History was made at Rockingham. The track returned to the NASCAR Xfinity Series after 21 years, and boy did it live up to all the hype and expectations. With the absence of a Cup Series race this weekend, all eyes were on North Carolina Education Lottery 250 as Jesse Love went on to survive late race shakeups to snatch his second win of the year. It was also his first triumph at a non-superspeedway track in his short career so far.
To say that the race was chaotic would be an understatement. Featuring 14 cautions and two red flags, Jesse Love knew he had his work cut out for him as the race progressed at Rockingham Speedway. Starting the race in seventh place, the No. 2 Chevy driver didn’t manage to get any points at the end of the first stage, but climbed up the ladder as the race went on, finishing second by the end of Stage 2.
He went from third to first on the overtime restart, leading 53 laps in the process and stretched his fuel over the final 96 laps to secure the victory in front of a sellout crowd at Rockingham. Visibly ecstatic at the outcome, Jesse Love said in the post-race interview, “Oh my gosh, these fans are amazing. It’s an incredible racetrack. It’s right up my alley. You probably can’t even hear me right now. Man, this racetrack is right up my alley. It’s hammer down and you got to be in the gas today.”
An incredible race track and an incredible win for @jesselovejr1! pic.twitter.com/inFnc0h0Fd
— NASCAR Xfinity (@NASCAR_Xfinity) April 19, 2025
Everything changed in overtime when Jesse Love eased into the right bumper of Sammy Smith, moving the JR Motorsports racer up the track to take the lead. The move gave the 20-year-old a significant advantage, taking him away from the chaotic field behind him. While the rest of the pack were running two or three wide at Rockingham in the final two laps, Love managed to extend his lead to 0.691 seconds to take home the triumph.
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