Daytona record-holder Jesse Love speaks from his heart on the ‘surreal moment’ of fulfilling RCR’s desire

NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Jesse Love parked his #2 Richard Childress Chevy into the victory lane at the Daytona NSX race held on February 15, 2025. Reflecting upon his successful season start, Love expressed his feelings about the surreal moment during the Atlanta Motor Speedway Race Preview session.

Love is competing in the second full-time Xfinity Series season in his career. He debuted in the 2024 season with Richard Childress Racing and finished eighth on the leaderboards. He secured a win at Talladega Motor Speedway, five pole positions, 18 top-ten, and seven top-five finishes in his rookie season.

Jesse Love won his first-ever win at Daytona International Speedway and became the second-youngest driver to achieve the feat in the series. The first driver to clinch the milestone was Hendrick Motorsports' William Byron.

Reflecting upon Love's triumph, a reporter asked him to describe his first Daytona International Speedway race.

“It’s a huge morale boost for everyone on the No. 2 Whelen team. Getting them a win – what they deserve – is the number one goal each week. I’m very proud to be a part of a winning organization. Winning at Daytona was probably the most surreal moment of my life and probably will be for a little bit," the #2 Chevy driver stated. (via Speedway Media)

"Last season when I won my first race at Talladega, I was so elated that maybe I took the next few months off per se and got complacent with thinking it was easier than it was. We struggled after that win last year, and I feel like I know now, even after what is the biggest win of my career, that is still just as hard to win the next one," he added.

Jesse Love also revealed that his crew chief, Danny Stockman, advised him to "go soak it up these next few days and celebrate, but you still have to work just as hard to keep up the intensity level". The latter appreciated the advice and aimed to secure more wins in the season.

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"He was really dominant tonight": Jesse Love opened up about his teammate's performance at Daytona

The Richard Childress Racing team fielded two cars in the Xfinity Series, and Jesse Love piloted the #2 Chevy while his teammate Austin Hill drove the #21 Chevy. Hill is competing in his fourth full-time season in NASCAR's second-highest division and qualified fourth for the Daytona race.

The #21 Chevy driver dominated the pack and won both stages of the race. However, his teammate Love took the win home for the team. Following the win, the 20-year-old expressed his views on his teammate's run in the race and stated:

“Bummer what happened to 21 (Austin Hill). I'm not sure what happened, but he was really dominant tonight,” Love continued. “We’re working on changing our culture here at RCR. We’re winners; we know we are, and we all want to win a championship for Richard Childress...I’m ready to go, get to Atlanta [the next race at] I think now.” [00:41]

The Atlanta Motor Speedway race, the 'Bennett Transportation & Logistics 250,' is scheduled for Saturday, February 22, 2025.