Heading into race week at Bristol Motor Speedway, the plan was for Justin Bonsignore to make his seventh start of the 2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series behind the wheel of the No. 19 Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing.
Instead, it was Aric Almirola who got the nod to compete in Friday night's 300-lap Food City 300 around the four-turn, 0.533-mile (0.858-kilometer) high-banked Bristol, Tennessee oval, and he made the most of the opportunity, winning for the second time in 2025.
Almirola's start at the "Last Great Colosseum" was his 12th start of the season, and as a part-time driver, he is now responsible for two of Toyota's three victories in 2025, as he also won at Phoenix Raceway back in March. The other was earned by full-time JGR driver Brandon Jones at Darlington Raceway back in April.
Almirola's win was the first for a driver not named Connor Zilisch since Haas Factory Team's Sam Mayer won at Iowa Speedway in early August, an astounding 41 days prior.
What's next for Aric Almirola after Bristol win?
Almirola, who won three races last year (Martinsville Speedway twice and Kansas Speedway) in his first year with JGR since 2007, does not currently have any more starts lined up for the 2025 season, though that will likely change at some point over the course of the remaining six playoff races.
Bonsignore, whose top finish this season is 12th place at Iowa Speedway, is still expected to compete at Kansas and Phoenix, and it is anticipated that he will replace Bristol with Martinsville, meaning that the No. 19 car still needs a driver for the races at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval, Las Vegas Motor Speedway, and Talladega Superspeedway.
Four of the other five drivers who have driven the No. 19 Toyota at some point this season are full-time Cup Series drivers and therefore ineligible to run Xfinity Series playoff races, and the other, Jack Perkins, has competed only in road/street course races, so expect Almirola to make at least one or two more starts before the end of the year.
The Xfinity Series has off next weekend, but be sure to tune in to the CW Network at 4:00 p.m. ET on Saturday, September 27 for the live broadcast of the Kansas Lottery 300 from Kansas Speedway. Start a free trial of FuboTV now and don't miss the second 2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series playoff race!