“Next big thing in stock racing” is what many have called Connor Zilisch after his dominant run in ARCA races and then a P1 qualifying in the NASCAR Truck Series at COTA 2024, where the driver after a stellar run finished P4. This particular run had Dale Earnhardt Jr. promote him to the Xfinity Series, where he will run a full season in 2025, piloting the #88 Chevrolet.

“Thank you, I appreciate it, Dale. It’s cool, it’s really cool, I appreciate everything you’ve done for me. It’s a pleasure to be racing for you guys,” the young driver said as he secured his seat.

However, before that, JR Motorsports wanted the youngster to run a couple of races in the current season to get a pace. And Zilisch has yet again proved why he is the next big thing in stock racing. In his debut Xfinity race at Watkins Glen International, the 18-year-old stunned everyone by taking the chequered flag in a dominant display of skills. Even the 2021 Cup Series Champion Kyle Larson was left in awe after the race.

The win for the 18-year-old is a back-to-back on the Watkins Glen track. First, he dominated the ARCA race, which he won by a margin of 11 seconds over William Sawalich, and now the Xfinity race. After earning his first-ever pole in the Xfinity series, the youngster dominated the race by leading 45 of the 90 laps. Zilisch was expected to have a good run on the road course owing to his past karting experience. However, this victory surpassed expectations, as he defeated some road course masters in the race.

• The road course king, Shane van Gisberegen, who has 3 wins in Xfinity this season, all on road courses; however, was denied a 4th by the youngster and finished 5th, following Chandler Smith.
• Another heavyweight in the race was A.J. Allmendinger, who has 17 wins in his NASCAR Xfinity career to date. Allmendinger took P3 behind Sheldon Creed in the second position.

Zilisch’s performance had everyone praising, including Kyle Larson, who took to X to congratulate the racing prodigy. As Kyle Larson lauded the 7th driver in Xfinity history to win the debut race, he wrote, “Congrats @ConnorZilisch! Pretty unreal talent.” He further comments on Zilisch’s tucked-in, good-boy look. And guess what? 

The HMS star is thinking of applying the same strategy in his upcoming Cup Series race at Watkins Glen track. Taking symbolic inspiration from the 18-year-old, Larson further wrote, “Maybe I need to tuck my pants into my racing shoes too?”

Kyle Larson will take all the advice he can get after a tough qualifying session at Watkins Glen, where he’ll start 20th. Meanwhile, Ross Chastain grabbed his first pole of the season and second of his career.

This poor starting position comes at a crucial time for Larson, who needs a strong finish after crashing out early at Atlanta. Despite 4 wins, he currently sits 10th in the playoff standings with only a 15-point cushion above the cutoff. As Larson strategizes for Watkins Glen, celebrations are already underway for the #88 driver after a major win that delighted the NASCAR community.

Post the race, Connor Zilisch said, “I worked so hard for this one . I’ve been working for this one for months and it’s so special to me, man. I don’t even have words. With two to go, I didn’t think I was going to make it back to the line even. I’m going to enjoy this one for a while. I can’t say enough about JR Motorsports and everyone who supports me.” 

Team owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. was also quick to call up his driver. During his post-race interview, Zilisch was seen picking up the call where Junior candidly said, “Enjoy this, you never win your ‘first’ again.”

Along with Earnhardt Jr., many drivers jumped on the hype train to praise the 18-year-old!

NASCAR Community praises Connor Zilisch

The Trackhouse prodigy with this historic win now sits with the likes of NASCAR legend Dale Earnhart Sr. (for his win in 1982), Joe Ruttman (1982), Ricky Rudd (1983), Terry Labonte (1995), Kurt Busch (2006), and the active driver Ty Gibbs, who made his debut in 2021. Zilisch is also now the second youngest driver with a win in the NASCAR Series. This is an extraordinary achievement and deserves all the praise.

His competitor in the race, A.J. Allmendinger, even made a NASCAR prophecy; he said, “As we’ve all seen, he’s going to be the next superstar. His car control is phenomenal. He did a great job on all of those restarts and everything we threw at him, but he has phenomenal speed.” Coming big words from fellow drivers is rare, and Zilisch is one lucky star.

Even Shane van Gisbergen echoed Allmendinger’s thoughts when he said, “It’s awesome to see the effort that he puts in and how good he is at his age is pretty impressive, It’s been amazing to watch him.”

Thankfully, we would not have to wait till next year to see another Zilisch dominance. The #88 will be driving in three more races this season.

1. The first one is at Kansas Speedway on 28th September.
2. Then he will go to the iconic Homestead-Miami Speedway on 26th October, and
3. Lastly, in the grand finale at Phoenix Raceway on 9th November.

Hopefully, we get to see similar performances in all these races too.

• What did you think of Connor Zilisch’s Xfinity run?
• Do you think he is the next big thing in motorsports?