August 22, 2025 | By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service

Parker Kligerman wins NASCAR Xfinity race at Daytona in relief of Connor Zilisch

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.—The record book will list Connor Zilisch as the winner of the Wawa 250 Presented by Coca-Cola at Daytona International Speedway.

But it was part-timer Parker Kligerman who did the heavy lifting in Friday night’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race, driving the No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolet to victory in relief of the 19-year-old prodigy.

With Zilisch determined to protect the collarbone be broke in a fall in Victory Lane two weeks ago at Watkins Glen, Kligerman got behind the wheel in a driver switch under caution on Lap 13.

From that point through an overtime that took the race to Lap 104, Kligerman drove a masterful race. His victory was welcome consolation for a heart-wrenching loss at Daytona in February, when Kligerman was first to the finish line in a NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series event but suffered a disqualification for a ride-height infraction.

Racing-reference.info, the statistics bible of motor racing, will credit Zilisch with his seventh win of the season, tying Christopher Bell for most by a Sunoco rookie in series history, but it was Kligerman who performed the celebratory burnout on the frontstretch at the World Center of Racing.

“It’s different in every way, because I didn’t expect to get a call from (team owner) Dale (Earnhardt) Jr. on the day I was leaving for vacation, saying ‘Hey, man, would you come drive this thing?’

“I hate the circumstances for Connor. He’s an amazing generational talent. I feel honored to have gotten the call to grace the seat that he’s been in, that Kyle Larson’s been in… For me, it’s such a neat thing that this will not be on Racing Reference at all.”

After the overtime restart on Lap 103, Zilisch got a strong push from teammate and eventual third-place finisher Justin Allgaier. He controlled the final two circuits until a massive 13-car wreck in Turn 4 ended the race under caution.

With Sammy Smith running second, JR Motorsports enjoyed a 1-2-3 finish.

It was the second time this season Zilisch has watched his car win a race. After a hard crash at Talladega in April, Zilisch sat out the subsequent race at Texas Motor Speedway, with Larson winning in the No. 88.

But on this Friday night, Zilisch ran from the pit box to the frontstretch to congratulate Kligerman. The drivers shared a delicate hug, with Kligerman mindful of Zilisch’s surgically repaired collarbone, which is still on the mend.

“It’s weird,” Zilisch said. “It was really weird the last time I did it, and I never thought I’d have to do it again… But I love Parker. I’ve been a fan of Parker for a long time. He’s another one I’m OK watching win inside my race car.

“I’m glad that I got to start the race and get the points for my team.”

With a fifth-place finish in Stage 1 and a win in Stage 2, Allgaier regained the series lead from Zilisch and takes a four-point advantage to the Aug.30 event at Portland International Raceway.

Deeper in the series standings, the fortunes of cousins Harrison Burton and Jeb Burton—both fighting for the final spot in the Xfinity Playoffs—changed radically during the race. On Lap 10, Harrison Burton’s No. 25 Ford spun after contact from Matt DiBenedetto’s Chevrolet.

With no caution called, Harrison lost two laps getting to pit road, but he regained one circuit as the beneficiary under a caution for rain on Lap 12 and returned to the lead lap under caution for the first stage break at Lap 30.

Jeb Burton scored two points for his ninth-place finish in Stage 1, but his luck soon turned negative. On Lap 20 contact between Jeb’s No. 27 Chevrolet and Smith’s No. 8 Camaro ignited a six-car wreck, but Jeb recovered to run in the top 15 before an 11-car melee on Lap 97 collected both cousins.

Harrison finished 16th to Jeb’s 20th, giving Harrison a 36-point lead for the final Playoff spot with two races left in the regular season.

Jesse Love finished fourth, followed by Sam Mayer, Brandon Jones, Dean Thompson, Garrett Smithley, Brennan Poole and Carson Kvapil.

Ryan Sieg led a race-high 19 laps but was wiped out in the Lap 97 accident and finished 31st, dropping 56 points below the current elimination line for the Playoffs.



NASCAR Xfinity Series Race Number 24
Race Results for the Wawa 250 Powered by Coca-Cola - Friday, August 22, 2025
Daytona International Speedway - Daytona Beach, FL - 2.5 - Mile Paved
Total Race Length - 104 Laps - 260. Miles

Provided by NASCAR Statistics - Friday, 8/22/2025 @ 11:52 PM Eastern
Fin Str Car Driver Team Laps Stage 1 Pos Stage 2 Pos Pts Status Tms Laps Playoff Pts
1 1 88 Connor Zilisch # WeatherTech Chevrolet 104   40 Running 2 12
2 3 8 Sammy Smith Pilot Chevrolet 104 1  45 Running 4 18 1
3 5 7 Justin Allgaier Hellmann's/RCPT Chevrolet 104 5 1 50 Running 1 6 1
4 10 2 Jesse Love Whelen Chevrolet 104  2 42 Running 2 14
5 2 41 Sam Mayer Audibel Ford 104 2  41 Running 2 16
6 7 20 Brandon Jones Menards/Patriot Lighting Toyota 104 6 9 38 Running  
7 11 26 Dean Thompson # Thompson Pipe Group Toyota 104  6 35 Running  
8 36 14 Garrett Smithley True Brand Chevrolet 104   29 Running 1 1
9 12 44 Brennan Poole CW & Sons/Clark's Chevrolet 104   28 Running  
10 6 1 Carson Kvapil # Jarrett Chevrolet 104   27 Running  
11 31 71 Ryan Ellis Mike Albert Fleet Solutions Chevrolet 104   26 Running  
12 24 18 William Sawalich # Soundgear Toyota 104 10  26 Running  
13 34 07 Patrick Emerling(i) Priority Tire Chevrolet 104   0 Running  
14 23 31 Blaine Perkins easycare Chevrolet 104   23 Running  
15 26 35 Mason Maggio Denssi Energy Pouches Chevrolet 104   22 Running  
16 8 25 Harrison Burton DEX Imaging Ford 104  7 25 Running  
17 27 00 Sheldon Creed Ollie's Ford 104  5 26 Running 3 3
18 28 91 Josh Bilicki Wawa/Coca-Cola Zero Sugar Chevrolet 104   19 Running  
19 21 11 Justin Haley(i) Celsius Chevrolet 104   0 Running 1 7
20 13 27 Jeb Burton Golden Corral/State Chevrolet 104 9  19 Running  
21 25 53 Joey Gase NFPA Chevrolet 104   16 Running  
22 38 92 Natalie Decker Wawa Chevrolet 104   15 Running  
23 18 48 Nick Sanchez # Pickers Vodka Chevrolet 104   14 Running  
24 29 19 Aric Almirola Young Life Toyota 103   14 Accident  
25 4 21 Austin Hill Global Industrial Chevrolet 103 4 4 26 Accident 2 8
26 35 70 Leland Honeyman DPR Construction Chevrolet 103   11 Accident  
27 30 28 Kyle Sieg DeSantis AC & Appliance Ford 103   10 Accident  
28 37 5 Caesar Bacarella Prime Bites/7-Eleven Chevrolet 103   9 Running  
29 15 32 Rajah Caruth(i) Atlanta Life Insurance Chevrolet 102   0 Running  
30 14 54 Taylor Gray # Operation 300 RED Toyota 101  8 10 Running  
31 22 39 Ryan Sieg Sci Aps Ford 98  10 7 Accident 4 19
32 9 16 Christian Eckes # Campers Inn RV Mobile Medic Chevrolet 97 7 3 17 Accident  
33 33 99 Matt DiBenedetto Buddy Chevrolet 96 3  12 Accident  
34 20 45 Josh Williams Optum Chevrolet 96   3 Accident  
35 17 10 Daniel Dye # Martech Services Company Chevrolet 96   2 Accident  
36 16 51 Jeremy Clements All South Electric Chevrolet 89   1 Accident  
37 32 42 Anthony Alfredo Dude Wipes Chevrolet 67 8  4 Electrical  
38 19 4 Parker Retzlaff Dove MenCare Chevrolet 30   1 Water Pump  
Fastest Lap Bonus:  # lap 74 / 46.608
19                                                                   
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Time of Race: 2 Hrs, 15 Mins, 28 Secs. Average Speed: 115.157 MPH Margin of Victory: Under Caution

Stage 1 Top 10: 8, 41, 99, 21, 7, 20, 16, 42, 27, 18
Stage 2 Top 10: 7, 2, 16, 21, 00, 26, 25, 54, 20, 39

Race Comments: Connor Zilisch (with relief from Parker Kligerman) has won the Wawa 250 Powered by Coca-Cola at Daytona International Speedway, his eighth victory in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Prior to the start of the race, no vehicle(s) dropped to the rear of the field under penalty.

Failed to Qualify: None.

Caution Flags: 7 for 39 laps; Laps: 13-23 (Weather [Red Flag: 00:39:48] [25]); 31-35 (#1, 54 Spin Turn 4 / Stage 1 Conclusion [25]); 59-66 (#27, 18, 8, 20, 19 Incident Turn 4 [31]); 68-71 (#42 Stopped On Track [18]); 90-94 (#54, 51, 5, 91 Incident Turn 4 [1]); 98-102 (#71, 16, 27, 39, 10, 19, 25, 48, 99, 45, 00 Incident Frontstretch [1]); 104-104 (#00, 07, 44, 35, 53, 48, 25, 11, 21, 70, 28, 1, 91 Incident Turn 4 [None]).

Lead Changes: 22 among 10 drivers; S. Smith 1-8; S. Mayer 9-23; S. Smith 24-27; S. Mayer 28; S. Smith 29-32; J. Love 33-37; C. Zilisch # 38-39; S. Smith 40-41; J. Haley(i) 42-48; J. Love 49-57; J. Allgaier 58-63; G. Smithley 64; A. Hill 65-71; S. Creed 72; R. Sieg 73; S. Creed 74; R. Sieg 75-76; S. Creed 77; R. Sieg 78-84; A. Hill 85; R. Sieg 86-94; C. Zilisch # 95-104.

(i) Ineligible for driver points in this series

Next Race: August 30, 2025 - Portland International Raceway

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