Next year, Shane van Gisbergen will be joined by Connor Zilisch at Trackhouse Racing for the 2026 Cup Series season. The two NASCAR drivers are elite road course racers and will likely be each other’s biggest competition when they turn right next year.
Shane van Gisbergen has won four times this season alone on road courses. He has five wins in his career and is already the winningest international driver ever in NASCAR Cup Series history.
As part of NASCAR Playoff Media Day, SVG was asked about his future teammate on The Teardown with Jeff Gluck and Jordan Bianchi. The Kiwi is very excited to see how Trackhouse performs as a group next season.
“I hope so, yeah, because that means the team is going well,” SVG said when asked if Zilisch will challenge him on road courses. “You know, and I think having another good road course driver will just push us to the next level. And especially, Ross is not far behind, too, on the road courses. So, we’re pretty strong. But Connor’s pretty fast on the ovals too, so it’s going to be good to see how he goes.”
There are many young drivers in the sport right now. Very talented, young drivers. But these kids, and they are kids, are wise beyond their years. At least, for the most part.
“He’s still a kid as well,” Shane van Gisbergen said about Zilisch’s maturity. “You have some conversations with him, and then you remember that he’s only 19 or whatever he is. But I find the upbringing of the kids here is unbelievable. They’re so far ahead of where I’ve come from.
“Like, racing Keelan Harvick in a Legend Car, he’s 12 or 13, and he’s racing three times a week, and you know, he’s as good as I was when I was 18. And he’s 12 or 13. It’s ridiculous how young the kids here start and how much racing they do. They’re at the motorplex, Trackhouse Motorplex, every week and just always driving. It’s impressive how good everyone here is at a young age.”
That’s high praise from Shane van Gisbergen on both Zilisch and young Keelan Harvick. You know what SVG was doing at 18 years old, by the way? He raced his first part-time season in Supercars that season. He competed in 17 races that year before starting his 16-year career in the series.
So, if Keelan is as good as a rookie-year SVG, NASCAR better look out. In the meantime, these Cup drivers will have to learn how to deal with Connor Zilisch.
