Three Times a Charm! Allgaier Victorius Again at Martinsville!

Justin Allagier Rockingham 2025

MARTINSVILLE, V.A. - The NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series hosted the NFPA 250, Saturday, March 28 at Martinsville Speedway. Qualifying was rained out on Friday, putting series points leader Justin Allgaier of JR Motorsports on the pole. For Allgaier it ended up being a dominant day as he led a season high 114 laps in route to his third victory of 2026. Allgaier also tied Jack Ingram for the 6th most wins in series history.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

Allgaier led the race predominantly early as he controlled the first stage with ease. With the stage win, Allgaier claimed his 84th career stage victory.

A slow stop briefly hindered his track position in stage two as he completed the stage in 10th, but on the correct tire strategy Allgaier quickly charged back to the front in the final stage.

As for the stage two winner, Richard Childress Racing's Austin Hill continued his strong production at the "Paperclip" as he led the closing nine laps of the second stage. Hill ultimately finished 6th, but was simply one of the better non Hendrick or Haas Chevorlet's.

JR Motorsports Driver Lee Pulliam was the story of the day as he found himself with a chance to win the race late. Unfortunately for Pulliam a mix of the wrong tire strategy, as well as two big mistakes on restarts led to an eventual 5th place finish.

The biggest mistake for Pulliam had a crucial outcome on the race though, as he seemingly missed a shift with 16 laps to go while restarting in the 2nd position, leading to a huge stack up and an eventual multi car accident that brought out the race changing red flag.

Just before that caution, it was at that point Allgaier had taken the lead, and he simply never looked back as despite multiple restarts after he took the point, no one was able to challenge.

NOTABLES:

Hendrick Motorsports driver Corey Day continues his excellent rookie campaign, as he finished in the runner-up position. For Day this marked not just the best finish of his young career, but also his third top five, and series leading sixth top 10 of 2026.

Sam Hunt Racing has had a tough campaign in 2026 for both of the teams drivers. Fortunately for them, the organization earned its first top 10 of the season as Dean Thompson finished 7th. Perhaps this is the moment that can get things going back in the right direction at Rockingham next weekend.

UP NEXT:

Unlike the NASCAR Cup Series, the NASCAR O'Reilly Series will continue action next weekend on Easter as the series will return to Rockingham Speedway. Last season after Jesse Love failed post-race tech inspection, JR Motorsports driver Sammy Smith earned the victory. For Smith he would like to celebrate with his team this season in victory lane as due to the circumstances he was unable to do so last season. To be exact, for Smith it has been 45 races dating back to Talladega in 2024, where he has naturally been in victory lane.

Coverage for the race at Rockingham can be found on the CW and MRN at 2:30 PM ET. Motorsports Today will also have coverage as Declan Wayman will be at the track.

Coverage from Motorsports Today can also be found on X @MtrsprtsToday, Instagram @Motorsports_Today, Tiktok & Youtube @motorsportstoday!