“Better than anyone I’ve seen”: Joey Logano backs future ‘champion’ Connor Zilisch ahead of Cup Series move 

Reigning NASCAR Champion Joey Logano recently shared his candid thoughts about young sensation Connor Zilisch's transition to the Cup Series. The Team Penske star offered high praise for the Xfinity rookie as he prepares for a full-time Cup season with Trackhouse Racing next year.

Logano, who has been in the sport for almost two decades, has seen the likes of Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, and Tony Stewart in NASCAR's premier series. With three titles, one Daytona 500, and 37 Cup wins under his belt, #22 driver called 19-year-old Zilisch a promising talent he's ever seen entering the stock-car racing series.

Speaking on the recent Rubbing is Racing podcast, Logano endorsed Zilisch to be a future NASCAR Cup champion and said:

"He'll be a champion someday. When that is, I'm not sure. He's a very well-rounded race car driver from track's perspective. Is he going to have to go through a learning curve in the Cup side? Sure. Because everybody in the Cup level was a standout in Xfinity. But he'll have a little bit of a learning curve. There's no doubt."

With 10 wins and 18 top-fives under his belt, Zilisch has been the most dominant driver in the Xfinity field. Moreover, in his just 4 Cup starts, the prodigy has managed a P11 finish earlier this year at Atlanta.

While Logano admitted Zilisch will undergo a learning curve with the Next Gen under the hood. He didn't shy away from emphasizing the young JRM talent to be the only one to go toe-to-toe with Shane van Gisbergen, a road course master in the current NASCAR generation. Logano continued:

"Is he coming in better than anyone I've seen in my career? Yeah... I mean, I think he's the only driver in the Xfinity series that goes up against (Shane) Van Gisbergen on a road course."

On the Cup Series playoffs front, Joey Logano managed to sneak past into the Round of 8 with just enough points ahead of Ross Chastain. As if writing, the 35-year-old will contest at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where he previously won and secured a Championship 4 spot on the way to his Cup title.

---

Joey Logano believes 'staying alive' is the ultimate key to surviving the playoffs

Joey Logano - NASCAR: Bank of America ROVAL 400 - Source: Imagn

After an underwhelming start to the 2025 NASCAR season, Joey Logano has shown impressive speed since the start of the playoff rounds. Other than winning and advancing to the next round, the Ford driver believes surviving and being consistent play a vital role in the current playoff format.

In a conversation with SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, Logano said:

"The goal is to obviously win when it matters the most. And right now is when it matters the most. There's the most on the line.The championship's always the number one goal. And, um, no matter where you start the playoffs, as long as you're still in it, you've got a chance. And we've proven that in the past many times. So we've got to stay alive. Just continue to move on."

Ahead of the first Round of 8 race at Las Vegas, Joey Logano is placed 24 points below the cutline. Meanwhile, his Penske teammate Ryan Blaney is 6 points above the bubble.

Get the latest NASCAR All-Star race news, Xfinity Series updates, breaking news, rumors, and today’s top stories with the latest news on NASCAR.

Edited by Sashwat Deo