Rookie Nick Sanchez scores first NASCAR victory as Aric Almirola falls short

Xfinity Series driver Nick Sanchez bagged his first career victory in Saturday’s Focused Health 250 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, now known as Echopark Speedway. With that, the Miami, Florida native qualified for the playoffs, that is scheduled to kick off on September 12 at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Sanchez, the 2022 ARCA Menards Series champion, joined Big Machine Racing in 2025, replacing Parker Kligerman behind the wheel of the No. 48 Chevrolet SS. He competes full time in the Xfinity Series.

As things stand, it took Sanchez 17 races to log his maiden Xfinity win. Despite spinning early on Lap 69 during the 163-lap event, the 23-year-old speedster held off Carson Kvapil and Sam Mayer to grab the checkered flag.

With two laps to go, former Cup Series driver Aric Almirola, too, dashed for the win but fell short as he had no assistance. Rounding off the top-5 were Carson Kvapil, Sam Mayer, Connor Zilisch, and Taylor Gray.

Journalist Matt Weaver reported the news through X (formerly Twitter). He wrote,

“Nick Sanchez holds off Carson Kvapil and Sam Mayer to claim his first win in his Xfinity Series rookie season at Atlanta. Aric Almirola went for it with two to go but had no help. Jesse Love was pushed to the lead but had a big push in the middle of every corner.”

Nick Sanchez now ranks inside the top-10 in the Xfinity Series standings with 436 points to his name. The rookie owns three top-5s besides six top-10s.

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“This is just a reminder”- NASCAR Xfinity rookie Nick Sanchez reflects on his Truck Series debut

For Nick Sanchez, Saturday night’s race was a reminder of his NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series debut in the Fr8 208 at Atlanta Motor Speedway back in 2023. That day, he finished second while Christian Eckes took the win.

Recalling the same during a post-race interview, Sanchez said,

“I'm gonna be honest, this is just a reminder of my 2023 debut here in the Trucks at Atlanta. I spun and I finished second. Now I spun and I won. Just a huge thanks to Scott Borchetta (team owner). Big Machine Racing, Patrick Donahue (crew chief), and everyone on this team.” “We've been so close the last couple of weeks. It's every little thing that could go wrong and it's a lot on my shoulders. To come back and get a win is just amazing,” he added.

Next up for the driver is The Loop 110 at the Chicago street circuit. Scheduled for 50 laps, the event will be held next Saturday, July 5. Fans can watch the race on CW, 4:30 pm ET onwards, or listen to radio updates on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

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Edited by Pratham K Sharma