Everything hinged on a late overtime restart at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Saturday (May 24). The green flag flew, and Justin Allgaier and William Byron charged ahead. Byron claimed the lead at the exit of turn 4 to take the white flag and led the final lap to reach victory lane.
What a finish at @CLTMotorSpdwy! π pic.twitter.com/W5RdR81OdA
— NASCAR Xfinity (@NASCAR_Xfinity) May 24, 2025
The end of the race marked an impressive comeback by Byron, who swept the first two stages but was set back by a pit road speeding penalty after stage two. Byron drove back to the top 10 and found himself in a position on the last restart to take the lead.
Connor Zilisch finished second behind Byron in his return to racing in the NASCAR Xfinity Series after injury. Nick Sanchez came in third, followed by Allgaier, who dominated the race after the first two stages. Dean Thompson rounded out the top five.
The Winners
Byron got the job done in the Xfinity race and got track time ahead of the Coca-Cola 600. The 600 is the longest race on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule and is known to be grueling. Byron has already given himself an edge over many of his opponents by competing in and winning Saturday’s race.
Zilisch ran a competitive race after returning from an injury sustained at Talladega Superspeedway on April 26. Zilisch found himself with a shot to win after the second-to-last restart of the race. The run proved he’s returned to competitive form ahead of making his second career Cup start in Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 with Trackhouse Racing.
Josh Williams finished sixth in a much-needed run for the No. 11 Kaulig Racing team. Williams had finished 37th and 29th in the last two Xfinity races. Charlotte marked was a good start to getting back on track in 2025 for Williams.
Ryan Ellis had an impressive underdog run today, where he accomplished his first Xfinity top 10 with a eighth-place finish.
The Losers
Allgaier ran another dominating race that ended in heartbreak. He was in a position to win up until the late cautions, which hurt his tires. He led a race-high 103 laps before it all collapsed at the exit of turn 4 with two laps to go, where Byron took the lead. Allgaier finished fourth and continues the habit of dominating races up until the end.
Polesitter Taylor Gray faced a setback in his 2025 campaign today with a 30th-place finish. He sits 14th in playoff standings and is currently out of a playoff spot. Gray had an issue with a tire that brought out a caution, and he never recovered. Though he finished the race, he was three laps behind the leaders.
Jeb Burton was in the top 10 late in the race, but the late cautions derailed everything. Burton himself was involved in a wreck on the final lap with Brennan Poole and William Sawalich. Burton finished 21st continues to search for a victory in 2025 after narrowly missing out on a Talladega win earlier this season.
Sammy Smith’s No. 8 Pilot Chevrolet failed post-race inspection for failing to meet the minimum weight requirement. He was stripped of a fifth-place finish and all points earned during the race.
Fuel for Thought
There were three full-time Cup drivers, including race winner Byron, in Saturday’s NXS race at Charlotte.
This begs the question: Will running the Xfinity race give these three drivers an edge on Sunday? The Coca-Cola 600 is often referred to as an endurance race by many in the industry. Cup drivers will have to go 600 miles without a mistake in order to capture the crown-jewel race.
The remaining two Cup drivers, Austin Dillon and Chase Briscoe, finished 14th and 24th, respectively. While those finishes may not be impressive for Cup regulars running an Xfinity race, there may be more to it than just the finish for a race like Saturday. These drivers aim to be well prepared ahead of a big day on Sunday.
Paint Scheme of the Week
Sheldon Creed‘s No. 00 car donned Pit Boss on the hood this week, making it feel like summer with this brisket-centered paint scheme. Creed finished 10th after running solidly in the top five for most of the race.
Where to Next?
The Xfinity Series returns next Saturday, May 31, to The Music City, where the series will take on Nashville Superspeedway. John Hunter Nemechek led 76 laps last year to take the victory. Coverage of the Tennessee Lottery 250 will begin at 7:30 p.m. ET on The CW.
Logan Kendall joined the Frontstretch team in 2025 as the Tuesday News Writer and fills in other roles as needed. He resides in the Finger Lakes region of New York and spends his free time writing as a hobby creatively and is a self published author.
Logan can be found on X @LoganKendall48