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WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. — Teen sensation Connor Zilisch raced to a win in his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut, saving enough fuel in a wreck-marred finish to take the first of what many in the industry expect to be many checkered flags on Saturday at Watkins Glen International.
Zilisch, who turned 18 in July, spent the majority of the race leading in the No. 88 Chevrolet for JR Motorsports and was nowhere near the chaos in the back of the pack, but he was forced to stretch his fuel.
The race was red-flagged for about 20 minutes and the race was eventually forced into double overtime — though there was never a real battle for the lead.
“I’ve worked so hard for this one,” Zilisch said. “I’ve been working on this one for months. It’s so special.”
Zilisch has been pegged by many in NASCAR as one of the next big future stars.
His future truly started at Watkins Glen.
“He’s been really impressive,” Cup driver William Byron said. “He’s doing all the right things and making a lot of speed out there.”
Zilisch was go-karting before he started school, and raced in Europe until he was urged by former NASCAR star Kevin Harvick to try stock car racing. Zilisch signed a multiyear development deal earlier this year with Trackhouse Racing.
He’s run a variety of different series this year in the CARS Tour, ARCA, Trans-Am, IMSA and Trucks. Once he turned 18 in July, he was entered into four Xfinity Series races for JR Motorsports.
Zilisch made an instant impact at The Glen when he trounced the field a night earlier and won the ARCA Series race.
Zilisch had just two career starts in the NASCAR national ranks, both earlier this season in the Truck Series. Pressure? He won the pole and finished fourth at Circuit of the Americas in Texas.
He landed with an Xfinity team that all but guarantees future success.
Zilisch joins the team owned by retired NASCAR great Dale Earnhardt Jr., a perennial Xfinity title contender that has helped launched Cup Series careers for Chase Elliott, Brad Keselowski, Byron and Tyler Reddick, among others. He’ll finish this season for Earnhardt with speedway starts at Kansas, Homestead-Miami and Phoenix.
“It’s special to come out here and win my first race,” Zilisch said. “Hopefully the first of many.”
Zilisch won the pole and won the first stage before he ran into his only hiccup in the race, a penalty for cutting the course during a caution that dropped him out of the top three.
He regained his lead late and earned the win — yes, a true dream come true.
“There’s a lot to think about when you’re going into your debut like this,” Zilisch said. “I had my own hotel room, so nobody to talk to, just kind of lay there in thought and dream about winning.”
Zilisch became the seventh driver in Xfinity history to win his first race in the second-tier series.
Just hold the bubbly — because he’s only 18, Zilisch was forced to spray an energy drink in victory lane.