What’s Happening?

The 2026 NASCAR Season is fast approaching, and teams are setting their lineups for the coming season. This article highlights those full-time drivers that will tackle the 2026 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series schedule.

• In 2026, the series once known as the NASCAR Xfinity Series will gain a new title partner in the form of O’Reilly Auto Parts. This major change, the only one to the series as a whole, marks the end of an 11-year run for Xfinity as the Series’ title sponsor.
• This roster is never set in stone; while drivers do have contracts, even some entering multiple seasons, contractual status can change at a moment’s notice. For all drivers’ current known contractual status, make sure to check out our article linked below.
• Nonetheless, these driver extensions and contracts, which are known, are noted in this article. There are rumors and news surrounding several drivers in the field, all of which are noted in this article.
• Please note that this article will be updated throughout the 2025 season and off-season, should any roster or driver changes/signings happen.

Known Open Rides

• No. 25 | AM Racing | Formerly Driven by: Harrison Burton
• No. 71 | DGM Racing | Formerly Driven by: Ryan Ellis

Possible Rookie of the Year Candidates

• Corey Day | No. 17 | Hendrick Motorsports
• Rajah Caruth | No. 88/No. 32 | JR Motorsports and Jordan Anderson Racing

Trucks to OAPS

Rajah Caruth | 2026 No. 88/No.32 | 2026 Team: JR Motorsports and Jordan Anderson Racing | 2025 No. 71 | 2025 Team: Spire Motorsports

• 2026 Status: Caruth will drive the No. 88 at JRM for the majority of his Rookie Season, and, per his own account, will drive JAR’s No. 32 the rest of the year.

OAPS to Trucks

Daniel Dye | 2026 No. TBA | 2026 Team: Kaulig Racing | 2025 No. 10 | 2025 Team: Kaulig Racing

• 2026 Status: Dye will move to Kaulig’s new Craftsman Truck Series team following the announced pause of its Xfinity Series team.

Rides Not Returning in 2026

• No. 10 | Kaulig Racing | Formerly Driven by: Daniel Dye
• No. 11 | Kaulig Racing | Formerly Driven by: Josh Williams
• No. 16 | Kaulig Racing | Formerly Driven by: Christian Eckes

Drivers Making Changes in 2026

Josh Williams | 2025 No. 11/No. 45/No. 91 | 2025 Team: Kaulig Racing, Alpha Prime Racing, and DGM Racing

• 2026 Status: Williams was released from Kaulig Racing after the July 26 Pennzoil 250 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The 31-year-old rounded out his season racing for Alpha Prime Racing and DGM Racing, though he was not able to complete a full season. He has yet to announce plans for the 2026 season.

Connor Zilisch | 2025 No. 88 | 2025 Team: JR Motorsports

• 2026 Status: Zillisch is out at JR Motorsports after a stellar rookie season, earning a full-time Cup Series promotion to race with Trackhouse Racing in the car that Daniel Suarez formerly drove. He will also share the JRM No. 1 part-time with Carson Kvapil in 2026.

Carson Kvapil | 2025 No. 1/No. TBA | 2025 Team: JR Motorsports

• 2026 Status: On September 24, JR Motorsports announced that Kvapil will move to part-time to share the No. 1 with 2026 NASCAR Cup Series Rookie of the Year candidate Connor Zilisch. After several weeks of speculation, Dale Earnhardt Jr announced in November that Kvapil will race full-time with JR Motorsports, though his time will be split between two or three of the team’s five cars.

Harrison Burton | 2026 No. 24 | 2026 Team: Sam Hunt Racing | 2025 No. 25 | 2025 Team: AM Racing

• 2026 Status: Burton and AM Racing announced on October 8 that the two were parting ways after a playoff-contending season in the OAP Series. Burton will race full-time with Sam Hunt Racing in the No. 24 in 2026.

Matt DiBenedetto | 2026 No. TBA | 2026 Team: TBA | 2025 No. 99 | 2025 Team: Viking Motorsports

• 2026 Status: On October 13, Viking Motorsports announced that they were parting ways with DiBenedetto immediately, with Truck Series driver Connor Mosack set to complete the 2026 season. There are no rumors as to who will drive the No. 99 nor where DiBenedetto will go in 2026.

Ryan Ellis | 2026 No. 02 | 2026 Team: Young’s Motorsports | 2025 No. 71 | 2025 Team: DGM Racing

• Ellis is coming off his first season at DGM Racing and will not return, as he takes his talents and sponsor TabloTV to Young’s Motorsports. Ellis will drive the No. 02 full-time for Young’s, marking their first every full-time NOAPS entry.

Parker Retzlaff | 2026 No. 99 | 2026 Team: Viking Motorsports | 2025 No. 4 | 2025 Team: Alpha Prime Racing

• Retzlaff will move from Alpha Prime Racing’s No. 4 to drive the No. 99 of Viking Motorsports, formerly driven by Matt DiBenedetto.

Team’s Making Changes in 2026

JR Motorsports No. 1 | 2025 Driver: Carson Kvapil

• 2026 Status: The No. 1 remains full-time in 2026, however, with part-time drivers. Carson Kvapil will scale back to part-time status, sharing the ride with 2026 NASCAR Cup Series Rookie of the Year candidate Connor Zilisch. Former Spire Motorsports and Stewart-Haas Racing Cup Series Champion Crew Chief Rodney Childers will call the shots for the team.

JR Motorsports No. 88 | 2025 Driver: Connor Zilisch

• 2026 Status: The No. 88 remains full-time in 2026, although it will have part-time drivers. The first announced driver is Rajah Caruth, a veteran of the Spire Motorsports Truck Series who will drive the car for the bulk of the season.

Drivers With No Known Contractual Status

Anthony Alfredo | 2025 No. 42 | 2025 Team: Young’s Motorsports

• Alfredo is coming off his first season with Young’s. No plans for a 2026 effort have been announced.

Blaine Perkins | 2025 No. 31 | 2025 Team: Jordan Anderson Racing

• Perkins is coming off his first season with JAR. No plans for a 2026 effort have been announced.

Brennan Poole | 2025 No. 44 | 2025 Team: Alpha Prime Racing

• Poole is coming off his second season with Alpha Prime. No plans for a 2026 effort have been announced. During an interview, team co-owner Caesar Bacarella said the team doesn’t know “what Poole’s going to do next year.”

Christian Eckes | 2025 No. 16 | 2025 Team: Kaulig Racing

• Eckes is coming off his first season with Kaulig. With the pause of Kaulig’s Xfinity Series team, he will have to make new plans for 2026.

Jeb Burton | 2025 No. 27 | 2025 Team: Jordan Anderson Racing

• Burton is coming off his third season with JAR. No plans for a 2026 effort have been announced.

Ryan Ellis | 2025 No. 71 | 2025 Team: DGM Racing

• Ellis is coming off his first season with DGM. During the Round of Eight cutoff race at Martinsville, the team announced that Ellis will not return to DGM in 2026.

Taylor Gray | 2025 No. 54 | 2025 Team: Joe Gibbs Racing

• Gray is coming off his first season with JGR. No plans for a 2026 effort have been announced.

William Sawalich | 2025 No. 18 | 2025 Team: Joe Gibbs Racing

• Sawalich is coming off his first season with JGR. No plans for a 2026 effort have been announced.

The 2026 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Roster

No. 00 | Sheldon Creed | Haas Factory Team

Creed will return to the Haas Factory Team in 2026. The team announced this as part of an overall shift to Chevrolet for 2026, reuniting Creed with the OEM that gave him his start in the OAPS Series and the one with which he won his 2020 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Championship.

No. 02 | Ryan Ellis | Young’s Motorsports

Ellis will play a major role in expansion for Young’s Motorsports as he brings along sponsors like TabloTV to the team’s new No. 02 Entry. In 2024, Ellis had another solid year in the NASCAR Xfinity Series with DGM Racing.

No. 1/No. TBA | Carson Kvapil | Jr Motorsports

After months of speculation, and thanks in part to a deep playoff run, Carson Kvapil will race full-time during the 2026 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series season. This will be through multiple entries, all fielded by JR Motorsports, with his main entry being the No. 1, which he will share with NASCAR Cup Series rookie Connor Zilisch.

No. 2 | Jesse Love | Richard Childress Racing

NEWS: Whelen Engineering to continue support of No. 2 Chevrolet and driver Jesse Love in 2026.

For more information, please visit https://t.co/MagVYvAJQv pic.twitter.com/sJvEEncFmG

— RCR (@RCRracing) October 24, 2025

Love, who is exiting his second full-time season at RCR, will return to the team for a third year. This shoots down rumors of a return to Toyota that were also pushed aside by the conclusion of the Legacy Motor Club and Rick Ware Racing lawsuit, which determined that LMC will receive its third charter in 2027.

No. 7 | Justin Allgaier | JR Motorsports

Allgaier will return for an 11th season at JR Motorsports in 2026, per a multi-year extension he signed in late 2024. Yet Allgaier will be without his championship-winning Crew Chief, Jim Pohlman, as he shifts to the Cup Series to work with RCR’s Kyle Busch in 2026.

No. 8 | Sammy Smith | JR Motorsports

Signed, Sealed, and ready to Deliver in ‘26.@sammysmithSS returns to JR Motorsports in 2026 with backing from @PilotFlyingJ , @TMCTRANS , and @PeterbiltGroup .

Read more: https://t.co/nxiSLCd1NM pic.twitter.com/4knKVC0l6x

— JR Motorsports (@JRMotorsports) September 8, 2025

JR Motorsports has already confirmed that Smith will return for the 2026 season. This will mark his third season with the team, fourth in the OAPS. So far, Smith has won at least one race and made the playoffs in all four of his full-time seasons in the OAPS.

No. 17 | Corey Day | Hendrick Motorsports

For the first time in nearly two decades, Hendrick Motorsports will field a full-time car in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series for Corey Day. Day, a dirt racing prodigy, has raced part-time in the Truck Series in 2024 and 2025, and, in 2025, made 11 NASCAR Xfinity Series starts in the No. 17.

No. 20 | Brandon Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing

He's back! @BrandonJonesRac is returning to the JGR Xfinity team starting in 2025. pic.twitter.com/OPytaVkvZR

— Joe Gibbs Racing (@JoeGibbsRacing) September 3, 2024

Jones returned to JGR this year after two seasons abroad with JR Motorsports. With a return to his winning ways and consistent sponsorship from Menards and their partners, it seems like Jones will return as a stable veteran in JGR’s full-time roster.

No. 21 | Austin Hill | Richard Childress Racing

NEWS: @_AustinHill has signed a multi-year extension to return to Richard Childress Racing as the driver of the No. 21 Chevrolet Camaro SS in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.

Read more: https://t.co/JU1djAontQ pic.twitter.com/vkWZUtq6EF

— RCR (@RCRracing) August 17, 2023

Austin Hill will likely return for more full-time action with RCR in 2026, having signed his most recent multi-year extension with the team in late 2023, though the team has yet to announce such plans. Hill is one of the series’ most consistent winners, and it seems like a lock for the playoffs every season.

No. 24 | Harrison Burton | Sam Hunt Racing

foundation’s laid and the future is OURS. #LetsHunt pic.twitter.com/ADcVEF6ZPC

— Sam Hunt Racing (@SamHuntRacing) October 25, 2025

Harrison Burton will return to the Toyota camp as the first-ever second full-time driver for Sam Hunt Racing. Burton is coming off a solid season with AM Racing, taking the team to the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Playoffs for the first time.

No. 26 | Dean Thompson | Sam Hunt Racing

Dean Thompson will return to SHR for a second season after a solid rookie campaign. The 23-year-old scored a National Series career high of eight top tens this year with the team, and in 2026, he will have a full-time teammate for the first time in Harrison Burton.

No. 28 | Kyle Sieg | RSS Racing

This year marked Kyle Sieg’s first full-time NASCAR OAPS season racing with his family’s own RSS Racing. The team has yet to confirm his full-time return, though it seems likely he will return.

No. 39 | Ryan Sieg | RSS Racing

Much like his brother, Ryan is likely to return to the family-owned race team in 2026. This would be Sieg’s 12th full-time season in the NASCAR OAPS, and despite the team’s underdog status, Sieg often outperforms better-equipped competition.

No. 41 | Sam Mayer | The Haas Factory Team

In the same announcement that announced HFT’s shift to Chevrolet and the re-signing of Sheldon Creed, the team announced that Mayer will return to the team in 2026. This move also returns Mayer to the OEM with which he broke into the NASCAR National Series and, notably, back in the Hendrick Motorsports alliance.

No. 48 | Nick Sanchez | Big Machine Racing

Fresh off an 8th-place finish at Kansas, @Nicksanchez080 has confirmed he’ll be back with @bigmchnracing in 2026. https://t.co/hhPnkZjy26

— Frontstretch (@Frontstretch) September 28, 2025

On September 27, Dalton Hopkins of Frontstretch reported that Sanchez will return to BMR for a second full-time NASCAR OAPS season. Sanchez was one of four rookies to make the Playoffs and one of two rookies to win a regular-season race in 2025.

No. 51 | Jeremy Clements | Jeremy Clements Racing

Clements has not announced his 2026 plans, though, as he owns his team, it is likely he will be back for more action in 2026.

No. 88/No.32 | Rajah Caruth | JR Motorsports/Jordan Anderson Racing

Rajah Caruth is getting his full-time promotion to the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series after three full-time seasons in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. The 23-year-old is set to drive JRM’s No. 88 for a majority of the season, but claims he will drive JAR’s No. 32 when he is not in the JRM car.

No. 99 | Parker Retzlaff | Viking Motorsports

Retzlaff moves to his third team in three years in 2026, taking his talents from Alpha Prime Racing to another young Chevrolet team, Viking Motorsports. On the face of it, the 22-year-old had a worse 2025 season compared to his 2024 season at Jordan Anderson Racing, though a deeper look shows that his average finish increased despite a drop-off in the quality of race craft.

This article will be updated throughout the 2025 season and off-season, should any roster or driver changes/signings happen.