Bob Pockrass picks Dale Jr.’s JRM star as favorite to win 2025 Xfinity playoff race at Kansas

The NASCAR Xfinity Series heads to Kansas Speedway this weekend for the second race in the Round of 12, and the playoff picture is wide open. With rookie Connor Zilisch and defending champion Justin Allgaier holding comfortable cushions in the standings, NASCAR insider Bob Pockrass has made his pick.

10 drivers are battling for survival before the Roval elimination race in the Kansas Lottery 300. But Pockrass has put JR Motorsports on top. He wrote on X:

"My pick for Xfinity race at Kansas: Allgaier ... top-5: Allgaier Jones Zilisch Sawalich Hill"

Bob Pockrass

@bobpockrass

My pick for Xfinity race at Kansas: Allgaier ... top-5: Allgaier Jones Zilisch Sawalich Hill ET 10:30-CW App-Xfin p&q 1-TruTv-Cup p&q 3:30-CW-Prerace 4:10-CW-Xfin green 45-45-110, 5 sets, fuel 60-65

That selection keeps the spotlight on Justin Allgaier. The No. 9 JRM driver has been consistent at Kansas but has not won at the 1.5-mile oval in 15 NASCAR Xfinity starts. He has 10 top-10s with a best finish of second in 2022. Last fall, however, he saw his playoff run hit trouble with a DNF at the track, a result he’ll be determined to put behind him.

Allgaier enters Kansas as the second seed (+53) behind his JR Motorsports teammate Connor Zilisch, who leads the standings by 85 points. Both drivers are in a strong position to lock themselves into the Round of 8. That leaves the pressure on the rest of the field, especially JRM No. 8 Sammy Smith, who sits 12th in the playoff order and needs a win at Kansas or the Roval to advance.

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Justin Allgaier looks to end his NASCAR Xfinity Series blues at Kansas: "We’ve been really close"

Justin Allgaier (7) before the 2024 NASCAR Xfinity Series Race at Kansas Speedway. Source: Imagn

The 2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series has been solid for Justin Allgaier, even if overshadowed by Connor Zilisch’s historic rookie campaign. Driving the No. 7 BRANDT Chevrolet, Allgaier has three wins, 16 top-10 finishes, and remains the second seed despite three DNFs along the way.

He may not have matched Zilisch’s nine victories, but his consistency has kept JRM at the forefront of the championship fight.

"We’ve been really close at Kansas in the past and I know that Jim (Pohlman, crew chief) and everyone on this BRANDT Professional Agriculture team are going to give me a great car this weekend that will be capable of running up front. We had a really solid run to kick off these playoffs at Bristol and if we can just keep executing that way in Kansas, we should find ourselves in a really great spot to move on to the next round," Allgaier said via JRM.

Practice at Kansas showed how competitive the field could be. Ryan Sieg set the pace with a lap of 31.319 seconds, while JRM’s Sammy Smith was the fastest of the team at 31.659. Allgaier ended practice in 14th with a 31.862, leaving him work to do in qualifying and the race itself.

Still, JR Motorsports are well-positioned across the board. All four of Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s drivers remain in the playoffs, and with Rodney Childers joining the organization next year, the team is already planning for 2026.

For Justin Allgaier, who has been the backbone of JR Motorsports since 2016, the 2025 playoffs offer a chance to continue leading the organization through its most exciting era yet.