ben Earp / NKP / Motorsport Images
Stage 1
When the field completed Lap 20, Larson was awarded the Stage 1 win as he was leading Allmendinger by 3.2 seconds. Almirola was third, Allgaier fourth and Gibbs completed the top five.
Ryan Sieg spun around on Lap 15 but was able to return to the track and the race without the need of a caution.
Stage 2
When the field completed Lap 45, Larson claimed the Stage 2 win as he continued to dominate the race with a 9.8-second lead over Allmendinger. Gibbs was third, Allgaier fourth and Hill fifth.
Josh Berry brought out the first caution of the race on Lap 22 when his No. 8 Chevrolet came to a stop on the course. Most of the lead-lap cars decided to pit. Hill took over the race lead by staying on the track, but Larson reclaimed the lead two laps later.
Stage 3
With no stage breaks on road courses, Larson was leading the field when the final 34-lap stage got underway.
On Lap 47, Allmendinger and Allgaier were among the first of the lead-lap cars to make their final pit stops under green for new tires and fuel to make it to the finish.
Once the cycle of stops was completed on Lap 49, Larson cycled back into the lead with a 10-second advantage over Allmendinger.
With less than 20 laps to go, Earnhardt went off course in Turn 10 and got stuck in the dirt, which brought out a caution.
Most of the lead-lap cars elected to pit with Larson first off pit road. Labbe, who stayed out, led the way on the restart with 15 laps remaining. He was followed by Daniel Suarez and Larson.
By Turn 4 after the restart, Almirola had powered to the lead while Suarez was penalized for a restart violation.
On Lap 72, Larson – while driving to chase down Almirola for the lead – went way wide entering Turn 11 after hitting a tire bundle and lost the runner-up spot to Allmendinger.