Justin Allgaier qualifies Dale Earnhardt Jr. owned car for Daytona 500
Justin Allgaier is in the Daytona 500 for the first JR Motorsports entry in the NASCAR Cup Series.
Allgaier finished ninth place in Thursday's duel at Daytona International Speedway and was the first open team in the finishing order. Allgaier will start 19th in the Daytona 500 on Sunday.
This will be the first race as a car owner for Dale Earnhardt Jr., who founded JR Motorsports in 2005 and has been running in the NASCAR Xfinity Series since 2006.
"I owe Michael a kiss," Allgaier said over the No. 40 team radio in reference to Michael McDowell. Allgaier got a push from McDowell on the outside lane to pass JJ Yeley on the final lap to get the one transfer spot in the duel.
"Emotions are high because of everyone that wanted it," Allgaier said. "(Dale Jr.'s) lip was quivering and his hands were shaking before the race, I've never seen that from Dale Jr. He told me before the race, 'Man, I'm nervous, I don't want to make you nervous but I'm really nervous. This means a lot to our little team at JR Motorsports. ... Dale Jr. is an amazing car owner ... you can tell how much he wants this."
Earnhardt Jr. said he was excited to see Allgaier get the spot and didn't think it was possible to find a way to get through the field from the outside lane with so little help, until that help came in from McDowell.
"I'm so proud of Justin, he put the team on his back those last couple of laps," Earnhardt Jr. said. "He got up there and made something work. It was his only shot and he got some help so we've got some people to thank. ... There's some special people on this team I've worked with since 1998. This sport's amazing, everything about it. I've seen this sport through so many lenses, so many challenges and I wouldn't want it any other way. This was hard, emotionally, but I can't believe we get to race on Sunday."
Bubba Wallace won the first duel race and will start third in the Daytona 500.
Follow sports writer Austin Chastain on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @ChastainAJ or reach him via email at achastain@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Daytona 500: Justin Allgaier qualifies Dale Earnhardt Jr. car for race
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