Aric Almirola wins Xfinity Series playoff opener at Bristol: Benefitting from a split-second late race strategy decision, veteran Aric Almirola held off a mightily-motivated field to claim the win in Friday night’s Food City 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoff opener at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway.(Read more)(NASCAR)

By electing not to pit during a late caution, #19-Aric Almirola hung on to win the Food City 300 Xfinity Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway. This is his ninth career victory and his second of the 2025 season.
#00-Sheldon Creed finished runner-up for the 15th time, extending his streak of most second-place results before winning. Haas Factory Team put two cars on the podium with #41-Sam Mayer in third. #1-Carson Kvapil and #88-Connor Zilisch rounded out the top five. Zilisch earned his 15th straight top-five finish, tying the longest streak in series history (Sam Ard).
Polesitter #7-Justin Allgaier placed sixth, with #25-Harrison Burton, #16-Christian Eckes, #51-Jeremy Clements and #44-Brennan Poole completing the top 10.
Playoff drivers finishing outside the top 10: #20-Brandon Jones (11th), #48-Nick Sanchez (13th), #54-Taylor Gray (14th), #21-Austin Hill (19th), #2-Jesse Love (25th) and #8-Sammy Smith (37th).
Allgaier and Zilisch both earned a playoff point for winning the opening two stages.
There were seven lead changes among six drivers and seven cautions for 60 yellow flag laps.
The average speed of the race was 79.861 mph.
See race details at: Race Results, Driver Points Standings, Owner Points Standings, Cumulative Report, Penalty Report.

Bristol Paint Schemes

Race Fast Facts – Bristol Motor Speedway:
Aric Almirola (P) won the Food City 300, his ninth victory in 130 Xfinity Series races.
This is his second victory and eighth top-10 finish in 2025.
This is his first victory and fifth top-10 finish in eight races at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Sheldon Creed (P) (second) posted his second top-10 finish in five races at Bristol Motor Speedway. It is his 13th top-10 finish in 2025.
Sam Mayer (P) (third) posted his fourth top-10 finish in six races at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Carson Kvapil (P) (fourth) was the highest finishing rookie.
Connor Zilisch # (P) leads the point standings by 32 points over Justin Allgaier (P).

Xfinity Series Playoff Standings after Bristol (Race 27 of 33):
1)#88-Connor Zilisch 2,116, +85
2)#7-Justin Allgaier 2,084, +53
3)#41-Sam Mayer 2,066, +35
4)#1-Carson Kvapil 2,047, +16
5)#25-Harrison Burton 2,040, +9
6)#20-Brandon Jones 2,039, +8
7)#00-Sheldon Creed 2,038, +7
8)#54-Taylor Gray 2,034, +3
Currently below elimination line
9)#48-Nick Sanchez 2,031, -3
10)#2-Jesse Love 2,031, -3
11)#21-Austin Hill 2,018, -16
12)#8-Sammy Smith 2,010, -24
See the Driver Points Standings and Owner Points Standings.

Race Updates:
Lap 300: #19-Almirola hangs on for the victory, his second of the season. #00-Creed finishes runner-up for the 15th time in his career. #41-Mayer, #1-Kvapil, #88-Zilisch, #7-Allgaier, #25-Burton, #16-Eckes, #51-Clements and #44-Poole complete the top 10.
Lap 296: #19-Almirola is in lapped traffic. #00-Creed is on the rear bumper of #41-Mayer for the runner-up spot.
Lap 291: #00-Creed moves up to third position and is closing in on the battle for the lead between #19-Almirola and #41-Mayer.
Lap 287: #41-Mayer is side-by-side with #19-Almirola for the race lead. #1-Kvapil, #00-Creed and #88-Zilisch are within striking distance.
Lap 284: #88-Zilisch is up to fourth on fresher tires after restarting eighth.
Lap 282: #19-Almirola clears #1-Kvapil for the lead. #41-Mayer races to second position on the outside.
Lap 274: #00-Creed moves up the track to clear #27-Burton and makes contact. Burton bounces off the wall into #54-Gray who spins to the inside to bring out the caution. #25-Burton has slight damage.
Lap 272: Contact between #2-Love and #16-Eckes cuts down the right-front tire for Love.
Lap 270: #19-Almirola clears for the lead, with #1-Kvapil taking second spot. #41-Mayer smacked the wall and has a left-front tire rub.
Lap 266: The majority of the leaders pit, though #19-Almirola and #41-Mayer stay out from the top five to fill the top two spots. #1-Kvapil, #7-Allgaier, #54-Gray, #27-Burton, #21-Hill and #42-Alfredo all stay out. #88-Zilisch is the first car off pit road in ninth spot.
Lap 262: #41-Mayer bumped #07-Ware through Turns 1 and 2, spinning to the outside wall to bring out the caution.
Lap 253: The top three drivers are nose-to-tail, with #88-Zilisch leading #19-Almirola and #20-Jones. Haas Factory drivers #00-Creed and #41-Mayer round out the top five with less than 50 laps remaining.
Lap 241: #20-Jones is inching closer to #19-Almirola for second position. #00-Creed runs fourth, 1.3 seconds behind #88-Zilisch for the lead as the leaders are closing in on lapped traffic.
Lap 231: #19-Almirola is closing in on #88-Zilisch for the race lead. #20-Jones remains in third, less than one-second behind the lead.
Lap 225: #7-Allgaier has gained a couple of spots since the restart to 14th, more than four seconds behind the leader on fresher tires.
Lap 218: #88-Zilisch launches out of the restart zone with the lead by nearly a half-second after one lap. #20-Jones gets into the rear of #41-Mayer to take third position.
Lap 213: #7-Allgaier is the first car to pit during the caution for adjustments after losing downforce during the previous stint. #54-Gray, #51-Clements, #21-Hill, #27-Burton, #11-Queen and #42-Alfredo follow to pit road.
Lap 210: Caution is out for #10-Dye spinning to the inside of Turn 2.
Lap 205: #7-Allgaier is falling back in the clutches of #00-Creed for fourth position. #20-Jones and #18-Sawalich are inching in on that battle.
Lap 194: #88-Zilisch has checked out to a lead of 1.3 seconds ahead of #41-Mayer. #7-Allgaier is 2.5 seconds back in third position.
Lap 190: #00-Creed and #20-Jones continue climbing forward as #54-Gray shuffles back to seventh position by using the outside lane.
Lap 184: #7-Allgaier makes a power move on the restart to get second spot, but #41-Mayer battles back to clear. #54-Gray settled in fourth position after the restart.
Lap 170: #88-Zilisch gets by #41-Mayer on the final lap of the stage as Mayer struggled to lap #24-Earnhardt. It’s the 10th stage victory of the season for Zilisch. Mayer, #7-Allgaier, #19-Almirola, #1-Kvapil, #26-Thompson, #54-Gray, #18-Sawalich, #44-Poole and #48-Sanchez earn stage points.
Lap 163: #88-Zilisch is hounding #41-Mayer for the race lead as the leaders battle three-wide through lapped traffic.
Lap 158: #39-Sieg makes an unscheduled pit stop while running in fourth position.
Lap 150: #41-Mayer is ahead of #88-Zilisch for the lead by a half-second at the halfway mark.
Lap 145: #16-Eckes leads a five-way battle for 12th position between #00-Creed, #20-Jones, #25-Burton and #51-Clements.
Lap 138: #44-Poole is pressuring #48-Sanchez for a top-10 spot. #41-Mayer continues to lead, though #7-Allgaier has closed in on the battle for the lead.
Lap 130: #41-Mayer is beginning to get into heavier lap traffic, allowing #88-Zilisch to close up on his rear bumper.
Lap 115: #41-Mayer continues leading, with #88-Zilisch, #7-Allgaier and #39-Sieg all within one-second of the race lead. #19-Almirola has dropped to fifth position, nearly 2.5 seconds off the lead.
Lap 110: #26-Thompson is rolling through the field, battling #1-Kvapil for sixth position.
Lap 102: #41-Mayer clears #7-Allgaier through Turns 3 and 4 to take the race lead. #88-Zilisch follows through for the runner-up spot.
Lap 99: #7-Allgaier clears for the lead on the restart. #41-Mayer gets by #88-Zilisch for second, as #88-Zilisch gets sideways off Turn 4 and continues on.
Lap 92: #25-Burton and #2-Love pit and will restart towards the end of the field.
Lap 85: #7-Allgaier wins Stage 1, his 11th stage victory of the season. #88-Zilisch, #25-Burton, #41-Mayer, #2-Love, #19-Almirola, #39-Sieg, #1-Kvapil, #54-Gray and #18-Sawalich earn stage points.
Lap 84: #2-Love missed Turns 1 and 2, allowing #7-Allgaier to get by for the lead.
Lap 83: #2-Love clears for the race lead with #7-Allgaier behind.
Lap 78: The majority of the field pits to flip the stage. #25-Burton and #2-Love elect to not pit and hope for stage points. #00-Creed is caught for speeding on pit road.
Lap 76: #17-Day spins off Turn 4 after contact with #2-Love and #35-Parsons slides into him to bring out the caution. #8-Smith is climbing from his car in the garage.
Lap 70: #8-Smith is being pushed behind the wall.
Lap 58: #8-Smith goes to pit road for the JR Motorsports team to go under the hood and assess the issue.
Lap 55: #8-Smith believes to be blowing an engine, dropping one lap down in 31st position.
Lap 47: Playoff drivers #21-Hill and #20-Jones have yet to crack the top 20 in the running order, slotting in 22nd and 24th, respectively.
Lap 34: #54-Gray has moved into the top five, leading a train of three Joe Gibbs Racing cars in the lineup with #19-Almirola and #18-Sawalich in sixth and seventh.
Lap 30: The top lane of Turns 3 and 4 is beginning to work. The bottom lane is still dominant through Turns 1 and 2, but pushing up the race track.
Lap 24: #71-Ellis dips to pit road with a possible oil leak. #35-Parsons is remaining competitive, going toe-to-toe with playoff drivers inside the top 15.
Lap 18: #7-Allgaier prevails to the lead on the restart. #88-Zilisch slides into second, with #41-Mayer and #39-Sieg side-by-side for third position.
Lap 11: First caution is out for #70-Honeyman getting into the right-rear quarter panel of #28-Sieg and collected #71-Ellis.
Lap 5: #39-Sieg has cracked the top five passing #18-Sawalich who is losing positions on the outside lane.
Lap 1: #7-Allgaier clears #41-Mayer for the lead at the start of the race to lead the opening lap of the playoffs.

Race Info:
Broadcast: CW, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 300 laps / 159.9 miles
Stages: 85 / 170 / 300
Average time of race: 1:57:11
Pit road speed: 30 mph
Caution car speed: 35 mph
Fuel window: 150 laps

Cars to the rear: #14-Logan Bearden, #31-Blaine Perkins, #99-Matt DiBenedetto (all unapproved adjustments).

Pit-Stall Selections

Reigning Xfinity Series champion #7-Justin Allgaier will begin the 2025 Playoffs on the pole for the Food City 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway. His speed of 121.113 mph was good enough to score the 11th pole of his career and his first in nearly two years.
#41-Sam Mayer will start alongside on the front row (120.399 mph). #19-Aric Almirola, who is battling for the owners championship with Joe Gibbs Racing, will start third (120.324 mph). Rookies #88-Connor Zilisch (120.286 mph) and #54-Taylor Gray (120.105 mph) round out the top five.
#18-William Sawalich will start sixth, as #25-Harrison Burton, #39-Ryan Sieg, #2-Jesse Love and #00-Sheldon Creed complete the top 10.
Playoff drivers starting outside the top 10: #1-Carson Kvapil (11th), #8-Sammy Smith (14th), #48-Nick Sanchez (20th), #21-Austin Hill (21st) and #20-Brandon Jones (22nd).
See the complete Bristol Starting Lineup.

Qualifying Fast Facts — Bristol Motor Speedway:
Justin Allgaier (P) won the Pole Award for the Food City 300 with a lap of 15.843 seconds, 121.113 mph.
This is his 11th pole in 498 NASCAR Xfinity Series races.
This is his first pole and 22nd top-10 start in 2025.
This is his second pole in 26 races at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Sam Mayer (P) (second) posted his 21st top-10 start of 2025 and his third in six races at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Aric Almirola (P) (third) posted his first top-10 start at Bristol Motor Speedway. It is his seventh in 12 races this season.
Connor Zilisch (P) (fourth) was the fastest qualifying rookie.

Qualifying Order

Practice for the Food City 300 Xfinity Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway is complete. The top five, slowest, news and notes:
#39-Ryan Sieg 120.459 mph
#26-Dean Thompson 119.603 mph
#17-Corey Day 119.521 mph
#19-Aric Almirola 119.239 mph
#42-Anthony Alfredo 119.120 mph
Slowest:#07-Carson Ware 115.208 mph
Most laps run: #1-Carson Kvapil 74
Best 10 consecutive lap avg (of 33 drivers): #39-Sieg, 118.831 mph
Notes: #31-Blaine Perkins spun down the frontstretch less than 10 minutes into the first group of practice but avoided hitting the inside wall. Midway through the opening group, #24-Jeffrey Earnhardt reported that he lost brakes.
See full Bristol Practice Results.

Crew Rosters

NASCAR Xfinity Series News & Notes — Bristol Motor Speedway

• This weekend will be the 83rd running of a NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway (1982-2025).
• Bristol hosted more Xfinity Series races than any other track.
• Justin Allgaier is making his 10^th Playoff appearance; he’s been in every Playoff since its inception in 2016.
• Connor Zilisch enters the Playoffs with 64 Playoff points, the most all-time, and holds a 59-point lead over the cutoff.
• Connor Zilisch won seven of the last eight races this season, the first driver in series history to win seven of eight.
• Connor Zilisch’s 14 straight top fives since returning from back injury is the second-longest top five streak all- time; Zilisch is the youngest driver with more than five straight top fives.
• JR Motorsports won 11 of the last 13 races with four different drivers, the first time in series history a team has won 11 of 13.

Goodyear Tire Notes: The NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series will race on Friday and Thursday evenings respectively, with both series using the same Goodyear Racing Eagle tire setup as in April at the Tennessee track. In fact, this setup includes the same left- and right-side combinations that teams have run on Bristol’s concrete since September 2022. The left-side tires have also been run by teams in both series at a handful of other tracks this year.

There are 38 drivers/teams on the entry list for the Food City 300 Xfinity Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway. All cars will make the race.
Notables: #07-Carson Ware, #11-Brenden Queen, #14-Garrett Smithley, #17-Corey Day, #19-Aric Almirola, #24-Jeffrey Earnhardt, #32-Austin Green, #35-Stefan Parsons,#45-Josh Williams, #53-Joey Gase, #70-Leland Honeyman, #91-Josh Bilicki.
Update: There were originally 39 cars on the entry list, but the #5 Alpha Prime Racing Chevrolet withdrew, allowing Stefan Parsons to drive the #35 Joey Gase Motorsports entry.
See the full Bristol entry list.

NASCAR Xfinity Series News & Notes – Bristol Motor Speedway

NASCAR Xfinity Series

Bristol Storylines and Insights:

• This weekend will be the 83rd running of a NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway (1982-2025).
• Bristol hosted more Xfinity Series races than any other track.
• Bristol was on the Xfinity Series schedule every year since the inaugural season in 1982.
• Bristol is the fourth of five short track races this season.
• Bristol is the opening race of the Playoffs for the second time in the Playoffs and the first since 2023.
• The Round of 12 includes Bristol, Kansas and Charlotte Roval.
• The four lowest drivers in points after the Charlotte Roval will be eliminated from the Playoffs.
• See much more

2025 practice and qualifying procedures

Bristol At-Track Schedule

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Race rules and information:

• Inspection Penalty Protocol
• Pit Road Penalties
• Pit Road Speeds
• Points Explanation
• Qualifying Procedures