Ty Dillon was the fastest in the only XFINITY Series practice of the weekend at Richmond International Raceway (RIR), after turning a lap at 122.144 mph. Dillon has not won a race this season but has locked in a place on the inaugural XFINITY Series Chase Grid by points.
This is one of Dillon’s best racetracks. He has five top 10s in seven starts, including a second to Dale Earnhardt Jr. in April. His best start at this Virginia short track has been second, also coming in April.
Daniel Suarez is on the hunt for his second win in a breakout season, was second at 121.212 mph, over a tenth and a half off the pace of the No. 3 Chevrolet.
Suarez is one of the more inexperienced drivers in the field, having only made four starts at RIR before, but the Drive 4 Diversity driver already has two top 10s. His best finish has been fourth, his last start at a track that traditionally has favored Joe Gibbs Racing drivers such as himself.
Blake Koch was third in the session. Koch has one career top 10 at RIR, an eighth in April. J.J. Yeley was fourth. Yeley has no XFINITY Series top 10 finishes at RIR, but he did finish 10th in a Sprint Cup car back in 2007. Ryan Reed, who recorded the first top 10 in his career at RIR in 2013, rounded out the top five.
Some notable drivers: Brad Keselowski was the best Cup driver in eighth, Kyle Busch was 12th, and Darlington winner and XFINITY Series points leader Elliott Sadler finished 17th. Qualifying will be later in the afternoon before the race on Friday night.
