Zilisch Triumphs in Bristol Bash, Gives Childers First NOAPS Victory; Allgaier Takes Dash 4 Cash Bonus

April 12, 2026

Race 9 of 33: Suburban Propane 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway
Track Specs: .533-mile oval / 300 laps
Race Winner: Connor Zilisch
Larson’s finish: 2nd
Allgaier’s finish: 4th
Kvapil’s finish: 5th
Smith’s finish: 13th

Connor Zilisch:

Connor Zilisch held off Kyle Larson and Brent Crews to win Saturday night’s Suburban Propane 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway. Zilisch, making his third start of the year for JR Motorsports, was running second when a caution on lap 271 set up a round of pit stops among the leaders. Crew chief Rodney Childers made the call for the driver of the No. 1 Roto-Rooter Chevrolet to stay on the track, moving the young driver into the top spot. Zilisch restarted from the lead and survived challenges by Brent Crews and JRM teammate Kyle Larson, plus one final late-race restart in the closing laps to claim the checkered flag. This marks Zilisch’s 12th victory in just 39 career starts in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series.

“It was a tough race for us at first. We started 15th and we had some work to do, but we were able to claw our way to the front and get up to second there before that last caution. We stayed out on old tires with 20 or 25 laps to go and were able to hold off the No. 19 (Crews) and No. 88 (Larson) on fresher tires and we were able to get the win today. Really grateful to JR Motorsports for the opportunity to come and do these races and Roto-Rooter for being a part of it.”

Kyle Larson

Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 88 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet, qualified in the third position for his third start with JR Motorsports in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series on Saturday night at Briston Motor Speedway. By lap 28, Larson had made his way to the lead, where he would remain, taking the first green-and-white-checkered flag at the end of Stage One. Opting to stay out during the stage break, Larson lined up for Stage Two as the control car, where he led all 85 laps and captured the second green-and-white-checkered flag. Managing the balance of his race car, Larson maintained the lead and avoided several on-track incidents throughout the third and final stage. However, a late-race caution brought Larson back to pit road for four fresh tires on lap 271. Lining up fourth for the restart with less than 20 laps remaining, Larson worked his way back toward the front before ultimately taking the checkered flag in the runner-up position.

“I was on board with the call to pit at the end. Connor (Zilisch) did a good job of getting in front of me. I was hoping he would stay low for one more corner so I could make a move to his outside, but he did a great job. The team brought another fast HendrickCars.com Chevy, and we had great power from our Hendrick Engines. Wish it was a different result, but I had fun.”

Justin Allgaier

Justin Allgaier, driver of the No. 7 Carolina Carports Chevrolet, came home with a strong fourth-place finish on Saturday evening in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series event at Bristol Motor Speedway. Allgaier, who took the green flag from the seventh position, ran solidly inside the top five throughout the night, scoring stage points at the conclusion of both Stage One and Two before earning his seventh top-five finish of the season. Additionally, with tonight’s run, Allgaier extended his lead in the championship standings to 130 points over the pack and claimed the $100,000 Dash 4 Cash prize for the eighth time in his NOAPS career, making him eligible for another $100,000 payday from O’Reilly Auto Parts next weekend at Kansas Speedway.

“It feels good to come away with this $100,000 Dash 4 Cash bonus. Everyone at JR Motorsports works so hard to be in the position to race for something like this and I’m really thankful to have the opportunity to not only compete for this, but come away with the bonus. We fought hard all race long with our Carolina Carports Chevrolet and Andrew (Overstreet, crew chief) made some really good adjustments that got us up front. To leave here extending the points lead and getting to race for another $100,000 next weekend is a really good feeling and I just can’t thank everyone enough.”

Carson Kvapil

Carson Kvapil, driver of the No. 9 High Rock Vodka Chevrolet, qualified eighth for the Suburban Propane 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday evening, but had to start at the rear after an engine change following Saturday afternoon’s qualifying session. Kvapil quickly cracked the top 15 and finished the first stage in the 12th position. During the second stage, the JR Motorsports driver was battling a loose-handling Chevrolet. Kvapil was able to hang on and pick up a stage point when the green-and-white checkered flag waved at the end of the second stage. The No. 9 High Rock Vodka team continued to improve the handling as the third stage started. Kvapil battled hard inside the top five and ultimately took the checkered flag in the fifth position. With the result, Kvapil qualified for the Dash 4 Cash and will compete for $100,000 next weekend at Kansas Speedway.

“Today was a strong showing for the No. 9 High Rock Vodka team. We battled adversity all day long on and off the track. Phillip (Bell, crew chief) and the entire No. 9 team kept on improving the car all night. It was good to come away with a top-five today, and I’m looking forward to getting to Kansas next weekend and continuing to build off this momentum.”

Sammy Smith

Sammy Smith and the No. 8 Pilot Chevrolet team came home with a 13th-place finish on Saturday evening in the Suburban Propane 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway.

The NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts field took the initial green flag as the sun was setting over Bristol. Smith fought a tight-handling car throughout the first stage and after a pit stop on lap 63 under caution, the JR Motorsports driver nearly broke into the top 10, ending the opening stage in 11th. The field then reset to start Stage Two with Smith in 10th. A caution flag waved just a few laps into the stage, but crew chief Cory Shea did not call his driver to pit road, electing to ride out the remainder of the stage. Smith reported that his Chevrolet was too free, which saw Smith finish 16th in Stage Two.

Prior to the field starting the final stage, Smith came down pit road for fresh tires, fuel and an adjustment to tighten up the No. 8 Pilot Chevrolet. After a clean stop, Smith restarted 13th and climbed into the top 10 when another caution waved at lap 269. Shea called Smith down pit road and made a strategy call to take only right-side tires to gain valuable track position. This saw Smith restart from eighth with 23 laps remaining. Fighting for position until the end, Smith crossed the finish line for the final time in 13th position.

“Tonight was a hard-fought race, this No. 8 Pilot team made calls that felt right but the results just didn’t go our way. It’s unfortunate when everyone works so hard and we don’t get the kind of finish we should, but I know it will come back around for us. We’ll set our sights on Kansas next week and give it all we’ve got.”