Race 19 of 33: Explore the Pocono Mountains 225 at Pocono Raceway
Track Specs: 2.5-mile triangular oval / 90 laps
Race Winner: Cole Custer
Allgaier's finish: 2^nd
Smith's finish: 9^th
Mayer's finish: 10^th
Jones' finish: 13^th
 

Justin Allgaier

Justin Allgaier, driver of the No. 7 Carolina Carports Chevrolet, overcame a pit-road penalty after dominating Stage One of Saturday afternoon's NASCAR Xfinity Series event at Pocono Raceway to earn a strong second-place finish. Allgaier, who led for a race-high 30 laps, remains second in the championship standings following today's runner-up finish and trails series leader Cole Custer by just 51 points as the NXS heads to Indianapolis Motor Speedway next week. Additionally, with today's podium result, the JR Motorsports driver has now placed ninth or better in seven of the last nine NXS events dating back to his victory at Darlington Raceway in May.

"This group again showed how we never give up. We had such an unbelievably fast Carolina Carports Chevrolet today and I just hate that we had that penalty there that made us have to adjust our game plan. Despite that, Jim (Pohlman, crew chief) called a great race and helped get us in a position where we could get back up front and fight for the win in the end. Although it's not the finish that we were all hoping for, we will take this second and get ready to get after it in Indy on the oval next week. I've always loved racing there and hopefully we can be that one spot better."

Sammy Smith

The No. 8 Pilot Flying J Chevrolet qualified in the top 10 for Saturday's Explore the Pocono Mountains 225 for the NASCAR Xfinity Series. From the drop of the green flag, Sammy Smith held strong inside the top 10 as spotter Tyler Monn guided the JR Motorsports driver through the caution-littered race and helped keep his nose clean. Crew chief Adam Wall made strong strategy calls, especially when there were three cautions over the course of the final 20 laps. After a four-lap dash to the finish, Smith and team took home a ninth-place finish in the mountains of Pocono. Today's top-10 finish saw Smith improve one position to 11^th in the NXS standings, just 13 points from breaking into the top 10.

"My Pilot Flying J Chevrolet was good today. I just wish we had the chance to see what we could do on long runs but there were so many cautions. The restarts were tough too with that third line that would come into play, but I definitely learned a few things out there today and I'm excited to see what package we can bring to Indy next week."

Sam Mayer

Sam Mayer, driver of the No. 1 RTIC Outdoors Chevrolet, was poised for a top-five finish at Pocono Raceway on Saturday afternoon until a flurry of cautions in the closing laps of the NASCAR Xfinity Series event shuffled the running order and led the young driver to ultimately finish in the 10^th position. Mayer and the No. 1 Chevrolet had neutral balance for the majority of the day until the right rear started giving the young driver some trouble with 38 laps remaining. Crew chief Mardy Lindley called Mayer to pit road under green for four fresh tires, fuel and a slight adjustment. With 27 laps to go, Mayer started his charge back to the front and found himself back in the top 10 with just a handful of laps remaining. The driver of the No. 1 battled through the rash of caution flags in the closing laps to secure the 10th-place finish.

"A lot of hard racing today at Pocono but I am super proud of Mardy (Lindley, crew chief) and my guys for putting together another top-10 finish. We were pretty good starting off today, but just couldn't quite line it up in the end. Learned a lot today and we will capitalize on all that and see what we can get done in Indy next weekend."

Brandon Jones

Brandon Jones, driver of the No. 9 Menards/Cheez-It Chevrolet, took the green flag in the second position for the NASCAR Xfinity Series event at Pocono Raceway on Saturday afternoon. Jones held strong battling for the lead over the course of the opening laps before a tire failure forced him to visit pit road under green. This unscheduled stop saw Jones rejoin the field as the first car one lap down, putting the JR Motorsports driver in position for the free pass at the conclusion of Stage One. Getting back on the lead lap to start Stage Two, Jones started his march forward, utilizing the next 20 laps to work his way through the field and back inside the top 20 for the completion of the second stage. After taking advantage of a late final-stage caution to pit for tires and fuel, Jones was set to battle to the finish. With fresher tires than his competitors, Jones was able to make his way through the field and break into the top 15 to take the checkered flag in the 13^th position.

"This Menards/Cheez-It Camaro was fast and it was great to run towards the front until that tire issue derailed our day a little. Our No. 9 team rallied though to make sure we could stay in the fight. I wish I could have given them the finish they deserved, but this team never gives up and we are going to keep working hard going into Indy."