Jesse Love Wins Phoenix by 0.128 Seconds and Takes O’Reilly Series Points Lead

Published October 18, 2026

Archive photo: Jesse Love’s No. 2 Whelen Chevrolet at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on October 2, 2026—not the Phoenix race reported here. Photo: TaurusEmerald / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0; resized for display.

Jesse Love won the Timberland PRO 200 at Phoenix Raceway on October 17, 2026, beating Sam Mayer by 0.128 seconds. The result moved the Richard Childress Racing driver into the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series championship lead with three races remaining.

NASCAR’s official race report confirms that post-race inspection was completed and Love’s victory stood. This was his second win of the season, not a championship-clinching result.

Dominant numbers, close finish

Love swept both stages and led 156 of the 200 laps. Mayer still reached his rear bumper out of the final corner after a 35-lap green-flag run, having started from the rear following an engine change.

The official results put Justin Allgaier third, Corey Day fourth and Sammy Smith fifth. Love earned 75 points. His combination of stage points and the victory mattered beyond the narrow winning margin: the day rewarded sustained front-running as well as the final-lap defense.

Creed’s electrical trouble changes the chase

Sheldon Creed arrived two points ahead of Love but finished 32nd, two laps down. In NASCAR’s separate account of the failure, Creed said the engine would not restart after he switched it off to save fuel during the first stage break. The crew recovered the car, but the delay cost three laps.

Crew chief Jonathan Toney said the team still needed to investigate the exact cause at its shop. The immediate ignition problem is therefore reported here as the team’s account, not a completed technical diagnosis.

Love now leads Allgaier by 36 points and Day by 39; Creed has fallen to fourth, 59 points behind. The remaining schedule is Talladega on October 24, Martinsville on October 31 and Homestead-Miami on November 7. The points swing changes who is chasing, but leaves more racing to settle the title.

What comes next

The O’Reilly Series returns at Talladega on October 24 at 3:30 p.m. Eastern, with television coverage on The CW. Phoenix’s separate Cup event is scheduled for October 18; see our Ryan Blaney Cup pole report. Saturday’s result does not determine Sunday’s Cup winner.