TRACK – Watkins Glen International (2.45-mile road course)
NXS RACE – Mission 200 At The Glen (82 laps / 200.9 miles)
TUNE IN – CW, MRN, SiriusXM Channel 90 at 3:00 p.m. (ET)
- Coming off a top-10 finish in Iowa; Carson Kvapil will head to Watkins Glen this weekend for his first start on the New York road course with the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
- This will be the 22-year-old rookie’s fourth start on a road course in his NXS career, with a previous best finish of eighth at Sonoma Raceway last month.
- Additionally, Kvapil has made one start at “The Glen” in the TA2 series where he took the green flag in the third position.
- With four races remaining in the regular season, Kvapil currently sits 93 points above the NXS Playoff cutline.
- In 13 career NXS starts at Watkins Glen, Justin Allgaier has earned four top-fives and seven-top 10s.
- He has twice scored a best finish of third, coming during the 2018 and 2019 NXS events at the famed New York road course.
- Allgaier has twice gone to Victory Lane for JR Motorsports on road courses in the NXS, having earned the win at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and Road America during the 2018 season.
- Overall, in 60 NXS starts on road courses, Allgaier has recorded a combined three wins, 18 top-fives and 35 top-10s.
- Sammy Smith will make his fourth NXS start at Watkins Glen this Saturday afternoon. Smith’s best finish at the New York road course was third in 2022, where the young driver also paced the field for six laps.
- Smith ran at Watkins Glen with the ARCA Menards Series in 2022, as well where he qualified on the pole and brought home a top-five finish.
- Of Smith’s 17 road-course races with the NXS, he has tallied three top-five and seven top-10 finishes, including three this season.
- Shane van Gisbergen will make his second NXS career start at Watkins Glen this Saturday, piloting the No. 9 Kubota Chevrolet.
- Last year at Watkins Glen, Van Gisbergen started 13th, led 14 laps and finished fifth in the NXS race. In the NASCAR Cup Series race, Van Gisbergen started third and looked ready to secure the victory until contact with the wall on the final lap resulted in him recording a second-place finish.
- Last month, Van Gisbergen made two NXS starts for JRM, securing two pole positions, one win at the Chicago Street Course and one runner-up finish in Sonoma.
- This season, in the Cup Series, Van Gisbergen became the fastest driver to four wins since Parnelli Jones in 1967 and the first since Jeff Gordon to win three consecutive road-course NCS races from the pole. Van Gisbergen is tied with Tony Stewart and Jimmie Johnson for the most NCS wins as a rookie (three). Additionally, the Auckland, New Zealand native is the only driver not from the United States to win at least four NXS races.
- Connor Zilisch will be making his second Watkins Glen start in the NXS on Saturday afternoon, where he made his debut in the series with JRM in 2024. In a remarkable accomplishment, Zilisch won the pole, led the most laps (45 of 90), and won the race.
- Zilisch has racked up impressive numbers on road and street races in his young career. The driver of the Registix Chevrolet has three wins, four poles and has finished fifth or better in all five NXS starts.
- For the first time in his 25-race career, Zilisch holds a share of the lead in the NXS driver standings with four races remaining in the regular season. Zilisch and teammate Allgaier are tied atop the standings and tied for most top-fives this season (11) entering this weekend’s race at Watkins Glen. He leads all drivers with 30 playoff points, while the No. 88 team has a 49-point lead in the owner standings.
- Iowa was the 10th consecutive top-five by Zilisch, an impressive streak that began in May at Charlotte Motor Speedway. His average finish in those nine races is a sizzling 2.30, which includes four victories (Pocono, Sonoma, Dover, and Indianapolis).
Carson Kvapil: “This No. 1 team has had a lot of speed on road courses this year and I know we will unload another fast piece this weekend. I had the opportunity to race at Watkins Glen in the TA2 car last year, so I hope that will help me adjust to the track in the Xfinity car. Our plan is to stay out of the mess and have a solid day for Johnny Morris and everyone at Bass Pro Shops and Clarience Technologies.”
Justin Allgaier: “This whole BRANDT Professional Agriculture team is ready to go this weekend in Watkins Glen. Jim (Pohlman, crew chief) and all the guys on this team have been working hard all week long and I know that we are going to go out and execute the way we need to on Saturday to come home with a solid, strong finish. If we can just keep all four wheels on track all day long, I know we are going to be where we need to be in the end. We’re ready to go and get that momentum back heading in the right direction.”
Sammy Smith: “We’ve had good, consistent top-10 runs this season on road courses so I’m looking forward to Watkins Glen this weekend. I’ve been working to better my road-course driving and this No. 8 Pilot Chevrolet team has given me good cars to do that so I know we’ll have the car to be up there competing for the win this weekend.”
Ross Chastain: “Iowa was built for stock-car racing and I was so glad when it got put back on the schedule. I’ve raced several times there in the Xfinity Series and it would be awesome to get the win in the corn fields of Iowa for Acceptance Insurance and JRM. Connor getting JRM’s 100th win last weekend in Indy was huge and I would like to be the person to get them 101.”
Shane van Gisbergen: “I’m looking forward to another race at Watkins Glen. It’s an awesome track and one where I know we will be competitive. It’s been epic getting to drive some Xfinity Series races with the No. 9 JR Motorsports team. I know we will unload a fast Kubota Chevrolet and hopefully we are able to put together a great result on Saturday.”
Connor Zilisch: “I was fortunate enough to win the ARCA race at Iowa last year, so I’m looking forward to using what I learned in that race with a new challenge in the Xfinity car. My crew chief, Mardy Lindley, won the race there with Sam Mayer last year so I know we’ll have a really good KOA Chevrolet when we get to the track this weekend. We’ve been on a roll lately with top-five finishes and trips to Victory Lane, so I’m ready to get to the track and continue that with KOA.”
RM Team Updates
- JR Motorsports at Watkins Glen International: JR Motorsports has competed at Watkins Glen International a combined 55 times in the NXS since 2006. In those starts at the 2.45-mile road course, the organization has recorded three wins, 12 top-fives and 30 top-10s. The average finish is 12.5.
- Souvenir Rig: JRM drivers Carson Kvapil, Justin Allgaier and Sammy Smith will be signing autographs at the JR Motorsports / HMS-Byron/Bowman souvenir rig on Saturday, Aug. 9 from 11:50 a.m. to 12:20 p.m. ET.