Trackhouse Racing letting Zilisch walk would be a dereliction of duty

Trackhouse Racing driver Connor Zilisch. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Trackhouse Racing letting Connor Zilisch walk would be a dereliction of duty

By Samuel Stubbs | Last updated Jul 28, 2026 4:16 PM ET

Connor Zilisch is a frontrunner to take over Alex Bowman's seat at Hendrick Motorsports when the 2028 NASCAR Cup Series season rolls around, and Trackhouse Racing owner Justin Marks did little to quell the fears of fans who don't want Trackhouse to lose the promising 20-year-old driver after just two seasons.

"He's probably coveted for everybody," Marks said on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. "He's a very talented driver. He's a very smart young man. He's got a big career in front of him. We are committed to Connor, Connor's committed to us through the end of 2027.

"2028, although it'll be here quickly, is a little too far away I think for us to be spending a lot of bandwidth on that at the moment."

While there's still a year-and-a-half left before Zilisch could potentially leave Trackhouse for HMS, Marks' comments seem slightly tone deaf. Losing a prospect as good as Zilisch would be an enormous blow for Trackhouse, which has talented but older drivers in Shane van Gisbergen (37) and Ross Chastain (33) racing alongside him.

"2028 [. . .] is a little too far away I think for us to be spending a lot of bandwidth on at the moment."@TeamTrackhouse owner Justin Marks on the rumors about @ConnorZilisch's future after 2027.

Full Interview ➡️ https://t.co/MKhd9eLpQA pic.twitter.com/6Df51UmE2m
— SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Ch. 90) (@SiriusXMNASCAR) July 28, 2026

It may be hard for Trackhouse to find replacement if Connor Zilisch leaves

Trackhouse has been down on speed for much of 2026, and if Zilisch leaves, it'd be hard to convince many drivers to fill his spot at an organization that is in dire need of a quick turnaround.

It'd likely be difficult for Trackhouse to match the money and opportunity Hendrick will offer Zilisch when the time comes, but to not even try to keep the young star would be a poor choice by Marks and Trackhouse. If Zilisch, who will have two years of Cup experience under his belt come 2028, gets behind the wheel of a Hendrick Chevrolet, he'll be a threat to win on a weekly basis.

There's roughly 16 months left before the end of the 2027 season and Zilisch's potential departure from Trackhouse. That might seem like a long time, but keeping the best prospect NASCAR's seen in decades seems like a priority worth taking up a little extra bandwidth for Marks and company.

Samuel Stubbs

Hailing from the same neck of the woods as NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin, Samuel has been covering NASCAR for Yardbarker since February 2024. He has been a member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) since October of 2024. When he’s not writing about racing, Samuel covers Arkansas Razorback basketball for Yardbarker

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