Victory celebrations following Connor Zilisch's NASCAR Xfinity Series-leading sixth win of the 2026 season at Watkins Glen International two weekends ago were abruptly muted after the 19-year-old Charlotte, North Carolina native fell from his No. 88 Chevrolet while preparing to celebrate in victory lane.
As Zilisch lay motionless on the ground, before being placed in an ambulance on a stretcher, taken to the infield care center, and transported to a local hospital, the initial fears were that he suffered some sort of a head injury. He was fortunate to have avoided such an injury, but he was still left with a broken collarbone.
With the Xfinity Series conveniently having had off the following weekend while the Cup Series and Truck Series were in action at Richmond Raceway, Zilisch got an extra weekend to rest, but with the standard recovery timetable for broken collarbones being between six and eight weeks (three to four for children), nobody knew exactly when he'd be aiming to return.
Connor Zilisch included on Daytona entry list
Given the playoff points he has scored so far this season, plus the fact that he would almost be guaranteed to receive a playoff waiver if he misses any races, it was thought that he would not rush to come back.
But let's not forget that he's a race car driver, and he obviously wants to be back in the car as quickly as humanly possible.
While we don't know exactly what the doctors have told him following his surgery, we do know that JR Motorsports have listed his name on the entry list for this weekend's Wawa 250 at Daytona International Speedway.
Whether or not this means he will actually compete remains to be seen. On the surface, it likely means that Zilisch and JR Motorsports aren't fully shutting the door on it at this juncture, but that they have a contingency plan in place in the event he is not able to drive.
When Zilisch missed the May race at Texas Motor Speedway with the back injury he suffered the previous weekend at Talladega Superspeedway, he was granted a playoff waiver, and Hendrick Motorsports Cup Series driver Kyle Larson replaced him behind the wheel of the No. 88 Chevrolet.
In 11 starts since then, Zilisch has racked up five wins, including four in the five most recent events, and has not finished outside of the top five. His average finish during that stretch is 2.18.
Friday's race is scheduled to take place just 13 days after Zilisch's fall.
The Wawa 250 is set to be shown live on the CW Network from the "World Center of Racing" beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET this Friday, August 22. Start a free trial of FuboTV and don't miss it!