Connor Zilisch suffered lower back injuries in a late crash during the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Talladega Superspeedway this past Saturday, and as a result, he will not compete in this coming Saturday afternoon's Andy's Frozen Custard 300 at Texas Motor Speedway.
Kyle Larson, who competes full-time for Hendrick Motorsports in the Cup Series, has been called upon to replace Zilisch behind the wheel of the No. 88 Chevrolet for this 200-lap race around the four-turn, 1.5-mile (2.414-kilometer) Fort Worth, Texas oval.
Larson competed in two Xfinity Series races earlier this year, but he has not competed for JR Motorsports since 2022, when he won at Watkins Glen International in the No. 88 car.
Kyle Larson to step in for Connor Zilisch
Earlier this season, Larson competed in the Xfinity Series races at Homestead-Miami Speedway and Bristol Motor Speedway, both times for Hendrick Motorsports. He finished in fourth at Homestead after losing the lead on a late restart, a restart which ultimately prevented him from securing a tripleheader sweep, and he scored a dominant win at Bristol.
Because of the nature of his absence, Zilisch is presumably set to receive a playoff waiver, keeping him locked into the postseason since he won at Circuit of the Americas earlier this season. He currently sits in sixth place in the point standings.
The absence comes at the best possible time for the 18-year-old Charlotte, North Carolina native, as the Xfinity Series has off both next week and the following week. As a result, he effectively gets a four-week break to recover before the next race on the schedule at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Saturday, May 24.
The CW Network is set to provide live coverage of the Andy's Frozen Custard 300 from Texas Motor Speedway beginning at 2:00 p.m. ET this Saturday, May 3. Begin a free trial of FuboTV today if you have not yet had the opportunity to do so!