What’s Happening?

Leland Honeyman Jr. is in the midst of his first Xfinity Series season with Young’s Motorsports. The 19-year-old is at the beginning of a budding racing career for an up-and-coming team. Here is everything you need to know about one of the Xfinity Series’ most intriguing prospects.

• Leland Honeyman Jr. got his start in go-karting. He eventually moved up to late models and, eventually into NASCAR.
• His full-time ride came after a lot of hard work and determination. He had to deal with a lean year in terms of driving opportunity in 2023, but, it paid off in 2024.
• Fans are excited to see how Honeyman does. He is a driver who seems to have a solid following, and fans like to see drivers like him get opportunities.

Early Life/Racing Career

Leland Honeyman Jr. was born on February 23, 2005, in Mooresville, North Carolina. Being born in the hotbed of motorsports that Mooresville is, Honeyman was thrown into motorsports at an early age, even if he later hailed from Arizona.

According to his website, Honeyman got his start in off-road trophy karts before heading to go-karts at age 7. He won 8 Championships between the two divisions before jumping up to Bandoleros at the age of 10. Honeyman did what he did best and won multiple Championships including the 2017 National Championship, and he backed that up with a Winter National Championship in Legends cars.

This is when Honeyman began to jump into late models. He continued to have success, and he parlayed that into an opportunity in ARCA.

Late Models and ARCA

Honeyman Jr. raced in multiple late model divisions afterward, including two starts in the CARS Tour in 2019. It took him a while to hit his stride, but, in 2021, he found it. According to his website, Honeyman finished 2nd in the 2021 Carolina Pro Late Model Championship, and he soon was in ARCA.

In 2022, at the age of 17, Honeyman joined the ARCA Menards Series East for Young’s Motorsports. He raced full-time that season, winning his first career pole in the second race of the season at Five Flags Speedway in Pensacola, Florida. He finished 2nd to current JR Motorsports driver Sammy Smith.

Honeyman impressed enough to get a one-off start for Young’s Motorsports in the Truck Series that fall at Bristol. He kept his nose clean and finished in 29th, but, that did not turn into a full-time ride.

Move to NASCAR

Honeyman was without a full-time ride for 2023, but, that didn’t mean Young’s Motorsports gave up on him. He made one ARCA start at Phoenix in the spring, finishing 8th.

Honeyman branched out beyond Young’s Motorsports as well in 2023, making part-time starts in the NASCAR Xfinity Series for multiple teams. He attempted 11 races with 9 for Alpha Prime and one apiece for MBM Motorsports and Emerling-Gase Motorsports. Despite failing to qualify for 3 races, Honeyman impressed in the 8 starts he made.

That’s when Young’s Motorsports came calling again. They were moving up to the Xfinity Series, and Leland Honeyman Jr. was tabbed to be the driver.

After a solid start to 2024 with 4 top-20 finishes in the first 8 races, Honeyman had the highlight of his career at Talladega. He survived the late chaos to come home in 4th, his first Xfinity Series top-5 and top-10.

Leland Honeyman Jr. is quietly making a name for himself in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. He’s with a young team, and he is showing flashes of who he can be. How will he continue to improve?