NOAPS Race Recap: Fleetio 200

The Chase for the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts series championship began with the Fleetio 200 at Darlington Raceway. Carson Kvapil and Justin Allgaier were the fastest two in qualifying, so they started the race on the front row. Brandon Jones and Jesse Love started behind them. Sheldon Creed had some ground to make up after starting in 13th. The stage lengths were 45 laps for stages one and two, with the final stage being 57 laps.

Late Stage Caution

Kvapil had a better launch, but Allgaier took the lead in turn one. He immediately had his lead at over half a second. He did not stop there, growing that lead to over a second.

Rajah Caruth began to move forward. He passed Taylor Gray and gave his appreciation for Gray not making it too difficult.

Gray was then passed by Anthony Alfredo, dropping him to tenth.

Caruth had to pit with a mechanical issue on lap 27.

The first caution came out on lap 34. Preston Pardus spun out off of turn four and hit the inside wall.

Brandon Jones and Corey Day restarted out front. Jones quickly took the lead. Allgaier was able to get around Jones with Kvapil following him.

Allgaier held on to the lead to win stage one in the Fleetio 200! Kvapil finished the stage on the rear bumper of Allgaier. Austin Hill, Sam Mayer, and Parker Retzlaff finished in the top five.

Cautions

Allgaier and Kvapil got stage two started from the front row. Kvapil stayed next to Allgaier into turn one, but Allgaier used the outside line to retake his lead out of the turn.

Kvapil did not let Allgaier get away and battled hard for the lead.

The third caution came out on lap 60 when Daniel Dye was turned into the outside wall by Dean Thompson. He tried to block a run by Thompson but was too late.

Allgaier brought the green flag back out, but he did not get a great launch. This allowed Kvapil to take the lead. However, Allgaier was able to recover and stay in second.

The next caution came out when William Sawalich was turned into the outside wall by Corey Day. The two had been racing each other aggressively all race.

Kvapil and Allgaier restarted out front. Kvapil was able to retake the lead. Before the field could complete a lap, Jeb Burton spun out on the back stretch. Mason Maggio and Glen Reen were collected in the incident.

With ten to go, Kvapil got a great restart and took the lead into turn one. Anthony Alfredo got around Allgaier to take second.

Alfredo made an aggressive move and took the lead on the inside of Kvapil.

With fresher tires, Day charged from deep in the field to get to the top five.

Alfredo led the rest to win stage two in the Fleetio 200! He won the stage by two and a half seconds. Day, Creed, Sammy Smith, and Kvapil rounded out the top five.

Creed Takes it

Day and Creed brought the field back to green. Creed took the lead into turn one. Day fell to fourth after Smith and Allgaier got around him.

The seventh caution came out when Joey Gase got loose and backed into Lavar Scott. Scott turned and hit the inside wall. Sawalich also turned and hit the wall, but separately from the first incident.

With 40 to go, Allgaier and Creed raced for the lead on the restart. Creed was shot out of a cannon and retook the lead. Smith pulled alongside Allgaier to challenge for second. Allgaier settled in third.

Rajah Caruth used his newer tires to drive through the field. After restarting deep in the field, he passed his way into the top 15.

Allgaier got into the outside wall. He then began to fall down the order. Brent Crews was first to get around him for fifth. Caruth and Alfredo were next. Allgaier did everything he could to hold on to his struggling tires. Taylor Gray passed him for eighth.

Caruth had to make an unscheduled pit stop with fuel issues.

Creed grew his lead to two seconds with five to go.

Allgaier fell outside the top ten. He kissed the wall again as Dean Thompson and Kvapil passed him.

Creed held on to the lead. He took the white flag and then the checkered flag to win the Fleetio 200! Day, Crews, Smith, and Hill finished the race in the top five.

Marvin’s Minute:

Allgaier had a less-than-normal day but still held onto the championship lead. He should be alright and remains the favorite. I was especially impressed with how well he controlled the car while struggling for grip.

With that being said, Creed showed up and showed out. He jumped a spot in the standings, but more importantly, he gained some much-needed confidence. A confident Sheldon Creed can be dangerous. The Chase format cut Allgaier’s lead by more than 200 points. Allgaier dominated the regular season, but the Chase format erased much of that advantage. If Creed carries this confidence forward, he could make a legitimate run at the championship.

The series continues its Chase run at Worldwide Technology Raceway next week.