DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- It will not show it in the NASCAR record books, but Parker Kligerman is an Xfinity Series winner. He captured the elusive checkered flag while substituting.
The semi-retired driver took over the No. 88 for Connor Zilisch after the first caution on Friday night, and he used the JR Motorsports car to score his first win in the secondary NASCAR series. He led 12 laps at Daytona International Speedway, and he held off numerous challengers during overtime.
MORE: Parker Kligerman wins at Daytona, full results
Kligerman took the white flag as the leader, and he was ahead of JR Motorsports teammates Justin Allgaier and Sammy Smith when a large wreck brought out the caution to end the race.
WHAT A RACE!!!!!
CW Sports' own @pkligerman fills in for the recovering @ConnorZilisch and wins it in a dramatic overtime finish! pic.twitter.com/JPgd0Cv0Uy
— The CW Sports (@TheCW_Sports) August 23, 2025
NASCAR scored Smith as the runner-up in the Xfinity Series race. Allgaier left the track with a third-place finish. The rest of the top five included Jesse Love and Sam Mayer.
"I just wanted to say thanks to Parker, and he did such a great job," Dale Earnhardt Jr. said after Friday's race. "I knew when we needed some help that it was such a great, great opportunity for us that he was available."
Why will this elusive win not count for Kligerman? The reason is that Zilisch started the race after undergoing surgery on his broken collarbone. The rookie lined up in the pole position but dropped to the rear of the field before taking the green flag. He then spent the first 12 laps behind the wheel.
Once the rain forced NASCAR to display the caution, Zilisch pulled onto pit road. He climbed from the No. 88 Chevrolet and then Kligerman got into the car. He drove the rest of the race and scored the win.
This situation is slightly similar to one that occurred back in the 2007 Xfinity Series season.
Aric Almirola started from the pole in the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Chevrolet at the Milwaukee Mile, but he did not finish the race. Denny Hamlin, the originally scheduled driver, took over midway through the race and won.
Yet, the NASCAR history books show that Almirola won the race because he took the green flag. They show that Almirola led 107 laps including the final 13 even though he did not finish the race.