Area natives Retzlaff and Decker shine at Daytona in NASCAR Xfinity Series

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (WSAW) - North central Wisconsin natives Parker Retzlaff and Natalie Decker shined at the NASCAR Xfinity Series United Rentals 300 at Daytona International Speedway Monday night. Retzlaff finished third while Decker led the race for seven laps before finishing 18th.

The Rhinelander native Retzlaff bested last season’s fourth place finish at Daytona, which was the best finish in his career. He finished 12th and 14th in stage one and two, respectively, but remained near the front of the pack for the length of the race. It’s the second top five finish in his NASCAR career.

Decker led the race for seven laps before finishing 18th while racing in the No. 36 for DGM Racing, the first Xfinity laps led in her career. She becomes the third woman to lead a race at a NASCAR Xfinity Series event, and first since Danica Patrick in 2013. It is unclear if she will continue to race in the No. 36 beyond this weekend.