Connor Zilisch recently spoke about his plans in NASCAR and shared his concerns about racing against Shane van Gisbergen. The Mooresville native addressed the topic during an appearance on Corey LaJoie’s “Stacking Pennies” podcast that aired on August 2, 2024, before it was announced that the 18-year-old would be joining the Series Xfinity l next year, driving the number 88. for JR Motorsports. On Wednesday, news broke that Connor Zilisch will join JR Motorsports full-time in 2025. The 18-year-old has already had a solid year, scoring wins at the 24 Hours of Daytona and 12 Hours of Sebring, as well as several sometimes win on the ARCA circuit. Zilisch will debut with JRM in September as part of a four-race deal announced in March. While speaking with Corey LaJoie, the teenager opened up about his future in NASCAR, saying:
“First, I want to race full-time in Xfinity next year. It’s a goal of mine and something I’m working on. […] I hope I can get there and … If I race full-time , winning a road course, winning two road courses and hopefully being competitive on the oval.” “And hopefully SVG won’t be racing full-time in Xfinity next year, so I don’t have to worry […] I don’t want to race against him. “As much as I want to learn from him, I don’t want to have to race against him in Xfinity,” he continued.
Even Corey LaJoie finds himself agreeing with Connor Zilisch about Shane van Gisbergen’s dominance in the sport, noting: “This guy is the cheat code.”
Connor Zilisch expressed his deep gratitude for the opportunity given by Dale Earnhardt Jr.
According to the announcement, Connor Zilisch will make his debut in September 2024 at Watkins Glen, New York and will also race at the Kansas, Homestead-Miami and Phoenix circuits before taking the role of full-time driver for NASCAR Xfinity. Production car #88 in 2025.
Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s team. has a strong history of moving drivers like Chase Elliott, Brad Keselowski, William Byron and Tyler Reddick into Cup Series careers. Reflecting on his new role, Zilisch described it as “an incredible time” and thanked Chevrolet, Trackhouse and his ARCA team, Silver Hare Racing. He shared his emotions, saying [via The Hamilton Spectator]:
“It’s heartbreaking to think that I’ll be driving for JR Motorsports and Dale Earnhardt, Jr., who is one of my heroes. I’m ready to work hard.”
With no announced plans for Shane van Gisbergen (SVG) to move to the Cup Series next year, it will be interesting to see how Zilisch and SVG fare against each other in the Xfinity Series and possibly some Cup races as well .
