The JR Motorsports driver started from pole position but began to have brake issues late in Stage 1 and lost the lead to eventual winner Shane van Gisbergen.
Those issues got worse in Stage 2, and he lost ground to the leaders. Eventually, the left rear brake rotor blew and forced the team into repairs.
Despite dropping to the rear of the field, Zilisch fought his way through to be a top five runner inside the final five laps.
However, that was undone when Corey Day in the #17 Hendrick Motorsports Camaro tipped the #1 JR Motorsports Camaro into a spin coming out of Turn 2 with three laps left.
Zilisch had just pulled off a pass when Day tagged his right rear and spun him nose-first into the adjacent barrier.
Connor Zilisch spins off the track during a late push for the front. pic.twitter.com/95ukfAlBaV
— The CW Sports (@TheCW_Sports) February 28, 2026
Day finished fifth while Zilisch limped home in 21st.
“I think everybody saw what happened. I don’t need to explain myself,” said Zilisch.
“Our Roto-Rooter Chevrolet was really fast. We had to change the rear brake and the entire calliper. I hate that it ended like that for us.
“We were going to finish top five there, and it’s the same guy that every week does this. Hopefully, he can figure it out.
“It was a lot of fun. We made a lot of ground and we were one of the fastest cars all day long.
“All I want is an apology, but the guy just stands over there and stares at me and makes it worse. But he’ll figure it out.”
Day, who spoke immediately after Zilisch on the Fox broadcast, was apologetic over the clash.
“We had some part of the pan under the front end there – come loose, or something – and I lost a lot of my platform, my front turn there,” Day explained.
“It was really difficult in any high speed corner. Really nose up. The splitter was not close to the ground, so I was struggling for turn.
“He got right in front of me there, and as soon as he did and crossed over my nose, I lost the little bit of what I had left.
“I’m going to get no sympathy for that off my track record. It wasn’t intentional. I didn’t want to wreck him or have that happen.
“I’ve got no problem going over there and talking to him. It was my mistake, whether I had a broken race or not. I’ll own up to it, I’ll go and apologise, no problem.”
The NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series continues at Phoenix on March 8.
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