Saturday’s NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway became a difficult night for both Brandon Jones and Justin Allgaier.
The two drivers crashed after becoming involved at the start of Stage 2, and Jones was later disqualified after officials found four or more loose lug nuts on his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.
Allgaier, the reigning NOAPS champion, entered the race just 11 points behind the championship leader. Jones had missed the Chase but was still competing for a win while trying to erase the bad luck that has haunted him over the past few weeks.
At the end of Stage 1, Jones took the lead from the top of the fuel cycle with a strong pit stop. The crew was uncertain whether the left-front had been secured properly, and that concern proved correct.
On the restart, Jones quickly fell back as the loose wheel made the car difficult to control. He dropped beneath Jesse Love, then over-corrected into the outside wall, putting him into Allgaier’s path and wrecking both cars.
Allgaier later rejoined the race and ran two slow laps to pass Jones. Unofficially, they finished 34th and 35th, respectively.
However, because of the loose lug nuts, Jones was automatically disqualified, dropping him behind Dawson Cram and to 36th, last place.
“Yeah, I mean it boiled down to the pit stop and not getting them tight,” Jones said after being released from the infield care center. “I mean, I thought they did a great job. They got me out front. That’s what we needed to do. We needed to be able to control this race, and they were probably pushing as hard as they could, but it’s all about no mistakes right now, and unfortunately, we continue to figure out and find ways to make mistakes every single race so far.”
“I was just trying to stay out of people’s doors. I mean, when the left front or right front is loose like that, the car just will not turn. It doesn’t like it at all. So I couldn’t feel it before I went green, but as soon as I got into the corner, it was just an instant 9/10 vibration. What are they going to do behind me? They’re all just in a bad spot with that situation. It boils down to better execution. I’m frustrated right now with my guys. I just know in my heart that they’re better than this, and we continue race after race to come here and make these mistakes.”
How the DQ changed the championship picture
The disqualification also slightly altered the standings because Jones had earned stage points as the fourth-place finisher in Stage 1. Once he was removed from the stage results, the championship math shifted.
Carson Kvapil remained 19 points behind Sheldon Creed for the lead. Jesse Love moved to 22 points behind, and Justin Allgaier moved to 31 points behind after his crash. Corey Day, the Las Vegas race winner, was not affected by the DQ and sits 41 points out of the lead.
Allgaier spoke outside the infield care center after his early exit, calling it “pretty frustrating” to start his title defense this way after dominating the regular season.
Watch: Day on final lap battle: ‘I wasn’t lifting, that’s for sure’
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