Austin Hill has made Daytona International Speedway his personal playground.
With two laps to go in Saturday’s NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series United Rentals 300, Hill lined up for one final restart.
Jesse Love lurked in his mirrors.
Brennan Poole and Jordan Anderson were close enough to smell the lead, but it wasn’t enough.
Instead, it meant another Hill victory.
Hill powered away when the green flag waved for the final time and survived heavy pressure over the closing laps to secure his fourth career victory at Daytona.
The win was absolutely dominan.
“It was just hammer down and hoping they didn’t get to me,” Hill said.
Love tried to build momentum on the outside with Sammy Smith, but ultimately got shuffled back at ninth.
Underdog, Poole and Anderson, both searched for a lane that would generate enough push to unseat Hill, darting low and then high.
Poole got shoved out of line, and Anderson got blocked by Hill enough to give him a shot to the bumper that actually helped Hill pull away.
For much of the afternoon, Hill had been near the front, methodically avoiding trouble while maintaining the lead.
When he crossed the line, Hill thrust his fist out the window in a familiar salute to a track that has repeatedly rewarded him.
Four Daytona victories is no small feat in a world where these races can turn favorites into spectators in seconds.
But Hill has turned unpredictability into inevitability.
Hill simply did what he has done so often at Daytona. He controlled the race when it mattered most.
The rest were left chasing.
