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There are a lot of changes for the NASCAR Xfinity Series heading into 2025! Rockingham is coming back for the first time in over 20 years, and Justin Allgaier will be looking to defend his title. But he’ll have some steep competition. Of course, the mainstays, like Austin Hill, Sheldon Creed, and Sam Mayer, will be returning. But there’ll also be new faces. Here are the drivers you need to watch out for during the 2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series Season!
One of the more impressive outings in 2024 for the youngsters on this list was Carson Kvapil. Kvapil has had a successful career up to this point on the short-track scene. In 2021, he won the CARS Tour Super Late Model Championship. In both 2022 and 2023, he won the CARS Tour Late Model Stock title. He has run a couple of ARCA Menards Series races and really impressed with 3 top-5 finishes in 3 starts. He made his truck debut in 2023, driving the Spire number 7 Chevy at Bristol. Kvapil brought it home in the 12th position.
In 2024, he made select starts for JR Motorsports in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving their part-time number 88 entry. During his debut at Martinsville Speedway, Kvapil contended for the win and finished 4th. He followed that up with a runner-up finish at Dover. He went on to get a top-5 finish at New Hampshire and a top-10 finish at Indianapolis.
For the 2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series Season, Kvapil will be running the number 1 entry for JRM, replacing Sam Mayer, who shifts over to Haas Factory Team’s number 41. Kvapil turned some heads last year, and for good reason. He’ll be one to watch next year as he contends for his first Xfinity Series title.
Perhaps unfairly overshadowing Kvapil going into 2025 is his JRM teammate, Connor Zilisch. But Zilisch turned quite a few heads last year in his own right. A road course racer by trade, Zilisch won in his debut at Watkins Glen, driving JRM’s part-time 88 entry. He followed that up with a pair of 4th place finishes at Kansas and Phoenix and a 12th place finish at Homestead.
Zilisch also made several starts in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series for Spire Motorsports. In his debut for the series, he drove the number 7 truck to a fourth-place finish at COTA. He also made a handful of ARCA starts. He didn’t run the full season, but he was able to capture 5 wins and 2 runner-up finishes on the year. That’s pretty darn impressive if you ask us!
Zilisch will take that number 88 car full-time in 2025, replacing Brandon Jones’ number 9 entry as he heads back to JGR. It wouldn’t be totally out of the question to see these two JRM guys battling for a championship come Phoenix.
Jesse Love is the only driver on this list returning for a second full-time season in the series. But it’s for good reason. In his rookie season, Jesse Love had a very good year. Despite his 2024 season getting off to somewhat of a slow start, he proved just how good he was at Phoenix in the spring with a 2nd place finish. He then put together a string of 6-straight top-10 runs as he finally broke through and got his first win at Talladega.
The ‘Dega win turned out to be his only one of the year. But 7 top-5 finishes and 18 top-10s is nothing to scoff at. He’ll be looking to build and improve heaving into 2025. And with how well Austin Hill ran last year, there’s no doubt that he could be a championship threat next year.
A few truckers are graduating to the NASCAR Xfinity Series from the Truck Series for the 2025 season. Nick Sanchez is one of them. Sanchez ran two consecutive NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Seasons in 2023 and 2024, driving the number 2 truck for Rev Racing. In 2023, he went winless and ran consistently enough for a 6th-place points finish. In 2024, he captured his first win. That win came in the season-opening race at Daytona. He also captured his second career victory at Charlotte in late spring. He narrowly missed the Championship 4 in 2024, finishing 5th in the overall standings.
In 2025, Sanchez will be driving the number 48 car for Big Machine Racing, replacing Parker Kligerman. Kligerman has had some decent runs in this car and looks for Sanchez to continue that legacy in 2025.
Christian Eckes has a very successful career in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. He ran his first full-time season in 2022, driving ThorSport’s number 98 entry. For the 2023 and 2024 seasons, he drove the number 19 NAPA Chevy for McAnally-Hilgemann Racing. He captured his first win for the team at Atlanta in 2023 and went on to win 4 races that season, including the season finale at Phoenix. Unfortunately, he did not advance to the Championship 4 in 2023, finishing 5th in the overall standings. He rectified that in 2024. This year, he had the best season statistically with 4 wins, 15 top-5s, and 22 top-10s. That includes 21 straight top-10 finishes.
He made the 2024 Truck Series Championship 4 but came up short, finishing 3rd of the championship contenders. He hope to have a little more luck in the Xfinity Series for 2025. Maybe he’ll be able to elevate that Kaulig number 16 team.
Who do you think we ought to keep an eye on in the Xfinity Series come 2025? Let us know, Daily Downforce readers! We hope you’re having a great holiday! Keep tuning in here at DailyDownforce.com for all the latest news and stories in the world of NASCAR.
