Future NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Connor Zilisch is looking forward to his 18th birthday for more reasons than one.
Less than two months after officially becoming an adult, the 2024 Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona winner will prepare for his series debut at Watkins Glen International on Sept. 14.
JR Motorsports has earned a reputation for giving up-and-coming drivers a chance to prove themselves at the NASCAR level. It appears they signed another top prospect.
“We couldn’t be happier to welcome Connor into the JR Motorsports family and to give him an opportunity behind the wheel of our No. 88 Chevrolet,” JR Motorsports CEO Kelley Earnhardt Miller said via press release. “Connor is an extremely talented young man and we can’t wait to see what he can do when he gets to the track with us at Watkins Glen.”
Zilisch, a Mooresville, N.C., native, placed P2 during his ARCA Menards Series debut last year. As a teenager, he has claimed several national karting titles and, in 2021, set six Sports Car Club of America track records.
Signed a multi-year deal to serve as a developmental pilot for Trackhouse Racing, Zilisch also is slated to drive JR Motorsports’ No. 88 Chevrolet for Xfinity events at Kansas Speedway (Sept. 28), Homestead-Miami Speedway (Oct. 26) and Phoenix Raceway (Nov. 9).
“It’s a dream come true to have the opportunity to race in the Xfinity Series with JR Motorsports for select races this year,” Zilisch said. “I have a lot to learn, considering that I’ve never raced in stock cars on the big tracks, but there’s no better team to learn with than JRM. I can’t thank everyone at Chevrolet enough for all their support in helping me get to this point, and I can’t wait to give my all to make the most of this opportunity.”
Westin Workman wins Race 2 of the Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup at Sebring International Raceway in another one of those fantastic photo finishes. He was 0.004 seconds ahead of BSI Racing teammate Connor Zilisch coming across the line. The top 5 finished within 0.195 seconds.
🎥 IMSA pic.twitter.com/8CmDt2AEQh
— Vincent Bruins 🧡 (@VincentJBruins) March 15, 2024
NASCAR National Series Weekend Schedule
Here is a list of NASCAR’s national series events this weekend at Circuit of The Americas (All Times ET):
Friday
- 3:30 p.m.: Truck Series practice
- 4 p.m.: Truck Series qualifying
- 5:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series practice
- 6 p.m.: Xfinity Series qualifying
Saturday
- 10 a.m.: Cup Series practice
- 11:30 a.m.: Cup Series qualifying
- 1:30 p.m.: Truck Series XPEL 225 race
- 5 p.m.: Xfinity Series Focused Health 250 race
Sunday
- 3:30 p.m.: EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix race
Shane van Gisbergen’s Cup/Xfinity WeatherTech schemes for COTA pic.twitter.com/pqA2yWQwq7
— Skewcar (@Skewcar) March 19, 2024
NASCAR Xfinity Series Focused Health 250 Entry List
Entry, Driver, Team, Car No.
- 1, Cole Custer, Stewart-Haas Racing, No. 00 Ford
- 2, Sam Mayer, JR Motorsports, No. 1 Chevrolet
- 3, Jesse Love, Richard Childress Racing, No. 2 Chevrolet
- 4, TBA, JD Motorsports, No. 4 Chevrolet
- 5, Anthony Alfredo, Our Motorsports, No. 5 Chevrolet
- 6, Ty Dillon, JD Motorsports, No. 6 Chevrolet
- 7, Justin Allgaier, JR Motorsports, No. 7 Chevrolet
- 8, Daniil Kvyat, SS GreenLight Racing, No. 07 Chevrolet
- 9, Sammy Smith, JR Motorsports, No. 8 Chevrolet
- 10, Brandon Jones, JR Motorsports, No. 9 Chevrolet
- 11, Josh Williams, Kaulig Racing, No. 11 Chevrolet
- 12, RC Enerson, SS GreenLight Racing, No. 14 Chevrolet
- 13, Hailie Deegan, AM Racing, No. 15 Ford
- 14, AJ Allmendinger, Kaulig Racing, No. 16 Chevrolet
- 15, Kyle Larson, Hendrick Motorsports, No. 17 Chevrolet
- 16, Sheldon Creed, Joe Gibbs Racing, No. 18 Toyota
- 17, Ty Gibbs, Joe Gibbs Racing, No. 19 Toyota
- 18, John Hunter Nemechek, Joe Gibbs Racing, No. 20 Toyota
- 19, Austin Hill, Richard Childress Racing, No. 21 Chevrolet
- 20, Ed Jones, Sam Hunt Racing, No. 24 Toyota
- 21, Sage Karam, Sam Hunt Racing, No. 26 Toyota
- 22, Jeb Burton, Jordan Anderson Racing, No. 27 Chevrolet
- 23, Kaz Grala, RSS Racing, No. 28 Ford
- 24, Blaine Perkins, RSS Racing, No. 29 Ford
- 25, Parker Retzlaff, Jordan Anderson Racing, No. 31 Chevrolet
- 26, Austin Green, Jordan Anderson Racing, No. 32 Chevrolet
- 27, Alex Labbe, Joey Gase Motorsports, No. 35 Toyota
- 28, Ryan Sieg, RSS Racing, No. 39 Ford
- 29, Leland Honeyman Jr., Young’s Motorsports, No. 42 Chevrolet
- 30, Ryan Ellis, Alpha Prime Racing, No. 43 Chevrolet
- 31, Brennan Poole, Alpha Prime Racing, No. 44 Chevrolet
- 32, Brad Perez, Alpha Prime Racing, No. 45 Chevrolet
- 33, Parker Kligerman, Big Machine Racing, No. 48 Chevrolet
- 34, Preston Pardus, Pardus Racing, Inc., No. 50 Chevrolet
- 35, Jeremy Clements, Jeremy Clements Racing, No. 51 Chevrolet
- 36, Chandler Smith, Joe Gibbs Racing, No. 81 Toyota
- 37, Kyle Weatherman, DGM Racing, No. 91 Chevrolet
- 38, Josh Bilicki, DGM Racing, No. 92 Chevrolet
- 39, Shane van Gisbergen, Kaulig Racing, No. 97 Chevrolet
- 40, Riley Herbst, Stewart-Haas Racing, No. 98 Ford
Super excited to announce former F1 driver and current Lamborghini driver @kvyatofficial will drive the #07 @RideGOTRAX Chevrolet in the Focused Health 250 @NASCARatCOTA ! #BuiltToWin pic.twitter.com/vRaf9HzSr5
— SS GreenLight Racing (@SSGLR0708) March 13, 2024
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