Connor Zilisch to Hendrick Motorsports is a serious rumor going around in the garage, boosted more after Alex Bowman announced his retirement after 2027. Amidst this, who else better than Zilisch’s boss to address the chatter?

Trackhouse Racing owner Justin Marks recently appeared on the SPEED podcast, where he spoke about Zilisch’s contract with them and where the organization’s focus is when it comes to the 88 team.

"Connor's contracted with us through 2027. I think, you know, beyond that, who knows what happens.”

That statement both silences and supports the rumor. It silences them till 2027, but as Marks is unsure after that, the rumors of Zilisch sitting in the No. 48 from 2028 could be true.

This is because, according to their timelines, both Zilisch and Bowman will be free at the same time. Jordan Bianchi’s report on The Athletic also supported this move, claiming the talks between them are on and many sources even consider it a “lock.”

But instead of speaking on Zilisch’s future, Marks put more emphasis on what can be done for his present.

“Frankly, he's a lot better than where he's running. Part of that is the learning curve, and part of that is us needing to put him in a better situation, get him faster race cars, and do the things that he needs to do,” Marks added on the podcast.

Zilisch’s transition to the Cup Series has been quite a rocky one in his rookie year. He has DNFed in one-third of his races, and sits in 34th after 21 races. All of this despite showing race-winning speed, as most of his races have suffered due to bad luck and mechanical setbacks.

“We have to make sure that we are taking advantage of this incredible talent that we have sitting in the 88 car right now and try to get him up the grid and hopefully to Victory Lane."

Meanwhile, after listening to Marks’ words, Dale Jr gave his two cents on the team’s situation.

Dale Jr on Trackhouse’s situation

“SVG is making it on points on a struggling team. He'll get better and so will TH at some point,” Junior said on X.

Surprisingly for many, Shane van Gisbergen has been Trackhouse’s best driver, sitting in 14^th after 21 races. Junior feels his graph will only get better the way it did get better this year compared to 2025.

“CZ may bolt…” he added.

So just like many, even Junior feels Zilisch would take the big opportunity for a better future whenever it arrives at his doorstep.  

And for Chastain, who has struggled this season sitting in 21^st after 21 races, Dale Jr. believes loyalty could keep him at Trackhouse.

“Ross would need a much better opportunity for him to bail on a team that gave him his shot. Loyalty would play a roll in his mind.”

Written by

Suyashdeep Sason

Edited by

Suyashdeep Sason