Herbst, No. 98 team end chaotic week with 18th-place finish at Las Vegas
LAS VEGAS — A tumultuous week for Riley Herbst’s No. 98 Stewart-Haas Racing team ended with him finishing 18th, one lap down in the Alsco Uniforms 302 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
On the way to the track Wednesday, the rig-and-hauler carrying Herbst’s No. 98 NASCAR Xfinity Series Ford was involved in a crash in Flagstaff, Ariz.
SHR confirmed everyone onboard and everything in the hauler was OK. However, the rig was damaged in the crash so a new rig had to pick up the hauler.
The hauler made it in time for Friday Xfinity Series practice, but Herbst started in the rear – 36th – due to unapproved adjustments, as the team checked the car over and dialed it in.
When the race began, Herbst quickly gained 20 spots and jumped to 16th in Stage 1. Then, he jumped to 12th with a strong stop before Stage 2. He finished 13th in the stage and hung around there in the final stage, on the lead lap, until a pit road issue occurred.
On Lap 145, Herbst pitted under green and was nabbed for a safety violation. He did a pass through pit road on Lap 151 and ultimately finished 18th, one lap down.
Herbst still gained one spot in the NASCAR Xfinity Series points. Between he and Ryan Sieg, Herbst has the upperhand in a tie for 10th in points.
Herbst enters next Saturday’s race at Homestead-Miami Speedway with his last three finishes there being 11th, 9th and 10th.
Herbst declined comment for this story.
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Jonathan Fjeld View All
Jonathan Fjeld is the co-owner of the The Racing Experts, LLC. He has been with TRE since 2010.
A Twin Valley, MN, native, Fjeld became a motorsports fan at just three years old (first race was the 2002 Pennsylvania 500). He worked as a contributor and writer for TRE from 2010-18. Since then, he has stepped up and covered 24 NASCAR race weekends and taken on a larger role with TRE. He became the co-owner and managing editor in 2023 and has guided the site to massive growth in that time.
Fjeld has covered a wide array of stories and moments over the years, including Kevin Harvick's final Cup Series season, the first NASCAR national series disqualification in over 50 years, Shane van Gisbergen's stunning win in Chicago and the first Cup Series race at Road America in 66 years – as well as up-and-coming drivers' stories and stories from inside the sport, like the tech it takes for Hendrick Motorsports to remain a top-tier team.
Currently, he resides in Albuquerque, N.M., where he works for KOB 4, an NBC station. He works as a digital producer and does on-air reports. He loves spending time with friends and family, playing and listening to music, exploring new places, being outdoors, reading books and writing among other activities. You can email him at fjeldjonathan@gmail.com