Jesse Love, driver of the #2 Whelen Chevrolet, celebrates after winning the pole award during qualifying for the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series Ag-Pro 300 at Talladega Superspeedway on April 24, 2026 in Talladega, Alabama. (Photo by David Jensen/Getty Images for NASCAR)
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NASCAR News: Jesse Love wins pole for Talladega O’Reilly race

Posted by AR1 staff

Jesse Love (pictured) secured the pole position for the 2026 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (Xfinity) race at Talladega Superspeedway with a lap of 182.313 mph (seconds). Driving for Richard Childress Racing, Love earned his fourth career pole, leading a Chevrolet-dominated top 10 ahead of Sam Mayer.

–by Mark Cipolloni–

Key Qualifying Highlights:

  • Jesse Love’s Dominance: This marks RCR’s eighth consecutive pole at Talladega. Love, the reigning series champion, edged out Sam Mayer by 0.042 seconds.
  • Top Qualifiers: Following Love and Mayer were Corey Day (3rd), Josh Williams (4th), and Sheldon Creed (5th).
  • Surprise Performances: Josh Williams placed DGM Racing in the top five, while Mason Maggio secured a career-best 10th-place start.
  • Chevrolet Sweep: Chevrolet drivers locked out the top 10 starting positions.
  • Field Set: All 38 entries made the race, with the Ag-Pro 300 scheduled for Saturday afternoon, facing potential weather threats.

The qualifying session continued the trend of intense speed at the 2.66-mile superspeedway, with the top contenders emphasizing the importance of team strategy and drafting partners for the main event.

Ag-Pro 300 Qualifying Results

Pos No. Driver Team Time Speed
1 2 Jesse Love Whelen Chevrolet 52.525 182.313
2 41 Sam Mayer Audibel Chevrolet 52.567 182.168
3 17 Corey Day HendrickCars.com Chevrolet 52.623 181.974
4 92 Josh Williams First Bank of Alabama Chevrolet 52.630 181.949
5 0 Sheldon Creed Ollie’s Chevrolet 52.631 181.946
6 21 Austin Hill Bennett Transportation Chevrolet 52.652 181.873
7 88 Rajah Caruth HendrickCars.com Chevrolet 52.736 181.584
8 1 Carson Kvapil Champion Irrigation Products Chevrolet 52.763 181.491
9 96 Anthony Alfredo Dude Wipes mentHOLE Chevrolet 52.811 181.326
10 91 Mason Maggio ControlAltProtect Chevrolet 52.862 181.151
11 7 Justin Allgaier BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet 52.819 181.298
12 39 Ryan Sieg radius recycling Chevrolet 52.821 181.292
13 8 Sammy Smith Arby’s BBQ Chevrolet 52.828 181.268
14 48 Patrick Staropoli # Syfovre Chevrolet 52.848 181.199
15 51 Jeremy Clements AllSouthElectric.com Chevrolet 52.867 181.134
16 18 William Sawalich Starkey Toyota 52.888 181.062
17 26 Dean Thompson Thompson Pipe Group Toyota 52.918 180.959
18 19 Brent Crews # Mobil 1 Toyota 52.927 180.928
19 99 Parker Retzlaff FUNKAWAY Chevrolet 52.934 180.905
20 42 David Starr Breakthrough T1D Chevrolet 52.939 180.887
21 2 Ryan Ellis Zeroes Chevrolet 52.956 180.829
22 20 Brandon Jones Menards/Charbroil Toyota 52.972 180.775
23 31 Blaine Perkins Mezrano Alabama Injury Lawyers Chevrolet 53.109 180.308
24 27 Jeb Burton Golden Corral Chevrolet 53.115 180.288
25 5 JJ Yeley Jobber Ford 53.119 180.274
26 54 Taylor Gray Operation 300 Toyota 53.131 180.234
27 38 Patrick Emerling(i) Cowboy Pillows Chevrolet 53.140 180.203
28 28 Kyle Sieg Mama Justice MW LAW FIRM Chevrolet 53.146 180.183
29 55 Joey Gase SunFire Heaters Chevrolet 53.159 180.139
30 24 Harrison Burton Jesse Gerhard Memorial Fdn/Bulovas Toyota 53.160 180.135
31 87 Austin Green 3Dimensional.com Chevrolet 53.196 180.014
32 45 Lavar Scott # Urban Affairs Coalition Chevrolet 53.246 179.844
33 32 Tyler Ankrum(i) LiUNA!/TDA Investment Group Chevrolet Owner Points 179.639
34 44 Brennan Poole CWSons.com/Clark’s Chevrolet Owner Points 179.299
35 7 Josh Bilicki Insurance King Chevrolet Owner Points 179.208
36 35 Natalie Decker T.N. Dickinson’s Witch Haze’ Chevrolet Owner Points 178.814
37 0 Garrett Smithley SLCC Chevrolet Owner Points 178.773
38 74 Dawson Cram Jack’s Chevrolet Owner Points 175.777