Justin Allgaier thought he would 'throw up' when he replaced Kyle Larson in Coca-Cola 600

Before he got into the No. 5 car, Justin Allgaier was a mess. He thought he would get sick, but thankfully, he overcame his nerves. The NASCAR Xfinity Series driver just recorded a P13 finish in the Coca-Cola 600 all on his own.

This was a huge moment for Justin Allgaier. He has a complicated relationship with the Cup Series. His own two-year stint 10 years ago didn’t go so well. Then he had to replace Jimmie Johnson in one race, which was a disaster.

Allgaier is comfortable with his place in the sport. He doesn’t seem to have any regrets. But tonight, he was able to race a Hendrick Motorsports car and advance his position.

Starting in the rear for a driver swap, Allgaier made his way to P13. The race was put under red flag and called official with Christopher Bell as the winner. Kyle Larson never raced a single lap at Charlotte.

After getting out of the car, Justin Allgaier opened up to the media about how he felt prior to the race.

“You don’t get the luxury of just kind of getting comfortable in there,” Allgaier said after a question from Claire Lang. “Because it is Kyle Larson and he’s Kyle Larson. I thought I was going to throw up at one point when I got in the car, to be perfectly honest with everybody and I didn’t.

“So when I finally got comfortable I actually had to tighten my seatbelts up because I felt like, I just felt like my body get relaxed and I was ready to go. And by the time the race was over I’m like, ‘Alright we’re actually doing the right thing.’ It was cool you know there was a lot of things that I did for the first time tonight that I hadn’t done. It was worth it.”

This was a really great effort from Allgaier. He led a ton of laps and won two stages in the Xfinity Series race. He knows his way around Charlotte. Allgaier has won there in the Xfinity cars. He slowly learned the feel of the Cup car and figured it out.

Honestly, it would have been awesome to see how far he could have one in the full 600 miles. Such a solid effort and to advance from the rear all the way to P13 after just over half of the race is impressive.

We will never know what would have been with Kyle Larson behind the wheel. However, we do know Justin Allgaier is a more than capable race car driver. Maybe he should get some part-time looks in the Cup Series moving forward?