Connor Zilisch reveals what Kyle Larson told him after Bristol O’Reilly win

Connor Zilisch got some love from Kyle Larson after the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race at Bristol on Saturday. While speaking with Dale Earnhardt Jr. on Dale Jr. Download, Zilisch revealed what Larson told him after he won the race on Saturday.

“He just said, ‘Good job,’ and I gave Mardy some s***,” Connor Zilisch said. “I was like, ‘Why the hell did you pit? We lost that race doing the exact same thing last year.’ He laughed.

“Kyle told me, ‘Good job,’ and we laughed about the decision to pit or not, and I kind of went on my way. It was cool to race against Kyle. I raced against him on Saturday, and we were racing for the win. And then Sunday, he’s lapping me on Lap 40. It was definitely a change going from Saturday to Sunday, but it’s a lot harder on Sunday.”

Kyle Larson reacts to Connor Zilisch beating him at Bristol

Zilisch held off Kyle Larson, who led 230 of the 300 laps at Bristol on Saturday. With the victory, Zilisch earned his first win at Bristol Motor Speedway, and it was his 12th O’Reilly win.

After the race, Larson shared his reaction to Zilisch beating him. “It’s a bummer, but I had a lot of fun tonight,” he said, per Reid Spencer of NASCAR.com. “Our car was really good. Just tough being the leader in that situation of knowing to pit or not… But I’m happy with the run. It just doesn’t always work out.”

Zilisch was happy to win on Saturday, as the Cup Series had been challenging for him.. “It’s tough. You finish in the back every week, and you forget who you are,” he said. “This feels good. We played strategy. Rodney [Childers] made a great call to keep us out. The tires weren’t wearing much all night, and we were able to get our (No. 1) Roto-Rooter Chevrolet in the track position that I needed to go out and win the race.”

At the Bristol Cup Series race on Sunday, Zilisch finished 33rd, and Larson finished third behind Ryan Blaney and Ty Gibbs. In eight Cup Series races this year, Zilisch has finished inside the top 20 twice.