Kevin Harvick reveals advice he gave Connor Zilisch and his father

A year ago, Connor Zilisch was a niche prospect, still finding his place. Now, thanks to Kevin Harvick, he’s a NASCAR star in the making. The Closer spotted Zilisch while out in Europe.

Kevin Harvick has had his son Keelan racing in karts for years now. During the summer, the young Harvick has frequented the European karting circuit, racing in Italy and elsewhere.

It just so happens that Connor Zilisch was out there as well. It was there that Harvick noticed Zilisch and his knack for braking into corners, his control, and his natural racecraft. On the latest episode of his Happy Hour podcast, Harvick opened up about how it all happened.

“He was racing go-karts with Keeland. I recognized that he had that generational talent to be able to do the things he’s doing in a car right now,” Kevin Harvick explained to Brad Keselowski. “I went and asked his dad one day and I said, ‘What’s your plan here? What are you going to do with Connor?’ He said, ‘Well, I think we’re going to go run some spec Miatas and I’m gonna make him go to school.’ And I told him, I said, ‘I don’t know if that’s the best decision that you could make with what he can do in this kart.’ He’s like, ‘You really think so?’

“So, we went out and we got him a test with Silver Hare to go up and drive the car, and he went up, and William Byron was there the day before, he went one second faster than William Byron did at VIR [Virginia International Raceway] and the Silver Hare team was like ‘Wow, this is unbelievable.’ Next thing you know, he was driving a race and then he’s gone on to do all the things that he’s done.”

2024 has proven that Connor Zilisch is the real deal. Kevin Harvick saw it a few years ago in Europe and now everyone in America is starting to see it. Zilisch is the first and only American to win the prestigious CIK-FIA Karting Academy Trophy.

Drivers like Charles Leclerc have won the trophy as well as F1 Academy champion Marta Garcia. IndyCar driver Rinus VeeKay was a podium finisher in 2014.

In 2024 alone, Zilisch has won a Mazda MX-5 Cup race, two IMSA LMP2 class races at Daytona 24H and Sebring 12H, won at Hickory in the CARS Tour Late Model Stock class, won three ARCA races, and set a qualifying record at COTA in the Truck Series.

Don’t be shocked when you see the 17-year-old suiting up in the Cup Series. Zilisch has plans to become the youngest champion ever in NASCAR’s top series, so he needs to start soon.