Dale Earnhardt Jr. Sends Encouraging Message To Connor Zilisch Amid Back Injury
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. has shared an encouraging message to Connor Zilisch after JR Motorsports confirmed that he will sit out of the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Texas Motor Speedway.
Zilisch has been suffering with a back injury since a wreck with Jesse Love at Talledega last weekend.
"It sucks to see Connor have to sit out but I'm thankful he is being smart and patient with this injury," Earnhardt wrote.
"He'll be back in the seat and back at the front of the field soon enough."
It sucks to see Connor have to sit out but I'm thankful he is being smart and patient with this injury. He'll be back in the seat and back at the front of the field soon enough. https://t.co/BFy5lyCeyY — Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) April 30, 2025
Kyle Larson is set to replace Zilisch in the NASCAR Xfinity Andy's Frozen Custard 300, which JR Motorsports confirmed in a statement:
"Kyle Larson will sub for Connor Zilisch behind the wheel of the No. 88 Chevrolet this weekend at Texas Motor Speedway as Zilisch continues to recover from a lower back injury sustained last weekend at Talladega."
Dale Earnhardt Jr. speaks onstage as SiriusXM and Dirty Mo Media broadcast from Daytona Speedway for the 2025 Daytona 500 on February 13, 2025 in Daytona Beach, Florida.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. speaks onstage as SiriusXM and Dirty Mo Media broadcast from Daytona Speedway for the 2025 Daytona 500 on February 13, 2025 in Daytona Beach, Florida.for SiriusXM
While speaking to the media following the race at Talladega, Zilisch had commented that he was "grateful to be up and walking."
"Yeah, I'm okay," he said.
"That's one of the wrecks where you move your legs and make sure everything feels okay afterwards. So, very grateful to drive safe JR Motorsports race cars.
"Our WeatherTech Chevrolet was as fast as Xfinity Mobile. We were in the right spot, just, yeah, I haven't really watched it close enough to know what happened. But yeah, grateful to be up and walking.
"Yeah, that's great," Zilisch added. "Jesse's probably my best friend in the world, and I'm grateful to have someone like him who can come and stand in front of me, and you know, give me a hug after that."
NASCAR Xfinity Series: Ag-Pro 300 at Talladega Superspeedway results
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Newsweek
4 hours ago
- Newsweek
JRM and Trackhouse Clash over Connor Zilisch's Return After Xfinity Fall
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. JR Motorsports has confirmed that its NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Connor Zilisch is ready to race at this weekend's Wawa 250 at the Daytona International Speedway. However, Trackhouse Racing, the team that fields Zilisch in a Cup Series car, admitted that his condition is still being monitored on a day-to-day basis, and there is no hurry to put him back in the car until he is completely fit to race. After winning the Xfinity race at Watkins Glen, Zilisch climbed on top of his car to celebrate the milestone. However, he immediately fell head first and broke his collarbone. He underwent surgery to expedite the healing process so he could get back to racing as soon as possible. The 19-year-old driver leads the Xfinity Series championship, and the upcoming race weekend could add to his chances of winning the championship. JRM confirmed that Zilisch will be driving the No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolet this weekend. Zilisch was to race in the Cup Series with Trackhouse the day after his fall, but the injury led to his absence. Now, Trackhouse owner Justin Marks has opened up on Zilisch's racing return, suggesting that a decision will be taken depending on the extent of his recovery. Speaking to SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, as quoted by NASCAR, he said: Connor Zilisch, driver of the #88 Registix Chevrolet, waves to fans as he walks onstage during driver intros prior to the NASCAR Xfinity Series Mission 200 at The Glen at Watkins Glen International on August... Connor Zilisch, driver of the #88 Registix Chevrolet, waves to fans as he walks onstage during driver intros prior to the NASCAR Xfinity Series Mission 200 at The Glen at Watkins Glen International on August 09, 2025 in Watkins Glen, New York. More"It's a balance. It's a balance between a 19-year-old kid who just wants to be in the race car and can't stand not being in the race car and is capable of driving the race car right now. And the other side of that is we need to make a smart decision. What we can't do is rush him back into the car, especially a place like Daytona, get in a wreck and then be worse off than we were before. "So it's kind of a day-by-day deal right now. This will be a big week to see how his rehab goes and his comfort level and all that stuff. And it could end up being a game-time decision. I know that we all want him back in the race car. He wants to be back in the race car. JRM wants him to be back in the race car. But we've got to make smart decisions, so I would just say, stay tuned on that one." Zilisch leads the Xfinity Series championship by seven points over Justin Allgaier. The race at Watkins Glen was Zilisch's sixth race win of the season. Related: NASCAR's Connor Zilisch Gets Trolled by His Father After 'Embarrassing' Fall
San Francisco Chronicle
7 hours ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
NASCAR says Michael Jordan antitrust suit is to force permanent charter no other team has
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — NASCAR argued in its latest court filing that Michael Jordan is suing the stock car series to earn a permanent charter that no other teams possess, and that neither 23XI Racing nor Front Row Motorsports has suffered any harm by racing as 'open' entries. NASCAR also indicated in its 34-page response filed late Monday that it has buyers interested in the six charters that have been set aside as a federal judge decides if the two teams can have them back for the remaining 11 races of this season. NASCAR is prepared to immediately begin the process of allocating the charters elsewhere. These latest arguments are part of the ongoing federal antitrust lawsuit filed by 23XI and Front Row against NASCAR in a fight over charters, which are essentially franchise tags. 23XI, owned by basketball Hall of Famer Michael Jordan and three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin, and Front Row, owned by entrepreneur Bob Jenkins, were the only two organizations out of 15 not to sign extensions on new charter agreements. All the teams were fighting to have the charters made permanent during more than two years of extension negotiations, but NASCAR refused and its final offer was simply through 2031. 23XI and Front Row won a temporary injunction to be recognized as chartered as the case heads toward a Dec. 1 trial date. The injunction was eventually overturned, appealed by the teams and U.S. District Judge Kenneth Bell will hear arguments Aug. 28 on the matter. 23XI and Front Row as 'open' teams do not receive the same financial percentages as chartered teams. A rulebook change in July after the chartered status was stripped from the two organizations ensured that the six cars aren't in danger of not qualifying for a race; starting spots are guaranteed to the 36 chartered cars in every 40-car field. 'Mr. Jordan has said he wants to use the litigation to grant him a permanent Charter that no other team has,' NASCAR alleged. 23XI and Front Row have maintained they will continue to race even if they must do so as open teams. NASCAR has argued that when the two organizations did not sign the extensions they lost all rights to charters and the sanctioning body should be free to move them. 'Plaintiffs' theoretical inability to obtain Charters post-trial also does not justify NASCAR from selling or transferring Charters, because Plaintiffs do not have Charters now because of their own strategic choice," NASCAR said in its filing. "Plaintiffs had multiple opportunities to acquire 2025 Charters, and they squandered them.' NASCAR also argued that a court cannot order the private company into a partnership with teams it is not interested in doing business with. Another argument by NASCAR is that 23XI and Front Row have not been harmed by not being chartered because their drivers have not left the team and the rule change protects them from missing races; Tyler Reddick of 23XI has clauses in his contract that he can leave if his car is not chartered. Additionally, NASCAR said it pays teams a higher percentage than even Formula 1 does and that its payout structure to teams proves it is not a monopoly because it was increased first by 28% in the 2016 charter agreement, and then by 62% in the 2025 agreement. 'NASCAR pays Teams more than even Formula 1 as a percentage of profit," NASCAR said. 'Plaintiffs ignore the pay raises the Teams received. Instead, they focus on a text during negotiations for the 2025 Charter that said an internal version of the May 2024 draft contained 'zero wins' for Teams. "Plaintiffs ignore that the actual May 2024 draft proposed to Teams carried forward the biggest win for the Teams — a massive pay increase — that was set out in the December 2023 draft. It also gave Charter holders an opportunity to obtain any improved extension terms NASCAR offered to third parties and increased Teams' ability to receive investor funding, among other benefits.'
Newsweek
7 hours ago
- Newsweek
NASCAR Reaches Ticket Milestone For Thrilling Richmond Raceway Cup Race
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. The Cook Out 400 at Richmond Raceway was completely sold out on Saturday, as fans flocked to witness the high-speed action that the three-quarter-mile oval delivers. The race turned out to be a huge hit as William Byron clinched the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Regular Season Championship, while Austin Dillon secured his sixth career victory. Richmond Raceway President Lori Collier Waran broke the news of the sellout ahead of the Cup race. She said: "Our fans have long told us that Saturday night NASCAR Cup Series racing and Richmond Raceway are a perfect combination, so this announcement is a testament to them. We are grateful for their enthusiasm and support, which is going to make tonight's Cook Out 400 a celebration we'll long remember." Dillon led the race for 107 laps, a first for the No. 3 in the Cup Series since Dale Earnhardt led 107 laps in his legendary victory in the 1998 Daytona 500. The win marks Dillon's sixth victory in the Cup Series, which came a year after his previous win at Richmond. A general view of racing during the NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out 400 at Richmond Raceway on August 16, 2025 in Richmond, Virginia. A general view of racing during the NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out 400 at Richmond Raceway on August 16, 2025 in Richmond, successfully secured a spot in the playoffs, offering Richard Childress Racing a shot at the Cup Series championship. Addressing his first win of the season, he said: "Man, that feels good, got to thank the good Lord above. I really wanted that one. Last year hurt really bad, just going through the whole process of it. But this one feels so sweet. Man, I love Richmond. "God has timing. His timing is the best timing. ... It's just so special. Every one of these means so much to me. My grandfather [NASCAR Hall of Fame team owner Richard Childress], for all that he's put up in believing in me, because there's been a lot of ups and downs, could have been easy for him to change the drivers in this 3-car. Today it feels really darn good." Byron, who finished the Cup race in 12th place, won his first regular-season championship at Richmond Raceway. He started the 2025 Cup Series season on a high note by winning the Daytona 500 for the second time. He needed to finish 62 points ahead of the runner-up to win the championship. Speaking about the big achievement, Byron said: "It's really the best 12th-place finish I've ever had. We came in here and really just did a solid job. We qualified solid. We always want more, but this is definitely our toughest race track. We just kind of came in here, had a solid plan and executed it. "This team has worked extremely hard. All the guys have worked hard through the summer months. Feel like this has been the best summer we've ever had speed-wise. Had a lot of tough things happen throughout probably really early July. We had a lot of speed, but some crashes in practice and qualifying. Just some car issues and things that happened. Just really, really cool."
