Justin Allgaier’s bid for his second NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series championship took an unlucky turn on Saturday night at Las Vegas. On the restart to begin Stage 2, Allgaier was collected in a wreck with Joe Gibbs Racing driver Brandon Jones.
Allgaier’s No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet was destroyed following the incident, ultimately ending his race early. The 2024 series champion entered Las Vegas 11 points behind leader Sheldon Creed.
After the Las Vegas disaster, Allgaier’s title chances took a major blow.
Justin Allgaier Collides With Brandon Jones at Las Vegas
As the field worked their way through turn 1 to begin Stage 2 of the Focused Health 302, Jones tried to save his No. 20 Toyota as it got loose going through the corner.
Trying to keep his car going in the right direction, Jones overcorrected and spun directly into the path of Allgaier’s No. 7 Chevrolet. The damage was significant on both cars, which ended their respective races early.
Following the incident, Allgaier was frustrated. The veteran driver sounded off on Jones over his radio, confused at why the JGR driver overcorrected his car in the manner that he did.
“Why do these guys not do what you’re supposed to do, lock it down and turn it to the left? We always try to drive out of it, even though we know we’re not going to save it [and] wreck the field,” Allgaier said.
Allgaier had reason to be disappointed as the Las Vegas Motor Speedway has been one of his better racetracks. In his last 10 Las Vegas starts, Allgaier had recorded eight top-five finishes and had finished no worse than 10th.
Allgaier was also the victor of the 2025 Las Vegas spring race.
Allgaier entered Saturday’s race still within striking distance of Creed for the championship. Now, after a dismal Las Vegas race, the JR Motorsports star will surely be facing a points deficit higher than 11 points, which is what he faced going into the night.
Justin Allgaier Seeking Second O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Championship
After finally capturing an O’Reilly Auto Parts Series championship in 2024, Justin Allgaier is hungry for a second title. While it has not been an ideal Chase so far for the 40-year-old, it has still been a phenomenal 2026 campaign.
Allgaier was the points leader at the conclusion of the regular season, earning him the top seed to begin the Chase. He has recorded a series-high six wins at Phoenix, Darlington, Martinsville, Nashville, Pocono and EchoPark Speedway.
Through 27 races, Allgaier has posted a whopping 19 top-10 finishes and 15 top-five finishes. Allgaier has posted an outstanding average finish of 9.6.
Unfortunately for the Illinois native, the Chase has not exactly panned out. Allgaier recorded a 17th-place finish in the Chase opener at Darlington, while Creed went on to win the race.
The 34-time series winner posted a 13th-place finish at World Wide Technology Raceway, the second race of the Chase. While Allgaier rebounded with a fourth-place run at Bristol, a brutal finish at Las Vegas caused his championship hopes to take a massive hit.
Allgaier is seeking his second O’Reilly Auto Parts Series title in three years.
Justin Allgaier Crashes Out at Las Vegas in Major Championship Shakeup