Saturday

At Virginia Motorsports Park

Dinwiddie, Va.

Sunday’s Pairings

Top Fuel

1. Brittany Force, 3.839 seconds, 327.98 mph vs. 14. Tony Stewart, 8.979, 79.59; 2. Clay Millican, 3.864, 324.90 vs. 13. Smax Smith, 5.979, 107.70; 3. Steve Torrence, 3.877, 324.28 vs. 12. Josh Hart, 5.956, 108.41; 4. Shawn Reed, 3.885, 323.74 vs. 11. Dan Mercier, 4.284, 206.07; 5. Shawn Langdon, 3.891, 325.45 vs. 10. Cameron Ferre, 4.070, 287.60; 6. Doug Foley, 3.896, 310.91 vs. 9. Justin Ashley, 3.950, 305.63; 7. Doug Kalitta, 3.905, 327.43 vs. 8. Antron Brown, 3.944, 312.50.

Funny Car

1. Jack Beckman, Chevy Camaro, 3.988, 320.51 vs. 16. Jim Campbell, Ford Mustang, 9.864, 74.26; 2. Austin Prock, Camaro, 4.004, 321.73 vs. 15. Cruz Pedregon, Dodge Charger, 5.867, 118.17; 3. J.R. Todd, Toyota GR Supra, 4.018, 320.05 vs. 14. Buddy Hull, Charger, 5.184, 144.64; 4. Daniel Wilkerson, Mustang, 4.022, 320.74 vs. 13. Dave Richards, Mustang, 4.267, 291.45; 5. Ron Capps, GR Supra, 4.028, 320.81 vs. 12. Chad Green, Mustang, 4.081, 314.17; 6. Matt Hagan, Charger, 4.039, 319.07 vs. 11. Hunter Green, Charger, 4.080, 314.46; 7. Bob Tasca III, Mustang, 4.047, 319.75 vs. 10. Spencer Hyde, Mustang, 4.069, 306.46; 8. Alexis DeJoria, Charger, 4.050, 317.79 vs. 9. Paul Lee, Charger, 4.052, 307.93.

Pro Stock Motorcycle

1. Brayden Davis, Suzuki, 6.757, 198.85 vs. 16. Marc Ingwersen, EBR, 6.924, 194.72; 2. Matt Smith, Buell, 6.768, 201.43 vs. 15. Chase Van Sant, Suzuki, 6.907, 196.44; 3. John Hall, Beull, 6.787, 199.97 vs. 14. Chris Bostick, Suzuki, 6.898, 196.50; 4. Gaige Herrera, Suzuki, 6.793, 199.49 vs. 13. Ron Tornow, Victory, 6.898, 198.55; 5. Steve Johnson, Suzuki, 6.801, 197.54 vs. 12. Kelly Clontz, Suzuki, 6.897, 197.62; 6. Richard Gadson, Suzuki, 6.809, 199.73 vs. 11. Hector Arana Jr, EBR, 6.877, 198.09; 7. Angie Smith, Buell, 6.813, 199.70 vs. 10. Dystany Spurlock, Buell, 6.870, 194.66; 8. Ryan Oehler, EBR, 6.848, 198.44 vs. 9. Jianna Evaristo, Buell, 6.863, 199.29. Did Not Qualify: 17. Brandon Litten, 6.960, 192.58.

_____

Copyright
© 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.

LONG POND, Pa. (AP) — Dale Earnhardt Jr. might already be NASCAR’s most popular crew chief.

He’s certainly an undefeated one.

Pressed into unexpected service, Earnhardt called the shots for 18-year-old prospect Connor Zilisch in the No. 88 Chevrolet and they landed in victory lane Saturday in the second-tier Xfinity Series race at Pocono Raceway.

“It felt good to have some input and decision-making power,” Earnhardt said. “And then helping Connor understand what our plan was so he knew when to push and what he was expected to do.”

Earnhardt — who won NASCAR’s most-popular driver award 15 times — made a pit stop from his day job as team owner at JR Motorsports with normal crew chief Mardy Lindley suspended one race because of a lug nut infraction this month at Nashville.

Aside from his duties as team owner, Earnhardt also was at Pocono for his role on the Prime broadcast for the NASCAR Cup Series race Sunday.

“Lot of fun for me today,” Earnhardt said. “I missed the thrill of competition. I love broadcast, don’t get me wrong. But nothing compares to driving or just being part of the team. Being an owner doesn’t really deliver like this. This is a lot of fun.”

Earnhardt had his wife and two young daughters in tow with him as he made the celebratory walk to victory lane. Oldest daughter Isla Rose clutched the checkered flag while youngest Nicole Lorraine soaked in the scene from her dad’s arms.

“I love that they just get to experience things about NASCAR,” Earnhardt said. “I had such a great time growing up as a kid in this sport, just running around here. I want them to have that opportunity and understand that this is a place where they could create opportunities for themselves down the road.”

The win continued a banner season for the NASCAR Hall of Fame driver — who swept two races at Pocono as a driver in 2014 — after JR Motorsports and reigning Xfinity Series champion Justin Allgaier qualified for the season-opening Daytona 500 and secured their Cup Series debut.

Earnhardt won two Daytona 500s, in 2004 and 2014, and 26 races overall.

His side hustle Saturday was made a bit easier with Zilisch behind the wheel. Zilisch, who turns 19 in July, raced to his second Xfinity victory of the season and third of his young career. He won his Xfinity debut last year at Watkins Glen International.

Earnhardt even pitched in during the race and tossed tires over the wall during pit stops.

“Midway through the race man, I was feeling it,” Earnhardt said.

Zilisch took the win down to the wire and finally passed Jesse Love with five laps left in the race. Love finished second.

“Dale Junior, not too bad on the box,” Zilisch said. “Pretty cool to have him up there. Getting him a 1-for-1 win as crew chief is pretty awesome.”

Even with the victory, it just might be one-and-done on the pit box for Earnhardt.

“I don’t know that I see myself doing it again,” he said.

___

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

LONG POND, Pa. (AP) — Dale Earnhardt Jr. might already be NASCAR’s most popular crew chief.

He’s certainly an undefeated one.

Pressed into unexpected service, Earnhardt called the shots for 18-year-old prospect Connor Zilisch in the No. 88 Chevrolet and they landed in victory lane Saturday in the second-tier Xfinity Series race at Pocono Raceway.

“It felt good to have some input and decision-making power,” Earnhardt said. “And then helping Connor understand what our plan was so he knew when to push and what he was expected to do.”

Earnhardt — who won NASCAR’s most-popular driver award 15 times — made a pit stop from his day job as team owner at JR Motorsports with normal crew chief Mardy Lindley suspended one race because of a lug nut infraction this month at Nashville.

Aside from his duties as team owner, Earnhardt also was at Pocono for his role on the Prime broadcast for the NASCAR Cup Series race Sunday.

“Lot of fun for me today,” Earnhardt said. “I missed the thrill of competition. I love broadcast, don’t get me wrong. But nothing compares to driving or just being part of the team. Being an owner doesn’t really deliver like this. This is a lot of fun.”

Earnhardt had his wife and two young daughters in tow with him as he made the celebratory walk to victory lane. Oldest daughter Isla Rose clutched the checkered flag while youngest Nicole Lorraine soaked in the scene from her dad’s arms.

“I love that they just get to experience things about NASCAR,” Earnhardt said. “I had such a great time growing up as a kid in this sport, just running around here. I want them to have that opportunity and understand that this is a place where they could create opportunities for themselves down the road.”

The win continued a banner season for the NASCAR Hall of Fame driver — who swept two races at Pocono as a driver in 2014 — after JR Motorsports and reigning Xfinity Series champion Justin Allgaier qualified for the season-opening Daytona 500 and secured their Cup Series debut.

Earnhardt won two Daytona 500s, in 2004 and 2014, and 26 races overall.

His side hustle Saturday was made a bit easier with Zilisch behind the wheel. Zilisch, who turns 19 in July, raced to his second Xfinity victory of the season and third of his young career. He won his Xfinity debut last year at Watkins Glen International.

Earnhardt even pitched in during the race and tossed tires over the wall during pit stops.

“Midway through the race man, I was feeling it,” Earnhardt said.

Zilisch took the win down to the wire and finally passed Jesse Love with five laps left in the race. Love finished second.

“Dale Junior, not too bad on the box,” Zilisch said. “Pretty cool to have him up there. Getting him a 1-for-1 win as crew chief is pretty awesome.”

Even with the victory, it just might be one-and-done on the pit box for Earnhardt.

“I don’t know that I see myself doing it again,” he said.

___

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

LONG POND, Pa. — NASCAR weekend at Pocono Raceway is fully underway, but Sunday’s weather may be a bit uncomfortable.

“It’s sunny, I know it’s going to be hot as heck; we’re going to be definitely burning up out here, but it’s going to be definitely worth it to watch the race for sure,” said Rich Schott from Odenton, Maryland.

Our Stormtracker16 team says that on Sunday, temperatures are going to be in the 90s, and it’s going to feel closer to 95 degrees because of the humidity.

“If you look right over there, we have about 600 gallons of water, so we’re going to have a nice inflatable pool out front, so no weather is no bother to me,” said Anthony Baker from Hartsdale, New York.

It’s not a bother to a lot of fans who’ve already figured out how they’re staying cool this weekend.

“We got the umbrella; umbrella, air conditioning in the RVs, that’s enough,” said Donald Bowman from Pittsburgh.

“Oh, we stay hydrated as well as having some adult beverages every now and then too,” said Schott.

“I’m a thicker kind of guy, what I’m going to do is actually go shirtless, drink a little more Miller Lite instead of liquor, hydrate, and just deal with the heat,” said Josh Myers from Malvern, Pennsylvania.

The weather is of no object to fans who’ve been preparing for this weekend.

“We prepare all year long, like we plan, figure out what we’re going to do; I do upgrades to the bar every year, make it a little different, so everyone who comes year after year sees something different, so this is a big deal for us,” said Bowman.

“Here we set up the Pub, we have our wheel of shots, spin the wheel, you take any shot you want; we’re open all night, we got five spots here, two campers set up, and we’ll have a lot of fun this weekend,” added Baker.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. and NASCAR on Amazon’s Prime Video has provided fans with spectacular coverage over the past couple of weeks. Many are sad that this weekend’s race at Pocono Raceway is the final one of their five-week slate.

While Earnhardt Jr. won’t be leaving our screens just yet, as he’ll shift over to TNT for the rest of the summer, it remains to be seen if they can reach the bar Prime Video has set. From the pre-race to the post-race and everything in between, it’s been a breath of fresh air, for fans and for Earnhardt Jr. as well.

“We’re coming up on the final race of the Amazon (Prime Video) five-race package,” Earnhardt Jr. stated, via the latest episode of The Dale Jr. Download. ” I knew it would be quick. It’s going to be — it’s bittersweet, because it’s been a great experience for me. Working with you guys has been fun. The whole team, really, has been really good. One race to go and then us three will move on to TNT.”

Throughout the past four-and-a-half weeks, Earnhardt Jr. has been the most popular name on Prime Video’s coverage, but other former wheelmen have provided fantastic insight, like Carl Edwards and Corey LaJoie. Additionally, Steve Letarte and Adam Alexander have helped create a well-received booth during the race.

Speaking to that, Letarte and Alexander also joined the latest episode of The Dale Jr. Download. The former crew chief explained how enthusiastic he is about the job the Prime Video team has done, as they’re hoping to go out with a bang this weekend in Pennsylvania.

“We were just talking about, knock on wood, we haven’t screwed one up yet. We’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback, and I appreciate that,” Letarte added. “I think, internally, we look at, ‘Hey, did we do what we wanted?’ Charlotte was a barn-burner. Those are the sometimes the easiest ones to cover, because they’re great on the racetrack. Then Nashville and then Michigan, we had a whole different feel. But the last 25 in Mexico was a bit strung out, because of SVG. He was out there and gone.

“So, I’ve been proud of what we’ve put out there. What I really appreciate is, it’s been effortless. Fun, I think, is the right word. It’s just been fun. Everything’s a job, but some jobs are more fun than others.”

Alas, Prime Video has set a new standard for NASCAR coverage that FOX, TNT and NBC would be wise to follow. We’ll see if Dale Earnhardt Jr., Steve Letarte and Adam Alexander have the same success as the trio moves to TNT after this weekend’s race, but Prime Video’s coverage will certainly be missed until next season.