XFINITY: Matt DiBenedetto flies through the pack early before engine lets go
by Brock Beard / LASTCAR.info Editor-in-Chief
PHOTO: Jared Haas, @RealJaredHaas
Matt DiBenedetto picked up the 18th last-place finish of his NASCAR XFINITY Series career in Saturday’s Credit One NASCAR Amex Credit Card 300 at the Homestead-Miami Speedway when his #38 National Breast Cancer Foundation (NBCF) Ford lost the engine after 56 of 200 laps.
The finish, which came in DiBenedetto’s 95th series start, was his second of the year and first since June 22, 2024 at Loudon, 15 races ago. In the XFINITY Series’ last-place rankings, it was the 23rd for the #38, the 174th for Ford, and the 284th from engine failure. Across NASCAR’s top three series, it was the 61st for the #38, the 1,054th for Ford, and the 1,148th from engine issues.
DiBenedetto has continued to show flashes of brilliance during the tight mid-pack battles in the XFINITY Series. He broke out with a 7th-place run in Michigan, tying his season-best in Iowa. But four of the next five races saw him finish no better than 33rd with his first three DNFs of the year. He entered Homestead on an upward trend, claiming four straight lead-lap finishes with a best of 14th and worst of 16th. After increasing support from Recycled Materials Association (REMA), Homestead would see him run a new paint scheme designed by Ryan Daley, featuring a white floral design on a bright pink base, recognizing the NBCF for Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
On Friday, DiBenedetto arrived as one of exactly 38 drivers for as many starting spots, locking everyone into the field. This proved particularly helpful as DiBenedetto’s car failed inspection, preventing him from both practicing and qualifying, giving him the 38th and final starting spot. Contrary to initial reports, he would not have to serve a pass-through penalty after taking the green, and would be the only driver to start the race on sticker tires. He would, however, incur a redundant tail-end penalty along with unapproved adjustments penalties for 18th-place Anthony Alfredo in the #5 Botticelli Family Owned Chevrolet, 23rd-place Jeremy Clements in the #51 Fly and Form Structures Chevrolet, and 25th-place Shane van Gisbergen, last week’s last-place finisher in Las Vegas, in the #97 WeatherTech Chevrolet.
When the green flag dropped, DiBenedetto took the green to the outside of Van Gisbergen in the final row. By the exit of Turn 2, DiBenedetto was clawing his way through the field in three and four-wide traffic. Onto the backstretch, DiBenedetto and Van Gisbergen had both had cleared Armani Williams, whose #35 Blue Sprig Ford fell to last place. Williams had turned in the slowest completed lap in qualifying, clocking in at just 37.080 seconds (145.631mph), two full seconds off his Joey Gase Motorsports teammate Thomas Annunziata, ranked 36th in the #53 Criswell Chevy Chevrolet after a spin in practice. With Floridian Motorsports not entered in that morning’s Truck Series race, Carl Long fielded Williams’ #35, just as he had in partnership with JD Motorsports in Loudon.
Through the opening laps, Long mentored Williams in his second NASCAR start at Homestead, following a Truck Series effort for G2G Racing last year. At the end of Lap 1, Williams was 6.654 seconds back of the lead and 1.722 behind the now 37th-place Annunziata. The gap between the two cars then increased steadily to 2.829 seconds on Lap 3, 4.040 on Lap 4, 6.084 on Lap 6, 6.458 on Lap 7, 7.043 on Lap 8, and 7.286 on Lap 10, when he’d slipped to 24.921 back of the lead. Williams then found his rhythm and steadily closed on his teammate. The gap dropped to 7.243 on Lap 11, 6.938 on Lap 13, 6.487 on Lap 14, 6.168 on Lap 15, 5.788 on Lap 16, and 5.170 on Lap 17. By then, the four cars running 35th through 38th were each more than two seconds apart.
On Lap 19, Long advised Williams that the leader was slowly catching him, and said to hold the low lane when he was lapped. The next time by, then-leader Chandler Smith was 10 carlengths behind. And while Williams closed from 4.011 behind Annunziata to just 3.925, Smith passed him on the high side on Lap 21. Williams held the Lucky Dog for two laps until Annunziata was lapped in 37th, and Long told him to now run the high lane as traffic moved by. Around this time, he was caught by Sheldon Creed, who reportedly bumped his way past Williams, much to Long’s frustration. Williams was nearly two laps down on Lap 40, so when Sammy Smith cut a right-front tire on his #8 Pilot / Flying J Chevrolet, forcing a pit stop, he only slipped to 35th.
When the caution to end Stage 1 came out on Lap 46, Williams radioed Long back for the first time since the start, but engine noise drowned out his voice. Long could make out that he was too tight in Turns 3 and 4, and so prepared for adjustments. Someone else on the team remarked on Williams’ improvement after Lap 10, saying his lap speeds were comparable to cars running 27th to 28th. Just before the Lap 53 restart, Williams was now shown one lap down, and moved ahead of Brad Perez’ #07 Space Beans Chevrolet. The next time by, Perez quickly passed both Williams and Annunziata, putting both in the final two positions once more.
Meanwhile, DiBenedetto had marched toward the Top 20 by the end of Stage 1, only to make an unscheduled pit stop on Lap 57. The next time by, NASCAR reported his car was being pushed backwards up pit road and behind the wall. There was no radio traffic on the team’s channel until Lap 69, when someone said, “Yeah, we’re done.” The response, “That sucks – we were the fastest car in (Turns) 1 and 2,” to which the other person laughed. NASCAR confirmed DiBenedetto as the first driver out on Lap 80.
DiBenedetto’s team loads up after their engine trouble. PHOTO: Ed, @EdLovesNASCAR
Annunziata climbed to 36th before late-race ignition trouble ended his race, one spot ahead of Nick Leitz, who spun his #92 Precision Measurements, Inc. Chevrolet and shredded the right-front tire, ultimately leading to suspension issues that placed him 37th. Williams took home 35th, two laps behind Blaine Perkins in the #29 VIVID EV Ford, another RSS Racing entry.
THE BOTTOM FIVE
38) #38-Matt DiBenedetto / 56 laps / engine
37) #92-Nick Leitz / 87 laps / suspension
36) #53-Thomas Annunziata / 190 laps / ignition
35) #35-Armani Williams / 193 laps / running
34) #29-Blaine Perkins / 195 laps / running
LASTCAR STATISTICS
*This marked DiBenedetto’s second last-place finish in a XFINITY Series race at Homestead. The other occurred on November 19, 2016, when his #10 TriStar Motorsports Toyota had a vibration after 2 laps. It’s the first for the #38 in the XFINITY race at this track since November 18, 2017, when Jeff Green’ #38 RSS Racing Chevrolet had clutch issues after 10 laps.
2024 LASTCAR XFINITY SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Joey Gase Motorsports, JR Motorsports (4)
2nd) DGM Racing, Jordan Anderson Racing (3)
3rd) Alpha Prime Racing, AM Racing, Joe Gibbs Racing, Kaulig Racing, Mike Harmon Racing, RSS Racing, SS-Green Light Racing, Stewart-Haas Racing (2)
4th) Motorsports Business Management (1)
2024 LASTCAR XFINITY SERIES MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Chevrolet (20)
2nd) Ford (7)
3rd) Toyota (4)
2024 LASTCAR XFINITY SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
