Teen racing phenomenon Connor Zilisch delivers thrilling win in his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut

WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. — Teen racing phenom Connor Zilisch lived up to the hype he generated for his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut on Saturday, winning at Watkins Glen International Road Course after running his No. 88 car on gas long enough to see the checkered flag.

Zilisch, a European-educated racing prodigy from North Carolina, was born in July 2006 and recently turned 18 – the minimum age to qualify for a driver's license in the Xfinity Series, NASCAR's version of Triple-A baseball.

“I'm lost for words,” said an emotional Zilisch after the race. “I've been working towards this for months. It's so special to me, man. I'm going to enjoy it for a while.”

“This is something special. Unique, not bad.”

REPOST to congratulate Connor Zilisch! 🏁

He makes HISTORY by becoming the seventh driver in NASCAR Xfinity Series history to win his debut race. pic.twitter.com/qHcVOpx8FU

— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) 14 September 2024

Zilisch was the fastest in practice, took pole position and led every lap of the first stage – but a bizarre penalty 35 laps from the end threw him back to the back of the field.

Zilisch's strategy was to run on his fuel long enough to avoid having to pit again. And that's exactly what the prodigy managed to do, while crew chief Andrew Overstreet and spotter TJ Majors gave him instructions over the team radio.

The win was another head-shaking moment for Zilisch, a Trackhouse Racing development driver who drives for JR Motorsports, the team co-owned by Dale Earnhardt Jr. This year alone, he won America's two most prestigious road races (the 24 Hours of Daytona and the 12 Hours of Sebring) and quickly adapted to stock car racing with five wins in six ARCA starts (including Friday's Glen).

Zilisch also took pole in his Truck Series debut in March at Circuit of the Americas, but botched Turn 1 and finished fourth instead. But this time, Zilisch drove calmly and error-free – at least until his strange penalty.

After a caution period for Justin Allgaier with 35 laps to go, the three leading drivers – Ty Gibbs, Sam Mayer and Zilisch – mistakenly took a shortcut on the track. NASCAR penalized the trio and sent all three to the back of the field.

“Oh my God,” Zilisch said over the team radio. “I just did the same thing they did.”

It was questionable whether Zilisch could save enough fuel to make it through the two overtimes to the end, but caution laps and a red flag helped him save even more fuel.

“I know you're the best driver here,” Overstreet said before a restart. “Just show them.”

Required reading

(Photo: Sean Gardner/Getty Images)