Reigning NASCAR Xfinity Series champion Justin Allgaier has been pulled in every direction this offseason. That’s the status quo when you are crowned a champion.
But Allgaier had the phrase “champion” out of his mind, thinking he’d never be associated with the prestigious accolade. After six previous trips to the Championship 4 race, the Illinois native needed a late-race miracle in the 2024 season finale at Phoenix Raceway to win that first elusive Xfinity Series title. By golly, it happened.
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The way Championship Weekend transpired was symbolic of Allgaier’s entire 2024 season. The No. 7 team ranked second in laps led (709), and his 16 stage victories were nine more than his closest competitor. The results throughout the season left a lot to be desired, with Allgaier only scoring two victories.
“I just didn’t execute like I know how to, and I think that’s what made [2024] so frustrating,” Allgaier told NASCAR.com. “You get to Phoenix, and when I started banging on the toolbox, I think a lot of that was with the emotion coming out of me after the practice crash. I know how hard my group worked and to have nothing to show for it was a kick in the gut. The race was very symbolic to our season — that’s an understatement.”
Yet when the checkered flag waved, Allgaier punctuated one of the more feel-good stories in recent memory. Team owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. was waiting for his driver on the frontstretch, as were Allgaier’s parents. They soaked in the moment.
That feeling continued throughout the offseason as Allgaier was a part of multiple championship celebrations. Since Allgaier was the team’s first driver to win a title since 2018 (Tyler Reddick), JR Motorsports gathered at the shop to celebrate the accomplishment. The party rolled into central Illinois with longtime sponsor Brandt. Plenty of members of the local community celebrated Allgaier’s achievement.
“When we finally [won the championship], it was this cool moment that came full circle for me and the amount of people that ended up wanting to celebrate with us,” Allgaier said. “It made it that much more special.”
Rest is for the weak, however. Before Christmas, the No. 7 team turned its attention toward the 2025 season. Led by crew chief Jim Pohlman, the No. 7 crew has been head-down since the turn of the calendar year, honing in on the upcoming 33-race schedule.
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The primary goal for Pohlman in 2025 is to replicate the speed the No. 7 had for the bulk of the 2024 season.
“We had really fast race cars, and we would make a lot of mistakes over and over again,” Pohlman said of 2024. “Not always the same mistake, not always our doing. We would always somehow manage to give it away, is what it felt like to me.”
That adversity, however, is what carried the No. 7 team through Phoenix. From unloading a backup car after an early practice crash to nearly going two laps down after multiple costly penalties, the group knew how to overcome adversity, though it needed some racing luck.
“I might be older and have been around this sport for a long time, but I will be the first to admit that I have equally as many shortcomings as everyone else,” he said. “It’s a full-time job to be prepared for these races, and I put a lot of weight on my shoulders to make sure we’re ready to go when we show up to the race track each and every week.”
Allgaier may be even more dangerous in 2025, believing the No. 7 team has only “hit the tip of the iceberg.” He knows JRM still has room to grow, with the additions of rookies Connor Zilisch and Carson Kvapil, plus Sammy Smith’s return to the No. 8 fold. The belief, internally, is that this is the deepest JRM lineup in the organization’s history.
With a host of driver changes — eight 2024 Xfinity Series Playoffs drivers are with a new team or have moved to the Cup Series — Allgaier and Pohlman have scouted their competition for 2025. They used the organizational test at Rockingham Speedway at the end of January as a possible indicator of how teams have improved over the offseason.
Away from the JRM bubble, Allgaier and Pohlman collectively name-dropped the likes of Haas Factory Team and Joe Gibbs Racing as its biggest competition. Sophomore driver Jesse Love also made the list, as did Ryan Sieg, who showed an abundance of speed at Rockingham.
“I don’t think the competition has gotten any easier in 2025 than it was in 2024,” Pohlman said. “We definitely have our work cut for ourselves.”
With a championship on Allgaier’s resume, he is entering the new campaign loose. The intimidating Pohlman even said he was relaxed, having confidence that the No. 7 team can win the championship again.
“We did it in the most unruly fashion possible,” Pohlman joked. “It relaxes everybody and gives everybody confidence.”
Winning consecutive titles is an uphill battle for any race team, though Reddick (with two teams) and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. did so in the last 15 Xfinity seasons. Allgaier has mastered Phoenix, so should he get to the Championship 4 again, he would jump to the top of the list as the favorite to win it all once again.
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The No. 7’s 2025 philosophy, as such, is to treat each individual race with this title-defending foresight: “How are we getting to Phoenix?”
“Even though I’m a champion, race winner and have been in this sport for a long time, I’m working harder today than I worked in my entire career just to be relevant,” Allgaier noted. “That’s tough because you hope to get to the end of your career, and you can enjoy and relax a little bit, but that’s not the case. These young drivers coming up are more prepared, talented, ready to go. As a driver, every year, the intensity ramps up, and I need to stay relevant and current if I want to keep a job in the sport.”
With Allgaier aiming to become the first JRM driver to win consecutive championships since Martin Truex Jr. did so under the Chance 2 Motorsports banner in 2004 and 2005, the direction is as clear as ever.
