Cole Custer, Chandler Smith locked in tight regular-season points battle

Chandler Smith.

The battle for the NASCAR Xfinity Series regular-season championship is neck-and-neck.

Defending champion Cole Custer currently leads Chandler Smith by just 15 points after 16 races. With 10 regular-season races remaining, it's anyone's guess as to which of the two drivers will take home the trophy, as well as the extra 15 playoff points that come with it.

Smith currently has two wins to his credit in 2024, while Custer remains winless halfway through the season. However, Custer has the entirety of the Xfinity Series field beat on consistency, collecting 13 top-10 finishes through the first 16 events of 2024.

The race for the regular-season title isn't just confined to Custer and Smith, however, as Darlington winner Justin Allgaier (-42) and superspeedway ace Austin Hill (-68) currently sit third and fourth in the standings, respectively.

Just one bad race for either Custer or Smith could get Allgaier and Hill right back in the mix for the regular-season championship.

With Custer only boasting two playoff points and zero race wins going into Nashville, holding on to win the regular-season title could prove crucial if he wants to defend his 2023 championship.

Between Custer and Smith, it was Custer who fared better of the two in last year's race at Nashville, with the two drivers finishing ninth and 12th, respectively. Of the top four in points, Hill collected the best finish in fourth, while Allgaier was relegated to 15th.

The Tennessee Lottery 250 will go green shortly after 5 p.m. ET on Saturday, with coverage provided on USA Network, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

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