NASCAR
Connor Zilisch continues amazing summer stretch with Dover win
DOVER, Del. – The summer run has been quietly impressive for Connor Zilisch. Dating back to Charlotte in May, JR Motorsports’ No. 88 Chevrolet has no finish worse than fifth and now three victories. A rain-shortened day at Dover was win number four of the season for the teenager. Zilisch now appears to be in championship form as the Playoffs draw nearer.
From the pole, Taylor Gray’s No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was undefeated in Stage 1. Connor Zilisch pulled off the same feat in Stage 2, remaining perfect out front once taking command. Zilisch’s Chevrolet restarted second for Stage 3 but held the top spot again in less than a lap.
Zilisch was likely on his way to another dominant Saturday, until rain called the race short by 66 laps. The 18-year-old now owns back-to-back victories and continues his hot summer streak.
“We’ve been showing it lately,” Zilisch said. “That’s why that I hate we couldn’t finish the race the right way. Aric [Almirola] was really fast and was going to give me a run for my money. Props to him for being there and making me work for it. Still really proud of this JR Motorsports team. It feels really good to wn in a Carolina Carports car again, we were really good at Martinsville and couldn’t get it done. Our car was as fast as Xfinity Mobile today. We capitalized on all fronts, pit stops, both stages, and put ourselves in a position to be in the right spot when the rain fell. Very thankful, wish we could’ve finished this one out, but still feels good to get our fourth win of the year.”
“We’ve known that we’ve had a shot at [the championship] all year long. We’ve known the speed was there. It feels good to be finally getting these wins and good finishes, we just got to keep it going. It’s still a long season left in front of us, still a long way to go. Certainly feels good to get a fourth win this early in the year.”
Zilisch is now the youngest man to ever hit five career Xfinity Series wins, as well as the youngest to go back-to-back. Dover delivered JR Motorsports a 99th career Xfinity triumph as well, one away from the coveted century mark.
Second-place changed hands in the final moments of green flag racing, with Aric Almirola getting by Brandon Jones prior to the rain. Justin Allgaier and Jesse Love rounded out the top-five. Ryan Sieg, Taylor Gray, Sheldon Creed, William Sawalich, and Christian Eckes were the rest of the top-10. Hear from a few of these drivers below.
Zilisch’s fourth win of 2025 now vaults the 18-year-old to the top provisional Playoff seed. Here are the updated postseason standings with six regular season races remaining.
Xfinity Series teams will be back in action Saturday from Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The Pennzoil 250 goes green at 4:30 p.m. ET on The CW, IMS Radio Network, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
Written by Peter Stratta
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Photo Credit to Sean Gardner/Getty Images
