There is a sense of the guard shifting in the Cup series with younger drivers grabbing the spotlight right through the 2026 Cup season. 

Three young drivers have claimed their first Cup win this season: Ty Gibbs, Carson Hocevar and Corey Heim. While Hocevar and Gibbs are both 23 and have full-time rides, Corey Heim has 2 wins at 24, even before he begins his full-time Cup career next year. 

While these drivers have shown their potential, there is another driver, even younger, whose full potential analysts believe we haven’t seen yet: Trackhouse Racing’s rookie, Connor Zilisch. 

When asked about the different approaches to the career graph Heim is having in comparison to Zilisch, in an excerpt from the Inside the Race podcast posted to X by Steve Letarte, former racer turned broadcaster, Kyle Petty said,

“I think when we look at where Trackhouse is and where 23XI is, they’re competing on the same racetrack but they’re not in the same league. Connor’s potential is being tapped down by the equipment he’s in. Corey’s potential is being magnified by the equipment he’s in.”

Petty pointed at the competitive gap between Heim and Zilisch's teams. On one side, 23XI Racing has become a consistent front-running team this year with race-winning speed and a proper development plan for Corey Heim. On the other side, Trackhouse Racing has struggled for pace and not given Zilisch the perfect car he deserves to showcase his full potential.

His comments came after Letarte said, “I don't think we've even seen what Zilisch is capable of yet.” These questions come despite Zilisch having more Cup starts than Corey Heim. 

In his 15 Cup races, Heim has four top-ten finishes in the No. 67 23XI Toyota, while two of those are wins, the most recent one coming at the Brickyard 400. 

Zilisch, on the other hand, has a total of 26 Cup starts and only one top-ten finish, which came in the form of a 7th place finish in the No. 88 Trackhouse Chevrolet at Sonoma. 

Trackhouse — 23XI difference 

While Corey Heim came off a supremely strong Truck Series year with a record 12 wins in 25 races, Connor Zilisch won 10 races and finished 2nd in the O’Reilly’s Auto Parts Series in 2025. 

The real difference doesn’t come in driver capability but in what each offers and the status of the teams these drivers race for. 

On one hand, Toyota has been the most dominant manufacturer in the Cup series while Chevrolet has struggled across the board. 

23XI, with their alliance with Toyota’s premier team, Joe Gibbs Racing, has been able to tap into their driver strengths, with Tyler Reddick being the runaway leader earlier in the season with five race wins. No team has more wins than 23XI in 2026. 

Trackhouse Racing, on the other hand are supported only by Shane Van Gisbergen’s incredible road course racing abilities. They have picked up two wins through SVG at Watkins Glen and Sonoma, and despite that, the Trackhouse No. 97 may not make the cut for the Chase. 

Unlike 23XI, Trackhouse doesn’t have a similar alliance with Chevrolet’s premier team, Hendrick Motorsports. While they operate under the Chevrolet umbrella, the manufacturer’s dismal season has even impacted Trackhouse’s most experienced driver, Ross Chastain. 

Chastain sits down in 21st, needing a miraculous run in the last 4 regular season races to make the cut for the Chase. Trackhouse’s inferiority in comparison to other teams may see them go without a driver in the Chase this year.

Written by

Debrup Chaudhuri

Edited by

Suyashdeep Sason