Chandler Smith Confirms the Worst For 2025
What’s Happening? On Saturday, NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship contender Chandler Smith confirmed that he does not have a ride for 2025….
The 2025 NASCAR season is right around the corner, however, there are still names on the free agent market. Here are all the confirmed 2025 NASCAR free agents entering the off-season.
Prior to the season finale at Phoenix, Spire Motorsports driver Chase Purdy announced via X that he will not return to Spire in 2025. This season, driving the No. 77 Purdy had two top fives and six top tens.
In four full-time Truck Series seasons, Purdy has just five top fives but has yet to break through with a win. However, he has seen speed in qualifying with a high average starting position.
While there are no confirmed Truck Series drivers in Spire’s 2025 lineup, there are rumors. But, these rumors, alongside the wording of Purdy’s post suggests that the Spire door is closed for Purdy.
Following his early exit from the Xfinity Series Championship race at Phoenix, Anthony Alfredo told Frontstretch that he is unlikely to be back at Our Motorsports in 2025.
Alfredo has struggled since leaving Richard Childress racing after 2020. This season, however, it looked like both he and his team took a positive turn. While this departure is a bit of a shock, Alfredo always seems to find a ride. Perhaps he can do so as the countdown to 2025 continues.
What’s Happening? On Saturday, NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship contender Chandler Smith confirmed that he does not have a ride for 2025….
Shocking news from late in the 2024 NASCAR Xfinity Series season was that championship contender Chandler Smith does not have a ride for 2025.
Smith put up a championship-caliber performance this season despite falling short for Joe Gibbs Racing. However, rumors followed him late into the year that sponsorship troubles, alongside up-and-coming Toyota talent, could push him out of his ride at JGR.
Smith confirmed his departure following the Xfinity Series race at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Smith was very honest in his comments about his future, saying that he could be working for his dad next year. But, as a young driver with a quality resume and talent, he still has a solid chance to find a ride for 2025.
SIGNED: FRM No. 28 – Truck Series on Dec. 20
What’s Happening? NASCAR up-and-comer Parker Retzlaff is out of a ride at Jordan Anderson Racing. This departure follows moderate speculation after…
After moderate speculation on his future at Jordan Anderson Racing, Parker Retzlaff announced on Nov. 14 that he would not return to the No. 31 in 2025. This release, while tough for Retzlaff, opens the door for other drivers on the free agent market.
Retzlaff is a highly touted prospect for JAR, however his stats in the Xfintiy Series has not back that hype up. With just three top-five and 12 top-tens, Retzlaff’s career is not off to a hot start. However, he did put up a solid run with Beard Motorsports at Daytona this summer.
Following that race, Chevrolet was reportedly upset with Retzlaff for not assisting fellow ECR driver Kyle Busch to the win. However, it is unknown if this altercation has anything to do with his departure.
SIGNED: Alpha Prime Racing No. 4 on Dec. 18
What’s Happening? As the offseason creeps closer, one NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoff driver has yet to announce his plans for 2025….
Riley Herbst has been on the free agent market for some time. His current team, Stewart Haas Racing, is closing at season’s end and rebranding as the Haas Factory team in 2025.
Team owner Gene Haas already announced that Sheldon Creed and Sam Mayer will race for the newly named team in 2025, leaving Herbst as a free agent. While many rumors have tied him to a Cup Series ride, 23XI Racing’s antitrust lawsuit with NASCAR is negatively affecting his free agency.
On the bright side, Herbst has sponsorhship from Monster Energy and his family’s company, Terrible Herbst. Perhaps this backing will secure Riley’s longterm future in NASCAR.
SIGNED: 23XI Racing on Nov. 20
What’s Happening? With the season coming to an end, the rumor mill has been awfully quiet about Hemric’s future. But, a…
Kaulig Racing’s signing of Ty Dillon confirmed that Daniel Hemric will be apart of the 2025 NASCAR free agent class. Hemric, a former Xfinity Series champion, had a quiet yet consistent season in the No. 31.
While Hemric is facing down free agency, he is a likable driver with sponsorship. One rumor this season suggests that he could head to McAnally-Hilgemann Racing’s Truck Series team for 2025. While this is not confirmed, our sources in the garage area have indicated this is a likely route for the veteran.
While Hemric is a champion, he has struggled to win in his NASCAR career. Perhaps taking this step could provide a new lease on life for Daniel.
SIGNED: McAnally-Hilgemann Racing on Nov. 20
What’s Happening? On Monday, NASCAR hosted a test of Goodyear’s wet-weather tire at Homestead Miami Speedway. While this testing is newsworthy…
Ryan Preece is an interesting NASCAR free agent as his future is all but confirmed. For some time now, the main rumor surrounding the former SHR driver is a potential future at RFK Racing.
Several sources suggest that sponsor Kroger could jump to RFK in 2025. Other rumors suggest that with Kroger, RFK will run a third chartered entry in 2025 with Preece as the driver. While the rumor mill has slowed on this paring, RFK has hinted at it throughout the second half of the season.
On Oct. 29, in an interview on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NASCAR Cup Series Managing Director Brad Moran may have accidentally let Preece’s signing with RFK slip. However, RFK has not confirmed this signing.
SIGNED: RFK Racing on Nov. 19
What’s Happening? Zane Smith has had an up-and-down year. While there haven’t been many ups in recent weeks away from the…
Zane Smith was one of the highest-valued prospects in NASCAR last season. His past performances led Trackhouse Racing to sign him to a developmental deal prior to this season.
However, his full-time season with Spire Motorsports proved less than desirable, and Trackhouse released him not even one year into that long-term deal. While Smith elevated his performance late in 2024, rumor spread that he would reunite with Front Row Motorsports in 2025.
However, the ongoing 23XI and FRM lawsuit could leave him a free agent. Much like Riley Herbst, this proven winner is facing an uphill climb entering 2025.
SIGNED: Front Row Motorsports on Jan. 2
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An email sent by former Joe Gibbs Racing Competition Director Chris Gabehart claims that resentment towards him from members of the Gibbs family made him feel that the future of JGR was a “no-win situation.”
Last week, Joe Gibbs Racing filed a lawsuit against former Crew Chief and Competition Director Chris Gabehart, claiming that the former Daytona 500 Champion had schemed to steal vital information from the team in the lead-up to his departure from JGR for Spire Motorsports.
Not even ten days since JGR filed this lawsuit, the two have continued to trade barbs and accusations back and forth through the court system.
In a filing earlier this week, Gabehart accused the team of misleading him in his duties as competition director in 2025, and specifically calling out JGR’s No. 54 team, driven by Joe Gibbs’ grandson Ty, alleging that the team received “differential treatment.”
Friday, an email sent to JGR CFO Tim Carmichael by Gabehart in November 2025 (released as part of this lawsuit) showed just how uncomfortable he had grown working at JGR during his tenure as Competition Director, with the industry veteran stating that Ty Gibbs and his mother, Heather, held “resentment” towards Gabehart.
The now former Competition Director went on to say in this email that, as the two were the future bosses of JGR, “I’m afraid that leaves me in a no-win situation.”
These exchanges, including the claims made by Gibbs in his filing earlier this week, have swept fans into a whirlwind of sorts, with the two sides even meeting in court today for the lawsuit’s first official hearing.
Of course, Gabehart’s claims about the state of operations at JGR pale in comparison to the accusations made by the Gibbs team in their initial lawsuit.
On Tuesday, the team even added Spire Motorsports, Gabehart’s current employer, as a co-defendant, and requested the court force Gabehart to sit out at least the 18 months since his termination before doing any work in NASCAR similar to his role at JGR.
The team is also asking that any information procured by Spire from Gabehart be returned, though the CEO of TWG Motorsports, which owns Spire, Dan Towriss, told Bob Pockrass of FOX Sports Friday that “Spire doesn’t want data from Joe Gibbs Racing. It doesn’t have data from Joe Gibbs Racing. No point in time has it had data from Joe Gibbs Racing.”
Alongside Spire, Gabehart adamantly denied any wrongdoing in a post to social media last week, saying, “I feel compelled to speak out today and forcefully and emphatically deny these frivolous and retaliatory claims.”
What’s Happening? Former Joe Gibbs Racing Crew Chief and Competition Director Chris Gabehart has filed a new response slamming JGR as…
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A few years ago, I looked at the racetracks preserved on iRacing that no longer exist in real life. After digging deeper, I expected to find one common reason they all shut down. Instead, each one tells a completely different story — from booming cities and land value spikes to ownership changes, broken promises, and even mysteries that still don’t have clear answers.
Some tracks were pushed out by urban development. Some lost the one person fighting to keep them alive. Others faded due to declining support — or were never meant to last forever in the first place. No two closures are the same, and that’s what makes this deep dive so fascinating.
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NASCAR’s documentary series “Full Speed,” which used to live on Netflix, had its first two seasons look back at entire playoff runs. But now, NASCAR is shifting the series to Amazon Prime Video for its third season, and the scope of the series will also shift to new storylines.
Dropping on March 5, the new season is aimed at zooming in on one event: the 2026 Daytona 500. Instead of a multi-episode run, this time it’s a single-episode documentary that goes all in on one race.
The film will follow big names and storylines from the Daytona 500. It will spotlight the winner, Tyler Reddick, and lean into driver storylines around the weekend. That includes Kyle Busch trying to get his groove back, Brad Keselowski clawing his way back after a broken leg, Connor Zilisch being pushed as the next big thing, and Noah Gragson bringing chaos wherever he goes.
Some fans might question the move away from Netflix, especially after Season 1 pulled in 3.4 million views in the first half of 2024. Then in 2025, the docuseries clocked 900,000 views after its early May release and added another 200,000 between July and December.
But with Prime Video stepping in as one of NASCAR’s broadcast partners, moving the series lines up with a bigger play to keep content under one roof.
Amazon has already dipped into NASCAR storytelling with projects like the docuseries Earnhardt about Dale Earnhardt. Moving Full Speed to Prime follows the same playbook. And for fans who still haven’t seen previous installments, the first two seasons are also heading over to Prime Video.
However, Reddit fans are divided in their opinions about the decision. Some fans actually get why NASCAR changed the format and platform, while a chunk of fans think leaving Netflix is risky because Netflix is where casual viewers stumble into shows. Others push back, pointing out that Prime actually has a massive reach in the U.S. and strong marketing muscle.
While one fan commented, “Makes sense. I highly doubt they were gonna make a new season around a points format they don’t use anymore,” another stated, “Idk the semantics and numbers and everything behind it so I’m probably talking out of my ass….buttttttt….at what point does nascar take the less money for the exposure. You need to be on Netflix, people watch Netflix. People don’t watch Amazon video as much. Who’s gonna watch this that isn’t a nascar fan already. You have a higher chance of getting people lost on Netflix than lost on Amazon Prime Video.”
One fan commented on the news, saying, “100%. I have Amazon Prime and Netflix. AP is a train wreck for videos especially now with their ad program with videos. I steer clear because Netflix is still ad free.” Another fan supported NASCAR’s move, saying, “Prime actually has slightly more subscribers in the USA and in my opinion is better at marketing. It’s a lateral move.”
Another backed NASCAR, stating, “Most NASCAR fans will find some way to be on prime in the month of June. I think they are counting on people watching it then if they have not already seen it. Similar to the Earnhardt documentary that dropped in June last year.”
Another fan comment implied something less glamorous yet very real, pointing out that the Netflix seasons didn’t see a surge in viewership. The first season did okay, but later numbers dipped: “Netflix didn’t seem to work that well for the 2 playoff seasons.”
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