INDIANAPOLIS -- Twenty starts into his first full season in NASCAR, Connor Zilisch leads the Xfinity Series with five wins. His multiple wins are not a shock; it's the speed of his progression on every type of track that has surprised some.
What is Zilisch's secret? How has he gone from a driver who grew up road course racing to one who could conquer some of NASCAR's most difficult oval tracks?
"It's watching a lot of races," Zilisch told AltDriver after using air to make a race-winning pass at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. "I mean, Riley (Herbst) won the race last year doing the same exact thing (to Aric Almirola).
"Also, everybody at Chevrolet -- Josh Wise and Scott Speed especially -- I've sat with them in a room and watched races and just studied for countless hours.
"I wouldn't know as much as I do today without them. I wouldn't be as good as I am today without them. I wouldn't be the person I am today without them."
Zilisch's talent became evident to NASCAR fans early. Prior to making his first NASCAR start, he won the prestigious Rolex 24 at Daytona. He then won the pole for his very first Truck Series start at Circuit of the Americas and finished fourth after recovering from two separate mistakes.
Zilisch surpassed this feat when he suited up for his first Xfinity Series race. He won the pole at Watkins Glen International and then won after leading 45 of the 90 laps.
He also won five ARCA Menards Series races between these two series debuts.
The expectation heading into Zilisch's first full Xfinity season was that he would win multiple road course races. After all, he grew up making left and right turns both in America and overseas while dreaming that he would one day compete in Formula 1.
Zilisch met these expectations with wins at Circuit of the Americas and Sonoma Raceway, but he also surprised some by scoring wins at Pocono Raceway, Dover Motor Speedway, and Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
The kid who never thought he would compete in NASCAR won on two ovals and a triangle.
The Indianapolis win, in particular, featured Zilisch making two passes in the closing laps by packing air on the left rear quarterpanel of Taylor Gray's car. This was a veteran move regularly made by drivers who grew up oval racing.
Zilisch saw the move was possible during his film study with Wise, who leads Chevrolet's driver performance program, and Speed, a multi-series racer. How did he know when to attempt it?
.@ConnorZilisch with his 3rd #XfinitySeries victory in a row, 5th of the season and 6th of his career!
And he just turned 19!!! 😱 pic.twitter.com/bGfxjVjMUv
— The CW Sports (@TheCW_Sports) July 26, 2025
"He's in different cars all the time," Dale Earnhardt Jr. told AltDriver. "And I raced against him. We were at Florence, and I'm running about fifth, and I'm struggling, tight in the middle of the corner. And he'd been riding and saving his tires.
"And when it came time to go, he drove through me. And I saw him after the race. I was like, 'Damn, he ran over me,' knocked me out of the way. And, you know, he just figured it out."
Earnhardt Jr. has watched this progression throughout the season as Zilisch has driven for JR Motorsports. He's seen the North Carolina native make mistakes and figure out how to best contend for wins on oval tracks.
He has seen Zilisch recover from a back injury and then kick off a streak of nine consecutive top-five finishes, which includes four trips to victory lane.
And while Earnhardt Jr. doesn't know the full extent of the work Zilisch does behind the scenes, he recognizes that the 19-year-old driver is taking advantage of the fact that he began racing at a much earlier age than some of NASCAR's biggest names.
"They're just getting to where they're racing so young and having so much experience before they ever really get to this point that they make decisions," Earnhardt Jr. said. "And you're like, 'Holy cow, how did you know how to do that?' Or, 'How did you know how to make that move?'
"But you could see it. You could watch him in those last handful of laps trying to get to the left rear quarter panel on the 54, when he knew where he needed the time to pass, and how he needed to make it work."
Packing air on Gray's quarterpanel was only the latest sign that Zilisch is progressing at a significant rate. So what is next for the young driver?
Zilisch explained that his focus remains on delivering an Xfinity Series championship to JR Motorsports in Phoenix. It's not on any potential moves he could make up to the Cup Series.
Earnhardt Jr., however, is not shying away from the topic.
"I don't know when or how (Trackhouse Racing will) plan to announce his future, but I think we can all see the writing on the wall," Earnhardt Jr. said.
"And honestly, I think that kid has potential to do incredible, incredible Hall of Fame-worthy things. And I'm glad he's driving our car."