At just 18 years old, Connor Zilisch is already turning heads in the NASCAR realm, having achieved four Xfinity Series wins in two years. He also has a growing presence in the Cup Series garage, with many insiders feeling like he would be the one to replace Daniel Suarez at Trackhouse Racing in 2026.
Amid the growing noise of Zilisch taking Suarez’s seat next season, there is also a whisper that he could step away from NASCAR for a bid to join F1. Should that happen, the teenage sensation is sure he can bring the challenge to the young drivers on the F1 grid.
Connor Zilisch Exudes Confidence in a Possible Challenge Against F1 Youngsters
With a new Cadillac team joining the F1 grid in 2026 amid changing regulations, who knows what to expect from the racing world soon? While the vastly experienced Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas remain the favorites to sign with Cadillac, Zilisch’s growing connections with Red Bull could play a part in him joining F1.
Should that be the case, Zilisch feels he can challenge the likes of Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli and F2 sensation Arvid Lindblad. Having recently sat down with Corey LaJoie and Ryan Flores on the “Stacking Pennies” podcast, the 18-year-old revealed he used to race against both these drivers when they were younger.
While he wasn’t quite able to dominate the drivers when they were kids, Zilisch revealed he was still competitive against them. Thus, he feels that if he gets the chance to run against them again, he could be good enough to be competitive once again.
“I wouldn’t say I smoked them, but I was competitive, right? I could run with them. So, you know, I think that I could do it again and be competitive with those guys.”
With a good enough understanding of road courses, the teenage driver feels he can adapt to the F1 courses as well. However, given that most of those races take place in Europe, the atmosphere would take some getting used to for Zilisch, but he has “always dreamed of it.” He feels the chances of him joining the sport “aren’t zero.”
But he knows that joining F1 is no walk in the park, given that achieving a super licence is no mean feat. He will have to labor through the F3 series alongside other points-fetching races in regions like the Middle East.
Thus, the 18-year-old wants to work towards building a solid footing in NASCAR before thinking about making any leap.