The Complete 2026 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Driver Roster (So Far)
What’s Happening? The 2026 NASCAR Season is fast approaching, and teams are setting their lineups for the coming season. This article…
Caesar Bacarella, co-owner of NASCAR Xfinity Series team Alpha Prime Racing, said that the team is still in the process of sorting out its 2026 plans, stating that APR currently has signed “no drivers for next year.”
What’s Happening? The 2026 NASCAR Season is fast approaching, and teams are setting their lineups for the coming season. This article…
The 2025 season has had its share of highs and lows for the NASCAR Xfinity Series team Alpha Prime Racing.
On one end, the team had two of its three full-time drivers miss the third race of the season at Circuit of the Americas, but throughout the season, the team has put together one of its best statistical efforts in its short history.
So far this season, the team has more than doubled its total number of career top 5s and top tens, and achieved a best-ever race finish of Second at Rockingham.
This was thanks to the efforts of their full-time drivers, Brennan Poole, in his second season with the team, and Parker Retzlaff, in his first season with APR.
The team also fielded their No. 45 car on a full-time basis, with a roster of part-time drivers, and even expanded to a fourth car, the No. 5, which scored a top-five finish with co-owner Caesar Bacarella behind the wheel.
Despite this great effort, Bacarella hinted in a recent appearance on RJ Starcevic’s podcast, The Motor Stardom Show, that the team could see a major shakeup for the coming season.
Bacarella says that Parker Retzlaff, who shockingly made the jump to Alpha Prime this season, may not return to the team’s No. 4 entry.
“I don’t think he’s gonna be with us,” Bacarella said. The driver/owner then said that he hopes Retzlaff, who has had a hit-or-miss time in the Xfinity Series, could join a bigger team, though he would love to have the 22-year-old return to APR.
“I hope he [Retzlaff] might be going to a bigger team. . . I’m proud of the kid,” Bacarella said. So, if he has opportunities, just ‘that a boy, go ahead, go for it.’ But love to have him back.”
Furthermore, Bacarella says the team’s best-performing driver, series veteran Brennan Poole, is still not a guarantee for 2026, meaning the team has yet to sign any drivers for the coming NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series season.
“We don’t know what Poole’s going to do next year still. So right now, we have no drivers for next year, signed. So we’re kind of in limbo. It’s kinda a little sketchy for the first time. We’ve done better, but right now, we have nobody signed for next year.” — Caesar Bacarella
This, of course, does not mean the team won’t field any cars during the inaugural NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series season; it just means they have yet to sign anyone to do so.
This season, many race fans turned the spotlight to the series as a potential hotbed for Silly Season moves in what was expected to be a quiet year for NASCAR Cup Series Silly Season.
Nonetheless, very few moves, aside from rumors and releases, have occurred yet, with the majority of changes taking place at JR Motorsports, which is shaking up its roster by fielding only two full-time drivers in its lineup of four full-time cars.
However, while few drivers have signed with new teams, some key players are already confirmed to be on the move. For instance, former 2025 Playoff driver Harrison Burton has already announced his departure from AM Racing at the end of the season.
Other free agents include veteran Matt DiBenedetto, who has already parted ways with Viking Motorsports. Additionally, Josh Williams, who raced part-time in APR’s No. 45, is seeking a new opportunity following his release by Kaulig Racing late this summer.
Burton is expected to race for Sam Hunt Racing, but there is no news on DiBenedetto or Williams’ plans for the coming year.
What’s Happening? Silly season is shaking up the NASCAR garage area, and recent rumors suggest that Harrison Burton could be returning…
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Where do all the drivers stand after the first official points race in the standings table?
After winning the opening points race of the season at Daytona by leading one lap, Tyler Reddick made it to the top of the standings. Under the new rules, he managed to pull up 58 points. He pocketed 55 for the win and added three more by finishing Stage 2 in P8. He may have squeezed out at least one more had he landed inside the top 10 in Stage 1, but after getting swept into a Lap 5 crash, Reddick limped the Stage 1 in P20, giving him no extra points.
Rounding out the top 10 are Brad Keselowski with 39 points in sixth despite a P5 finish, followed by his driver, Chris Buescher, in seventh with 39, Bubba Wallace in eighth with 37, Carson Hocevar in ninth with 36, and Ryan Blaney in 10th with 36.
Atlanta could be a springboard for Elliott, who owns an average finish of 11.4 across 14 starts there, with two wins, including one in last year’s fall race, plus three top fives and nine top 10s. The track could also pull Kyle Busch back into contention. Having already shown his speed at Daytona by winning the pole, he may potentially pull it off at the 1.54-mile track. The RCR driver sits P14 in the standings, but with an average finish of 8.8 at Atlanta since 2023 across six starts, the place might finally snap his 94-race drought.
Then again, Connor Zilisch has only one start at the track and came home P11 last year when he made his third Cup start there, making Atlanta a stage where he could stamp his mark.
Ryan Blaney will also have a better chance than anyone else to climb through a win or even points alone at Atlanta. The No. 12 Team Penske driver has one win there from 2021, but consistency has been his strong suit, with seven top fives and nine top 10s in 15 starts. And that puts him in a position to move the needle when the field rumbles into Atlanta.
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The Daytona 500 and Speedweeks may be over, but that doesn’t mean the chaos will cool off for the stars of NASCAR’s three National Series, as they roll into Hampton, Georgia, to the high banks of EchoPark Speedway for one of the schedule’s most unique race weekends.
Note: This article will be updated as more information about the weekend comes out.
One race weekend is in the books, and a 36-week march back to Florida is underway for the three NASCAR National Series. Whether you are going to be at the track or home, what does the forecast look like for the race weekend in Hampton, Georgia?
Before the Races (10:00 AM – 2:00 PM)
During the Truck Race (2:00 PM – 5:00 PM)
During the OAP Series Race (5:00 PM – 8:00 PM)
After the Race (8:00 PM – 11:00 PM)
Before the Race (11:00 AM – 3:00 PM)
During the Race (3:00 PM – 7:00 PM)
After the Race (7:00 PM – 10:00 PM)
NASCAR got lucky at EchoPark in 2025, and, as a matter of fact, everywhere else, but that doesn’t mean weather hasn’t affected the track’s races in the past with spot showers and major showers taking on race weekends. Take the summer of 2023, when the race took on a large rain shower that resulted in the race ending after just 185 laps, with race winner William Byron the leader at the time of caution.
Note: This article will be updated with a more accurate and detailed forecast as the race weekend nears.
