Though the NASCAR Chevy teams didn’t win either qualifying Duel on Thursday, February 13th, 2025, The Bow Tie Brand has at least one thing to write home about. Justin Allgaier is bringing JR Motorsports (JRM) to the Cup Series for the first time in the organization’s history, racing his way into the 2025 Daytona 500 behind the wheel of the No. 40 NASCAR Chevy.
Allgaier did not qualify well enough to lock in the No. 40 NASCAR Chevy during Wednesday’s qualifying session, forcing him to perform well during the Duels at Daytona or risk missing out on the main event. Allgaier did just that, earning the advantage with a risky three-wide move on the second-to-last lap, earning the transfer spot into Sunday’s Daytona 500.
“He got up to the top on that last lap, and I didn’t think that was possible, but he got to the top and made it work,” said JRM team co-owner, Dale Earnhardt Jr. – a two-time Daytona 500 champion himself. “This was rough emotionally, but damn it, it worked out.”
Allgaier said, “This means a lot to our team, this little team of JR Motorsports. Dale Jr. is an amazing race car driver. He’s an amazing dad, car owner. You can tell how much he wanted this and our whole shop wanted this.”
William Byron’s No. 24 NASCAR Chevy finished second in Duel 1, barely edged out by winner Bubba Wallace in the No. 23 Toyota TRD Camry. Unfortunately, Helio Castroneves’ No. 91 NASCAR Chevy was taken out in an early race wreck, junking his race car. Unfortunately, because it was unable to continue competing, Castroneves did not earn a transfer spot into the Daytona 500, but he will take the provisional, guaranteeing him a place on the grid.
“I got hit and ended up hitting the wall in Turn 2 pretty hard and broke a toe link,” Castroneves lamented. “It’s disappointing because the No. 91 Wendy’s Chevrolet was really good. The boys on the PROJECT91 team did an amazing job. They have a little bit of work to do, unfortunately. It wasn’t the night that we wanted, but we’ll take the provisional.”
GM also revealed its Chevy Blazer EV.R, a prototype for a potential NASCAR-going entry, on Thursday before the Duels.
| Pos | Car Number | Driver | Team | Time | Speed | Car | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 19 | Chase Briscoe | Bass Pro Shops Toyota | 0 | 0 | Toyota TRD Camry | |
| 2 | 2 | Austin Cindric | Discount Tire Ford | 0 | 0 | Ford Mustang Dark Horse | |
| 3 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | McDonald's Toyota | 0 | 0 | Toyota TRD Camry | |
| 4 | 43 | Erik Jones | AdventHealth Toyota | 0 | 0 | Toyota TRD Camry | |
| 5 | 24 | William Byron | Axalta Chevrolet | 0 | 0 | Chevrolet | |
| 6 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Fastenal Ford | 0 | 0 | Ford Mustang Dark Horse | |
| 7 | 10 | Ty Dillon | Grizzly Nicotine Pouches Chevrolet | 0 | 0 | Chevrolet | |
| 8 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | National Debt Relief Toyota | 0 | 0 | Toyota TRD Camry | |
| 9 | 1 | Ross Chastain | Busch Light Chevrolet | 0 | 0 | Chevrolet | |
| 10 | 22 | Joey Logano | Shell Pennzoil Ford | 0 | 0 | Ford Mustang Dark Horse | |
| 11 | 45 | Tyler Reddick | Nasty Beast Toyota | 0 | 0 | Toyota TRD Camry | |
| 12 | 1 | Corey LaJoie | Take 5 Oil Change/DuraMax Ford | 0 | 0 | Ford Mustang Dark Horse | |
| 13 | 16 | AJ Allmendinger | Celsius Chevrolet | 0 | 0 | Chevrolet | |
| 14 | 34 | Todd Gilliland | Love's Travel Stops Ford | 0 | 0 | Ford Mustang Dark Horse | |
| 15 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Bass Pro Shops/Winchester Chevrolet | 0 | 0 | Chevrolet | |
| 16 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Menards/Peak Ford | 0 | 0 | Ford Mustang Dark Horse | |
| 17 | 9 | Chase Elliott | NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet | 0 | 0 | Chevrolet | |
| 18 | 42 | John Hunter Nemechek | Dollar Tree Toyota | 0 | 0 | Toyota TRD Camry | |
| 19 | 40 | Justin Allgaier(i) | Traveller Whiskey Chevrolet | 0 | 0 | Chevrolet | |
| 20 | 20 | Christopher Bell | DEWALT/Interstate Batteries Toyota | 0 | 0 | Toyota TRD Camry | |
| 21 | 8 | Kyle Busch | zone Chevrolet | 0 | 0 | Chevrolet | |
| 22 | 5 | Kyle Larson | HendrickCars.com Chevrolet | 0 | 0 | Chevrolet | |
| 23 | 54 | Ty Gibbs | Monster Energy Toyota | 0 | 0 | Toyota TRD Camry | |
| 24 | 35 | Riley Herbst # | Monster Energy/Zero Sugar Toyota | 0 | 0 | Toyota TRD Camry | |
| 25 | 71 | Michael McDowell | Go Bowling Chevrolet | 0 | 0 | Chevrolet | |
| 26 | 88 | Shane Van Gisbergen # | WeatherTech Chevrolet | 0 | 0 | Chevrolet | |
| 27 | 60 | Ryan Preece | BuildSubmarines.com Ford | 0 | 0 | Ford Mustang Dark Horse | |
| 28 | 51 | Cody Ware | Parts Plus/Jacob Construction Ford | 0 | 0 | Ford Mustang Dark Horse | |
| 29 | 21 | Josh Berry | Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford | 0 | 0 | Ford Mustang Dark Horse | |
| 30 | 41 | Cole Custer | HaasTooling.com Ford | 0 | 0 | Ford Mustang Dark Horse | |
| 31 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | SUNNYD Chevrolet | 0 | 0 | Chevrolet | |
| 32 | 4 | Noah Gragson | Rush Truck Centers Ford | 0 | 0 | Ford Mustang Dark Horse | |
| 33 | 77 | Carson Hocevar | Zeigler Auto Group Chevrolet | 0 | 0 | Chevrolet | |
| 34 | 6 | Brad Keselowski | Kroger/Cottonelle Ford | 0 | 0 | Ford Mustang Dark Horse | |
| 35 | 7 | Justin Haley | Chili's Ride the 'Dente Chevrolet | 0 | 0 | Chevrolet | |
| 36 | 99 | Daniel Suarez | Freeway Insurance Chevrolet | 0 | 0 | Chevrolet | |
| 37 | 38 | Zane Smith | Speedy Cash Ford | 0 | 0 | Ford Mustang Dark Horse | |
| 38 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Ally Chevrolet | 0 | 0 | Chevrolet | |
| 39 | 56 | Martin Truex Jr. | Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats Toyota | 0 | 0 | Toyota TRD Camry | Transfer |
| 40 | 84 | Jimmie Johnson | Carvana Toyota | 0 | 0 | Toyota TRD Camry | Transfer |
| 41 | 91 | Helio Castroneves | Wendy's Chevrolet | 0 | 0 | Chevrolet | Open Exempsion Provisional |
Comments
… and an EV “dragster” equinox without sound in front with a nonsense wing for nothing as it would be a hotwheels that is not hot but very cold kkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk
even slot cars in autorama RC race maks more sound and excitement
but of course, if it explode blow up in front all then it is entertainment
Castor is just a waste of space and money
Congrats to JRM. I’m glad they made it to the big show.
big Helio fan, but he doesn’t deserve being “given” the spot.