Connor Zilisch wants to become the youngest Cup Series champion ever
Last week at COTA the NASCAR world was officially introduced to Connor Zilisch, the 17-year-old racing prodigy. In his first taste of Truck Series action, Zilisch set a course record in qualifying, won the pole, and finished P4 overall.
For those who didn’t watch the race, it was an impressive showing, with mistakes. Connor Zilisch blew Turn 1 on the first lap, forcing him to pit early. He would end up having to drive through the field a couple of times due to penalties and other mishaps.
However, Zilisch showed that he has pure, raw speed. Not to mention, he’s already won the 24 Hours of Daytona and 12 Hours of Sebring in IMSA this season.
So, what are the ultimate career goals for the young racer? Well, he wants to win Le Mans for starters. He also wants to become the youngest Cup Series champion ever.
“Growing up I always was a road racer and that leads me to want to win the Le Mans 24 Hour, but recently my No. 1 goal has been to become the youngest Cup Series champion. Honestly, I feel like that’s a possible goal, it’s definitely not going to be easy, right, the Cup Series is far from easy but that’s definitely my No. 1 goal.”
Connor Zilisch has a lot of talent. He even has a lot of backers that are already in NASCAR supporting him. Right now he is a development driver for Trackhouse Racing, but if he wants to be the youngest Cup Series champion ever, that will have to change from development to full-time soon.
Three drivers have won a Cup Series championship before turning 25. Bill Rexford, 1950 champion is the youngest to ever do it. He was 23 years, 7 months, and 15 days old when he won his title. Jeff Gordon was 24 years, 3 months, and 8 days old when he won in 1995. Then there is Chase Elliott, 24 years, 11 months, and 11 days old.
Connor Zilisch turns 18 later this summer. He will more or less have six years to make his dream a reality.
Connor Zilisch is already turning heads
When you have support from drivers like Kyle Larson, Kevin Harvick, Ross Chastain, and others – it is clear there is talent there. Zilisch was over in Europe racing karts, more so in the F1 pipeline than stock cars. That’s where Harvick first noticed him.
Kevin Harvick’s son Keelan races in Europe during the summers. That is where the NASCAR champion first noticed a young American teenager zipping around the track and braking better than anyone else out there. It was enough to make Harvick go over and talk to the driver.
It happened to be Connor Zilisch. From that point, Zilisch was convinced to go head-first into NASCAR. This year, Zilisch will race in the Mazda MX-5 Cup, Truck Series, Xfinity Series, Trans-Am, IMSA, and ARCA Menards Series. He will be tested on a variety of tracks and in a variety of cars.
Keep Connor Zilisch on your radar. His talent is oozing out for fans to see. Prospects like him do not come along often. Enjoy this while you can. Sit back and enjoy watching a star rise to the top. He won’t disappoint.