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Joe Gibbs Racing veteran Aric Almirola has set an ambitious target for this weekend’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. While Christopher Bell is chasing his fourth consecutive victory in the Cup Series, Almirola aims to secure back-to-back wins following his victory at Phoenix.
Coach Gibbs and his team enjoyed a dominant weekend at Phoenix Raceway, with JGR drivers sweeping all three races. Brent Crews set the tone by winning the ARCA race, followed by Almirola’s victory in the Xfinity Series. Bell capped off the weekend with a dominant win in the Cup Series race.
Making his third start of the 2025 season at Las Vegas, Aric Almirola shared his ambitious goals for the weekend on X (formerly Twitter). He stated that winning back-to-back races would be "pretty cool" and expressed his desire to park his #19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota in Victory Lane once again.
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"Let’s see if we can park it in victory lane again. Back to back would be pretty cool. 🏁," he wrote on X.
After retiring from the Cup Series, Aric Almirola was reunited with Joe Gibbs Racing last year, making his first start at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. He recorded a 12th-place result during his return to the Xfinity Series but went on to win both races at Martinsville and the playoff race at Kansas Speedway.
This season, Almirola made his first start at Atlanta Motor Speedway and secured a third-place finish. Last weekend, he overtook Hendrick Motorsports driver Alex Bowman on the final lap to win the race, which marked his eighth Xfinity Series victory.
Almirola next returns to action at Las Vegas with The LiUNA! Xfinity race scheduled for Saturday, March 15, at 4:30 p.m. ET.
Aric Almirola describes racing for Joe Gibbs Racing as a blessing
Aric Almirola expressed his gratitude toward Joe Gibbs Racing after his victory at Phoenix Raceway. Having stepped away from full-time competition, he described racing part-time with a championship-winning team as a blessing. The schedule allows him to spend more time with his family while competing for race wins.
Elaborating on his work-life balance after his Cup Series retirement, the 40-year-old told SiriusXM NASCAR Radio:
"Just really grateful, so fortunate to have this opportunity to do this with Joe Gibbs Racing. To have Young Life on the car, it's just such a blessing. I get to come and do this with my family. The work-life balance of racing part-time and these race cars, that every time I get in, I have a chance to win. And then I get to take two or three weeks off, and be a dad and be a husband and be at home."
Aric Almirola drove for Stewart-Haas Racing in the latter part of his career and decided to retire from full-time competition at the end of the 2023 season, along with teammate Kevin Harvick. He returned to JGR for a second stint, having previously raced for the team early in his career.
