'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Shane van Gisbergen has reflected on his 25th Xfinity Series race weekend after wrapping up his run in fifth. The Kaulig Racing driver was at high odds of posting a runner-up finish, but the final restart battle against AJ Allmendinger and Sam Mayer pushed him down to fifth.
The Mission 200 at the Glen witnessed JR Motorsports' debutant Connor Zilisch seal the victory. Shane van Gisbergen kicked off his run from 13th place but caught up with the frontrunners as the 90-lap battle neared conclusion.
The Kaulig Racing driver started fourth on the final overtime restart next to his teammate, AJ Allmendinger. As the pack entered Turn 1, Zilisch cleared ahead of Mayer, and a three-wide battle for the second place ensued between the Chevy's of SVG, Mayer, and Allmendinger.
Trending
The #97 driver momentarily gained pace over Allemendinger's #16 Chevy and Mayer's #1 Chevy but got sandwiched between the two. As Mayer slowed down, Allmendinger took the lead, and SVG rounded up a fifth-place finish on the 2.54-mile road course.
"It's a hard one here. Obviously, it's awkward with a teammate, you never want to race too hard like that. But we (contacted) each other then he (Allmendinger) hit me back and I hit him. It's hard and then the leader gets away. So, not fun," van Gisbergen said via Frontstrech (0:25).
"I guess so. It's green-white-checker and it seems everyone loses their sh*t here, so I joined them," he opined on the fairness of hard racing during the closing moments.
The Round of 12 race at Charlotte ROVAL will mark Shane van Gisbergen's final road course battle in the Xfinity Series as the Kaulig Racing driver will be promoted to a full-time Cup Series seat for Trackhouse Racing in 2025.
"Pretty impressive": Shane van Gisbergen praises Connor Zilisch for his Watkins Glen triumph
Connor Zilisch completed his first of the four-race slate at the Watkins Glen. He will be next seen at the Kansas Speedway, followed by Homestead-Miami and Phoenix Raceway.
The #88 Chevy driver stood the fastest in qualifying and bagged the Stage 1 win. In the second stage, William Byron emerged on the top while the debutant fell to a third-place finish. Nonetheless, Zilisch regained momentum and braved the two overtime restarts to register his Watkins Glen win. After leading a race-high 45 laps, the JRM racer became the seventh Xfinity driver to triumph on debut.
Shane van Gisbergen lauded the motorsports prodigy's achievement. During the previously mentioned conversation with Frontstretch, the Kaulig Racing driver said.
"Awesome. To see the effort he puts in and how good he is at his age is pretty impressive. So yeah, it's been amazing to watch him," SVG said.
Connor Zilisch is the first driver in the history of the Xfinity Series to have claimed the pole and the win on their debut attempt.
