TC Daily Pit Stop: Zilisch Takes Third Career Xfinity Win, Delivers First Win For Dale Jr. As Crew Chief; Hamlin on Cup Pole; Sunday's TV Schedule
TC Daily Pit Stop: Sunday, June 22nd, 2025
Connor Zilisch Scores Xfinity Win at Pocono in Dale Jr.’s Crew Chief Debut
A misstep by defending NASCAR Xfinity Series champion Justin Allgaier caused Chase Elliott to get shoved out of line on a late-race restart in Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series Explore the Pocono Mountains 250 at Pocono Raceway.
With Elliott and Allgaier out of the picture, the battle for the win came down to best friends Jesse Love and Connor Zilisch, and with four laps to go, Zilisch got past Love for the race led, and he wouldn’t look back as he marched to his second win of the season and third career NASCAR Xfinity Series win.
Dale Earnhardt Jr., who was filling in for suspended crew chief Mardy Lindley, got his first career win as a crew chief in his first attempt.
“I’ve been dying for this one for a while, now. I know it hasn’t felt that long, but man, I’ve been so close on the ovals lately,” Zilisch explained. “I finished second at Charlotte, second at Nashville. And yeah, Dale Jr., not too bad on the [pit] box. Pretty cool to have him up there. Thank you so much to the entire JR Motorsports team.”
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OFFICIAL RACE RESULTS
Denny Hamlin Continues Pocono Reign with Fifth Cup Series Pole
After a week off due to the birth of his third child, Denny Hamlin didn’t show a bit of rust on Saturday at Pocono Raceway as he cruised to his 44th career pole position with a lap time of 52.144 seconds (172.599 mph). Hamlin topped Chris Buescher by 0.083 seconds to claim the pole.
William Byron, the fastest car from NASCAR Cup Series practice, crashed during his qualifying run, which will result in him starting from the rear on Sunday. His team was able to repair the primary car.
Bubba Wallace (starter), Josh Berry (diffuser), Cody Ware (practice crash), and Brennan Poole (multiple inspection failures) were all unable to compete in Saturday’s qualifying session.
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OFFICIAL STARTING LINEUP
Other NASCAR Headlines:
Stenhouse Confirms Spotter Tab Boyd Has Been Let Go by HYAK Motorsports
ARCA: Venturini Hauler Catches Fire En Route to Elko Speedway
Rick Ware Racing Countersues LEGACY MOTOR CLUB Over Charter Deal
SUNDAY’S TV SCHEDULE
1:00 PM ET: NASCAR Cup Pre-Race Show (Prime Video)
2:00 PM ET: NASCAR Cup Race (Prime Video)
Pocono Race Weekend Resources:
CUP RESULTS: Practice | Qualifying
XFINITY RESULTS: Practice | Qualifying | Race
TRUCK RESULTS: Practice | Qualifying | Race
ENTRY LIST: Cup | Xfinity | Truck
2025 NASCAR Season Resources:
Schedules: NASCAR Cup | NASCAR Xfinity | NASCAR Trucks
Driver Points: NASCAR Cup | NASCAR Xfinity | NASCAR Trucks
Owner Points: NASCAR Cup | NASCAR Xfinity | NASCAR Trucks
Rookie Standings: NASCAR Cup | NASCAR Xfinity | NASCAR Trucks
Manufacturer Standings: NASCAR Cup | NASCAR Xfinity | NASCAR Trucks
2025 Driver/Team Charts: NASCAR Cup | NASCAR Xfinity | NASCAR Trucks