The seventh time’s the charm for Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s protégé as he finally secured his elusive Xfinity series title in 2024. The 2024 Xfinity series finale saw tons of adversity thrown at the eventual champion, but his ability to fight through it was inspiring. 38-year-old Justin Allgaier drove himself from all the way at the back of the grid right to the top, in an unforgettable drive.

However, the #7 driver can firmly say that his entire weekend was far from perfect, as he mentioned in a recent interview. One really had to wonder if he broke a mirror, crossed paths with a black cat, and walked under a ladder ahead of that weekend. Right from Friday, it had been setback after setback for Allgaier, with crashes, penalties, and more obstacles.

Nevertheless, he refused to throw in the towel and eventually prevailed. It wasn’t easy because the mistakes kept piling up throughout the race. Admittedly, some of them were self-inflicted, and he was man enough to admit his own shortcomings.

The Dale Earnhardt Jr. backed driver broke down the recipe for success

Justin Allgaier has been racing for JR Motorsports for his ninth season now and Dale Jr. has been patiently waiting for his success. The #7 had come within inches of the title on multiple occasions. It was only fitting that after multiple 2nd and 3rd place finishes, the #7 finally got that coveted title on his seventh attempt. He reflected on his tumultuous championship weekend and the importance of the right people during times of adversity.

Justin Allgaier told SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, “Having the right people around you is one of the most important piece of this sport. Great race cars are just that, but without great people they’re not great. Started off on Friday, put us behind the 8-ball to start with. That changed the mentality of the weekend, significantly. Had we not endured Friday night, I don’t know that we would’ve been able to endure Saturday afternoon. That’s first and foremost.”

Allgaier was an emotional wreck when he exited his #7 car as all the pain and hard work over a 14-year career had finally borne fruit. He was seen embracing his family in tears, as well as his mentor, team owner, and good friend Dale Earnhardt Jr., after his sublime drive. He further elaborated on how he lost all hope after a qualifying disaster saw him start at the back of the grid,

“Second of all, you saw a lot of emotion out of me, Friday when we crashed. I knew the amount of time, effort and energy had gone into that race car. That was a brand new car, literally first time it had ever been on a race track. It made 2 and a half laps and that was it. As a driver and as somebody that has worked on his own race cars for many years, and understands how hard it is to put cars together. That was one of the most deflating moments of my entire career.”

As he recounted, the troubles began on Friday when he crashed out. What made matters worse was that it was a brand-new car, so valuable data would have been lost in the crash. Additionally, he acknowledged that his team worked hard to build that car. It took him less than two minutes for him to undo all their efforts. Justin Allgaier sympathized with his team because he had experience building his own cars.

Allgaier insisted that his practice shenanigans were beyond his control. Nevertheless, everyone in the JR Motorsports camp elected to put their heads down and focus. Race day on Saturday arrived, and this time he had no excuses. During the race, he made some mistakes, including a costly one during the restart. At one point in the race, it seemed like a not-so-lucky attempt #7 for Allgaier.

How did Justin Allgaier recover from that error?

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In hindsight, Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s protege confessed that he should have done his homework and checked out the Truck race earlier. He might not have made such a silly error that made his championship bid harder. Unfortunately, there was no use crying over spilled milk. A faulty restart, a blown tire, and speeding on pit road, this is what Allgaier fought off in pursuit of the title.

It started with a blown tire and, of course, his crew chief and spotter were trying to calm him down and get his head in the game. Then more mistakes began to creep in as the race progressed. The next stumbling block was getting penalized for speeding on pit road. Allgaier spent most of the final stage a lap down, but some lucky cautions and an overtime restart allowed him to claw his way back up to the top of the grid and overtake Cole Custer for the championship.

Allgaier’s intentions were to retire after the championship win as this was long overdue, however he just couldn’t. The 38-year-old admitted during the trophy presentation that he said he would retire if he finally won it, but the winning feeling just makes him want to come back and do it again. Dale Earnhardt Jr. also mentioned he wanted to see Allgaier race for his team for a little longer, although would not blame him for retiring on a high if he did so. It remains to be seen whether Allgaier will be able to get more championships, but one thing is sure, the proverbial ‘monkey’ is definitely off his back.