SVG Bests Zilisch On Late Restart For Chicago Xfinity Win

Shane van Gisbergen (9) leads Connor Zilisch Saturday at the Chicago Street Course. (Wyatt Tinsley/Race Face Digital photo)

CHICAGO – In a matching of wits and skills, the road course master schooled the road course prodigy for an unsurprising victory Saturday at the Chicago Street Course.

Making the most of a late-race restart in The Loop 110, Shane van Gisbergen charged past Connor Zilisch in turn one with two laps left and fended off his 18-year-old JR Motorsports teammate from there for the victory.

It wasn’t a comfortable margin, as the New Zealand native reached the checkered flag first by .823 seconds, but it was still enough for van Gisbergen’s first NASCAR Xfinity Series win of the season in a part-time schedule.

With the triumph, the fourth of his Xfinity Series career, van Gisbergen continued his streak of winning a race in all three years of the Chicago NASCAR weekend.

Saturday was his second straight Xfinity Series victory in the Windy City, and came after van Gisbergen’s cool suit failed during stage two and an ill-timed caution flag all but ruined his race strategy.

“The strategy went wrong, but it worked out well,” said Van Gisbergen, a three-time Australian Supercars champion who also earned the pole for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race prior to his Xfinity Series success. “The car was a rocket. (Zilisch) is a great young driver, and that was the first time I’ve really raced him.

“I knew [the final restart] was my opportunity, and I took it. Awesome one-two for the team.”

The chance van Gisbergen seized was set up when Andre Castro slammed the tire barriers at turn six with six to go, leading to a race-defining two-lap dash to the checkered flag.

With Zilisch as the leader and van Gisbergen in the less-preferred outside lane for turn one, the latter out-braked the talented teenager into the first corner before running him wide on exit.

As Zilisch fought to stay off the wall, van Gisbergen kept his momentum up and never trailed again.

Combined with leading the first 25 laps and winning stage one with ease, van Gisbergen led a race-high 27 of 50 circuits around the 2.2-mile, 12-turn temporary course on the streets of downtown Chicago.

But it wasn’t as easy as the box score made it appear, as the third yellow for Matt DiBenedetto’s tire carcass near turn seven forced van Gisbergen to pit lane under caution for his lone pit stop and lined him up 19th, behind a host of traffic that had flipped the first stage break earlier on.

Van Gisbergen wasn’t deterred, though, and drove all the way back through the field for the trophy. He became the sixth driver to win in the Xfinity Series for JR Motorsports this season, a record by a single team.

Zilisch, meanwhile, was seemingly disappointed by the fierceness of van Gisbergen’s winning move at the end, though he recognized the situation and knew what was on the line going into the final restart.

Still, it was a valiant rally from 35th on the grid after Zilisch popped the barriers late in practice and was unable to qualify while his No. 88 team repaired his Chevrolet.

“I was clear there, just barely, on the front straight. But I just let him get to my inside and he took advantage of it,” said Zilisch. “I should have been a little more aggressive there. I just thought he was going to race me a little cleaner.

“I’ve just got to be better and not let that stuff happen. I’ll learn from it and move on.”

After taking the top spot from then-leader Jesse Love on a lap-29 restart, Sheldon Creed faded behind van Gisbergen and Zilisch to a third-place finish, leading nine laps on the day for Haas Factory Team.

Richard Childress Racing’s Austin Hill was fourth and recent Atlanta winner Nick Sanchez, driving for Scott Borchetta’s Big Machine Racing team, finished fifth to extend his recent Xfinity Series surge.

Love, Sammy Smith, Sam Mayer, Austin Green, and Brennan Poole closed the top 10.

It was a disastrous day in Chicago for Joe Gibbs Racing, as all four of the powerhouse organization’s Toyotas were caught up in trouble of some kind throughout the afternoon.

Brandon Jones was the best of the JGR squad in 21st, while Australian Supercars veteran Jack Perkins was four laps down in 32nd after being shoved in the tires at turn six just five laps into the race.

Taylor Gray (34th) and William Sawalich (37th) both failed to finish, Gray due to the damaged vehicle policy and Sawalich with electrical issues that led to a small fire inside his race car midway through the first stage.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series continues its two-race road course swing in a week’s time at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway, where van Gisbergen was the most recent winner and will drive again for JR Motorsports.

Broadcast coverage from the Napa Valley airs Saturday, July 12 at 4:30 p.m. ET, live on The CW, the Performance Racing Network, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.