What’s Happening?

Kaulig Racing CEO Chris Rice confirmed that the two-car team will be without the alliance of long-time partner Richard Childress Racing in the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season amid their expansion into the Craftsman Truck Series with Ram.

Throughout the 2025 NASCAR season, a story that began in Daytona has persisted well into the latter half of the season, as both industry members and fans wondered which teams and drivers would carry the banner for the returning OEM Ram (which is part of the Stellantis group) in the 2026 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season.

While there are no confirmed drivers, in August, NASCAR Xfinity and Cup Series staple Kaulig Racing announced its intention to expand to the Truck Series in 2026, fielding a total of five trucks with support from Ram.

Of course, as a long-time member of the ECR Engines side of the Chevrolet camp, and without a Stellantis brand, such as Dodge, in the Xfinity or Cup Series in 2026, this led to questions about their alliance with Richard Childress Racing.

Not only has the team relied on RCR for technical support throughout its tenure in NASCAR’s top division, but the team’s race shop is a part of the RCR campus in Welcome, North Carolina. Nonetheless, Kaulig has taken steps to distance its Truck program from its Chevrolet operation, even going so far as to create its own social media accounts.

However, distancing the program may not be enough, as recently appointed Kaulig Racing CEO Chris Rice claimed that the team will be “out on our own” in 2026 during an interview with SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Wednesday morning.

Rice, who was breaking down the challenges the team is facing as part of their major reshuffling for the 2026 season, says that they will no longer be able to have their alliance with RCR, meaning the already underdog team will have more responsibilities getting their two cars to the track in 2026.

“We’re gonna be out on our own on Cup. We’re not going to be able to alliance with RCR and do those things. . . So we [are] building our own cup program, building our own bodies and different things like that.” — Chris Rice

While this will likely make 2026 one of the most challenging years in the team’s short history in the sport, this development should no surprise given their new relationship with Ram.

Where Does Kaulig Go From Here?

While the team has yet to confirm a switch to the Stellanis car brand that will join the Cup Series in the coming years, assumed to be Dodge, it is the most likely route for the team.

With ECR engines and RCR support, the team has won Cup races with Road Course ace A.J. Allmendinger, but now, the road course racing market seems to be monopolized by Trackhouse Racing’s Shane van Gisbergen and 2026 Rookie of the Year candidate Connor Zilisch for years to come.

If Kaulig wants to stand out, the team will likely need to take a bold step with an OEM that can give them a level of support not previously obtained by the team.

As Rice stated in this interview, the moves the team is making are for the long-term growth of the organization, stating that becoming a “giant” in NASCAR is a goal of his and team owner Matt Kaulig.

“Matt Kaulig always told me, ‘Let’s go stand on our own two feet for the next 10 years. That’d be 20 years in his sport, and let’s see where we’re at in 20 years. And we’ll be old, we’ll be in our 60s, and maybe we’ll be a giant then,'” Rice said. “And that’s what we want to do.”

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