Sunday’s Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway marks the 83rd career start in the NASCAR Cup Series for Justin Allgaier.
There’s no landmark, or incredible statistic to go along with it, and it’s definitely not his first run in ‘The Great American Race’, but it’s destined to be one of the most special events for the Riverton, Illinois-native, for a selfless reason.
When the command to fire engines is given on Sunday, and Allgaier rolls off pit road in Daytona Beach, Florida on Sunday, February 16, it will officially mark the first-ever NASCAR Cup Series event for JR Motorsports – owned by Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and sister Kelley Earnhardt-Miller.
It’s an organization filled with people who have given so much to Allgaier, including the opportunity to become a NASCAR Xfinity Series champion, which after many frustrating years, the 38-year-old accomplished last November at Phoenix Raceway.
Now, Allgaier has given the team its most special moment: a Daytona 500 berth.
Allgaier was the highest finishing unchartered entry in the first Duel at Daytona, beating out NY Racing’s JJ Yeley and TRICON Garage’s Martin Truex, Jr. to finish in ninth place, thus securing himself a spot in the biggest NASCAR Cup Series event of the season.
With everything on the line for Allgaier and JR Motorsports, the NASCAR Xfinity Series veteran admits that there was a quite a bit of pressure, as the team embarked on such a special journey together in the NASCAR Cup Series.
“I think for me, I just don’t want to let Dale [Earnhardt, Jr.] down, don’t want to let Kelley down, don’t want to let our fans down. Chris Stapleton has been extremely excited about this project with Traveller Whiskey. He’s coming on Sunday, and I didn’t want him to show up and not have a car in the field, right? That would be pretty weird.”
It’s such a special moment for the entire JR Motorsports clan, but especially for 15-time Most Popular Driver Dale Earnhardt, Jr., who has experienced so much – both the positive and negative – at Daytona International Speedway.
“It’s hard to sit here and put it into words,” said Earnhardt, Jr. when asked about the emotions that accompany a successful first attempt in the NASCAR Cup Series.
“We have kind of tried to downplay how badly we want to race in the Cup Series,” he continued. “At least I have. It’s one of them things where you are like, if it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be. I’m not going to make it drag down all of the other great things happening in my world, but man, we got here, and we got a taste of it. Holy moly, yesterday was so disappointing. I didn’t know exactly how badly I wanted to do this or wanted to be a part of something like this until we started going through it.”
At times during Thursday’s 60-lap qualifying race, it looked as though a spot in the Daytona 500 would be out of reach for JR Motorsports, with JJ Yeley and NY Racing Team putting up a solid fight for the transfer position.
All of that intensity was amplified by the fact that Allgaier fell just eight one-hundredths of a second short of locking the No. 40 Chevrolet into the field based on his qualifying time Wednesday. That, as well as the up-and-down nature of the Duels, is just part of the nature of the beast, though, something Earnhardt, Jr. believes should be celebrated.
“I was going to say at some point during this press conference that we should celebrate this track and this race,” he added. “Where else do you go and barely make the field and cry tears of joy? Nowhere. There’s some relief, but this is incredible. I think that helps you measure the importance of this race and how big it is to me.”
Heading into Sunday’s Daytona 500, there’s an aura of palpable excitement around all of JR Motorsports, and it’s not just from Allgaier and Earnhardt, Jr. the racecar drivers, but also from Kelley Earnhardt-Miller and husband L.W. Miller, as well.
“I cannot wait for Sunday, and we have a freaking Xfinity race to run. That’s going to be awesome.” added Earnhardt, Jr. “But we get to push a car on the grid Sunday for the first time ever and the biggest, most important race that I’ve ever known, and I can’t wait.”
Justin Allgaier, Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Kelley Earnhardt-Miller, L.W. Miller, and the entire No. 40 Travelers Whiskey Chevrolet team will be soaking in the experience on Sunday for the Daytona 500, in what will be the first – but probably not the last – NASCAR Cup Series event for JR Motorsports.
