Welcome, in this article series we will be reviewing and rating how each driver in the NASCAR Xfinity series has done in the 2024 season (min. 15 races started). Each part will contain 3-4 drivers and have them grouped by organization/satellite team or car manufacturer teammate as best as possible. The review will include the drivers 2024 season statistics, along with ranks among drivers in 2024 with season ranking since the Playoffs started in 2016. We will also highlight playoff stats, notable streaks accomplished through the year, 2024 Short track (under 1 mile), Small track (1-1.3 mile), Intermediate (1.3-1.5 mile), Big track (2-2.5 mile), Road Course (left and right turns), and Superspeedway (drafting tracks) statistics. I will grade each section and give a brief reason why, then give a short overview, all ending with an overall grade A+ thru F- based on a weighted formula from the grades above. To sum up each team, at the end of their last driver I will give an overall team grade based on the grades for each driver. All grades may take into account underfunded/well-funded cars and driver experience.
Next up we have the teams that either had a driver with no car going for the Championship in Phoenix or a car with no driver going for it, Stewart-Haas Racing and Joe Gibbs Racing.
Note: The 20 car is not mentioned for Joe Gibbs Racing as the driver with the most starts, Aric Almirola, only had 14 starts this year.
Stewart-Haas Racing Drivers
Cole Custer – 2nd in Driver points/6th in Owner points
| Category | Statistic | 2024 Rank | ªRank Thru 33 Races |
| Avg. Fin.¹ | 10.52 | 2nd of 31 | 40th of 300 |
| Best Fin. | 1st | — | — |
| Worst Fin. | 32nd | — | — |
| Completed Laps%¹ | 98.50% | 4th of 31 | 30th of 300 |
| Laps in Top15%¹ | 88.20 | 2nd of 31 | 29th of 300 |
| Avg. Driver Rating¹ | 105.76 | 1st of 31 | 25th of 300‡ |
| Wins | 2 | T5th of 109 | T42nd of 967 |
| Poles | 3 | T3rd of 109 | T17th of 967 |
| Top 2’s | 7 | 1st of 109 | T16th of 967 |
| Top 3’s | 9 | 2nd of 109 | T25th of 967 |
| Top 5’s | 14 | 3rd of 109 | T28th of 967 |
| Top 10’s | 23 | T1st of 109 | T23rd of 967 |
| Finish out Top 20¹ | 6 | T3rd of 31 | T61st of 300 |
| DNF’s¹ | 4 | T14th of 31 | T103rd of 300 |
| Stage Wins | 4 | T5th of 109 | T34th of 842* |
| Stage T10s | 51 | 2nd of 109 | T16th of 842* |
| Stage Pts | 288 | 2nd of 109 | 26th of 842* |
| Avg. Stage Fin.¹ | 8.74 | 2nd of 31 | — |
| Playoff Pts² | 14 | T7th of 109 | T35th of 842* |
ªSince Playoffs started in 2016
¹Ranks of drivers to start 45% of races thru 33 races
²Earned from races only, does not reflect penalties
*Stage racing started in 2017
‡Max Driver Rating is 150.0
2024 stats Grade: A+
The only reason he might not deserve the A+ is because of his stages as he wasn’t the best in them, but he wasn’t too far off and his other stats are really good too. So, he gets the A+.
- 2024 Playoff Statistics (Avg. Fin. and Driver Rating rank among drivers with 3+ Playoff starts, 37 drivers)
- 7 Races, Avg. Finish 9.0(5th), 93.68% of Laps ran in Top15(3rd), Avg. Driver Rating 106.21(2nd), Best 2nd, Worst 26th, Laps Completed 99.92%, Led 13.79% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 0 Poles, 2 Top 3’s, 3 Top 5’s, 5 Top 10’s, 1 Finish out of Top 20, 0 DNF’s, 1 Stage Win, 12 Stage T10’s, 4.5 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 7.14, 1 Playoff Pt earned in races
2024 Playoff Grade: A
He was great in the Playoffs as almost half of his finishes came in the Top 5 and his stage stats are great as are his in-race stats as well as his Avg. Finish. However, it’s hard to get an A+ with a 0 in the Win column.
- Notable Streaks this year
- 2 straight Poles (tied longest streak in Xfinity Series this year and tied 10th longest streak in Xfinity Series all-time)
- 2 straight Top 2 finishes (tied longest streak in Xfinity Series this year)
- 3 straight Top 5 finishes
- 4 straight Top 10 finishes (active streak)
- 9 straight Top 10 finishes (tied longest streak in Xfinity Series this year)
- 8 straight Stage T10’s (active streak)
- 12 straight Stage T10’s (tied 22nd longest streak in Xfinity Series all-time)
- 2 straight DNF’s
2024 Streaks Grade: A+
He almost got an A because of his DNF streak, but getting 9 straight Top 10’s and ending on a 4 race Top 10 streak as well as an 8 straight Stage T10 streak. He deserves another A+.
- 2024 Short track Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Short Track start, 61 drivers)
- 5 Races, Avg. Finish 5.8(5th), 91.02% of Laps ran in Top15(6th), Avg. Driver Rating 113.32(3rd), Best 1st, Worst 10th, Laps Completed 99.92%, Led 11.9% of laps he ran, 1 Win, 0 Poles, 1 Top 3, 2 Top 5’s, 5 Top 10’s, 5 Top 15’s, 0 Finishes out of Top 20, 0 DNF’s, 0 Stage Wins, 5.2 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 5.8
2024 Short track Grade: A+
He won a Short track race, never finished worse than 10th, and then had a 5.8 Avg. Finish and Avg. Stage Finish. The only reason not to give him an A+ is because he had not enough Top 5’s maybe, but to me he did.
- 2024 Small track Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Small Track start, 60 drivers)
- 4 Races, Avg. Finish 5.25(6th), 98.07% of Laps ran in Top15(2nd), Avg. Driver Rating 125.83(2nd), Best 3rd, Worst 8th, Laps Completed 100%, Led 33.41% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 1 Pole, 1 Top 3, 3 Top 5’s, 4 Top 10’s, 4 Top 15’s, 0 Finishes out of Top 20, 0 DNF’s, 2 Stage Wins, 5.63 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 5.0
2024 Small track Grade: A+
I said above it’s hard to get an A+ with a 0 in the Win column. Well, getting a 125+ Avg. Driver Rating, running 98+% of laps in the Top 15, getting 3 Top 5’s in 4 races, and doing great in stages is how you do it.
- 2024 Intermediate Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Intermediate Track start, 71 drivers)
- 9 Races, Avg. Finish 7.22(5th), 94.67% of Laps ran in Top15(4th), Avg. Driver Rating 111.29(4th), Best 2nd, Worst 32nd, Laps Completed 99.05%, Led 13.89% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 1 Pole, 5 Top 3’s, 6 Top 5’s, 8 Top 10’s, 8 Top 15’s, 1 Finish out of Top 20, 1 DNF, 1 Stage Win, 5.06 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 7.06
2024 Intermediate Grade: A
All of his stats above are solid, but he did get just 1 Stage Win in 18 stages and despite his 5 Top 3 finishes he got 0 Wins. So, he gets just an A.
- 2024 Big track Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Big Track start, 53 drivers)
- 3 Races, Avg. Finish 11.0(13th), 71.76% of Laps ran in Top15(14th), Avg. Driver Rating 119.37(1st), Best 1st, Worst 30th, Laps Completed 94.65%, Led 23.92% of laps he ran, 1 Win, 1 Pole, 2 Top 3’s, 2 Top 5’s, 2 Top 10’s, 2 Top 15’s, 1 Finish out of Top 20, 1 DNF, 1 Stage Win, 4.83 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 11.17
2024 Big track Grade: A-
He won 1 of the 3 races and had the best Avg. Driver Rating, but his Laps in Top 15% wasn’t too good and his one finish out of the Top 3 was a 30th place. So, he gets an A-.
- 2024 Road Course Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Road Course start, 59 drivers)
- 6 Races, Avg. Finish 11.83(11th), 73.08% of Laps ran in Top15(15th), Avg. Driver Rating 88.22(14th), Best 4th, Worst 21st, Laps Completed 100%, Led 1.44% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 0 Poles, 0 Top 3’s, 1 Top 5, 3 Top 10’s, 4 Top 15’s, 1 Finish out of Top 20, 0 DNF’s, 0 Stage Wins, 3.5 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 12.42
2024 Road Course Grade: B-
His in-race stats weren’t too great and neither was his Avg. Finish. Furthermore, he got just 1 Top 5 and only finished half of the races in the Top 10. So, he gets a B-
- 2024 Superspeedway Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Superspeedway start, 63 drivers)
- 6 Races, Avg. Finish 21.33(33rd), 82.19% of Laps ran in Top15(8th), Avg. Driver Rating 88.52(10th), Best 10th, Worst 32nd, Laps Completed 94.07%, Led 5.07% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 0 Poles, 0 Top 3’s, 0 Top 5’s, 1 Top 10, 2 Top 15’s, 3 Finishes out of Top 20, 2 DNF’s, 0 Stage Wins, 2.42 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 11.33
2024 Superspeedway Grade: C+
His runs on Superspeedways weren’t too bad, but he got just 1 Top 10 and only 2 Top 15’s to 3 finishes out of the Top 20. So, that’s why he gets a C+.
Overview
– Custer wound up one spot shy in Phoenix of getting back-to-back Xfinity Championships to close out SHR
– Only Custer’s 4 DNF’s and 14 Playoff Pts were worse than 5th in the 2024 Ranks above, while 9 of them were T2nd or better
– In the Playoffs he was really good, but he couldn’t find a way to Win a race
– He ended the season on a 4 race Top 10 streak with an 8 straight Stage T10 streak, and these weren’t even his best this year
– All 5 of the Short tracks saw him finish Top 10 and he even picked up a Win as well
– He ran almost every lap in the Top 15 at Small tracks and had a worst finish of only 8th
– Custer didn’t win on an Intermediate track, but he ran very well and finished all but 1 race in the Top 10
– 2 of the 3 Big tracks were great for Custer, but the other race was a DNF
– Road Courses weren’t great to him this year as he ran decent and finished decent, but nothing special
– Superspeedways were his worst track as he got just 1 Top 10 finish, but he did run pretty good on them
– Custer wound up one spot shy in Phoenix of getting back-to-back Xfinity Championships to close out SHR
– Only Custer’s 4 DNF’s and 14 Playoff Pts were worse than 5th in the 2024 Ranks above, while 9 of them were T2nd or better
– In the Playoffs he was really good, but he couldn’t find a way to Win a race
– He ended the season on a 4 race Top 10 streak with an 8 straight Stage T10 streak, and these weren’t even his best this year
– All 5 of the Short tracks saw him finish Top 10 and he even picked up a Win as well
– He ran almost every lap in the Top 15 at Small tracks and had a worst finish of only 8th
– Custer didn’t win on an Intermediate track, but he ran very well and finished all but 1 race in the Top 10
– 2 of the 3 Big tracks were great for Custer, but the other race was a DNF
– Road Courses weren’t great to him this year as he ran decent and finished decent, but nothing special
– Superspeedways were his worst track as he got just 1 Top 10 finish, but he did run pretty good on them
Final Grade: A
Riley Herbst – 7th in Driver points/8th in Owner points
| Category | Statistic | 2024 Rank | ªRank Thru 33 Races |
| Avg. Fin.¹ | 14.85 | 10th of 31 | 94th of 300 |
| Best Fin. | 1st | — | — |
| Worst Fin. | 38th | — | — |
| Completed Laps%¹ | 94.24% | 16th of 31 | 123rd of 300 |
| Laps in Top15%¹ | 79.53 | 6th of 31 | 68th of 300 |
| Avg. Driver Rating¹ | 91.70 | 8th of 31 | 67th of 300‡ |
| Wins | 2 | T5th of 109 | T42nd of 967 |
| Poles | 0 | T15th of 109 | T105th of 967 |
| Top 2’s | 4 | T6th of 109 | T48th of 967 |
| Top 3’s | 5 | T8th of 109 | T58th of 967 |
| Top 5’s | 7 | T8th of 109 | T69th of 967 |
| Top 10’s | 15 | T9th of 109 | T79th of 967 |
| Finish out Top 20¹ | 10 | T10th of 31 | T125th of 300 |
| DNF’s¹ | 6 | T23rd of 31 | T188th of 300 |
| Stage Wins | 4 | T5th of 109 | T34th of 842* |
| Stage T10s | 46 | 4th of 109 | T30th of 842* |
| Stage Pts | 253 | 5th of 109 | T34th of 842* |
| Avg. Stage Fin.¹ | 10.62 | 5th of 31 | — |
| Playoff Pts² | 14 | T7th of 109 | T35th of 842* |
ªSince Playoffs started in 2016
¹Ranks of drivers to start 45% of races thru 33 races
²Earned from races only, does not reflect penalties
*Stage racing started in 2017
‡Max Driver Rating is 150.0
2024 stats Grade: B+
None of his stats are all that bad above, but his Avg. Finish and just 15 Top 10’s is a little low which is why he gets a B+ instead of an A-.
- 2024 Playoff Statistics (Avg. Fin. and Driver Rating rank among drivers with 3+ Playoff starts, 37 drivers)
- 7 Races, Avg. Finish 10.0(8th), 86.22% of Laps ran in Top15(7th), Avg. Driver Rating 100.3(4th), Best 1st, Worst 32nd, Laps Completed 98.78%, Led 15.83% of laps he ran, 1 Win, 0 Poles, 2 Top 3’s, 2 Top 5’s, 5 Top 10’s, 1 Finish out of Top 20, 1 DNF, 2 Stage Wins, 10 Stage T10’s, 3.64 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 10.43, 7 Playoff Pts earned in races
2024 Playoff Grade: A-
Once again none of his stats are too bad and he got a Win in the Playoffs, but he got just 2 Top 5’s and his Avg. Finish was good, not great. Thus he gets an A-.
- Notable Streaks this year
- 3 straight Top 10 finishes
- 2 straight Stage Wins (active streak, tied 25th longest streak in Xfinity Series all-time)
- 4 straight Stage T10’s (active streak)
- 10 straight Stage T10’s
2024 Streaks Grade: B
Having a best Top 10 streak of just 3 races isn’t that great, but he did have some really good stage streaks and he didn’t have a DNF streak. So, he gets a B.
- 2024 Short track Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Short Track start, 61 drivers)
- 5 Races, Avg. Finish 12.8(14th), 89.48% of Laps ran in Top15(7th), Avg. Driver Rating 89.72(12th), Best 2nd, Worst 25th, Laps Completed 99.85%, Led 0.54% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 0 Poles, 1 Top 3, 1 Top 5, 1 Top 10, 4 Top 15’s, 1 Finish out of Top 20, 1 DNF, 0 Stage Wins, 2.0 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 10.1
2024 Short track Grade: B-
The main reason he gets a B- instead of a better grade is that he had just 1 Top 10 in 5 races. However, his Avg. Finish wasn’t bad and he ran well while having a good Avg. Stage Finish which is why he gets a B-.
- 2024 Small track Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Small Track start, 60 drivers)
- 4 Races, Avg. Finish 12.25(12th), 85.71% of Laps ran in Top15(11th), Avg. Driver Rating 108.85(4th), Best 1st, Worst 24th, Laps Completed 99.64%, Led 20.22% of laps he ran, 1 Win, 0 Poles, 1 Top 3, 1 Top 5, 2 Top 10’s, 2 Top 15’s, 1 Finish out of Top 20, 0 DNF’s, 2 Stage Wins, 6.25 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 5.38
2024 Small track Grade: A-
One of his Wins was on a Small track, but that was his only Top 5 and he had just 2 Top 10’s. However, his Avg. Driver Rating is great with a great Avg. Stage Finish as well, so he still gets the A-.
- 2024 Intermediate Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Intermediate Track start, 71 drivers)
- 9 Races, Avg. Finish 15.67(24th), 81.45% of Laps ran in Top15(15th), Avg. Driver Rating 85.04(19th), Best 5th, Worst 38th, Laps Completed 88.55%, Led 0.27% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 0 Poles, 0 Top 3’s, 1 Top 5, 6 Top 10’s, 6 Top 15’s, 3 Finishes out of Top 20, 1 DNF, 0 Stage Wins, 3.06 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 14.83
2024 Intermediate Grade: C+
He was able to get 6 Top 10’s in the 9 races and his Laps in Top 15% plus Avg. Driver Rating are respectable, but he had just 1 Top 5 and 3 Finishes out of the Top 20 with a mediocre Avg. Stage Finish to give him a C+.
- 2024 Big track Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Big Track start, 53 drivers)
- 3 Races, Avg. Finish 16.67(18th), 89.92% of Laps ran in Top15(3rd), Avg. Driver Rating 102.5(6th), Best 1st, Worst 38th, Laps Completed 74.84%, Led 14.29% of laps he ran, 1 Win, 0 Poles, 1 Top 3, 1 Top 5, 1 Top 10, 2 Top 15’s, 1 Finish out of Top 20, 1 DNF, 1 Stage Win, 5.5 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 10.0
2024 Big track Grade: B
His in-race and stage stats are really good and would be worthy of an A, plus he had a Win. However, that win was his only Top 10 and his Avg. Finish wasn’t great. So, he gets a B.
- 2024 Road Course Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Road Course start, 59 drivers)
- 6 Races, Avg. Finish 21.67(27th), 67.43% of Laps ran in Top15(16th), Avg. Driver Rating 77.58(19th), Best 10th, Worst 34th, Laps Completed 94.47%, Led 4.33% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 0 Poles, 0 Top 3’s, 0 Top 5’s, 1 Top 10, 3 Top 15’s, 3 Finishes out of Top 20, 3 DNF’s, 1 Stage Win, 3.33 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 12.17
2024 Road Course Grade: C-
Half of his races were DNF’s and the other half were Top 15’s, but only one of those was a Top 10 and he didn’t run great either in the races. So, he gets a C-.
- 2024 Superspeedway Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Superspeedway start, 63 drivers)
- 6 Races, Avg. Finish 9.33(4th), 87.01% of Laps ran in Top15(4th), Avg. Driver Rating 100.63(2nd), Best 2nd, Worst 26th, Laps Completed 99.23%, Led 5.71% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 0 Poles, 2 Top 3’s, 3 Top 5’s, 4 Top 10’s, 5 Top 15’s, 1 Finish out of Top 20, 0 DNF’s, 0 Stage Wins, 4.58 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 7.0
2024 Superspeedway Grade: A
All of his stats above are really good, especially considering it was on Superspeedways, but he didn’t Win and he did have one finish out of the Top 20. That’s why he didn’t get an A+.
Overview
– Herbst sent SHR out on top by winning the season finale, but he only finished 7th in Driver points
– 14 of Herbst’s 17 2024 Ranks above are T10th or better, but only 5 were T5th or better
– In the Playoffs he ran really well and picked up a win as well
– His longest Top 10 streak this year was just 3 races, but he did have some impressive stage streaks
– He didn’t run too bad on Short tracks, but despite his 1 Top 3 finish he didn’t finish too well most the time
– He got one of his Wins this year on a Small track and he ran well most of the time on them
– Herbst’s wasn’t that great on Intermediates this year as he ran okay, but he did get 6 Top 10’s
– On Big tracks Herbst had 1 Win and 1 Top 10 only, but he ran really good
– Road Courses were his worst tracks as he ran mediocre and didn’t finish great either
– He was amazing on Superspeedways, but he couldn’t find a way to win a race on them
– Herbst sent SHR out on top by winning the season finale, but he only finished 7th in Driver points
– 14 of Herbst’s 17 2024 Ranks above are T10th or better, but only 5 were T5th or better
– In the Playoffs he ran really well and picked up a win as well
– His longest Top 10 streak this year was just 3 races, but he did have some impressive stage streaks
– He didn’t run too bad on Short tracks, but despite his 1 Top 3 finish he didn’t finish too well most the time
– He got one of his Wins this year on a Small track and he ran well most of the time on them
– Herbst’s wasn’t that great on Intermediates this year as he ran okay, but he did get 6 Top 10’s
– On Big tracks Herbst had 1 Win and 1 Top 10 only, but he ran really good
– Road Courses were his worst tracks as he ran mediocre and didn’t finish great either
– He was amazing on Superspeedways, but he couldn’t find a way to win a race on them
Final Grade: B
Stewart-Haas Racing Overall Team Grade: A-
Joe Gibbs Racing Drivers
Chandler Smith – 5th in Driver points/5th in Owner points
| Category | Statistic | 2024 Rank | ªRank Thru 33 Races |
| Avg. Fin.¹ | 10.27 | 1st of 31 | 35th of 300 |
| Best Fin. | 1st | — | — |
| Worst Fin. | 38th | — | — |
| Completed Laps%¹ | 98.71% | 3rd of 31 | T25th of 300 |
| Laps in Top15%¹ | 88.35 | 1st of 31 | 28th of 300 |
| Avg. Driver Rating¹ | 100.73 | 3rd of 31 | 39th of 300‡ |
| Wins | 2 | T5th of 109 | T42nd of 967 |
| Poles | 3 | T3rd of 109 | T17th of 967 |
| Top 2’s | 5 | T4th of 109 | T29th of 967 |
| Top 3’s | 10 | 1st of 109 | T22nd of 967 |
| Top 5’s | 17 | 1st of 109 | T9th of 967 |
| Top 10’s | 22 | 3rd of 109 | T28th of 967 |
| Finish out Top 20¹ | 5 | 2nd of 31 | T40th of 300 |
| DNF’s¹ | 2 | T3rd of 31 | T25th of 300 |
| Stage Wins | 7 | 2nd of 109 | T20th of 842* |
| Stage T10s | 50 | 3rd of 109 | T20th of 842* |
| Stage Pts | 286 | 3rd of 109 | 27th of 842* |
| Avg. Stage Fin.¹ | 9.39 | 3rd of 31 | — |
| Playoff Pts² | 17 | T4th of 109 | T31st of 842* |
ªSince Playoffs started in 2016
¹Ranks of drivers to start 45% of races thru 33 races
²Earned from races only, does not reflect penalties
*Stage racing started in 2017
‡Max Driver Rating is 150.0
2024 stats Grade: A+
He was really good this year as he had the most Top 5’s of any driver and the best Avg. Finish as well, I mean his worst 2024 Rank above is only T5th. So, he deserves top marks, especially since it’s only his 2nd season.
- 2024 Playoff Statistics (Avg. Fin. and Driver Rating rank among drivers with 3+ Playoff starts, 37 drivers)
- 7 Races, Avg. Finish 5.43(1st), 97.24% of Laps ran in Top15(1st), Avg. Driver Rating 113.84(1st), Best 3rd, Worst 13th, Laps Completed 100%, Led 15.32% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 1 Pole, 2 Top 3’s, 6 Top 5’s, 6 Top 10’s, 0 Finishes out of Top 20, 0 DNF’s, 1 Stage Win, 12 Stage T10’s, 4.86 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 6.71, 1 Playoff Pt earned in races
2024 Playoff Grade: A+
Again he’s only in his 2nd full-time year, but he ranked 1st in Avg. Finish, Avg. Driver Rating, and Laps in Top 15%. There is almost nothing bad about his Playoff stats, except his 0 Wins.
- Notable Streaks this year
- 3 straight Top 3 finishes (tied longest streak in Xfinity Series this year)
- 2 straight Top 5 finishes (active streak)
- 7 straight Top 5 finishes (longest streak in Xfinity Series this year and tied 19th longest streak in Xfinity Series all-time)
- 9 straight Top 10 finishes (tied longest streak in Xfinity Series this year)
- 3 straight Stage Wins (tied 8th longest streak in Xfinity Series all-time)
- 6 straight Stage T10’s (active streak)
- 8 straight Stage T10’s
2024 Streaks Grade: A+
So far his stats have been excellent and his streaks are the same as he had the longest, or tied longest, streak this year in Top 3’s, Top 5’s and Top 10’s.
- 2024 Short track Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Short Track start, 61 drivers)
- 5 Races, Avg. Finish 3.6(2nd), 95.17% of Laps ran in Top15(4th), Avg. Driver Rating 125.18(2nd), Best 1st, Worst 8th, Laps Completed 100%, Led 20.94% of laps he ran, 1 Win, 1 Pole, 4 Top 3’s, 4 Top 5’s, 5 Top 10’s, 5 Top 15’s, 0 Finishes out of Top 20, 0 DNF’s, 3 Stage Wins, 6.3 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 5.1
2024 Short track Grade: A+
He finished 4 of the 5 races in the Top 3 and ran 95% of his laps in the Top 15. This is an easy A+.
- 2024 Small track Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Small Track start, 60 drivers)
- 4 Races, Avg. Finish 7.0(7th), 90.47% of Laps ran in Top15(T8th), Avg. Driver Rating 111.03(3rd), Best 1st, Worst 15th, Laps Completed 100%, Led 10.74% of laps he ran, 1 Win, 0 Poles, 1 Top 3, 2 Top 5’s, 3 Top 10’s, 4 Top 15’s, 0 Finishes out of Top 20, 0 DNF’s, 1 Stage Win, 4.88 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 7.75
2024 Small track Grade: A+
His numbers aren’t as spectacular as most of his stats above, but it’s not like they are bad. He finished every race in the Top 15, half in the Top 5, won a race, and ran very well. So since he is a 2nd year driver, he gets another A+.
- 2024 Intermediate Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Intermediate Track start, 71 drivers)
- 9 Races, Avg. Finish 8.67(9th), 91.16% of Laps ran in Top15(6th), Avg. Driver Rating 105.7(8th), Best 2nd, Worst 18th, Laps Completed 100%, Led 14.41% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 1 Pole, 3 Top 3’s, 4 Top 5’s, 5 Top 10’s, 8 Top 15’s, 0 Finishes out of Top 20, 0 DNF’s, 2 Stage Wins, 4.28 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 7.61
2024 Intermediate Grade: A
His runs on these tracks were pretty good all around and he didn’t finish any race out of the Top 20, but what kept him from an A+ is that he didn’t win and had just 5 Top 10 finishes.
- 2024 Big track Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Big Track start, 53 drivers)
- 3 Races, Avg. Finish 25.0(T33rd), 63.82% of Laps ran in Top15(18th), Avg. Driver Rating 76.3(18th), Best 15th, Worst 33rd, Laps Completed 95.6%, Led 0.00% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 0 Poles, 0 Top 3’s, 0 Top 5’s, 0 Top 10’s, 1 Top 15, 2 Finishes out of Top 20, 0 DNF’s, 0 Stage Wins, 5.0 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 14.33
2024 Big track Grade: C-
He got just 1 Top 15 finish with 0 DNF’s, a bad Avg. Finish, and his Laps in Top 15% isn’t that impressive either. Also, his Avg. Driver Rating isn’t too good, but his Avg. Stage Finish is what kept him in the C range.
- 2024 Road Course Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Road Course start, 59 drivers)
- 6 Races, Avg. Finish 16.17(18th), 76.52% of Laps ran in Top15(11th), Avg. Driver Rating 82.48(15th), Best 4th, Worst 38th, Laps Completed 87.02%, Led 0.28% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 0 Poles, 0 Top 3’s, 2 Top 5’s, 4 Top 10’s, 4 Top 15’s, 2 Finishes out of Top 20, 2 DNF’s, 0 Stage Wins, 2.25 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 15.5
2024 Road Course Grade: B-
He finished 4 races in the Top 10, but his other 2 were out of the Top 20. Then take into account his runs were okay, but nothing too special and that’s how he got a B-.
- 2024 Superspeedway Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Superspeedway start, 63 drivers)
- 6 Races, Avg. Finish 7.17(2nd), 91.48% of Laps ran in Top15(2nd), Avg. Driver Rating 96.48(4th), Best 2nd, Worst 25th, Laps Completed 99.87%, Led 7.48% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 1 Pole, 2 Top 3’s, 5 Top 5’s, 5 Top 10’s, 5 Top 15’s, 1 Finish out of Top 20, 0 DNF’s, 1 Stage Win, 4.17 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 8.17
2024 Superspeedway Grade: A+
He may not have gotten a Win on a Superspeedway this year but he was 2nd, 2nd, and 4th in Avg. Finish, Laps in Top 15%, and Avg. Driver Rating. Oh, and he also had 5 Top 5’s in 6 races.
Overview
– In his lone JGR season Smith failed to make the Championship 4, finishing 5th in Driver and Owner points
– Smith was great this year as 14 of his 17 2024 Ranks above are T3rd or better
– He was great in the Playoffs this year, the only thing he was missing was a win
– His streaks this year were impressive, especially for a 2nd year driver
– He finished 4 of the 5 Short track races this year in the Top 5! And he ran great too
– He wasn’t as great on Small tracks, but considering he’s in his 2nd full-time year he was great
– Intermediates were tracks where Smith ran well, but he couldn’t always get good finishes
– Smith’s worst tracks were Big tracks as he ran mediocre and his finishes were even worse
– He didn’t do too bad on Road Courses, but he wasn’t all that great either
– He was great on Superspeedways this year as he finished 5 of the 6 races in the Top 5
– In his lone JGR season Smith failed to make the Championship 4, finishing 5th in Driver and Owner points
– Smith was great this year as 14 of his 17 2024 Ranks above are T3rd or better
– He was great in the Playoffs this year, the only thing he was missing was a win
– His streaks this year were impressive, especially for a 2nd year driver
– He finished 4 of the 5 Short track races this year in the Top 5! And he ran great too
– He wasn’t as great on Small tracks, but considering he’s in his 2nd full-time year he was great
– Intermediates were tracks where Smith ran well, but he couldn’t always get good finishes
– Smith’s worst tracks were Big tracks as he ran mediocre and his finishes were even worse
– He didn’t do too bad on Road Courses, but he wasn’t all that great either
– He was great on Superspeedways this year as he finished 5 of the 6 races in the Top 5
Final Grade: A
Sheldon Creed – 6th in Driver points/7th in Owner points
| Category | Statistic | 2024 Rank | ªRank Thru 33 Races |
| Avg. Fin.¹ | 11.67 | 4th of 31 | 53rd of 300 |
| Best Fin. | 2nd | — | — |
| Worst Fin. | 36th | — | — |
| Completed Laps%¹ | 95.14% | T13th of 31 | T103rd of 300 |
| Laps in Top15%¹ | 80.30 | 5th of 31 | 66th of 300 |
| Avg. Driver Rating¹ | 94.92 | 5th of 31 | 56th of 300‡ |
| Wins | 0 | T18th of 109 | T126th of 967 |
| Poles | 2 | T6th of 109 | T29th of 967 |
| Top 2’s | 6 | T2nd of 109 | T21st of 967 |
| Top 3’s | 8 | 3rd of 109 | T31st of 967 |
| Top 5’s | 16 | 2nd of 109 | T15th of 967 |
| Top 10’s | 23 | T1st of 109 | T23rd of 967 |
| Finish out Top 20¹ | 8 | 8th of 31 | T96th of 300 |
| DNF’s¹ | 3 | T8th of 31 | T61st of 300 |
| Stage Wins | 1 | T15th of 109 | T96th of 842* |
| Stage T10s | 41 | 7th of 109 | T48th of 842* |
| Stage Pts | 235 | 7th of 109 | T40th of 842* |
| Avg. Stage Fin.¹ | 10.88 | 6th of 31 | — |
| Playoff Pts² | 1 | T15th of 109 | T91st of 842* |
ªSince Playoffs started in 2016
¹Ranks of drivers to start 45% of races thru 33 races
²Earned from races only, does not reflect penalties
*Stage racing started in 2017
‡Max Driver Rating is 150.0
2024 stats Grade: A-
Creed is only in his third full-time Xfinity season and so the stats above are pretty good, especially taking this into consideration. However, he had 0 Wins and just 1 Stage Win that obviously lowered his grade.
- 2024 Playoff Statistics (Avg. Fin. and Driver Rating rank among drivers with 3+ Playoff starts, 37 drivers)
- 7 Races, Avg. Finish 10.14(9th), 89.22% of Laps ran in Top15(4th), Avg. Driver Rating 99.47(6th), Best 4th, Worst 35th, Laps Completed 97.24%, Led 3.75% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 0 Poles, 0 Top 3’s, 3 Top 5’s, 6 Top 10’s, 1 Finish out of Top 20, 1 DNF, 0 Stage Wins, 12 Stage T10’s, 4.93 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 7.86, 0 Playoff Pts earned in races
2024 Playoff Grade: A-
If he has a Top 3 finish then he earns the A, but even with 6 Top 10’s he just didn’t get enough great finishes and his Avg. Finish was affected by that.
- Notable Streaks this year
- 2 straight Top 2 finishes (tied longest streak in Xfinity Series this year)
- 4 straight Top 5 finishes
- 4 straight Top 10 finishes (active streak)
- 5 straight Top 10 finishes
- 6 straight Stage T10’s (active streak)
- 7 straight Stage T10’s
2024 Streaks Grade: A
Ending with 4 straight Top 10’s and 6 straight Stage T10’s is pretty good, but his longest Top 10 streak was only 5 races and his longest Stage T10 streak was just 7 stages. So, A it is.
- 2024 Short track Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Short Track start, 61 drivers)
- 5 Races, Avg. Finish 10.8(T11th), 87.46% of Laps ran in Top15(10th), Avg. Driver Rating 100.32(7th), Best 2nd, Worst 35th, Laps Completed 89.88%, Led 3.5% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 0 Poles, 1 Top 3, 2 Top 5’s, 4 Top 10’s, 4 Top 15’s, 1 Finish out of Top 20, 1 DNF, 0 Stage Wins, 5.3 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 10.3
2024 Short track Grade: A-
He got 4 Top 10’s in the 5 races but he got just 1 Top 3 finish with 0 Wins, so despite his pretty good Avg. Driver Rating and Laps in Top 15% (among other stats) he gets an A-.
- 2024 Small track Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Small Track start, 60 drivers)
- 4 Races, Avg. Finish 4.0(T4th), 94.93% of Laps ran in Top15(6th), Avg. Driver Rating 107.65(5th), Best 2nd, Worst 7th, Laps Completed 100%, Led 2.9% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 0 Poles, 2 Top 3’s, 3 Top 5’s, 4 Top 10’s, 4 Top 15’s, 0 Finishes out of Top 20, 0 DNF’s, 0 Stage Wins, 4.63 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 7.5
2024 Small track Grade: A+
He didn’t get a Win, but he did have 3 Top 5’s along with a great Avg. Finish, Avg. Stage Finish, Laps in Top 15%, and Avg. Driver Rating. So, he gets an A+.
- 2024 Intermediate Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Intermediate Track start, 71 drivers)
- 9 Races, Avg. Finish 16.11(25th), 85.55% of Laps ran in Top15(11th), Avg. Driver Rating 90.83(17th), Best 3rd, Worst 36th, Laps Completed 94.84%, Led 3.31% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 0 Poles, 1 Top 3, 3 Top 5’s, 5 Top 10’s, 5 Top 15’s, 3 Finishes out of Top 20, 1 DNF, 1 Stage Win, 2.83 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 9.33
2024 Intermediate Grade: B-
He only got 1 Top 3 finish on Intermediates and even with 5 Top 10’s he still had 3 finishes out of the Top 20. This, along with his Avg. Finish being just okay gives him a B-.
- 2024 Big track Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Big Track start, 53 drivers)
- 3 Races, Avg. Finish 3.67(4th), 80.82% of Laps ran in Top15(8th), Avg. Driver Rating 99.83(7th), Best 2nd, Worst 5th, Laps Completed 100%, Led 9.43% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 2 Poles, 1 Top 3, 3 Top 5’s, 3 Top 10’s, 3 Top 15’s, 0 Finishes out of Top 20, 0 DNF’s, 0 Stage Wins, 1.5 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 13.0
2024 Big track Grade: A
He ran well on these tracks, despite his not-so-great Avg. Stage Finish. However, what got him his A is his 2 Poles and 3 Top 5 finishes leading to a great Avg. Finish.
- 2024 Road Course Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Road Course start, 59 drivers)
- 6 Races, Avg. Finish 18.33(21st), 76.78% of Laps ran in Top15(10th), Avg. Driver Rating 89.03(13th), Best 2nd, Worst 35th, Laps Completed 91.11%, Led 0.53% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 0 Poles, 2 Top 3’s, 2 Top 5’s, 2 Top 10’s, 3 Top 15’s, 3 Finishes out of Top 20, 1 DNF, 0 Stage Wins, 3.42 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 17.33
2024 Road Course Grade: C+
His Laps in Top 15% and Avg. Driver Rating weren’t too bad, but even with 2 Top 3 finishes he didn’t have a good Avg. Finish and he also had more finishes out of the Top 20 than in the Top 10. So, his finishes are what gave him the C+.
- 2024 Superspeedway Stats (Avg. Fin. rank among drivers with 1+ Superspeedway start, 63 drivers)
- 6 Races, Avg. Finish 8.17(3rd), 71.28% of Laps ran in Top15(14th), Avg. Driver Rating 91.52(7th), Best 2nd, Worst 25th, Laps Completed 99.61%, Led 0.39% of laps he ran, 0 Wins, 0 Poles, 1 Top 3, 3 Top 5’s, 5 Top 10’s, 5 Top 15’s, 1 Finish out of Top 20, 0 DNF’s, 0 Stage Wins, 3.67 Stage Pts Per Stage, Avg. Stage Finish 8.42
2024 Superspeedway Grade: A-
He was extremely good at finishing on Superspeedways as he had 5 Top 10’s and he did well in stages too. However, he lacked great finishes and laps in the Top 15 to get better than an A-.
Overview
– In his first and only season with JGR Creed made the Playoffs and managed to finish 6th in points
– 13 of Creed’s 17 2024 Ranks above are T8th or better including his 23 Top 10’s
– He ran and finished well in almost every Playoff race this year, but he lacked great finishes
– His longest Top 10/Stage T10 streak this year was 4 races and 7 stages
– He was good on Short tracks as he both ran and finished well in most races
– He was great on Small tracks and he finished every race between 2nd and 7th
– Intermediates weren’t terrible for Creed, but his runs were just okay and his finishes weren’t too impressive
– Creed finished every Big track race in the Top 5, but he didn’t do as well in stages
– Road Courses were his Achilles Heel this year as he did great in a couple races, but did bad in half the races
– He ran pretty good on Superspeedways this year and finished even better, but again lacked great finishes
– In his first and only season with JGR Creed made the Playoffs and managed to finish 6th in points
– 13 of Creed’s 17 2024 Ranks above are T8th or better including his 23 Top 10’s
– He ran and finished well in almost every Playoff race this year, but he lacked great finishes
– His longest Top 10/Stage T10 streak this year was 4 races and 7 stages
– He was good on Short tracks as he both ran and finished well in most races
– He was great on Small tracks and he finished every race between 2nd and 7th
– Intermediates weren’t terrible for Creed, but his runs were just okay and his finishes weren’t too impressive
– Creed finished every Big track race in the Top 5, but he didn’t do as well in stages
– Road Courses were his Achilles Heel this year as he did great in a couple races, but did bad in half the races
– He ran pretty good on Superspeedways this year and finished even better, but again lacked great finishes
Final Grade: A-
Joe Gibbs Racing Overall Team Grade: A-
If you liked this article (or even if you didn’t) go check out the season reviews for Cup being done by Robert Cwik and Griffin Fuller on Pit Pass Network titled “2024 Season in Review: *team name*”. Compare and contrast between my numbers based review and their more eye test review with outlook for 2025 and overall team grade.
