Practice #1 : Watkins Glen International

• Thursday, September 12th, 2024
• NASCAR Wire Service - Holly Cain

Only two to go to decide NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoff contenders

The NASCAR Xfinity Series is set to deliver the weekend’s first dose of close-quarter, high-skilled action at the hallowed Watkins Glen International road course. With only two races now remaining to formalize the 12-driver Playoff field, Saturday’s Mission 200 at The Glen (3 p.m. ET on USA Network, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) could be a pivotal chapter in the title run.

JR Motorsports’ Sam Mayer is the defending race winner, beating Sheldon Creed to the line last summer by a slight .909-second, with a third member of this year’s title contending group, Parker Kligerman, finishing third.

Mayer is the only current fulltime Xfinity Series driver to hoist the trophy in this race, although three other fulltime drivers have won at The Glen. Richard Childress Racing’s Austin Hill was the 2021 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race winner at the famed road course and his current RCR teammate Jesse Love won last year’s ARCA Menards Series race there. JRM’s Brandon Jones earned the 2022 ARCA trophy.

Hill won last week at Atlanta – his second win of the year, matching the win total for Regular Season Championship leader Justin Allgaier, Chandler Smith, and Sam Mayer. Kaulig Racing’s Shane Van Gisbergen is a three-race winner in 2024, scoring all three trophies on road courses (at Chicago, Sonoma, Calif. and Portland).

Another of the sport’s best road racing drivers, Kaulig Racing’s A.J. Allmendinger is still looking to score his first Xfinity Series win at the track. A victory this weekend would also be his first of the season, although he is the highest ranked driver (ninth) in terms of points without a win, with a safe 144-point advantage over Ryan Sieg in 13th place.

Sieg took a hard hit in points last week when he was collected in a late race multi-car accident at Atlanta. He now trails JR Motorsports’ Sammy Smith by 44 points for that 12th and final Playoff points position.

What looked a lot like a championship lock for Stewart-Haas Racing’s Cole Custer has now become a close tussle between the reigning series champ Custer and Allgaier. The 26-year-old Californian, Custer, led Allgaier by double digits only three races ago, but three finishes of 30th or worse in the last four races have instead left him 34 points behind Allgaier with just two races to decide the regular season title.

Connor Zilisch is set to make his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut this weekend, driving the No. 88 Chevrolet for JR Motorsports.

There are also several fulltime NASCAR Cup Series drivers entered from Joey Logano to William Byron, Ross Chastain, Ty Gibbs and part-time competitor Aric Almirola. International drivers Ed Jones and Alon Day are also on the entry list.

• Mission 200 at the Glen
• Pole Winner: Connor Zilisch
• Age: 18
• Team : No 88 - Carolina Carports Chevrolet
• Owner: Dale Earnhardt, Jr
• Crew Chief: Andrew Overstreet
• Connor Zilisch won the Pole Award for the Mission 200 at the Glen with a lap of 71028 seconds, 124176 mph
• This is his first pole in one NASCAR Xfinity Series races
• This is his first pole and first top-10 start in 2024
• This is his first pole in one races at Watkins Glen International
• Ty Gibbs (second) posted his sixth top-10 start of 2024 and his third in four races at Watkins Glen International
• AJ Allmendinger (third) posted his fifth top-10 start at Watkins Glen International It is his 18th in 25 races this season
• Jesse Love (11th) was the fastest qualifying rookie

• Saturday, September 14th, 2024
• NASCAR Wire Service - Holly Cain

Connor Zilisch wins from the pole in Xfinity Series debut at Watkins Glen

Introducing. … Connor Zilisch.

The 18-year-old North Carolina native made his formal entrée into big time NASCAR racing with a major statement holding off the field on a pair of thrilling overtime restarts at the historic 2.45-mile Watkins Glen International road course to claim his first career NASCAR Xfinity Series victory in his first career start.

The Mission 200 at The Glen finished under caution with Joe Gibbs Racing’s Sheldon Creed finishing runner-up – for a record 12th time – emerging from a three-wide battle for second place with a multi-car accident farther behind in the field bringing out the yellow flag that ultimately froze the field.

“I worked so hard for this one,” a smiling Zilisch said, his voice cracking with emotion. “I’ve been working for this one for months and it’s so special to me, man. I don’t even have words.

“I don’t know how I saved enough, I sputtered up the hill,” he said of having to save fuel in the closing laps which included a restart with two laps remaining and then two more in overtime.

“With two to go, I didn’t think I was going to make it back to the line even. I’m going to enjoy this one for a while. I can’t say enough about JR Motorsports and everyone who supports me.”

Zilisch, who also won in class in this year’s Rolex 24 at Daytona IMSA race, is the seventh driver to win in his first NASCAR Xfinity Series start – a list that includes the legendary Dale Earnhardt and current NASCAR Cup Series standout Ty Gibbs. And he becomes the second youngest race winner- to Joey Logano – in series history at 18 years, one month and 23 days.

It was that kind of weekend for the young driver, who led a race best 45 of the 90 laps after earning his first career Xfinity Series pole position earlier Saturday. On Friday, he claimed his fifth ARCA Menards Series victory in seven starts.

His work Saturday wasn’t necessarily an “easy” win, however. He really had to earn it – rallying from a mid-race penalty and managing fuel in the closing laps.

In an unusual situation during a caution, Zilisch received a penalty while running among the top-three late in the race. NASCAR ruled the top-running trio – also including Gibbs and Sammy Smith – cut the course and the penalty sent them all to the rear for the restart. Zilisch rallied from 31st-place and was top-five 20 laps later.

Creed, who is still competing for that first series victory after so many close calls, smiled on pit road Saturday, conceding this time his second-place finish was one he could actually be pleased with instead of seeing it as a near-miss. His rally on the final lap getting the best of some of the best road course drivers was a small victory in and of itself.

“Just trying to keep the nose on it there, actually really fun,” Creed said of the last lap battle. “I felt like that was the battle for the win probably there if the 88 [Zilisch] ran out [of fuel]. I thought I put myself in really good positions to end up second again. I’m actually happy, for how my day was going.”

He finished just ahead of Kaulig Racing’s A.J. Allmendinger, the NASCAR Xfinity Series’ all-time road course best, JGR teammate Chandler Smith and Kaulig’s Shane van Gisbergen, who had won the season’s previous three road course races.

Van Gisbergen was so impressed with Zilisch that when he congratulated the teenager in Victory Lane, he smiled and suggested some team should put Zilisch in a NASCAR Cup Series car for Sunday’s race.

Zilisch’s took a call from team owner, NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr. during his winner’s press conference.

“Enjoy this, you never win your “first” again,” Earnhardt told him.

Ross Chastain, who won the pole position for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at the track earlier Saturday, finished sixth in the DGM Racing Chevrolet with Big Machine Racing’s Parker Kligerman scoring a seventh-place finish. Richard Childress Racing rookie Jesse Love was eighth, followed by Joey Logano in the AM Racing car and MBM Motorsports’ Josh Bilicki.

The race was impactful with only a single event now left in the regular season to determine the 12-driver Playoff field. JR Motorsports’ Justin Allgaier finished 17th after an eventful day when the veteran was collected in multiple multi-car incidents. But he still emerged as the NASCAR Xfinity Series championship leader by 43-points over defending series champion, Stewart-Haas Racing’s Cole Custer, who finished 21st Saturday after also being caught up in incidents on track.

At the other end of the standings, JR Motorsports’ Sammy Smith was able to slightly extend his advantage over RSS Racing’s Ryan Sieg for the 12th and final Playoff position. Despite a mechanical issue from his first green flag pit stop, Smith was able to rally to a 19th-place finish. Sieg, who collected points during the second stage, is now 44 points behind Smith heading to Bristol.

The regular season finale concludes with next Friday night’s Food City 300 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway. Current NASCAR Cup Series driver Noah Gragson is the defending race winner.

• Drivers Entered: 41 (3 drivers will not make the race)
• Laps Scheduled: 82
• Laps Actual: 90 - NASCAR OVERTIME!
• Margin of Victory: Under Caution Seconds
• Time of Race: 2 Hours 35 Minutes 38 Seconds
• Average Speed: 85.007
• Cautions: 7 for 19 laps
• Lead Changes: 10
• Green Flag Passes: 1,916 (27.0 passes per green flag lap)

• Watkins Glen International
• Mission 200 at the Glen
• Race Winner: Connor Zilisch
• Age: 18
• Team : No 88 - Carolina Carports Chevrolet
• Owner: JR Motorsports
• Crew Chief: Andrew Overstreet
• Connor Zilisch won the Mission 200 at the Glen, his first victory in his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut - he is the seventh different driver to win in their Xfinity Series debut
• This is his first victory and first top-10 finish in 2024
• This is his first victory and first top-10 finish in one race at Watkins Glen International
• Sheldon Creed (second) posted his third top-10 finish in three races at Watkins Glen International It is his 16th top-10 finish in 2024
• AJ Allmendinger (third) posted his fourth top-10 finish in five races at Watkins Glen International
• Shane Van Gisbergen (fifth) was the highest finishing rookie
• Justin Allgaier leads the point standings by 43 points over Cole Custer