Love Tops Wednesday Xfinity Charts At Rockingham Test

Jesse Love was fastest Wednesday during the final day of NASCAR testing at Rockingham Speedway. (Scotte Sprinkle/Race Face Digital photo)

ROCKINGHAM, N.C. – If Wednesday’s speed charts from Rockingham Speedway are any indication, Richard Childress Racing’s Jesse Love isn’t set for a sophomore slump.

The reigning NASCAR Xfinity Series rookie-of-the-year led the way on the overall leaderboard during the second day of open organizational testing at the one-mile oval, with a time of 22.667 seconds (161.521 mph) in the No. 21 Chevrolet.

It was the fastest of 84 laps turned by the 20-year-old from Menlo Park, Calif., who will begin his second full year in the Xfinity Series next month when the season kicks off at Daytona (Fla.) Int’l Speedway on Feb. 15.

Love reached victory lane last April at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, part of a sensational maiden campaign at NASCAR’s second highest level that ended with an eighth-place points finish, but he’s yet to grab a win on a downforce or intermediate racetrack. That’s something he hopes to rectify soon.

Second overall was AM Racing’s Harrison Burton, whose fastest lap was 22.688 seconds (161.372 mph) in the No. 25 Ford Mustang. Burton completed 71 laps across the pair of one-hour sessions held Wednesday as he returns to the Xfinity Series for the first time since 2021.

Rookie-of-the-year contender Dean Thompson landed third (22.830/160.368) for Sam Hunt Racing, followed by fellow first-year combatants Nick Sanchez (22.872/160.073), Taylor Gray (22.908/159.822), and Connor Zilisch (22.966/159.420).

Sanchez, Gray, and Zilisch will drive for Big Machine Racing, Joe Gibbs Racing, and JR Motorsports, respectively, in the Xfinity Series this season.

Veteran Jeb Burton, whose Xfinity Series experience dates back to 2013, was seventh at 23.005 seconds (159.148 mph) for Jordan Anderson Racing. Another rookie, JGR’s William Sawalich, ended Wednesday eighth (23.015/159.079) in that organization’s No. 18 Toyota.

The JR Motorsports duo of Carson Kvapil and Sammy Smith closed the top 10 among 19 total drivers who turned laps at Rockingham Wednesday.

Xfinity Series drivers completed a combined 1,414 laps around Rockingham in Wednesday’s two hours of testing, for a total of 1,438 miles of track time.

Hendrick Motorsports’ Corey Day turned the most laps of any driver Wednesday at 131. He was 14th in single-lap pace, but led the way on the combined speed charts during Tuesday’s testing period.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series returns to Rockingham Saturday, April 19 during the Easter holiday weekend for the North Carolina Education Lottery 250, the first series event at The Rock since February of 2004.

Broadcast coverage is slated for 4 p.m. ET on The CW, the Motor Racing Network, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.

For ticket information regarding NASCAR weekend at Rockingham Speedway, visit racetherock.com/tickets.