NASCAR Clears the Air on Major Overhaul of O’Reilly Series
What’s Happening? Following backlash over an interview with a NASCAR executive, officials within the sport have stepped up to clarify confusion…
Following comments about a potential plan to change the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, NASCAR Hall of Famer and OAP Series team owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. warned officials of making such a move on the latest episode of his podcast.
For the majority of the early stages of this season, many fans felt that NASCAR was lacking a major story.
While the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season may not have an outward movement against the sport’s points format, or a lawsuit between the sport and its teams like in 2025, it was only a matter of time until a major story broke and made waves through the community.
That story came earlier this week, when an interview with NASCAR Executive Vice President and Chief Racing Development Officer John Probst mentioned a discussion of a major overhaul of what is currently the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series.
In this interview with Adam Stern of Sports Business Journal, Probst mentioned that there have been discussions about the use of crossover utility, or CUV, style vehicle bodies in the OAP Series.
While Probst did not directly say it, fans also tied this to the electric CUV stock cars NASCAR had produced in collaboration with ABB, getting the ball rolling on discussions in the fanbase surrounding the potential electrification of the series.
Other executives have since cleared the smoke surrounding this topic, with NASCAR’s Mike Forde saying that there is no plan in place to change the body style of the series, and specifically, that Probst was not talking about electrifying the cars.
Nonetheless, that hasn’t stopped the NASCAR world from talking, with comments from OAP Series team owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. ringing through social media on Wednesday morning.
In the immediate aftermath of this now viral report from Stern, Earnhardt, a well-known traditionalist, commented on X, “I hope this never happens.”
Now, with the latest episode of The Dale Jr Download out, fans can get a better look into what Eanrhardt thinks about these discussions, with the 15-time most popular driver and championship-winning owner saying that, not only does he disagree, but it’s something he and his team, JR Motorsports, are not interested in.
While discussing this matter, Eanrhardt said that this is not the first he has heard of such talks, even mentioning that he thinks the sport has considered electrification in the OAP Series.
“I believe that absolutely the electric car and that body style, and all that, is something that NASCAR is looking at as a possibility for the future of the O’Reilly Series,” Earnhardt said.
One point made by diehard NASCAR fans opposing a change to the OAP Series is the series’ positive gains in viewership and popularity, as it seems to be NASCAR’s most stable in terms of consistent product and viewership.
Earnhardt agrees with this sentiment, though he warns that changing the series would lead to the end of this positive growth for what is still technically NASCAR’s second-highest division.
“Things are going well. We got a great TV partner. We have great numbers. We got great fan engagement. And I think any kind of a change like that, so dramatic as that would be, would destroy the series as we know it. I would not be interested in that. I don’t think JR Motorsports would be interested in that. I’m certainly not interested in that car or that body or any of that. I think they need to leave well enough alone.” — Dale Earnhardt Jr
In the same episode of Hauler Talk where he addressed the talk of changing the series, NASCAR Managing Director for Racing Communications Mike Forde explained why the sport was looking at this.
He said that NASCAR needs to prepare for a world where the sedan, the model of car most often associated with NASCAR (Think Ford Tauruses or Chevrolet Monte Carlo), is no longer made, as manufacturers continue to produce more and more CUVs.
What’s Happening? Following backlash over an interview with a NASCAR executive, officials within the sport have stepped up to clarify confusion…
On the ownership side of the OAP Series, team owners both big and small, including Earnhardt, say that while the series is great, the cars, first introduced full-time in 2011, are more and more outdated, with fewer and fewer parts produced annually.
While Earnhardt says that NASCAR needs to quit feeling ” like everything needs to be improved, fixed, changed,” he also noted that there is still room for improvement and modernization. However, that would not be a dramatic overhaul of the series.
“What I would love for them to do, and this is a big conversation to have, but what I would love for them to do with the O’Reilly car is take that nine-inch forward rearend out of the car that we’re running, and make me a modern version of that,” Earnhardt said.
He then listed other things that could use modernization on the current generation OAP Series car, including the front suspension and the ball joints.
While he said he wants modernization, Earnhardt stressed he wanted no influence from the current, and often criticized, Cup Series Next Gen car, “I don’t want any of that that’s in the current Cup car.”
Closing out the discussion, Earnhardt said that if the sport does anything to the series, it needs to be focused on continuing to build on the current popularity of the OAP Series rather than refreshing it top down.
“This series is working the way it is. So, if we need anything, we need to try to figure out how to keep this thing going the way it’s going,” Earnhardt said.
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