The element of unpredictability smears the asphalt tracks of NASCAR, and nobody can escape its clutches. Not even Joe Gibbs Racing driver John Hunter Nemechek. The talented driver was the fastest in practice flaunting a fast lap of 130.063 mph and was looking forward to finding the same momentum in the Championship race as well. But alas, the tables turned all of a sudden. And the worst part; it wasn’t his fault at all.

Cole Custer was the second-best car in Friday’s Xfinity Series practice, but the SHR driver emerged victorious on Saturday, while Nemechek was far behind in the field. However, Nemechek realized that there was no reason to beat himself up over a bad performance. After all, when it comes to competitive sports, winning and losing are the two sides of the same coin.

Amidst a dull Phoenix outing, John Hunter Nemechek opened up about the good days to come

Nemechek has led the Xfinity Series with seven wins this season and was considered one of the most consistent drivers throughout the season. Unfortunately, his consistency flickered away into thin air as he fell a lot short of bagging his win no. 8 and the 2023 Xfinity Series title with it.

It all came down to the final restart. Initially, it was Cole Custer who led the way, but it didn’t take long for Nemechek to power to the lead after taking the green flag. But just around turn 1, Nemechek veered to the top groove as Justin Allgaier slid beneath him, giving Cole Custer space to make a three-wide pass and escape with the lead exiting turn 2. However, Nemechek’s misery didn’t end there.

He tagged the wall, getting loose as a result of his car not turning. This resulted in his Toyota banging off Jeb Burton and into Rajah Caruth before ramming into the wall. The damage to Nemechek’s No. 20 was so bad that despite winning Stage 1 and leading 5 times and 66 laps of the race, he had to settle for a 28th-place finish.

Talking about his car, Nemechek said, “It didn’t turn. I don’t know if it had a right front start going down or what exactly it was but, just drove in and didn’t turn.”

“Man, I hate it for our guys, hate it for Toyota TRD. Toyota GR Supra was really, really fast but drive down; it doesn’t turn. It’s not a very good thing and then once we got inching the fence there off of 2, it kind of hurt the right side even more and I think we had a right rear start going down as well. It sucks to end up where we finished…” he added.

However, John Hunter Nemechek looked proud of his season overall. He exclaimed, “Seven wins is a lot to be proud of. One race doesn’t define us as a group and it’s really just another race. If you win, you come out the champion. That’s really all you can do.”

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Is JHN all set for his promotion?

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This is not the first time for John Hunter Nemechek in the Cup Series. Back in 2018 and 2019, Nemechek signed back-to-back contracts with Chip Ganassi Racing and GMS Racing for their Xfinity programs. He competed in NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and Xfinity Series till 2019 before signing a full-time deal with Front Row Motorsports for 2020.

However, his run with the Ford team wasn’t very lustrous. With only 3 top-10 finishes, Nemechek felt it best to drop down two grades and sign a full-time Truck Series deal with Kyle Busch Motorsports. After being able to hold a top 5 position in the point standings for two consecutive years in 2022 and 2023, Joe Gibbs Racing came forward and signed him for the team’s full-time Xfinity program. After a year of driving for Joe Gibbs, JHN is expected to join the Johnson-Gallagher-owned team.

Is he ready for this opportunity yet? One can only speculate. Nemechek, however, sounded ready. He exclaimed, “Looking forward to next year and looking forward to getting in a Cup car.” Only time will tell what great heights this talented speedster will achieve with his new team in the upcoming season.

“Just Show The True Potential” – John Hunter Nemechek Outlines Ambitions And Explains Decision To Move To Kyle Busch Motorsports