The exit of the defending champion Daniel Hemric from the round of 12 in the Xfinity Series has made a particular feat sure to happen.
Hemric was already six points below the transfer line before the race at the Charlotte Roval. While he started the race in the 3rd position, after running off the course early in the race, he never got himself in a comfortable position and finished 17th, five points behind Brandon Jones.
“I’m thankful to part of the NASCAR Xfinity Series. I was hoping to be able to go and defend my championship and carry on to the next round but made a mistake in (Turns) 3 and 4 there that you cannot make,” he said.
“And if you make those kinds of mistakes, you do not deserve to be here. So, got to go work, got to be mad at myself.”
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His elimination would mean that the Xfinity Series will see a first-time champion in 2022. And it will be among one of Jones, A.J. Allmendinger, Noah Gragson, Justin Allgaier, Sam Mayer, Ty Gibbs, Josh Berry or Austin Hill.
While 2021 saw him win the championship, 2022 has been a difficult year for Hemric. He could only muster a best finish of 3rd and lead just 66 laps throughout the season. Reflecting on the year so far, he said:
“I’ll probably play this Roval race back time and time again. That’s what this season kind of felt like. It’s been a little bit of a rough go.
“Everyone has been a winner that showed up on his race team and I’m proud of that. I want to thank Matt Kaulig (team owner) and Chris Rice (team president) for the call to come drive this thing (this year), they deserved better.”
Of the eight drivers to compete in the next round, three of them: Allmendinger, Gragson and Gibbs, will not return to the series as they are set to compete in the Cup Series full-time from the next season.