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Veteran NASCAR driver Aric Almirola returned to victory lane with Joe Gibbs Racing, clinching his fifth Xfinity Series win in the Dude Wipes 250 at Martinsville Speedway, held on Saturday, April 6th.
Almost 17 years ago, Almirola took his first victory with Joe Gibbs Racing at the Milwaukee Mile. However, there was an asterisk attached to it. He started from pole position and dominated the event until he was replaced by Denny Hamlin mid-race. Although Hamlin took the checkered flag, Almirola was listed as the winner.
Following his retirement from the Cup Series last season, Aric Almirola made a triumphant return to victory lane in his fourth start with JGR. He expressed his gratitude to coach Gibbs for the opportunity and was thrilled to finally add a banner to his first "real win" for the team. He said in an interview with Frontstretch:
"This is so awesome to win for Joe Gibbs Racing. I’ve had an asterisk next to a win for Coach [Joe Gibbs] for 17 years, and this is so awesome to finally put a real win banner up inside the shop at Joe Gibbs Racing."
"Thank you, thank you, thank you Coach for calling me and giving me this opportunity to come and have some fun and still scratch the itch of racing, but still get to spend time with my family."
Aric Almirola scored a second place finish at Richmond Raceway last weekend, qualifying to compete in the Dash 4 Cash opener at Martinsville Speedway. Winning the race not only brought him victory but also a $100,000 bonus for the weekend.
The 40-year-old conceded that he had forgotten about the incentives, as he was dialed in and focused on winning the race. He said:
"That's right I forgot about that! I was so focused on winning, I didn't really care about anything else...Man this is awesome, It's crazy its an Xfinity win but it feels just as good as any other win."
Aric Almirola reflects on his last Cup race at Martinsville
The former #10 Stewart Haas Racing driver could have capped off his NASCAR Cup Series career with a victory in the penultimate race of the season at Martinsville Speedway. He was in the lead for the final stint, however, eventual champion, Ryan Blaney overtook him in the final laps to win the race.
Returning to the same track, Aric Almirola finally secured the win this time around and reflected on the near miss from last season in his post-race interview. He said:
"I talked to [Ryan] Blaney pre-race, he brought up the memory of having to run second to him in the fall. I wanted that win so bad, I would have loved to have capped of my career in Cup racing with a win here in Martinsville, It's one of my favorite race tracks. So had to do it tonight."
Aric Almirola's reunion with Joe Gibbs Racing has been fruitful, with two top-five finishes in his four starts with the Xfinity outfit so far.
