Up-and-coming NASCAR star Connor Zilisch has poked fun at the remarkable moment he knocked himself out and broke his collarbone while celebrating a win.
The promising 19-year-old won at Watkins Glen in New York on Saturday but quickly went viral after slipping off the roof of his car while toasting the victory.
He was rushed to hospital and later reassured fans he was ‘getting better’, while thanking the medical staff for their ‘quick attention’.
Now – two days on – Zilisch is able to laugh about the incident and has once again taken to X to reference the incident.
In a post to his 30,000 followers, he wrote: ‘Now that I know I’ll be alright, it’s gonna be tough to make a comeback from this generational aura debt. Dang, at least I won,’ followed by a laughing emoji.
The incident occurred at the end of the NASCAR Xfinity Series Mission 200 race, after Zilisch had survived 82 laps of the track against 37 other cars without so much as a scratch.
After winning the Mission 200, Connor Zilisch inadvertently knocked himself out celebrating
Instead, things turned far more dangerous for Zilisch in victory lane afterwards as the North Carolina native struggled to extract himself from his No. 88 Chevrolet.
As he attempted to hoist himself onto the roof of the car while holding a drink sponsor’s can, Zilisch slipped. Although he nearly caught himself, Zilisch’s foot was still stuck inside his driver’s side window, preventing a clean escape.
Instead, the young racer came crashing down to the pavement, where he lay motionless as horrified onlookers quickly moved in to check on him.
‘Thank you everybody for reaching out today,’ Zilisch later wrote online. ‘I’m out of the hospital and getting better already. Thankfully, CT scans for my head are clear, I just have a broken collarbone. Thankful for all the medics for quick attention and grateful it wasn’t any worse.’
The freak injury capped an already eventful day for one of Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s young drivers with he JR Motorsports team.
On lap 65, Zilisch wrecked teammate Shane van Gisbergen while vying for the lead.
He has since addressed the incident on X and admitted it was ‘generational aura debt’
Zilisch (pictured) suffered a broken collarbone as a result of his spill while celebrating the win
He was dropped to fifth on the restart, but managed to retake the lead with five laps remaining.
‘He did such a great job of getting back through the field and getting the lead,’ crew chief Mardy Lindley told SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. ‘Praying for Connor right now that he´s OK. I think he´s going to be fine.’
Zilisch has battled other injuries this season, including a back problem he sustained during a crash at Talladega.
Since then, however, Zilisch has 11 straight to-five finish, including five victories.
