Justin Allgaier hopes to turn close calls into Texas-sized victory

Justin Allgaier has been strong at Texas Motor Speedway. Still, the driver of the No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet has never won at the 1.5-mile track in Fort Worth. To wit, Allgaier has qualified in the top 10 in 12 of the last 13 events at Texas. He won the pole in 2023. He also has five top-five finishes in the last seven races, including a runner-up in 2021. He has led 349 laps in the last three races combined. He has also won five of the last six stages at the track and a record seven overall. RELATED: Weekend schedule | Paint Scheme Preview

Yet, Allgaier is still seeking his first Texas victory. He will try again in Saturday's Andy's Frozen Custard 340 (3:30 p.m. ET, The CW, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Allgaier leads all drivers with eight Dash 4 Cash wins. However, he is not eligible for the $100,000 bonus in the final race of this year's program. Even so, a win would still carry plenty of weight.

MORE: 2026 Dash 4 Cash hub | Dash 4 Cash winners through the years

"Texas has been a really good track for us over the last few years," Allgaier says. "I know that [crew chief] Andrew [Overstreet] and all the guys on this Roto-Rooter Chevrolet are working really hard to give us another car capable of running up front again this weekend."

The driver adds, "We've come close here before, and hopefully we can be in a position at the end of the day to get that one spot better and come away with a cowboy hat."

Allgaier faces challengers

Defending race winner Kyle Larson, making his fourth start of the season in the No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolet, stands in Allgaier's way. Larson has a win, a runner-up and a fourth-place finish in his first three starts this year.

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Sheldon Creed is chasing his third straight Dash 4 Cash bonus. He won at Kansas Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway with finishes of second and third. He must finish higher than Corey Day, Sammy Smith and Brent Crews to collect the $100,000 prize.

Corey Day is also in the mix. He is coming off his first career O'Reilly Series win at Talladega. Last Saturday, he became just the sixth driver in series history to win his first race while leading only the final lap.