Jesse Love Secures First Win of 2026 NASCAR Season at Gateway

Jesse Love celebrated his first victory of the 2026 NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts season at WWT Raceway on Saturday, enhancing his chances for back-to-back titles.

Love, driving the No. 2 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet, overtook Carson Kvapil with 16 laps remaining, finishing ahead of Sheldon Creed in second and Sam Mayer in third. Taylor Gray and Kvapil rounded out the top five.

The race featured multiple incidents, including a significant crash during a pit stop that involved several cars and nearly injured crew members. Despite these challenges, Love's performance propelled him to just 16 points behind the championship leader, Creed, who is closely followed by Justin Allgaier and Kvapil.