NASCAR Silly Season is just around the corner. At the same time, no drivers have officially entered the free agent market, switched teams, or obtained a long-awaited promotion, some drivers have already presented themselves as clear candidates to be on the move this silly season. So, focusing on NASCAR‘s lowest national series, the Craftsman Truck Series, who are the drivers who could make the jump to the NASCAR Xfinity series in 2026?
A quick promotion would be pretty crazy for Kaden Honeycutt, as he is just one year removed from racing on the short track scene while piecing together a part-time NASCAR National Series schedule. But as part of that, jumping around, the former CARS Tour Pro Late Model Division champion is no stranger to different types of race craft. He even has two career Xfinity series starts.
So far in 2025, Honeycutt, who is not running for Rookie of the Year as he had multiple Truck Series starts prior to this season, is off to a good start in the Niece Motorsports No. 45. He currently sits ninth in points with six top-ten finishes in ten starts. These stats become all the more impressive when you realize that Honeycutt is only 22 years old and extremely experienced.
As a second-generation driver, most expect to see Layne Riggs around NASCAR for years to come. Most fans also expect the 23-year-old to make a real run at the highest levels of NASCAR, including time in the Xfinity Series. So far in his short career in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, Riggs has two career wins. He, like Honeycutt, also has select starts in the NASCAR Xfinity series.
So far in 2025, Riggs has three top-five finishes and four top-ten finishes. Sitting eighth in points, his Front Row Motorsports entry has improved on its 2024 averages so far this season. Though he has yet to find victory lane this year, Riggs could have a long-term future in NASCAR. The only question is, if he finds his way to the Xfinity Series, what route could he take, and what spots would have to open up for that to happen?
While Riggs and Honeycutt are relatively familiar faces to the Craftsman Truck Series, their tenures are far from that of Tyler Ankrum. At only 24 years old, Ankrum has competed full-time in six of his eight NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series seasons. However, Ankrum, who struggled to find a solid team prior to landing at McAnally-Hilgemann Racing, has just two wins.
But this season, it looks as if the number 18 team has found new life. Ankrum’s finishes this season have created a career-best average finish of 8.1, and he finally broke his long losing streak that dated back to 2019. With strong support from sponsor LiUNA!, perhaps the time is coming soon that an Xfinity series team could pick up Ankrum for a full-time gig.
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