Zilisch preps for NASCAR via IMSA at Daytona

Connor Zilisch is looking to gather some positive momentum at next weekend’s Rolex 24 At Daytona ahead of the start of his first full season in the NASCAR Cup Series. The 19-year-old may be the fourth driver for a one-off the No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R, but he sees it as a big opportunity to get dialed in ahead of his step up to the pinnacle of stock car racing with Trackhouse Racing.

“Obviously, in NASCAR, you’re not allowed to test, so to get any time in a race car is helpful to me,” he told RACER ahead of this weekend's Roar Before The 24 test. “There’s not a lot going on yet in the NASCAR world. Teams are starting to prepare for the start of the year, but I don’t think this takes away from anything. It’s good to get acclimated into racing again – you get two months off, so it’s good to get those muscles going again before you step into a full-time season of NASCAR.”

This appearance is also serving as a palette cleanser and reset, after a heartbreaking end to Zilisch's Xfinity Series season last year, in which he narrowly lost out on the title in the finale to Jesse Love. Falling victim to NASCAR’s now-defunct playoff format at the end of a stellar season was a tough pill to swallow, but this opportunity to fight for the overall in the 24 and the season to come in the Cup Series has helped him move on.

“The excitement of what is to come completely outweighs what happened,” he said. “I try not to think about the past too much. You can’t change what happened. That’s something I try and live by. What I’m doing this year is way more exciting than dwelling on what happened in November.”

Zilisch has already proven highly adaptable to a variety of race cars, and says he felt comfortable right away in his first test of the Cadillac GTP last November. Brandon Badraoui/Lumen via Getty Images

Zilisch isn’t going into the Rolex 24 totally blind. He tested in November’s IMSA Sanctioned Test, getting a first taste of the Cadillac GTP. He also racked up multiple days in a sim and completed additional runs during a winter test at Circuit of The Americas ahead of his arrival in Florida.

“I’ve got the relationship with GM through the NASCAR stuff I do, so to race with a prestigious team in IMSA like Action Express, with great teammates, is really exciting," he said. "I’ve got one test day here under my belt, and it’s going to be good to get some more laps over the next two weeks. We have a lot of work left to do but I feel at home already.

“I feel like I got pretty comfortable quickly at the Sanctioned Test. I wasn’t pushing too hard; I didn’t want to make too many mistakes for the test before the Roar. But it was good to put all the stuff I’d done in the sim into reality and get a feel for what the car’s actually like.

“All the controls and tools you have in the car are very different from what I’m used to with stock cars. It’s been something I’ve had to focus on, but they have great simulators with GM and Dallara, so I feel pretty confident and feel ready for any possible scenario. I’ve probably done five days of sim work running through commands. It’ll be good to put it all to the test.”

He can also draw from his previous sports car racing experience in IMSA, notably in GTD PRO with Trackhouse by TF in last year’s Rolex 24 and his 2024 Endurance Cup campaign in LMP2 with Era Motorsport, when he won both Daytona and Sebring back to back.

“I’ve got a good understanding of the rhythm of the race and just how traffic is flowing, but it’s going to be a new challenge in GTP,” he admitted. “I’m excited for it – it’s going to be one of the coolest things I’m going to get to experience in my sports car career.

“Getting the chance to race for an overall win here is something not a lot of people get to do. I’ve got three teammates who are probably going to take the bulk of the load come race time. I just want to be up to speed and competitive without taking a ton of time out of practice, I’m just really glad they allowed me to come do this.”

Zilisch has shown over the past couple of years that maturity is one of his great strengths. To be handed the golden opportunity to join Cadillac and Action Express Racing for the most important race of its season proves how highly he’s thought of within General Motors’ motorsport division. If he can deliver the goods alongside Jack Aitken, Earl Bamber and Fred Vesti, then it may not be the only time we see him gunning for Rolex 24 and Daytona 500 glory to kick off the season.