(NEXSTAR) - The NASCAR Xfinity Series race in Las Vegas, known simply as "The LiUNA!," returned Saturday for a 36th year.
Sammy Smith started on the pole for the first time in his five races at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, but Justin Allgaier quickly overtook him to win stage one.
Aric Almirola pushed to the front during the second stage, and it became clear pit stop strategy and paying attention to the small details would come into play.
It came down to just Allgaier and Almirola, running first and second place for most of the race, but in the end, defending series champion Allgaier took the win.
"The word of the day was just discipline. Do not make a mistake," Allgaier said, "Aric, even when he came to victory lane, he came in and he said, 'you never missed the bottom. I was for sure that you were going to miss it just once, and it was gonna be my ticket to go right around you.'"
Almirola's post-race comments echoed the pair's competitive comradery.
"I love racing with Justin. He's such a great competitor and so much fun to race with and have a lot of respect for him and his family," Almirola said. "We're just having fun out there. Two guys with great race cars just going at it."
This was Allgaier's first win in Las Vegas, but not without some close calls in the past.
"Over the years, when you finish 2nd and 3rd and 4th and 5th, you just keep knocking off those top fives, it's great, and you love every minute of it, but it's also disheartening because you want this victory," Allgaier said.
The NASCAR Xfinity Series heads to the Homestead-Miami Speedway in Florida next week for the Hard Rock Bet 300.
Catch the race live on The CW Saturday, March 22 at 4:00 p.m. ET.