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Scott Stump
NASCAR driver Connor Zilisch went from ecstasy to agony in a matter of seconds after a victory in an Xfinity Series race.
Zilisch, 19, roared to his sixth Xfinity Series win on Aug. 9 in Watkins Glen, New York, when a painful celebration derailed his weekend.
The driver was hoisting himself out the window of his car in jubilation in victory lane when the winning moment took a frightening turn.
He was trying to stand up and wave to the crowd when he lost his balance. His left leg appeared to get stuck inside the car, resulting in him whiplashing hard into the pavement. Zilisch was motionless on the ground as his crew rushed to his side.
His team, JR Motorsports, wrote on X at 7:31 p.m. ET on Aug. 9 that Zilisch was awake and being transported to a local hospital. He was released by 9:16 p.m. ET, according to JR Motorsports.
Zilisch then shared the extent of his injuries in a post on X a few minutes later.
“Thank you everybody for reaching out today,” he wrote. “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 injury resulted in Zilisch being unable to participate in the NASCAR Cup Series race on Aug. 10 at Watkins Glen. He had qualified in 25th and was set to appear in his fourth Cup race of the season.
Zilisch is the points leader for the Xfinity Series, just ahead of teammate Justin Allgaier. The series has three remaining races in the regular season, with the next one coming on Aug. 22 at Daytona International Speedway in Florida.
No timetable for Zilisch’s return to racing has been announced.
Scott Stump is a trending reporter and the writer of the daily newsletter This is TODAY (which you should subscribe to here!) that brings the day’s news, health tips, parenting stories, recipes and uplifting stories right to your inbox. He has been a regular contributor for TODAY.com since 2011, producing features and news for pop culture, parents, politics, health, style, food and pretty much everything else.
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