Who Does Nick Sanchez Drive For in 2026?

What’s Happening?

In the past week, a new name has entered the NASCAR free agent market: Nick Sanchez, who will not return to Big Machine Racing’s No. 48 for the 2026 season. With the countdown to Daytona rolling forward, the question fans are now asking is where Sanchez will end up for the coming year.

Everything was set up for Nick Sanchez to return to Big Machine Racing’s No. 48 for a second season after a successful rookie campaign with the team.

During his first full season with the team, the 24-year-old scored 12 top ten finishes, finished 11th in points, and scored the team’s second-ever win, and first with a full-time driver.

But last week, Sanchez announced on social media that he will not return to BMR in 2026.

pic.twitter.com/Pq4j04A8K2

— Nicholas Sanchez (@Nicksanchez080) December 8, 2025

Though he is a top name on any NASCAR free agent market, with wins in two of NASCAR’s three National Series, this announcement has come at a difficult time of the year, with most teams having hammered out their plans for the coming year.

What’s the Latest?

Though neither side has announced their individual plans for 2026, there are already plentiful rumors about which driver will pilot BMR’s No. 48 in 2026.

Left out of rumor mill talk is Sanchez, who said during an interview with SiriusXM NASCAR Radio last week that this information was “definitely quite shocking, especially in December given the season that we had.”

Though this interview cleared the air on his status with the team, reminding fans that it is “strictly business,” it also cleared the air on what Sanchez is looking for this late in the silly season.

Most notable of all, Sanchez is open to racing in either the NASCAR Craftsman Truck or O’Reilly Auto Parts Series in 2026, saying, “Obviously, at this stage in the game, you can’t be picky. I’m certainly not, and I’m a driver who likes to win.”

With Sanchez open to any opportunities, the questions now fall to where there are openings and if he will stay within the Chevrolet camp.

NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series

As mentioned above, a major problem facing Sanchez is the lack of open full-time seats in both series, though there are some known open rides left for each division.

If Sanchez stays with Chevrolet, where he has won all three of his NASCAR National Series races and the 2022 ARCA Menards Series Championship, there is one or two open full-time rides.

First is at Young’s Motorsports, which is expanding to two full-time cars in 2026, but is without a driver for its original NASCAR OAP Series ride, the No. 42.

Second is the No. 71 at DGM Racing, which has already signed Josh Williams to race full-time in their No. 92, but has yet to announce a driver for the No. 71 following Ryan Ellis’ departure to Young’s No. 02 for 2026.

Say Sanchez looks outside Chevrolet, then Ford’s Team SPS Racing, which acquired AM Racing, might be an option, as they have also yet to announce plans for 2026.

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series

If the NASCAR OAP Series field is already set behind the scenes, then Sanchez’s best opportunity lies in a series he is familiar with.

From 2023 to 2024, Sanchez raced with REV Racing, which was a satellite car of Spire Motorsports, which has yet to announce a new driver for its No. 71 truck following Rajah Caruth’s promotion to the NASCAR OAP Series with JR Motorsports.

Now, Spire has trimmed down its truck operation over the past six months, and there are rumors that it could continue to do so in 2026, but if Sanchez were on the market, it would be hard to turn down an opportunity for him, given his resume and ties to the team.

But, there is another championship-caliber ride that might be open in ThorSport Racing’s No. 98, as Ty Majeski is moving to the team’s flagship No. 88 for 2026. While this would require a shift to Ford, it would be a high-profile spot at a championship organization for Sanchez.

Split Time?

So, what if Sanchez can’t get a full-time ride?

Well, there are several well-known options in both the NASCAR Craftsman Truck and OAP Series for 2026.

First in the OAP Series, both Jordan Anderson Racing and JR Motorsports will have full-time cars with part-time drivers, with JAR’s No. 32 and JRM’s No. 9.

These seats are filling fast, with the chaotic 2026 lineup at JRM factoring into both teams’ plans for the coming year.

If Sanchez really wanted to diversify his time, he could add some starts in the Craftsman Truck Series. This could come with Niece Motorsports’ two part-time trucks, the No. 42 and another with a yet-to-be-announced number, or, sticking with Chevrolet, Spire’s No. 7 all-star truck, should it return in 2026.

Of course, this is all speculation based on the current lay of the land in NASCAR Silly Season, but whatever route Sanchez takes for 2026 will likely shake up the garage area even more than his departure from BMR already has.

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