The top three finishers in the recent NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race at Sonoma Raceway were somewhat predictable. Shane van Gisbergen won with JR Motorsports, teammate Connor Zilisch finished second, and Joe Gibbs Racing prospect Brent Crews finished third. From there, one may have expected Austin Hill, Taylor Gray, William Sawalich, Sam Mayer, or Sheldon Creed to finish fourth. But none of those drivers finished fourth, nor did either finish fifth. The Viking Motorsports teammates of Anthony Alfredo and Parker Retzlaff instead rounded out the top five.
“I can’t say enough about Viking Motorsports,” Alfredo said following his result. “Everyone’s been working so hard, and it’s showing. This is the best opportunity I’ve ever had. I’ve been back there in the dirt grinding and racing in the back. I couldn’t do it without our partners, to finish 4th behind three of the best road course guys is a great day to build on.”
Viking Motorsports is a fairly new team. They made their debut in 2024 aligned with RSS Racing, and raced independently for the first time in 2025. For all but eight races in these two years, former Cup Series driver Matt DiBenedetto drove their No. 38 and No. 99 cars. In 58 starts, DiBenedetto earned one top-5 and three top-10s.
2026 has marked two milestones for the young team. First, it expanded to two cars. Second, it aligned with a top team for the first time in Richard Childress Racing. Two talented journeymen coming off difficult 2025 seasons signed to drive the No. 96 and No. 99 Chevrolets.
Meet the Drivers
Parker Retzlaff is in his first season driving the No. 99 Chevrolet. Previously his most notable season came in 2024. A year with two impressive poles for Jordan Anderson Racing was partially overshadowed by a heavily discussed Cup Series summer race at Daytona International Speedway. Retzlaff helped push Ford driver Harrison Burton to the victory, keeping fellow Chevrolet driver Kyle Busch from the win and, ultimately, a playoff spot.
A runner-up at Rockingham Speedway and two other top-tens were the sole highlight in 2025. Retzlaff finished 22nd in the standings, had his first DNQ ever at Circuit of the Americas, and earned nearly two races’ fewer points than teammate Brennan Poole.
Secondly, driving the all new No. 96 this year is Anthony Alfredo. The 27-year-old finished two spots lower in the 2025 points than Retzlaff, driving the No. 42 Chevrolet for Young’s Motorsports. Alfredo already proved he can perform well in mid-pack equipment, with a pair of 15th-place points finished in 2022 and 2024 driving for Our Motorsports. Last year with Young’s Motorsports Alfredo earned only one top-ten, however; a sixth-place finish at Talladega Superspeedway.
Opening Races
Expectations for Viking Motorsports coming into the 2026 O’Reilly Auto Parts Series weren’t the highest.
“Just a thought….maybe the team who let their driver go reportedly due to funding issues before the end of the team’s first season shouldn’t expand to a second car…”, one fan on Reddit said after Viking announced they were opening a second team.
The team’s doubters were given ammunition when Alfredo logged a DNQ in the season opener at Daytona, but Retzlaff did earn a respectable 14th-place finish. The next race at EchoPark Speedway was much better. The No. 96 made its first start and though Alfredo finished a humble 25th, Viking successfully finished their first race as a two car team. Sheldon Creed stole the night with his first career win, while Retzlaff turned nearly as many heads finishing second.
Circuit of the Americas was another struggle, with both cars finishing outside the top-20. Phoenix Raceway marked a rebound, with both cars finishing top-15.
Continuing to Impress
In 19 races so far, Alfredo has one top-five, breaking a two year drought, and four top-tens. He is, unfortunately, all but out of Chase contention due to his slow start, currently sitting 113 points below the cut line.
Retzlaff has meanwhile been the class of his team, making one of best stories in the field this season. In 19 starts the 23-year-old has already set career bests with three top-fives and nine top-tens. Retzlaff currently sits ninth in points, on pace for his best season yet, and is 51 points above the Chase cut line. Early DNFs at Kansas Speedway and Dover Motor Speedway join COTA as the 23-year-old’s only results worse than 15th. The No. 99 car sits 11th in owners points, 41 points above the cut line.
Naval Base Coronado and Sonoma Raceway were arguably the best two races this team has seen. The No. 99 was in contention to win Coronado before a poorly timed caution, but still earned a top-ten. Meanwhile, Alfredo had a chance to win both races. A major wreck at Coronado cost Alfredo a good finish, but Sonoma’s result matched the speed with a first stage win and a top-five.
“It’s all these great people Anthony and I are surrounding ourselves with,” Retzlaff said. “We’ve worked on [road courses] a lot at Viking Motorsports along with the whole program. It’s only the second year of this team, and I think we’re building something really strong.”
Looking Forward
This team has two things left to do this season. The first goal is to maintain a spot in both the driver’s and owner’s Chase. The second? To win their first race as a team, which would double as a first career win for either driver. Both drivers have contended for wins at drafting tracks, and the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series has three more races on those this season.
If this article was written in February, there would have been something about how a long shot win in a drafting race was the only chance this team had. Now in late June, the difference is night and day. Not only would a drafting win be somewhat unsurprising, but Viking Motorsports seems capable of winning anywhere. Are they the favorites at a track like Chicagoland Speedway or Indianapolis Motor Speedway? Perhaps not – top teams such as JR Motorsports are tough to beat. But if there’s one thing Viking has proven this season, it’s that they can’t be counted out.
