Key Changes to Know for the 2026 NASCAR Season (Driver / Crew / Team Moves)
- Dustin Pasadino
- 12 hours ago
- 2 min read
đ Driver Moves
Connor Zilisch⢠Old: No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolet (Xfinity)⢠New: No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet (Cup) â full Cup season in 2026.
Daniel SuĂĄrez⢠Old: No. 99 Trackhouse Racing (Cup)⢠New: No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet (Cup) â switch to new team.
đ Crew Chief / Staff Moves
Randall Burnett⢠Old: Crew chief for Kyle Busch, No. 8 RCR (Cup)⢠New: Crew chief for Connor Zilisch, No. 88 Trackhouse (Cup).
Matt McCall⢠Promoted to Competition Director for Spire Motorsports, overseeing all three Cup cars (Suårez, McDowell, Hocevar).
Jim Pohlman⢠Old: Crew chief for Justin Allgaier, No. 7 JR Motorsports (Xfinity)⢠New: Crew chief for Kyle Busch, No. 8 RCR (Cup).
Brandon McSwain⢠Moves from longtime engineer to crew chief for Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse (Cup).
đ Manufacturer / Team Changes
Haas Factory Team⢠Switching from Ford â Chevrolet for the 2026 season.
Rick Ware Racing⢠Switching Ford â Chevrolet, aligning with Richard Childress Racing.
Xfinity Series Rebrand⢠NASCARâs secondary series becomes OâReilly Auto Parts Series, replacing Xfinity sponsorship.
Kaulig Racing⢠Will pause OâReilly Auto Parts Series efforts for 2026.
đ OâReilly Auto Parts Series (formerly Xfinity) Moves
Brent Crews⢠Moves to Joe Gibbs Racing full-time in the OâReilly Auto Parts Series.
Parker Retzlaff⢠Joins Viking Motorsports for 2026.
Anthony Alfredo⢠Signs with Viking Motorsports (No. 96).
Josh Bilicki⢠Moves to SS GreenLight Racing full-time.
RSS Racing⢠Switches to Chevrolet and aligns with Haas Factory Team.
Josh Williams⢠Returns to DGM Racing (No. 92) full-time.
Ryan Ellis⢠Joins Youngâs Motorsports (No. 02).
Lavar Scott⢠Moves from ARCA to Alpha Prime Racing (No. 45).
Jeremy Clements Racing⢠Partners with Haas Factory Team for 2026.
Hettinger Racing⢠Announces a new entry in the OâReilly Auto Parts Series.
Kaulig & RAM Partnership (Truck)⢠Kaulig Racing partners with RAM for five Truck Series entries.
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