It’s another week of road racing for NASCAR, this time the crews head west to wine country and the Napa Valley to Sonoma Raceway and the Pit Boss / FoodMax 250.

There are 39 teams for 38 starting spots this weekend including cup Series drivers Riley Herbst and Shane van Gisbergen.  After sweeping the weekend on the streets of Chicago, SVG is looking for his third road course win in a row.

All of the drivers take to the track for a 50 minute practice session before making their qualifying runs.

The course at Sonoma is just shy of two miles at 1.99.

Less than five minutes into practice, Connor Zilisch tops the field by over half a second.

Austin J. Hill is making his Xfinity Series debut and gets the car off into the sand and gravel.

Making his Xfinity Series road course debut, Corey Day has put his number 17 car in the top five of the leaderboard.

No surprising, Shane van Gisbergen puts the JR Motorsports number nine car at the top of the leaderboard with a time under 77 seconds.

Goodyear has brought a new tire for the race at Sonoma.

Sheldon Creed’s mirror has come loose, but the crew does not have what they need on pit road to make the repair.  They remove the mirror so that he can practice without having the mirror hit him in the face while he is driving.

Austin Hill has had a number of issues during practice including some handling issues and a sputtering engine.  There are a number of elevation changes at Sanoma.

The caution flag comes out for debris on the track after several cars have done some dirt racing and have deposited some of it on the course.

Shane van Gisbergen’s crew chief noted that SVG’s race craft is so good that he can make up for issues the car may have.

The drivers have been divided into two groups for a 20 minute group qualifying run.

William Sawalich sets the pace of the day at 75.881 seconds.

Brad Perez has some dashboard issues and is pushed back to his spot on pit road during qualifying.

Erik Jones’ spotter Will Rodgers is looking to race on Saturday and driver Erik Jones is serving as his spotter.

Nick Sanchez reports that he has no rear grip.

In group two, Shane van Gisbergen posted a time of 75.259 seconds and puts his number nine car on the pole for the second week in a row.

Taylor Gray reports that the engine blew during qualifying and the crew will have to change the engine and he will start the race from the back of the field.

Austin J Hill did not qualify for the race.

The starting lineup for the Pit Boss / FoodMax 250:
Shane van Gisbergen
Connor Zilisch
Sam Mayer
Jesse Love
William Sawalich
Sammy Smith
Carson Kvapil
Brandon Jones
Sheldon Creed
Justin Allgaier
Taylor Gray
Blaine Perkins
Anthony Alfredo
Corey Day
Riley Herbst

Austin Hill
Jeb Burton
Josh Williams
Harrison Burton
Alex Labbe
Christian Eckes
Connor Mosack
Nick Sanchez
Matt DiBenedetto
Josh Bilicki
Sage Karam
Ryan Ellis
Kris Wright
Ryan Sieg
Jeremy Clements
Daniel Dye
Brennan Poole
Austin Green
Parker Retzlaff
Dean Thompson
Will Rodgers
Kyle Sieg
Brad Perez

Stage one is just 20 laps, stage two is 25 laps, and stage three is 34 laps for a total of 79 laps around the 1.99 road course.  The drivers can run about 35 laps on a single load of fuel.

Christopher Bell joins Adam Alexander and Parker Kligerman in the broadcast booth.  This is the first time Bell has been in the broadcast booth to call a race.

Shane van Gisbergen brings the field down for the start of the race with Connor Zilisch alongside.  SVG gets out in front for the lead.  Daniel Dye and Austin Green get off the course but get moving again and the track stays green.

Jesse Love and Sam Mayer battle for third.

Lap two, Shane van Gisbergen leads the race with Connor Zilisch in second; Jesse Love, Sam Mayer, and Sammy Smith round out the top five.

Lap two, Connor Zilisch moves up to battle with leader Shane van Gisbergen for the lead and takes the lead.  SVG and Sam Mayer battle for second.

Lap four, Connor Zilisch has a lead of over half a second on Shane van Gisbergen; Sam Mayer, Jesse Love, and Sammy Smith round out the top five.

Lap five, Shane van Gisbergen passes Connor Zilisch for the lead going through the esses.

Lap seven, Connor Zilisch stays on leader Shane van Gisbergen’s bumper as he continues to challenge for the lead.

Lap eight, Christian Eckes makes an unscheduled trip down pit road.

Lap nine, the top five are Shane van Gisbergen, Connor Zilisch, Sam Mayer, Jesse Love, and William Sawalich.

Lap 10, there is just a quarter of a second separating teammates Shane van Gisbergen and Connor Zilisch; third place driver Sam Mayer is nearly two seconds behind with four place driver Jesse Love over seven seconds back.

Lap eleven, William Sawalich passes and Carson Kvapil pass Jesse Love; putting Love in sixth place.  Love reports some handing issues in the car.

Lap 13, Jesse Love brings his car down pit road for service and adjustments.

Shane van Gisbergen has increased his lead on Connor Zilisch to half a second; Sam Mayer, William Sawalich, and Carson Kvapil round out the top five.

Jesse Love has an extended pit stop.  He is the first driver out of the race with some mechanical issues.

Lap 16, Riley Herbst comes down pit road as drivers begin to flip the stage.

Making his pit stop, Nick Sanchez reports he is losing grip.

Lap 17, Shane van Gisbergen and Connor Zilisch are separated by just over half a second; the remainder of the field is nearly 10 seconds back.

Lap 18, leaders Shane van Gisbergen and Connor Zilisch come down pit road for service.  Sam Mayer is the new leader.

After an extended stop for SVG, Connor Zilisch wins the race off of pit road.

Sam Mayer wins stage one for his second stage win of the season.

The top 10 at the end of stage one:
Sam Mayer
Brandon Jones
Carson Kvapil
Sammy Smith
Sheldon Creed
Anthony Alfredo
Alex Labbe
Blaine Perkins,
Connor Zilisch
Ryan Sieg

Drivers come down pit road for service.  Lacking rear grip is the biggest complaint on pit road.  Brandon Jones wins the race off of pit road.

Connor Zilisch brings the field down for the green flag start of stage two with Shane van Gisbergen alongside on lap 25.  In a side by side battle, Connor Zilisch edges out for the lead but SVG continues to battle.

The top five are Connor Zilisch, Shane van Gisbergen, William Sawalich, Austin Hill, and Justin Allgaier.

Justin Allgaier and Austin Hill battle for fourth.

Lapa 28, Connor Zilisch has a third of a second lead on Shane van Gisbergen; third place driver William Sawalich is over a second back; Austin Hill and Justin Allgaier round out the top five.

The battle for the lead is on!

Shane van Gisbergen retakes the lead; but does not pull away, Zilisch remain close.

Lap 30, Ryan Ellis spins on the course but recovers and the track stays green.

Lap 31, Shane van Gisbergen has pulled out to a lead of over half a second on Connor Zilisch; William Sawalich, Austin Hill, and Nick Sanchez round out the top five.

Christian Eckes comes down pit road with another tire issues on lap 33.

Lap 34, starting in 37th, Taylor Gray has worked his way through the field and is up to 17th.

Lapa 36, Connor Zilisch passes Shane van Gisbergen to retake the lead and pulls out to a lead of over half a second.

Lap 37, Alex Labbe makes an unscheduled trip down pit road with a smoking car.  Reports are that it is a trackbar issue.

Lap 38, the top five are Connor Zilisch, Shane van Gisbergen, William Sawalich, Austin Hill, and Nick Sanchez.

Shane van Gisbergen reports that the rear is “just gone”.

Sammy Smith and Sheldon Creed battle for ninth.

Nick Sanchez passes Austin Hill for fourth.

Sage Karam is stopped with the window net down with a transmission issues.

Austin Hill is taking the risk of flipping the stage on lap 42.  Riley Herbst and Taylor Gray also come down pit road.  There are still 37 laps remaining in the race.

Leaders Connor Zilisch and Shane van Gisbergen come down pit road on lap 43.

Justin Allgaier is the new leader.

Rear grip is still an issue for many of the drivers.

Connor Zilisch beats SVG off of pit road.

Brandon Jones passes Justin Allgier for the lead.

Brandon Jones wins stage two for his third stage win of the season.

The top 10 at the end of stage two:
Brandon Jones
Justin Allgaier
Sammy Smith
Sheldon Creed
Carson Kvapil
Blaine Perkins
Connor Zilisch
Jeb Burton
Will Rodgers
Ryan Sieg

Some of the drivers are already in fuel conservation mode after flipping the stage.

Drivers come down pit road for service with Brandon Jones winning the race off of pit road.  Thirteen drivers flipped the stage and stayed out on the track after flipping the stage.

Connor Zilisch brings the field down for the green flag start of stage three with Shane van Gisbergen alongside on lap 50.  Zilisch gets out in front but SVG continues to battle.

William Sawalich passes Shane van Gisbergen for second.

Lap 51, the top five are Connor Zilisch, William Sawalich, Shane van Gisbergen, Austin Hill, and Sam Mayer.

Racing in wine country, leaders Connor Zilisch and William Sawalich are still in their teens – 18 – and aren’t old enough to drink the adult beverages of the area.

Sam Mayer passes Austin Hill for fourth.

Shane van Gisbergen passes William Sawalich to retake second.

Christian Eckes has a smoking car with a flat tire after some contact with Brennan Poole; he makes it to pit road and the track stays green.

This week is race start number 100 in the Xfinity Series for Kyle Sieg.

With 25 laps remaining in the race, Connor Zilisch has a lead of over half a second on Shane van Gisbergen; William Sawalich, Sam Mayer, and Nick Sanchez round out the top five.

Ryan Sieg comes down pit road with a smoking car.

The 88 team reports that they are good…but close…on making it to the end of the race.

Twenty to go, Connor Zilisch has a half second lead on Shane van Gisbergen; William Sawalich, Nick Sanchez, and Sam Mayer round out the top five.

In an attempt to ensure making it to the end of the race, the leaders have slowed the pace of the race.

Jeremy Clemes gets turned around on the track but gets it moving again and the track stays green.

Lap 63, Connor Zilisch holds on to the lead and has led 30 laps so far today.

The 88 car crew chief tells his driver to worry about the fuel and nothing else.

With 15 laps remaining in the race, Connor Zilisch has pulled out to a one second lead – the biggest of the day – on Shane van Gisbergen; William Sawalich, Nick Sanchez, and Sam Mayer round out the top five.

Harrison Burton gets turned around on the curse but gets the car moving again and the track stays green.

With 12 laps to go, Shane van Gisbergen has closed the gap on leader Connor Zilisch to under half a second; William Sawalich, Nick Sanchez, and Riley Herbst round out the top five.

Ten to go! Connor Zilisch holds on to the lead with Shane van Gisbergen less than half a second back.

There are 31 cars on the lead lap.

Eight to go, the top two drivers – Connor Zilisch and Shane van Gisbergen – are separated by less than half a second; the third place driver of William Sawalich is over eight seconds back.

Shane van Gisbergen has caught leader Connor Zilisch and begins to challenge for the lead.

Five to go, the battle continues between leader Connor Zilisch and Shane van Gisbergen who are separated by just a third of a second.

Four to go, leaders Connor Zilisch and Shane van Gisbergen hare over 10 seconds out in front of the rest of the field.

With just three laps to go, Corey Day gets off of the course and barely misses the tire barrier after some contact from Austin Hill.  Day gets back on the course and the track stays green.

Two to go! Connor Zilisch has held off Shane van Gisbergen while trying to conserve fuel.

Connor Zilisch takes the white flag as the beating and banging continues.

Connor Zilisch holds off Shane van Gisbergen for the win!

Zilisch called it a great battle with SVG; adding that he respected the clean racing.  He noted that he didn’t want to do anything dirty to win the race and was glad he didn’t have to.

This is season win number 10 for JRM and career win number 98.

Shane van Gisbergen called it, “really really fun”; adding that he didn’t want a dirty race.

The unofficial results of the Pit Boss/FoodMax 250:
Connor Zilisch
Shane van Gisbergen
William Sawalich
Nick Sanchez
Riley Herbst
Justin Allgaier
Taylor Gray
Carson Kvapil
Sammy Smith
Sheldon Creed
Sam Mayer
Austin Hill
Austin Green
Brandon Jones
Josh Bilicki
Josh Williams
Will Rodgers
Blaine Perkins
Dean Thompson
Anthony Alfredo
Jeb Burton
Harrison Burton
Brennan Poole
Corey Day
Kyle Sieg
Matt DiBenedetto
Ryan Ellis
Parker Retzlaff
Kris Wright
Jerey Clements
Brad Perez
Daniel Dye
Connor Mosack
Christian Eckes
Ryan Sieg
Sage Karam
Alex Labbe
Jesse Love