NASCAR
Sheldon Creed Takes Second Win of Chase After Late Tempers Flare at Bristol
BRISTOL, Tenn. – Is a new Mr. September in our midst? Sheldon Creed is now a two-time Chase winner after a late scramble at Bristol. The Haas Factory Team No. 00 had fresh tires with 15 laps left, and many leaders made contact ahead of him. Taking command on an overtime dash, the perennial bridesmaid is now two-for-three to start The Chase and gaps his points lead.
Both Bristol stages were relatively status quo, being split by the JR Motorsports duo of Justin Allgaier and Carson Kvapil. Jesse Love led the majority of the opening run from the pole, but Allgaier made a clutch pass for the bonus points. The No. 7 did suffer nose damage after getting into Nick Sanchez, but still had a lot of speed under its hood.
JUSTIN. ALLGAIER.
The 7 passes Jesse Love and navigates lap traffic on the way to a Stage 1 victory! 😮💨 pic.twitter.com/mRKnqkpeCb
— The CW Sports (@TheCW_Sports) September 19, 2026
Kvapil appeared well on his way to a second-half domination, until a rear brake failure with 50 laps left. This handed the lead back to Allgaier, who held a commanding gap over the competition when a caution flew to set up late shenanigans. Restarting with 15 laps left, Allgaier was put in the fence by Jesse Love, who then lost the top spot to William Sawalich. Behind this mad dash up front, Sheldon Creed was making big gains after pitting for fresh tires.
Another restart in overtime saw The No. 00 line up second to Sawalich and soon leave the 18 in the dust. Creed now has three-straight top-twos to open the 2026 Chase, and leads Allgaier by 11 points.
.@sheldoncreed holds off the field in overtime for his second victory in The Chase at Bristol! pic.twitter.com/puMONjJ0WD
— The CW Sports (@TheCW_Sports) September 19, 2026
“Just a great call by my crew chief and engineer there to put tires on,” Creed said. “Great pit stop by my guys to get me out first there, to be the first guy on tires. To be honest, I wasn’t really good all night with the balance in our Ollie’s Chevrolet. Just hats off to these guys for never giving up. The restart there, I kind of timed the 18 well. With me being on a lot newer tires, it was a lot easier for me to get going. I got clear, was trying to watch him up top, and it seemed to get good momentum. Extremely proud of everyone at Haas Factory Team, everyone that helps us out. Been a wild start to The Chase. I just thought we were going to have to take one on the chin tonight and move on. But it just worked out anyway, it’s awesome.”
“I don’t know if this makes us the title favorite, still a long way to go. I thought we were just going to lose some points tonight, I think winning helped us out a bit. I’d like to think we’re a favorite, if not we’re really talked about now. Just hats off to everyone on this car. They’ve been working so hard back in the shop, the road crew too. It’s really a team effort and this is awesome.”
Behind Creed at the finish were: William Sawalich, Brent Crews, Justin Allgaier, and Corey Day. Hear a few of these drivers’ thoughts below after a hectic Bristol race.
Unofficial @NASCAROReillyAP Chase standings after Bristol: #NASCAR pic.twitter.com/0ZKtLGeyWS
— Peter Stratta (@peterstratta) September 19, 2026
Following a week off, the O’Reilly Series Chase returns to action at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The Focused Health 302 will go green Saturday, October 3 at 7:30 p.m. ET on The CW, PRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. Allgaier will aim for better postseason luck on the Vegas Strip, and try to stop Creed’s heater.
Written by Peter Stratta
Be sure to follow us on Twitter/X
Be sure to follow the writer on Twitter/X
Photo Credit to Chris Graythen/Getty Images
