With a dozen screws and a titanium plate in his shoulder, 19-year-old Connor Zilisch isn’t keen to mix it up in the middle of the pack at Daytona. Despite starting from pole position after qualifying was cancelled due to inclement weather, he chose to drop to the rear of the field.
And when an early caution flew for more weather in the area, Zilisch quickly took the opportunity to climb from the car. Parker Kligerman, who was on standby for JR Motorsports, took over the wheel of the No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolet.
It is critical for Zilisch that he perform well, as any points Kligerman scores will be credited to Zilisch in his ongoing quest to secure the regular season championship. However, Zilisch cannot score any playoff bonus points from stage wins or a race win with Kligerman behind the wheel.
Connor Zilisch, JR Motorsports Chevrolet
Photo by: James Gilbert / Getty Images
“It all felt good, as I expected,” Zilisch told The CW after climbing from the car. “It’s just not worth the risk to put myself in danger of having a big wreck and re-injuring something that’s so freshly injured. I’m glad I was able to hand it to Parker. There’s not many guys I’d rather have than him. I’m excited to watch him. Obviously, sucks getting out of a car that’s as fast as Xfinity Mobile (series sponsor plug), and a car I know is capable of winning the race, but I’ve got confidence that Parker will do a good job.”
Zilisch broke his collarbone when he fell off his car while celebrating in Victory Lane at Watkins Glen about two weeks ago. Earlier this week, he was unsure about starting the race, but he has been feeling better with every day that has passed. It even got to the point where a part of him wanted to stay in the car.
“It’s part of it,” continued Zilisch. “It shouldn’t be part of it, but because I fell off my race car, it is part of it.”
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