Zilisch and Hendrick. Was it ever going to end any other way?

Hendrick Motorsports did it again.

Connor Zilisch will drive for Rick Hendrick beginning in 2028, and there is no reason to believe he won’t stay with the organization for many years to come. Zilisch was set to become a free agent after the 2027 season, and with Alex Bowman publicly announcing his retirement less than a month ago for the end of the ’27 season, no time was wasted in making sure conversations happened.

Zilisch was going to be one of the best available free agents, and his talent is not in question. With the right pieces around him and continued seat time, it will bear fruit as the years roll on.

So reminiscent of some of its previous driver hires, Hendrick Motorsports gets its man. Because of course they did.

Think back to Jeff Gordon. He was a star on the rise when he was enticed to jump ship from Bill Davis to Hendrick Motorsports beginning in 1993. That move led to 93 race wins and four championships.

Jimmie Johnson had a flimsy resume, at least in NASCAR, in the early 2000s, when Gordon, in a fitting twist, ended up being the one to go to bat for him. That led to 83 race wins and seven championships.

William Byron was a big prospect in the Toyota camp when Hendrick Motorsports surprised many by signing him at 18 years old. Byron is now a two-time Daytona 500 winner and perennial championship contender.

Hendrick turned a mustache into a monster with Jeff Gordon's arrival in 1993. Brian Cleary/Getty Images

Kyle Larson was persona non grata to many after his 2020 suspension for using a racial slur on iRacing. Hendrick took the time to get to know Larson and decide how he felt about his character. Larson is now a two-time series champion.

The organization had a seat to fill with Bowman choosing to step away, and based on its history, a driver with a long runway was going to get the call. Hendrick Motorsports doesn’t make many driver changes, so the ones that do happen are for good reasons and with the idea that the seat won’t change hands again for quite a while.

Zilisch is going to succeed in the Cup Series, but it will come with time and the right people/pieces around him. He will have both at Hendrick Motorsports. Although the organization might be having a down year by expectations, it is still a destination many drivers would choose. It will always be one of the organizations at the top of the mountain, and the standard of the series.

The unfortunate side of the business now hits Trackhouse Racing with Zilisch choosing to leave. Justin Marks gave Zilisch a shot in NASCAR, helped him get this far, and chose him over another driver, Zane Smith, when it came down to having too many drivers and not enough seats. It wouldn’t have been a stretch to assume that Zilisch was the future of the company.

Marks acknowledged late last month that conversations around Zilisch were probably going to start sooner rather than later, and that Trackhouse would need to make itself a place the driver wanted to be. And when it was time for those conversations (understanding there is always language in contracts about timelines for committing to the current team or being available to discuss other options) to open, Zilisch, facing his first go-around in free agency, decided to look elsewhere. He saw something better than what he has right now, and it seemed to come together quickly.

It’s business, not personal. Trackhouse Racing had a quick burst of success when it arrived, but it hasn't evolved as the rest of the garage to remain a contender.

An opportunity like the one presented with Hendrick Motorsports might not come up again or anytime soon. Zilisch had to take it.

Hendrick Motorsports and Zilisch make a lot of sense, and now that it’s a done deal, the organization has a year to think about how they can build a team around him for success. And in the process, Bowman will get the chance to go out on a far better note than the one being played right now in the No. 48 camp.

And so, this announcement comes as no surprise. Hendrick Motorsports is the success that it is because of being able to sign the talent that it wants, and talent that is often coveted in the sport. Zilisch is the latest driver in that group and should one day see the same type of success as others before him.