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Connor Zilisch
Connor Jackson Zilisch (born July 22, 2006) is an American professional racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 88 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Trackhouse Racing, and part-time in the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series, driving the No. 1 Chevrolet Camaro SS for JR Motorsports.
After an early career in karts, culminating in winning the Karting Academy Trophy in 2020, Zilisch began racing sports cars in 2021, adding stock cars to his program the next year. Zilisch broke onto the racing scene in 2024, winning the 24 Hours of Daytona and the 12 Hours of Sebring in the LMP2 class in his first attempts and winning in his first career NASCAR Xfinity Series start in September at Watkins Glen International, less than two months after his eighteenth birthday. In 2025, he competed full-time in the Xfinity Series for JR Motorsports, scoring ten wins and a record-breaking eighteen consecutive top-five finishes. He won Rookie of the Year that year, and reached the championship race at Phoenix Raceway, finishing second in the championship.
Zilisch started competing in go-karts at the age of five in 2011. He would spend ten years racing karts before moving up to cars in 2021. Zilisch started primarily in the United States until 2017, when he won the Mini Rok World Championship in South Garda, Italy, competing against more than 160 other competitors from 33 different countries. He returned to Europe to race primarily in the FIA OKJ class in 2018–2020 and made the "A" final in the OKJ World Championship in both 2019 and 2020. In 2020, he also became the first ever American to win the CIK-FIA Karting Academy Trophy, a three-race series where competitors from all over the world all race on identical equipment.
Zilisch began racing cars in early 2021 with the Sports Car Club of America in the Spec Miata class and quickly began showing strong results, setting three track records and reaching the podium multiple times. At the SCCA Run-offs in Indianapolis that year, Zilisch finished third out of ~ ninety cars in the competitive Spec Miata class and shortly thereafter was named the SCCA Jim Fitzgerald Rookie of the Year. Zilisch also competed in the Mazda MX-5 Cup Shootout competition in late 2021, winning the $110,000 scholarship, which would fund his participation in the series in 2022. In late 2021, Zilisch also ran his first Trans Am TA2 race at Virginia International Raceway, earning pole position while shattering the track record as a rookie driver. He led the race early until a mechanical issue forced him to retire early; however, his performance in the race led to his being invited to race TA2 full-time for Silver Hare Racing in 2022.
In the Mazda MX-5 Cup series, Zilisch recorded four wins in the season and nearly won the championship in the last race of the season at Road Atlanta. In that race, Zilisch needed to finish at least three spots ahead of Jared Thomas to win the $250K championship prize and on track he did that, finishing sixth to Thomas' ninth-place finish, however a post-race penalty to Alex Bachoura (who finished in between Zilisch and Thomas) ended up moving Thomas up one position and handing him the championship. Zilisch won $85K for second place and was also named the Mazda MX-5 Cup Rookie of the Year for 2022.
On December 12, 2024, it was announced that Zilisch will drive a Corvette Z06 GT3.R in the GTD Pro class in the 2025 Rolex 24 At Daytona alongside Shane van Gisbergen, Ben Keating and Scott McLaughlin in a joint partnership between Trackhouse Racing and TF Sport.
In June 2022, Zilisch would make his Pro Late Model debut in the No. 4 for Setzer Racing and Development at Orange County Speedway with the Carolina Pro Late Model Series where he would win the pole, and led all the laps en route to his first career victory in an Asphalt Late Model overall and Pro Late Model.
For 2023, Zilisch would return to the No. 25 for Rackley W.A.R. running select events in the CARS Pro Late Model Tour. He would win at Ace Speedway in his second start of the season, holding off Caden Kvapil to do so.
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Connor Zilisch
Connor Jackson Zilisch (born July 22, 2006) is an American professional racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 88 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Trackhouse Racing, and part-time in the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series, driving the No. 1 Chevrolet Camaro SS for JR Motorsports.
After an early career in karts, culminating in winning the Karting Academy Trophy in 2020, Zilisch began racing sports cars in 2021, adding stock cars to his program the next year. Zilisch broke onto the racing scene in 2024, winning the 24 Hours of Daytona and the 12 Hours of Sebring in the LMP2 class in his first attempts and winning in his first career NASCAR Xfinity Series start in September at Watkins Glen International, less than two months after his eighteenth birthday. In 2025, he competed full-time in the Xfinity Series for JR Motorsports, scoring ten wins and a record-breaking eighteen consecutive top-five finishes. He won Rookie of the Year that year, and reached the championship race at Phoenix Raceway, finishing second in the championship.
Zilisch started competing in go-karts at the age of five in 2011. He would spend ten years racing karts before moving up to cars in 2021. Zilisch started primarily in the United States until 2017, when he won the Mini Rok World Championship in South Garda, Italy, competing against more than 160 other competitors from 33 different countries. He returned to Europe to race primarily in the FIA OKJ class in 2018–2020 and made the "A" final in the OKJ World Championship in both 2019 and 2020. In 2020, he also became the first ever American to win the CIK-FIA Karting Academy Trophy, a three-race series where competitors from all over the world all race on identical equipment.
Zilisch began racing cars in early 2021 with the Sports Car Club of America in the Spec Miata class and quickly began showing strong results, setting three track records and reaching the podium multiple times. At the SCCA Run-offs in Indianapolis that year, Zilisch finished third out of ~ ninety cars in the competitive Spec Miata class and shortly thereafter was named the SCCA Jim Fitzgerald Rookie of the Year. Zilisch also competed in the Mazda MX-5 Cup Shootout competition in late 2021, winning the $110,000 scholarship, which would fund his participation in the series in 2022. In late 2021, Zilisch also ran his first Trans Am TA2 race at Virginia International Raceway, earning pole position while shattering the track record as a rookie driver. He led the race early until a mechanical issue forced him to retire early; however, his performance in the race led to his being invited to race TA2 full-time for Silver Hare Racing in 2022.
In the Mazda MX-5 Cup series, Zilisch recorded four wins in the season and nearly won the championship in the last race of the season at Road Atlanta. In that race, Zilisch needed to finish at least three spots ahead of Jared Thomas to win the $250K championship prize and on track he did that, finishing sixth to Thomas' ninth-place finish, however a post-race penalty to Alex Bachoura (who finished in between Zilisch and Thomas) ended up moving Thomas up one position and handing him the championship. Zilisch won $85K for second place and was also named the Mazda MX-5 Cup Rookie of the Year for 2022.
On December 12, 2024, it was announced that Zilisch will drive a Corvette Z06 GT3.R in the GTD Pro class in the 2025 Rolex 24 At Daytona alongside Shane van Gisbergen, Ben Keating and Scott McLaughlin in a joint partnership between Trackhouse Racing and TF Sport.
In June 2022, Zilisch would make his Pro Late Model debut in the No. 4 for Setzer Racing and Development at Orange County Speedway with the Carolina Pro Late Model Series where he would win the pole, and led all the laps en route to his first career victory in an Asphalt Late Model overall and Pro Late Model.
For 2023, Zilisch would return to the No. 25 for Rackley W.A.R. running select events in the CARS Pro Late Model Tour. He would win at Ace Speedway in his second start of the season, holding off Caden Kvapil to do so.