Justin Allgaier questions Daytona win after seeing footage of photo-finish

Justin Allgaier pulled out the victory in Friday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series Wawa 250 at Daytona International Speedway, however, had his doubts after seeing a replay of the photo-finish.

In the post-race interview with NBC Sports, Allgaier was presented footage of his 0.005 victory over Sheldon Creed — tied for the fourth shortest margin of victory in Xfinity Series history. After seeing one particular angle, Allgaier — as well as some in the crowd — weren’t sure if he was in fact the winner.

“Oh, did I win?” Allgaier asked during an on-track interview. “I think I did, right? That angle looks bad, doesn’t it?”

The footage on the video board distracted Allgaier from his victory speech, in which he was quoting Cup Series driver Michael McDowell. After confirming that he was the winner, he was able to return to his celebration by thanking each sponsor.

“This team, I just can’t say enough … Everybody at @JRMotorsports,” Allgaier said after the race, via Performance Racing Network. “To come through the adversity we had to come through, I wasn’t sure we’d have something at the end.”

Justin Allgaier picks up signature victory at Daytona

The win is Allgaier’s second of the 2023 season and 21st of his Xfinity Series career. With just two regular season races remaining until the playoffs begin, Allgaier has positioned himself third in the projected standings behind only John Hunter Nemechek and Austin Hill.

“I’ve been coming to this place a long time,” said Allgaier, who notched his first-career victory at a superspeedway. “I’ve wanted to win here so bad, and we’ve been so close. We had an oversight yesterday when we got to the track and put a car through inspection that wasn’t where we wanted to roll it through inspection, and, unfortunately, that cost us a pass-through. The team never quit, never gave up, and we rallied. Obviously we put ourselves in good position.”

Creed, Daniel Hemric, Parker Kligerman and Cole Custer rounded out the top-five at Daytona.

The race for the 12th and final playoff spot shifted dramatically Friday, with Riley Herbst, who entered the race occupying the final spot, finishing 24th. Herbst had a wheel issue early on which caused his left-front tire to blow and significantly damaged his No. 98 Ford. Kligerman, who sat three points behind Herbst in the standings prior to the race, now holds a 20-point advantage heading into Darlington next weekend.