Aric Almirola Wins Thrilling Finish at Phoenix

Aric Almirola celebrating in Victory Lane after winning at Phoenix Raceway. (Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

AVONDALE, Ariz. — In a dramatic side-by-side overtime finish, Aric Almirola won the GOVX 200 at Phoenix Raceway, beating Alex Bowman to the start/finish line by 0.045 seconds.

The race was sent into overtime after Nick Leitz spun out and hit the wall with just four laps to go. This gave Almirola another shot at the win as Justin Allgaier was cruising to his first victory of the season before the caution.

Going into Turn 1, the two were even before Allgaier got loose, ran up the track and put Almirola into the wall in Turn 2. That opened the door for Bowman to thread the needle and make a four-wide pass for the lead between Allgaier, Almirola and Brandon Jones.

Bowman led until Turn 4 on the final lap when Almirola got to the inside and used up the entire track, fencing Bowman’s No. 17 car and narrowly beating him and Jones to the start/finish line to capture the win.

“What a blessing this is,” he said. “It is so much fun to come and drive these race cars, every single time I get in I feel like I have an opportunity to win.”

When looking back at the pass on Bowman for the win, Almirola felt that the move was not unnecessary and that he did what it took to win.

Aric Almirola (No. 19) running Alex Bowman (No. 17) into the wall with Brandon Jones (No. 20) closing in at the start/finish line. (Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

“I knew I was going to use him (Bowman) up a little bit,” said Almirola. “(I was) trying to win the race and I feel like it was warranted. I didn’t think I did anything overly egregious. I just throttled up and knew it was going to be a drag race to the start/finish line.”

It was the fourth NASCAR Xfinity Series win for Almirola since joining Joe Gibbs Racing ahead of the 2024 season. This victory was also special for him as there were no plans to run any races in 2025 until late in the offseason.

“I didn’t know what I was doing. Two weeks before Daytona, I was planning on just helping at JGR and volunteering at church,” he said post-race. “I got a phone call to come run some races, so what an opportunity.”

On the other side of the move on the final lap was Bowman, who was not very fond of the move Almirola pulled coming to the start/finish line.

“I would’ve hoped that he (Almirola) would’ve given me a lane on exit,” said Bowman. “He just exited like I wasn’t there.”

Bowman, who probably had the third-best car at the end of the race, was able to capitalize when Allgaier and Almirola made contact to take the lead but had his chance at victory taken away on the final lap.

Alex Bowman during the GOVX 200 at Phoenix Raceway. (Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

“He (Almirola) was better than us for sure, but (I) just tried to capitalize on that restart and try to win the race,” he said. “(We) got shoved in the fence and the race car’s destroyed, so bummer for that.”

Rounding out the top five were Jones, Ryan Sieg and Allgaier, who after the joy of a championship at Phoenix Raceway in the fall, suffered a heartbreaking defeat this go around. After getting into Almirola in Turn 2 on the final restart, he was not able to get his momentum back, finishing in fifth place.

“This one is going to hurt,” said Allgaier. “I feel like the last three laps of this place have hated me over the last couple years. Even though we won a championship last fall, it seems like no matter what, the last few laps haven’t been our deal.”

Allgaier led a race-high 130 laps and won Stage 2 in a dominating performance for his No. 7 JR Motorsports team, but despite having the best car, he was not able to bring home the trophy.

“I’m just sad about the finish for our Brandt Chevrolet,” he said. “I thought it was really, really good. I thought we had the car to beat there.”

Stage 1 Top 10 Results

1. Alex Bowman
2. Aric Almirola
3. Justin Allgaier
4. Connor Zilisch
5. Sheldon Creed
6. Sammy Smith
7. Nick Sanchez
8. Brandon Jones
9. Jesse Love
10. Sam Mayer

Stage 2 Top 10 Results

1. Justin Allgaier
2. Aric Almirola
3. Alex Bowman
4. Brandon Jones
5. Sammy Smith
6. Sam Mayer
7. Jesse Love
8. Taylor Gray
9. Carson Kvapil
10. Ryan Sieg

GOVX 200 at Phoenix Raceway Finishing Results