2016 Ford EcoBoost 300

Race details [1]
Map of Speedway
Date	November 19, 2016 (2016-11-19)
Official name	2016 Ford EcoBoost 300
Location	Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Florida
Course	Oval 1.5 mi (2.4 km)
Distance	200 laps, 300 mi (482.803 km)
Weather	Clear
Average speed	116.445 mph (187.400 km/h)
Pole position
Driver	Daniel Suárez	Joe Gibbs Racing
Time	31.779
Most laps led
Driver	Daniel Suárez	Joe Gibbs Racing
Laps	133
Winner
No. 19	Daniel Suárez	Joe Gibbs Racing
Television in the United States
Network	NBCSN
Announcers	Rick Allen, Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte

The 2016 Ford EcoBoost 300 was a NASCAR Xfinity Series race held at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Florida on November 19, 2016. The race was the 33rd and final race of the 2016 NASCAR Xfinity Series season and the 22nd iteration of the event. Daniel Suárez would dominate the whole race winning the pole, leading the most laps at 133, and winning the race which would all culminate in him winning the 2016 NASCAR Xfinity Series championship. Suárez became the first Mexican born driver to win a NASCAR championship in the top 3 series. ^[2]

Background

Homestead–Miami Speedway is a motor racing track located in Homestead, Florida. The track, which has several configurations, has promoted several series of racing, including NASCAR, the IndyCar Series, the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship series, and the Championship Cup Series.

From 2002 to 2019, Homestead–Miami Speedway had hosted the final race of the season in all three of NASCAR's series as Ford Championship Weekend: the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series, and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. The races currently have the names Dixie Vodka 400, Contender Boats 250, and Baptist Health 200, respectively.

Championship battle

This was the first year the NASCAR Xfinity Series had the playoff format where only four drivers can win the Championship in the end. The four drivers that would contend for the Xfinity Series championship would be Elliott Sadler, Justin Allgaier, Daniel Suárez, and Erik Jones. Jones would be the only rookie to compete for the Championship. Allgaier was the only winless driver to compete for the Championship. All four drivers would get in by points.

Entry List

• (R) denotes rookie driver
• (i) denotes driver who is ineligible for series driver points
• (CC) denotes championship contender

Qualifying

Daniel Suárez won the pole with a time of 31.779 and a speed of 169.924 mph. ^[3]

* – Qualified via owners points.

** – Qualified via past champions.

Race

Pole sitter Daniel Suárez led the first lap of the race. The first caution did not take long as it came out on lap 4 when Brandon Hightower spun in turn 1. The race restarted on lap 8 of the race. On lap 23, Kyle Larson took the lead from Suárez. On lap 24, the second caution flew when Ryan Reed spun in turn 2. Kyle Larson won the race off of pit road and he led the field back to the restart on lap 33. Justin Allgaier was the new leader for the Championship. But Suárez passed Allgaier and eventually on lap 36, Suárez took the lead. Soon green flag pitstops began on lap 78. On lap 80, Daniel Suárez went on pit road handing the lead to Justin Allgaier. Allgaier pitted on lap 81 giving the lead to Ryan Sieg. Sieg eventually pitted and Kyle Larson was the new leader after everything cycled through. On lap 89, the third caution flew for oil on the track. The race restarted on lap 96. On the restart, Ty Dillon took the lead from Kyle Larson. On lap 100, Daniel Suárez took the lead. On lap 114, Ty Dillon took the lead back. On lap 125, the 4th caution flew when Brennan Poole spun off of turn 2. During the green flag run, Erik Jones brushed the wall with the front of his car having a hole in it and he got his car taped up for the restart. Suárez won the race off of pit road and he led the field to the restart on lap 132. On lap 137, the 5th caution flew for a 3 car crash on the backstretch. It started when Ryan Reed had a flat right rear tire after he brushed the wall in turns 3 and 4 and he ended up spinning down the backstretch. Behind Reed, Jeremy Clements attempted to get slowed down but was run into from behind by Jordan Anderson giving both cars heavy damage and catching Anderson's car on fire. The red flag was displayed for a short bit to clean up the mess. Aric Almirola did not pit and he led the field to the restart on lap 144. On the restart, Suárez immeadietly passed him for the lead. Eventually, the top 4 had all four Championship contenders in it and all four broke away from the pack.

Final laps

With 49 laps to go, Justin Allgaier took the lead from Suárez. While he took the lead, Elliott Sadler hit the turn 2 wall which dropped him back one spot. With 44 to go, Erik Jones took the lead. With 42 to go, the 6th caution flew for debris. Daniel Suárez won the race off of pit road but Aric Almirola and Ryan Blaney did not pit and Almirola led the field to the restart with 37 to go. Suárez immeadietly passed Almirola for the lead. Soon Suárez had built a sizeable lead over Erik Jones and Justin Allgaier but Jones reeled in Suárez with around 16 to go and was all over his rear bumper. But Jones hit the wall with 15 to go causing him to lose momentum. He closed in on Suárez again but hit the wall again two laps later. Jones was closing in on Suárez again when the 7th and final caution flew with 10 laps to go when Ray Black Jr. spun off of turn 4. This put pressure on crews to make the perfect stop for their driver. Everyone took four tires but Sadler's team took two tires and they won the race off of pit road putting them in front of the Championship 4. Allgaier's crew had a mess up as the jackman slipped going to the left side of the car which lost Allgaier two spots in the process. Cole Whitt stayed out and he led to the field to the restart with 3 laps to go. He quickly stacked up the field including Allgaier and Jones who were behind Whitt and Sadler took the lead. Suárez immeadietly went to Sadler's outside and Suárez was the new leader with 3 laps to go. Sadler tried to catch Suárez but couldn't and Daniel Suárez won the race and the NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship. Behind them, Alex Bowman crashed on the front stretch after contact with Bubba Wallace. Suárez became the first Mexican born driver to win a NASCAR Championship in the top 3 Series of Trucks, Xfinity, and Cup. This would be his first and only Championship. Ty Dillon, Elliott Sadler, Ryan Blaney, and Austin Dillon rounded out the top 5 while Justin Allgaier, Kyle Larson, Brendan Gaughan, Erik Jones, and Aric Almirola rounded out the top 10. ^[4]

Race results

References