Zilisch Tops SVG in Thrilling Sonoma Battle; JRM at 98 Wins

July 12, 2025

Race 19 of 33: Pit Box/Food Maxx 250
Track Specs: 1.99-mile road course / 79 laps
Race Winner: Connor Zilisch
Van Gisbergen’s finish: 2nd
Allgaier’s finish: 6th
Kvapil’s finish: 8th
Smith’s finish: 9th

Connor Zilisch

Connor Zilisch held off Shane van Gisbergen to win Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Sonoma Raceway. The victory was the third for Zilisch this season and his fourth in 22 career starts. Zilisch started second in the 79-lap event and ran in Van Gisbergen’s tire tracks for much of Stage One. Twice during the race, the Roto-Rooter pit crew gave Zilisch precious track position during the sequence of green-flag stop, on laps 19 and 43, each tine giving Zilisch the lead when the pit cycle was complete. The Mooresville, N.C. resident grabbed the lead for the final time on lap 48 and held on for the remainder of the race, despite intense pressure from Van Gisbergen. Zilisch won in his first NASCAR race at Sonoma, led the most laps (46) and also gained one position in the NXS driver standings, moving up to fourth position.

“It was a lot of fun racing against Shane and battling it out for the win. At the end it was just about being perfect and putting my Roto-Rooter Chevrolet in the right spots when he did get within striking distance. I’m really glad we were able to pull this one off. It took a lot of focus from me to stay up front and not make any mistakes with him chasing me down, but grateful to keep it up front and that this No. 88 Roto-Rooter team gave me a car that was good enough to do so.”

Shane van Gisbergen

Shane van Gisbergen began the Pit Box/Food Maxx 250 from pole position, marking the fifth pole in his 34 starts in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Despite the strong start, his No. 9 Quad Lock Chevrolet struggled with rear lateral grip throughout the race. Van Gisbergen finished the first stage 11th after the No. 9 team opted to pit for fuel and fresh tires before the stage concluded. In Stage Two, SVG started second behind teammate Connor Zilisch. On lap 29, van Gisbergen took the lead from Zilisch and pitted with two laps remaining in the stage, finishing the second stage in 12th. The final stage was a tense duel between van Gisbergen and Zilisch, with SVG showing promising pace and nearly taking the top spot with seven laps remaining. On the final lap, Van Gisbergen and Zilisch were side-by-side through Turn 11 but ultimately, Van Gisbergen settled for second at the flag.

“Congrats to Connor, what an awesome race! I hope everyone enjoyed that. I gave him a bump into Turn 7 and probably could have taken the lead, but I just waited. I didn’t want to do him like that and then we raced down the hill. What an awesome race. Thank you to Quad Lock, Chevrolet, JR Motorsports and Trackhouse. I had a blast all day, really, really fun.”

Justin Allgaier

Justin Allgaier, driver of the No. 7 BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet, brought home his third consecutive top-10 finish at Sonoma Raceway on the 1.99-mile road course after taking the green flag in the 10th position. Throughout the first 20 laps, Allgaier battled with the balance of his Chevrolet, ultimately taking an early trip down pit road for adjustments before the end of the first stage. This strategy call by crew chief Jim Pohlman put the driver of the No. 7 in position to start Stage Two just outside the top five where he was able to work his way into the runner-up position when the second green-and-white checkered flag waved. With a final round of adjustments, Allgaier lined up for the final stage inside the top 20 where he battled his way up to a sixth-place finish at the checkered flag.

“We haven’t had a lot of success on road courses this year, so it feels good to come out here and get a top-10 finish for this BRAND Professional Agriculture team. We struggled at the beginning with the balance of the car but were able to come back in the end and come away with some stage points for the day. Big congrats to Connor and the whole No. 88 team.”

Carson Kvapil

Carson Kvapil, driver of the No. 1 Bass Pro Shops/Clarience Technologies Chevrolet, fought hard in his first trip to wine country to earn valuable stage points and bring home another top-10 finish in his rookie season. After qualifying in seventh position, Kvapil held strong within the top 10 through the 20-lap Stage One, taking the green-and-white checkered flag in third. After making some adjustments to help his balance, Kvapil started the second stage just outside the top 10 in 13th, but made quick work of the field to make his way up to fifth at the end of 45 laps. Lining up for final stage in 17th, the 22-year-old Mooresville, N.C. native focused on hitting his marks to maximize the last 30 laps and get his Chevrolet back into the top 10, ultimately finishing eighth.

“This No. 1 team has had speed on the road courses all season, so it feels good to finally get a finish that reflects that speed. This was a really fun track with all the elevation changes and I’m glad we could get another top-10 for Johnny Morris and everyone at Bass Pro Shops and Clarience Technologies. Time to turn our sights on Dover, where we plan to be one spot better than we were last year.”

Sammy Smith

Sammy Smith, driver of the No. 8 Pilot Chevrolet, recorded a ninth-place finish on Saturday afternoon in the NASCAR Xfinity Series event at Sonoma Raceway. The JR Motorsports driver gained valuable stage points in Stages One and Two, jumping to 10th in the championship point standings. Smith qualified sixth for the 79-lap road-course event with his four JR Motorsports teammate all taking the green flag inside the top 10. The No. 8 team opted to stay out at the close of Stage One to rack up seven stage points by finishing fourth. The team employed the same strategy in Stage Two, climbing through the field from 16th on the restart to take the green-and-white checkered flag in third. This brought the young driver’s total points from the stages to 15 for the day. In the final stage, the Pilot Chevrolet driver restarted 16th after repeating their strategy to gain stage points. He worked through the field over the remaining laps, picking off cars one at a time to bring home a solid ninth-place finish.

“I am proud of the effort from this No. 8 Pilot Chevrolet team. We of course wanted to finish better, but as a team we set a goal to earn stage points and finish in the top 10, and we did that. I can’t thank all my partners enough and thanks to Cheema for coming on board this weekend.”