BRISTOL, Tennessee – Cole Custer won the final race of the Xfinity Series regular season to clinch the regular season championship.

With his victory on Friday evening at Bristol Motor Speedway, Custer secured the drivers’ championship ahead of Justin Allgaier as well as bonus points for the playoffs.

“It was a huge momentum boost because our confidence has really been dropping over the last month,” Custer said of his second win of the season.

Custer is the reigning Xfinity Series champion, and although Stewart-Haas Racing is closing at the end of the season, team owner Gene Haas is retaining a Cup Series charter to field Custer next year.

Sheldon Creed finished second for the 11th time in three seasons as the Joe Gibbs Racing driver remained winless in his career in the Xfinity Series.

Chandler Smith finished third, followed by Jesse Love, Ryan Truex and Sam Mayer.

Dale Earnhardt Jr., who may be racing in his final NASCAR national series race until at least 2026, had a problem with the radio in his headset throughout the first stage. He had no access to team communications and had to pit for four fresh tires “and a new helmet” when Earnhardt made his stop.

The helmet change was anything but smooth — Earnhardt’s goggles were ripped off his face in the first helmet and handed to the crew without anyone noticing he wasn’t wearing his goggles. Additionally, his radio fell off, resulting in a volume control so loud that the Hall of Famer told his spotter it hurt his ears.

At least he doesn’t have to do it every week.

Earnhardt’s contract with sponsor Hellman’s Mayonnaise for JR Motorsports requires him to run an Xfinity Series race each year, and Bristol fulfilled that obligation Friday night. The clause does not apply in 2025, and Earnhardt, who turns 50 later this year, does not anticipate running another Xfinity Series race until 2026.

He finished seventh.