# 2017 Rinnai 250

The 2017 Rinnai 250 was the second stock car race of the 2017 NASCAR Xfinity Series season, and the 26th iteration of the event. The race was held on Saturday, March 4, 2017, in Hampton, Georgia at Atlanta Motor Speedway, a 1.54 miles (2.48 km) permanent asphalt quad-oval intermediate speedway. The race took the scheduled 163 laps to complete. At race's end, Kyle Busch, driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, would pull away with the lead at the end of the race to win his 87th career NASCAR Xfinity Series win and his first of the season. To fill out the podium, Brad Keselowski of Team Penske and Kyle Larson of Chip Ganassi Racing would finish second and third, respectively.

## Background

Atlanta Motor Speedway (formerly Atlanta International Raceway) is a track in Hampton, Georgia, 20 miles (32 km) south of Atlanta. It is a 1.54-mile (2.48 km) quad-oval track with a seating capacity of 111,000. It opened in 1960 as a 1.5-mile (2.4 km) standard oval. In 1994, 46 condominiums were built over the northeastern side of the track. In 1997, to standardize the track with Speedway Motorsports' other two 1.5-mile (2.4 km) ovals, the entire track was almost completely rebuilt. The frontstretch and backstretch were swapped, and the configuration of the track was changed from oval to quad-oval. The project made the track one of the fastest on the NASCAR circuit.

### Entry list

* (R) denotes rookie driver.
* (i) denotes driver who is ineligible for series driver points.
| # | Driver | Team | Make | Sponsor |
| 0 | Garrett Smithley | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | JD Motorsports |
| 00 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | Haas Automation |
| 01 | Harrison Rhodes | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | Kubota |
| 1 | Elliott Sadler | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | Hunt Brothers Pizza |
| 2 | Austin Dillon (i) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | Rheem |
| 3 | Ty Dillon (i) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | Bass Pro Shops, Tracker Boats |
| 4 | Ross Chastain | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | G&K Services |
| 5 | Michael Annett | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | Pilot Flying J |
| 6 | Bubba Wallace | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | Leidos |
| 07 | Ray Black Jr. | SS-Green Light Racing | Chevrolet | ScubaLife |
| 7 | Justin Allgaier | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | Brandt Professional Agriculture |
| 8 | Jeff Green | B. J. McLeod Motorsports | Chevrolet | Triple R Containers |
| 9 | William Byron (R) | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | Liberty University |
| 11 | Blake Koch | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | LeafFilter Gutter Protection |
| 13 | Carl Long | MBM Motorsports | Toyota | TLC Vacations |
| 14 | J. J. Yeley | TriStar Motorsports | Toyota | Superior Essex |
| 16 | Ryan Reed | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | Lilly Diabetes |
| 18 | Kyle Busch (i) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | NOS Energy |
| 19 | Matt Tifft (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | National Brain Tumor Society |
| 20 | Denny Hamlin (i) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | Hisense 4K TV |
| 21 | Daniel Hemric (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | Blue Gate Bank |
| 22 | Brad Keselowski (i) | Team Penske | Ford | Discount Tire |
| 23 | Spencer Gallagher (R) | GMS Racing | Chevrolet | Allegiant Air |
| 24 | Corey LaJoie (i) | JGL Racing | Toyota | JGL Racing Young Guns |
| 25 | Chris Cockrum | Chris Cockrum Racing | Chevrolet | Advanced Communications Group |
| 28 | Dakoda Armstrong | JGL Racing | Toyota | JGL Racing |
| 33 | Brandon Jones | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | Anderson's Maple Syrup |
| 39 | Ryan Sieg | RSS Racing | Chevrolet | Crazy Vapors |
| 40 | Timmy Hill | MBM Motorsports | Toyota | https://CrashClaimsR.Us/%5B‍%5D |
| 41 | Kevin Harvick (i) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | Textron Off Road Stampede |
| 42 | Kyle Larson (i) | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | Jacob Companies |
| 48 | Brennan Poole | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | DC Solar |
| 51 | Jeremy Clements | Jeremy Clements Racing | Chevrolet | Rinnai |
| 52 | Joey Gase | Jimmy Means Racing | Chevrolet | LifeLink |
| 62 | Brendan Gaughan | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | South Point Hotel, Casino & Spa |
| 74 | Mike Harmon | Mike Harmon Racing | Dodge | Mike Harmon Racing |
| 78 | Clint King | B. J. McLeod Motorsports | Chevrolet | B. J. McLeod Motorsports |
| 89 | Morgan Shepherd | Shepherd Racing Ventures | Chevrolet | Visone RV, Racing with Jesus |
| 90 | Brandon Brown | Brandonbilt Motorsports | Chevrolet | SunFrog |
| 93 | Jordan Anderson (i) | RSS Racing | Chevrolet | RSS Racing |
| 97 | Stephen Leicht | Obaika Racing | Chevrolet | Vroom! Brands |
| 98 | Aric Almirola (i) | Biagi-DenBeste Racing | Ford | Fresh from Florida |
| 99 | David Starr | BJMM with SS-Green Light Racing | Chevrolet | Striping Technology |
| Official entry list |||||

## Practice
### First practice

The first practice session was held on Friday, March 3, at 10:00 AM EST, and would last for 55 minutes. Aric Almirola of Biagi-DenBeste Racing would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 30.567 and an average speed of 181.372 miles per hour (291.890 km/h).
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
| 1 | 98 | Aric Almirola (i) | Biagi-DenBeste Racing | Ford | 30.567 | 181.372 |
| 2 | 18 | Kyle Busch (i) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 30.597 | 181.194 |
| 3 | 41 | Kevin Harvick (i) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 30.668 | 180.775 |
| Full first practice results |||||||

### Second practice

The second practice session was held on Friday, March 3, at 1:30 PM EST, and would last for 55 minutes. Daniel Hemric of Richard Childress Racing would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 30.865 and an average speed of 179.621 miles per hour (289.072 km/h).
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
| 1 | 21 | Daniel Hemric (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 30.865 | 179.621 |
| 2 | 98 | Aric Almirola (i) | Biagi-DenBeste Racing | Ford | 31.002 | 178.827 |
| 3 | 00 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 31.040 | 178.608 |
| Full second practice results |||||||

### Third and final practice

The third and final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Friday, March 3, at 3:30 PM EST, and would last for 55 minutes. Kyle Busch of Joe Gibbs Racing would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 30.881 and an average speed of 179.528 miles per hour (288.922 km/h).
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
| 1 | 18 | Kyle Busch (i) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 30.881 | 179.528 |
| 2 | 41 | Kevin Harvick (i) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 30.927 | 179.261 |
| 3 | 98 | Aric Almirola (i) | Biagi-DenBeste Racing | Ford | 30.966 | 179.035 |
| Full Happy Hour practice results |||||||

## Qualifying

Qualifying was held on Saturday, March 4, at 9:15 AM EST. Since Atlanta Motor Speedway is under 2 miles (3.2 km), the qualifying system was a multi-car system that included three rounds. The first round was 15 minutes, where every driver would be able to set a lap within the 15 minutes. Then, the second round would consist of the fastest 24 cars in Round 1, and drivers would have 10 minutes to set a lap. Round 3 consisted of the fastest 12 drivers from Round 2, and the drivers would have 5 minutes to set a time. Whoever was fastest in Round 3 would win the pole.
Kyle Busch of Joe Gibbs Racing would win the pole after setting a fast enough time in the first two rounds to advance to the next, with Bell achieving a lap in Round 3 with a time of 30.153 and an average speed of 183.862 miles per hour (295.897 km/h).
Three drivers would fail to qualify: Carl Long, Morgan Shepherd, and Mike Harmon.

### Full qualifying results

| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time (R1) | Speed (R1) | Time (R2) | Speed (R2) | Time (R3) | Speed (R3) |
| 1 | 18 | Kyle Busch (i) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | | | | | 30.153 | 183.862 |
| 2 | 9 | William Byron | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | | | | | 30.167 | 183.777 |
| 3 | 22 | Brad Keselowski (i) | Team Penske | Ford | | | | | 30.186 | 183.661 |
| 4 | 42 | Kyle Larson (i) | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | | | | | 30.241 | 183.327 |
| 5 | 20 | Denny Hamlin (i) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | | | | | 30.278 | 183.103 |
| 6 | 21 | Daniel Hemric (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | | | | | 30.367 | 182.567 |
| 7 | 19 | Matt Tifft (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | | | | | 30.410 | 182.308 |
| 8 | 00 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | | | | | 30.461 | 182.003 |
| 9 | 62 | Brendan Gaughan | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | | | | | 30.600 | 181.176 |
| 10 | 16 | Ryan Reed | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | | | | | 30.602 | 181.165 |
| 11 | 48 | Brennan Poole | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | | | | | 30.610 | 181.117 |
| 12 | 41 | Kevin Harvick (i) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | | | | | 30.642 | 180.928 |
| Eliminated in Round 2 |||||||||||
| 13 | 6 | Bubba Wallace | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | | | 30.528 | 181.604 | — | — |
| 14 | 3 | Ty Dillon (i) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | | | 30.574 | 181.331 | — | — |
| 15 | 98 | Aric Almirola (i) | Biagi-DenBeste Racing | Ford | | | 30.578 | 181.307 | — | — |
| 16 | 7 | Justin Allgaier | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | | | 30.585 | 181.265 | — | — |
| 17 | 2 | Austin Dillon (i) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | | | 30.595 | 181.206 | — | — |
| 18 | 5 | Michael Annett | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | | | 30.632 | 180.987 | — | — |
| 19 | 24 | Corey LaJoie (i) | JGL Racing | Toyota | | | 30.788 | 180.070 | — | — |
| 20 | 14 | J. J. Yeley | TriStar Motorsports | Toyota | | | 30.796 | 180.023 | — | — |
| 21 | 23 | Spencer Gallagher (R) | GMS Racing | Chevrolet | | | 30.907 | 179.377 | — | — |
| 22 | 1 | Elliott Sadler | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.179 | 183.704 | — | — | — | — |
| 23 | 28 | Dakoda Armstrong | JGL Racing | Toyota | 30.521 | 181.645 | — | — | — | — |
| 24 | 4 | Ross Chastain | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.645 | 180.910 | — | — | — | — |
| Eliminated in Round 1 |||||||||||
| 25 | 11 | Blake Koch | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 30.795 | 180.029 | — | — | — | — |
| 26 | 93 | Jordan Anderson (i) | RSS Racing | Chevrolet | 30.816 | 179.907 | — | — | — | — |
| 27 | 51 | Jeremy Clements | Jeremy Clements Racing | Chevrolet | 30.865 | 179.621 | — | — | — | — |
| 28 | 39 | Ryan Sieg | RSS Racing | Chevrolet | 31.023 | 178.706 | — | — | — | — |
| 29 | 0 | Garrett Smithley | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | 31.225 | 177.550 | — | — | — | — |
| 30 | 33 | Brandon Jones | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 31.247 | 177.425 | — | — | — | — |
| 31 | 40 | Timmy Hill | MBM Motorsports | Toyota | 31.250 | 177.408 | — | — | — | — |
| 32 | 8 | Jeff Green | B. J. McLeod Motorsports | Chevrolet | 31.367 | 176.746 | — | — | — | — |
| 33 | 90 | Brandon Brown | Brandonbilt Motorsports | Chevrolet | 31.376 | 176.696 | — | — | — | — |
| 34 | 78 | Clint King | B. J. McLeod Motorsports | Chevrolet | 31.384 | 176.651 | — | — | — | — |
| 35 | 01 | Harrison Rhodes | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | 31.387 | 176.634 | — | — | — | — |
| 36 | 07 | Ray Black Jr. | SS-Green Light Racing | Chevrolet | 31.545 | 175.749 | — | — | — | — |
| 37 | 52 | Joey Gase | Jimmy Means Racing | Chevrolet | 31.687 | 174.961 | — | — | — | — |
| 38 | 99 | David Starr | BJMM with SS-Green Light Racing | Chevrolet | 31.924 | 173.662 | — | — | — | — |
| 39 | 25 | Chris Cockrum | Chris Cockrum Racing | Chevrolet | 32.728 | 169.396 | — | — | — | — |
| 40 | 97 | Stephen Leicht | Obaika Racing | Chevrolet | 33.580 | 165.098 | — | — | — | — |
| Failed to qualify |||||||||||
| 41 | 13 | Carl Long | MBM Motorsports | Toyota | 31.837 | 174.137 | — | — | — | — |
| 42 | 89 | Morgan Shepherd | Shepherd Racing Ventures | Chevrolet | 32.432 | 170.942 | — | — | — | — |
| 43 | 74 | Mike Harmon | Mike Harmon Racing | Dodge | 15:13.779 | 6.067 | — | — | — | — |
| Official qualifying results |||||||||||
| Official starting lineup |||||||||||

## Race results

Stage 1 Laps: 40
| Fin | # | Driver | Team | Make | Pts |
| 1 | 22 | Brad Keselowski (i) | Team Penske | Ford | 0 |
| 2 | 18 | Kyle Busch (i) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 0 |
| 3 | 41 | Kevin Harvick (i) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 0 |
| 4 | 20 | Denny Hamlin (i) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 0 |
| 5 | 21 | Daniel Hemric (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 6 |
| 6 | 00 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 5 |
| 7 | 9 | William Byron | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 4 |
| 8 | 42 | Kyle Larson (i) | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 0 |
| 9 | 3 | Ty Dillon (i) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 0 |
| 10 | 1 | Elliott Sadler | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 1 |
Stage 2 Laps: 40
| Fin | # | Driver | Team | Make | Pts |
| 1 | 41 | Kevin Harvick (i) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 0 |
| 2 | 22 | Brad Keselowski (i) | Team Penske | Ford | 0 |
| 3 | 18 | Kyle Busch (i) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 0 |
| 4 | 42 | Kyle Larson (i) | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 0 |
| 5 | 20 | Denny Hamlin (i) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 0 |
| 6 | 9 | William Byron | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 5 |
| 7 | 1 | Elliott Sadler | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 4 |
| 8 | 00 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 3 |
| 9 | 21 | Daniel Hemric (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 2 | Austin Dillon (i) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 0 |
Stage 3 Laps: 83
| Fin | St | # | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts |
| 1 | 1 | 18 | Kyle Busch (i) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 163 | 26 | running | 0 |
| 2 | 3 | 22 | Brad Keselowski (i) | Team Penske | Ford | 163 | 53 | running | 0 |
| 3 | 4 | 42 | Kyle Larson (i) | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 163 | 20 | running | 0 |
| 4 | 12 | 41 | Kevin Harvick (i) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 163 | 64 | running | 0 |
| 5 | 22 | 1 | Elliott Sadler | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 163 | 0 | running | 37 |
| 6 | 13 | 6 | Bubba Wallace | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 163 | 0 | running | 31 |
| 7 | 2 | 9 | William Byron | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 163 | 0 | running | 39 |
| 8 | 17 | 2 | Austin Dillon (i) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 163 | 0 | running | 0 |
| 9 | 6 | 21 | Daniel Hemric (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 163 | 0 | running | 36 |
| 10 | 8 | 00 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 163 | 0 | running | 35 |
| 11 | 11 | 48 | Brennan Poole | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 163 | 0 | running | 26 |
| 12 | 7 | 19 | Matt Tifft (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 163 | 0 | running | 25 |
| 13 | 9 | 62 | Brendan Gaughan | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 163 | 0 | running | 24 |
| 14 | 30 | 33 | Brandon Jones | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 163 | 0 | running | 23 |
| 15 | 18 | 5 | Michael Annett | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 163 | 0 | running | 22 |
| 16 | 19 | 24 | Corey LaJoie (i) | JGL Racing | Toyota | 163 | 0 | running | 0 |
| 17 | 14 | 3 | Ty Dillon (i) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 163 | 0 | running | 0 |
| 18 | 10 | 16 | Ryan Reed | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 163 | 0 | running | 19 |
| 19 | 15 | 98 | Aric Almirola (i) | Biagi-DenBeste Racing | Ford | 163 | 0 | running | 0 |
| 20 | 5 | 20 | Denny Hamlin (i) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 162 | 0 | running | 0 |
| 21 | 23 | 28 | Dakoda Armstrong | JGL Racing | Toyota | 162 | 0 | running | 16 |
| 22 | 28 | 39 | Ryan Sieg | RSS Racing | Chevrolet | 161 | 0 | running | 15 |
| 23 | 33 | 90 | Brandon Brown | Brandonbilt Motorsports | Chevrolet | 161 | 0 | running | 14 |
| 24 | 35 | 01 | Harrison Rhodes | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | 160 | 0 | running | 13 |
| 25 | 24 | 4 | Ross Chastain | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | 160 | 0 | running | 12 |
| 26 | 32 | 8 | Jeff Green | B. J. McLeod Motorsports | Chevrolet | 160 | 0 | running | 11 |
| 27 | 29 | 0 | Garrett Smithley | JD Motorsports | Chevrolet | 160 | 0 | running | 10 |
| 28 | 21 | 23 | Spencer Gallagher (R) | GMS Racing | Chevrolet | 160 | 0 | running | 9 |
| 29 | 36 | 07 | Ray Black Jr. | SS-Green Light Racing | Chevrolet | 159 | 0 | running | 8 |
| 30 | 16 | 7 | Justin Allgaier | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 159 | 0 | running | 7 |
| 31 | 37 | 52 | Joey Gase | Jimmy Means Racing | Chevrolet | 158 | 0 | running | 6 |
| 32 | 38 | 99 | David Starr | BJMM with SS-Green Light Racing | Chevrolet | 158 | 0 | running | 5 |
| 33 | 31 | 40 | Timmy Hill | MBM Motorsports | Toyota | 156 | 0 | running | 4 |
| 34 | 39 | 25 | Chris Cockrum | Chris Cockrum Racing | Chevrolet | 156 | 0 | running | 3 |
| 35 | 34 | 78 | Clint King | B. J. McLeod Motorsports | Chevrolet | 139 | 0 | rear gear | 2 |
| 36 | 20 | 14 | J. J. Yeley | TriStar Motorsports | Toyota | 128 | 0 | engine | 1 |
| 37 | 27 | 51 | Jeremy Clements | Jeremy Clements Racing | Chevrolet | 76 | 0 | suspension | 1 |
| 38 | 40 | 97 | Stephen Leicht | Obaika Racing | Chevrolet | 24 | 0 | brakes | 1 |
| 39 | 26 | 93 | Jordan Anderson (i) | RSS Racing | Chevrolet | 2 | 0 | ignition | 0 |
| 40 | 25 | 11 | Blake Koch | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 2 | 0 | crash | 1 |
| Failed to qualify ||||||||||
| 41 | | 13 | Carl Long | MBM Motorsports | Toyota | | | | |
| 42 | | 89 | Morgan Shepherd | Shepherd Racing Ventures | Chevrolet | | | | |
| 43 | | 74 | Mike Harmon | Mike Harmon Racing | Dodge | | | | |
| Official race results ||||||||||