Last weekend in Martinsville, Justin Allgaier’s mind was occupied. Although he was already locked into the Championship 4, Sam Mayer’s aggressive moves affected his wrestling for a stage win. Although more colorful fireworks broke out between Mayer and Jeb Burton, Allgaier also had a piece of his mind to share. This weekend, however, he is now focusing on not one, but three other drivers.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship will go green in a few hours at Phoenix Raceway. The four playoff drivers are gritting their teeth and bracing themselves for impact. Justin Allgaier is a little relaxed, though, because he has notes from the past and also his wealth of experience to rely on.

Justin Allgaier observes the disparity

In 2024, we had a crowd of veteran drivers. Alongside Justin Allgaier, AJ Allmendinger, Cole Custer, and Austin Hill were in the Championship 4. And the No. 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolet faced a multitude of other challenges besides his rivals’ prowess. Allgaier wrecked his car in qualifying and had to use a backup car for the championship. Then mid-race, he was slapped with twin penalties, which axed his pace tremendously. Despite these setbacks, Allgaier emerged victorious! So this year looks easier. “Last year was very veteran-heavy, when you look at AJ, Cole, and Austin. This year, I’m the only one.”

In an interview with Sirius XM NASCAR, the 2024 NASCAR Xfinity Series champion said, “It definitely feels different. If I look at the Final Four from this year vs the Final Four from last year, very different mentalities, very different personalities.” Clearly, Justin Allgaier is not too worried about his newbie competitors – Connor Zilisch, Jesse Love, and Carson Kvapil. Yet he did acknowledge them: “It’s not a knock on any of the other three…because they’ve all run really well this year and Connor’s had a record season.”

What is concerning Justin Allgaier much more is his team’s priority. After 2025, the No. 9 crew chief, Jim Pohlman, will depart for the Cup Series. So he feels an added responsibility to go back-to-back with championships. “This kind of ends my tenure with Jim Pohlman as a crew chief. So it is a different feel. For me, there’s a lot more at stake this year. Having won it last year and adding the championship logo to my firesuit was really, really special…This is an opportunity for us to go and do something that very few have had.”

Justin Allgaier also feels proud to have a JRM-dominated Championship 4. If Richard Childress Racing Jesse Love had slipped up even a little bit, then the 4th JRM car would have entered Phoenix. “It would not surprise me at all to have all four JR Motorsports cars,” Allgaier said. “If I look at the end of the race the other night, we almost could have gotten there…There’s no doubt in my mind that this company has excelled tremendously over the last few years. It’s been a lot of fun to be the one who gets to hold the wheel and hopefully go back-to-back as a champion.”

While Justin Allgaier comfortably approaches the championship, he also savors the end of the year.

Bidding adieu to multiple entities

As we all know, Justin Allgaier’s crew chief is leaving JR Motorsports after 2025. Jim Pohlman will work with Kyle Busch’s No. 8 RCR Chevrolet Cup Series team from 2026. As it turns out, Allgaier and his rivals will also bid adieu to Xfinity, NASCAR’s 11-year-old title sponsor for the second tier of racing. The marketing slogan “as fast as Xfinity internet” is embedded in the NASCAR mainstream. And the sponsorship witnessed a few legendary moments. From Kyle Busch recovering from injury to win a 2015 Michigan race to Tyler Reddick edging Elliott Sadler in five overtimes to win in a 2018 Daytona race, the moments have been plenty.

And Justin Allgaier clinched a championship for the first time in 14 years of his career. So the JRM star hailed Xfinity, as it makes way for the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series from 2026. “It’s hard to put into words how much Xfinity has meant not just to our series, but to the sport as a whole,” Allgaier said. “They’ve been a group that I have really enjoyed getting to know and work with over the years. I can’t thank them enough for all of their support and their belief in our series. It’s been an honor to represent them, both as a driver and a champion of the series all these years.”

Justin Allgaier is looking forward to paying tribute to a lot of entities. Let’s wait and see if his double-time ambitions turn true or not.