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Connor Zilisch has officially reached the top tier. Chevrolet’s most high-profile NASCAR prospect since series champions Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott is set to join that duo at Hendrick Motorsports under an agreement that will come into effect in 2028.

Zilisch will take over from Alex Bowman, who is set to retire at the end of the 2027 season. He will move into the No. 48 car, the machine made famous by seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson and one that has been driven only by Johnson and Bowman since it was created at HMS. With Bowman continuing for one more year, Zilisch will spend a second season at Trackhouse Racing before making the switch.

This move brings together one of NASCAR’s most highly regarded prospects with the sport’s most prominent team. A now-scrapped one-race championship round format denied Zilisch the title in what was then known as the Xfinity Series last year, but he still produced a dominant spell in which he finished outside the top five only twice across the final 21 races of the season. That run of form also included seven victories in eight races.

Although Zilisch has faced major struggles in the Cup Series as a rookie, the 20-year-old remains well ahead of the usual development curve, and he will still be only 21 when he makes his debut for Hendrick Motorsports. Fellow rookie Corey Heim, a two-time race winner, is 24 and has been competing part-time in the Cup Series since 2024. Heim is finally set to join 23XI Racing on a full-time basis next year, placing the high-profile Toyota prospect at a leading team one year before Zilisch arrives at Hendrick.