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Connor Zilisch thanks Kyle Larson for replacing him in No. 88 at Texas Motor Speedway

Brian Jones Profile Picby: Brian Jones04/30/25brianjones_93
Connor Zilisch Kyle Larson
Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images//Jamie Harms-Imagn Images

Connor Zilisch appreciates Kyle Larson for replacing him at the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Texas Motor Speedway this weekend. On X/Twitter, Zilisch sent a message to Larson who will compete in his third Xfinity Series race this year.

“Thank you to [Kyle Larson] for stepping up for me this weekend and everyone who has helped me through this process,” Zilisch wrote. “Doing everything I can to be back as soon as possible.”

JR Motorsports announced that Zilisch won’t compete at the Texas race on Saturday due to an injury he suffered at Talladega this past weekend. Zilisch was involved in a single-car wreck during the final lap and was complaining about his back.

“Yeah, I’m okay,” Zilisch said. “That’s one of the wrecks where you move your legs and make sure everything feels okay afterwards. So, very grateful to drive safe JR Motorsports race cars. Our WeatherTech Chevrolet was as fast as Xfinity Mobile. We were in the right spot, just, yeah, I haven’t really watched it close enough to know what happened. But yeah, grateful to be up and walking.”

Connor Zilisch and Kyle Larson have performed well in the Xfinity Series

Connor Zilisch has put together a strong 2025 season. He won the COTA race earlier this year, has recorded three top-10 finishes and currently sits sixth in the Xfinity Series points standings. The 18-year-old is in his first season as a full-time Xfinity Series driver.

Kyle Larson is getting ready to compete in his third Xfinity Series race this season. He finished fourth in the Homestead race and won the Bristol race while driving the No. 17 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports.

“It’s awesome,” Larson said after the Bristol race earlier this month, per NASCAR.com. “I wish I could have won last night – just came up a little bit short. It’s cool to get a win this weekend for Jon [Edwards] and everybody who’s been a part of his life.

“We’ve got one more tomorrow (in Sunday’s Food City 500 NASCAR Cup race). There’d be nothing better than to cap it off with a Cup win for Jon and all of Hendrick Motorsports. … I’ve got a great car there for (Sunday). We’ve just got to execute like we did today.”