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NASCAR Xfinity Series Blue Cross NC 250: Qualifying, Connor Zilisch’s 8th Pole Position, Lineup At Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course 

Jeff Hawkins Written by Sports EditorJeff Hawkins
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NASCAR Xfinity Series Blue Cross NC 250: Qualifying, Connor Zilisch’s 8th Pole Position, Lineup At Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course 

The bigger story?  

Connor Zilisch earning his eighth pole position following Saturday’s qualifying session at Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course or JR Motorsports filling the top five starting spots for the Blue Cross NC 250? 

Take your pick. 

Most newsworthy, though? JR Motorsports. It’s the first time an organization has accomplished the top-five qualifying feat. 

Regular-season champion Zilisch posted the fastest qualifying lap at 96.503 mph, edging runner-up Justin Allgaier by 0.460 seconds. 

Zilisch also recorded the fastest practice lap at 95.918 mph. 

NASCAR Xfinity Series Drivers Grouped Tight 

The series’ playoff chase remains tight.  

With three of the Round of 8 spots taken entering Saturday, No. 9-ranked Nicholas Sanchez, who is five points below the cutoff line, is among four pilots within 16 points of the fifth position in the playoff standings.  

Brandon Jones, Connor Zilisch, and Justin Allgaier qualified for the third round of the playoffs, while Sam Mayer (plus-43 points) appears to be in a solid position to advance. 

From there, Taylor Gray (+16), Sheldon Creed (12), Carson Kvapil (+9) and Jesse Love (+5) remain bunched above the cutoff. Trailing Sanchez are Austin Hill (-7), Harrison Burton (-8) and Sammy Smith (-14). 

Blue Cross NC 250 Starting Lineup    

Here is a look at the lineup for Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series’ Blue Cross NC 250 at Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course: 

Starting Position, Driver, Car No. 

  • 1, Connor Zilisch, No. 88 Chevrolet 
  • 2, Justin Allgaier, No. 7 Chevrolet 
  • 3, Connor Mosack, No. 9 Chevrolet 
  • 4, Sammy Smith, No. 8 Chevrolet 
  • 5, Carson Kvapil, No. 1 Chevrolet 
  • 6, Corey Day, No. 17 Chevrolet 
  • 7, Sam Mayer, No. 41 Ford 
  • 8, Jesse Love, No. 2 Chevrolet 
  • 9, Kaz Grala, No. 24 Toyota 
  • 10, Austin Green, No. 87 Chevrolet 
  • 11, Aric Almirola, No. 19 Toyota 
  • 12, Brennan Poole, No. 44 Chevrolet 
  • 13, Sheldon Creed, No. 00 Ford 
  • 14, Nicholas Sanchez, No. 48 Chevrolet 
  • 15, William Sawalich, No. 18 Toyota 
  • 16, Austin Hill, No. 21 Chevrolet 
  • 17, Taylor Gray, No. 54 Toyota 
  • 18, Christian Eckes, No. 16 Chevrolet 
  • 19, Preston Pardus, No. 50 Chevrolet  
  • 20, Matt DiBenedetto, No. 99 Chevrolet 
  • 21, Alex Labbe, No. 07 Chevrolet 
  • 22, Ryan Sieg, No. 39 Ford 
  • 23, Brandon Jones, No. 20 Toyota 
  • 24, Josh Bilicki, No. 91 Chevrolet 
  • 25, Sage Karam, No. 53 Toyota 
  • 26, Parker Retzlaff, No. 4 Chevrolet 
  • 27, Daniel Hemric, No. 11 Chevrolet 
  • 28, Harrison Burton, No. 25 Ford 
  • 29, Ryan Ellis, No. 71 Chevrolet 
  • 30, Jeb Burton, No. 27 Chevrolet 
  • 31, Leland Honeyman, No. 92 Chevrolet 
  • 32, Josh Williams, No. 45 Chevrolet 
  • 33, Dean Thompson, No. 26 Toyota 
  • 34, Anthony Alfredo, No. 42 Chevrolet 
  • 35, Blaine Perkins, No. 31 Chevrolet 
  • 36, Jeremy Clements, No. 51 Chevrolet 
  • 37, Kyle Sieg, No. 28 Ford 
  • 38, Daniel Dye, No. 10 Chevrolet 
  • 39, Garrett Smithley, No. 14 Chevrolet 
  • 40, Thomas Annunziata, No. 70 Chevrolet 
  • 41, Austin J. Hill, No. 35 Chevrolet 
  • 42, Andrew Patterson, No. 32 Chevrolet    

Jeff Hawkins Written by Sports EditorJeff Hawkins
Jeff Hawkins is an award-winning sportswriter with more than four decades in the industry, in both print and digital media. He joined the Sportscasting team in 2021 following a decade of freelancing. He spent his early career as a reporter for various newspapers in Illinois, New York, Florida, North Carolina, and Michigan, with a particular emphasis as a beat reporter for the Chicago Blackhawks. Jeff earned his bachelor's degree in journalism from Oakland University. Over the course of his career he earned several sports writing awards, including two national awards from the Associated Press Sports Editors for column writing and news reporting. One of the five prized columns included a commentary on NASCAR's increasing corporate influences, particularly in northern racetracks — commentary which you might find Jeff building on as part of the Motorsports writing team at Sportscasting now.  
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