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NASCAR Notebook: Connor Zilisch Makes IMSA Move; Brad Keselowski Carrying On

Jeff Hawkins Written by Sports EditorJeff Hawkins
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NASCAR Notebook: Connor Zilisch Makes IMSA Move; Brad Keselowski Carrying On

NASCAR Xfinity Series regular-season champion Connor Zilisch remains poised to display his versatility. Zilisch plans to compete in an IMSA-sanctioned test at Daytona International Speedway. The three-day session begins Nov. 14.

About two weeks after losing out on the Xfinity Series drivers’ championship, Zilisch will join forces with Jack Aitken, Earl Bamber, and Frederik Vesti to potentially qualify their Cadillac team for the 2026 24 Hours of Daytona.

Zilisch, 19, posted 10 wins and 18 consecutive top-five finishes. The circuit’s rookie of the year was passed by eventual champion Jesse Love with 24 laps remaining in last Saturday’s Championship 4 race at Phoenix Raceway.

Kyle Larson, who captured the Cup Series title Sunday, texted encouragement to Zilisch.

“This isn’t going to change your career,” Larson posted. “I know it sucks.”

The Daytona test marks the first time Zilisch will drive a LMDh prototype machine. The teenager’s long-term goals include stock car and endurance racing events.

“Hopefully, we’re going to make the most of it and see if this can lead to more opportunities for me in the Cadillac,” Zilisch said, as reported by The Daily Express. “It would be super cool for me to be able to race at the highest levels of endurance racing.

“That’s always been a dream of mine.”

Cup Series Driver Brad Keselowski Plans To Continue Racing

NASCAR Cup Series driver Brad Keselowski wants to carry on.

Shooting down retirement rumors, the 2012 circuit titleholder announced on X (Twitter) that he will return to RFK Racing in 2026.

Keselowski went winless in ‘25. He lost out in the Phoenix finale after entering Turn 3 of the final lap in the lead. The co-owner of the race team overshot the corner, allowing Ryan Blaney an opening to capture the checkered flag.

An 18-year veteran with 36 career wins, Keselowski, 41, posted that he will put off retiring “as long as we can win.”

Jeff Hawkins Written by Sports EditorJeff Hawkins
Jeff Hawkins is an award-winning sportswriter with more than four decades in the industry, in both print and digital media. He joined the Sportscasting team in 2021 following a decade of freelancing. He spent his early career as a reporter for various newspapers in Illinois, New York, Florida, North Carolina, and Michigan, with a particular emphasis as a beat reporter for the Chicago Blackhawks. Jeff earned his bachelor's degree in journalism from Oakland University. Over the course of his career he earned several sports writing awards, including two national awards from the Associated Press Sports Editors for column writing and news reporting. One of the five prized columns included a commentary on NASCAR's increasing corporate influences, particularly in northern racetracks — commentary which you might find Jeff building on as part of the Motorsports writing team at Sportscasting now.  
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