Jesse Love Gets First Win of 2026 at World Wide Technology Raceway

Jesse Love won the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race at World Wide Technology Raceway on Saturday, securing his first win of the 2026 season. Love and the No. 2 Richard Childress Racing team found Victory Lane just when they needed it most, giving new life to their hopes for back-to-back titles.

“If I keep my grit, if I keep my head down, if I keep my work ethic, if I keep it but improve it, eventually one of these opportunities is gonna be there and I’m gonna freaking take it,” Love said.

Carson Kvapil led a race-high 105 laps, but slipped through the running order on the race’s final restart. He finished fifth in the No. 1 JR Motorsports Chevrolet. Kvapil won Stage 1, while Love secured his fourth stage win of the season in Stage 2.

Creed, Haas Perform with the Chips Down

Haas Factory Team had an all-around terrific night, with Sheldon Creed and Sam Mayer finishing second and third respectively. Creed especially has begun his Chase strong, winning the opener at Darlington and following it up with a runner-up result.

Creed leaves St. Louis as the series points leader with a three-point edge over Justin Allgaier. Carson Kvapil is third at nine points out, while Love is up to fourth with a 16-point deficit. None of the other Chase drivers are within 60 points of Creed.

Pit Road Calamity

Though multiple cars were affected by on-track happenings Saturday, the strangest incident came while the field made its way to pit road under caution. A stack-up originating with Rajah Caruth and Nick Sanchez caused over a dozen cars to become funneled at the second stall from the pit entrance.

Sanchez and Harrison Burton were eliminated in the incident, which miraculously did not injure any pit crew members. Brent Crews’ team was in the middle of performing their stop when the No. 19 Toyota GR Supra was slammed by Sanchez’s car, forcing one tire carrier to drop his tire. A red flag was thrown while the carnage was cleared.

Day vs. Sawalich: Round 2

William Sawalich and Corey Day are at it again. pic.twitter.com/CZ8MIPhPHD

— The CW Sports (@TheCW_Sports) September 13, 2026

On Lap 133 a long-simmering rivalry came to blows. Things started when Corey Day and William Sawalich made contact racing for position. In one moment multiple cars linked together, culminating in Day being pushed into Sawalich’s left side. This appeared to set Sawalich over the edge, causing the Joe Gibbs Racing driver to make a sharp turn into Day’s door. The No. 17 Chevrolet slammed the inside wall, ending Day’s evening.

Just one week prior at Darlington, contact between the two drivers led to Sawalich’s car slamming the outside wall. Words were exchanged on pit road, with both drivers feeling the other was avoiding accountability. “I think he made himself look stupid enough for me to need to say anything,” Day said during Saturday’s broadcast.

Race Results

• (C) denotes Chase driver