OPINION: Grading NASCAR Silly Season Moves, Part Three

HINSDALE, N.H. – Just as in the NASCAR Cup Series, the NASCAR Xfinity Series grid is undergoing significant changes for the 2025 season.

This is part three in a series of columns working through the offseason which looks at how optimistic fans could, and perhaps should, be in regard to the various changes that have already taken place during NASCAR silly season.

With each move, I will give an optimism rating out of 10; the lower the score, the less optimistic I am for the driver and/or team, whereas the higher the score, the more optimistic I am. Keep in mind, these are simply my thoughts as an impartial observer.

Let’s dig into things.

The 2025 Xfinity Series Rookie Class

I’m putting all of these drivers together because, well, this is going to be a wild rookie year for the Xfinity Series.

We have seven full-time rookie drivers across four teams thus far, being Daniel Dye and Christian Eckes (Kaulig Racing), Carson Kvapil and Connor Zilisch (JR Motorsports), Nick Sanchez (Big Machine Racing), and Taylor Gray and William Sawalich (Joe Gibbs Racing).

Of the list, JGR’s incoming duo has to be the most confusing. Nothing against Gray and Sawalich, but what have either of them done to deserve a spot in the Xfinity Series?

Taylor, the younger brother of Tanner Gray, has shown a bit of improvement in Trucks, but he’s also had plenty of antics that have caused him problems, and has not looked like a race-winning contender consistently enough.

Meanwhile, Sawalich is coming up from ARCA, which, truthfully, isn’t what it used to be. He could arguably use some time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series for as young as he is, which brings up a question: why is Corey Heim still stuck in Trucks?

He’s dominated in two straight seasons and has shown a lot of promise in his limited Xfinity starts with Sam Hunt Racing. Truthfully, he arguably should have gotten a call-up on merit over this duo, no disrespect to either of them.

As for the rest, the new Kaulig duo will need to step up big time alongside veteran Josh Williams. Eckes, at least, looks like he could get a win or two, but Dye and Williams have a lot to prove.

Nick Sanchez, taking over for the outgoing Parker Kligerman, looks promising. Out of the seven rookies, he probably has the lowest expectations of them being that he’s part of a smaller, one-car operation. But also considering that Kligerman has almost won a couple of races in that car, getting top 10s at minimum should be the benchmark.

Kvapil and Zilisch are the ones I’m most optimistic about. Both drivers looked great in their limited Xfinity starts, with Zilisch getting a win on debut at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) Int’l in September and Kvapil finishing as high as second at Dover in the spring. Out of all seven rookies, I think these two will take to the Xfinity Series the best, and the quickest, and we could see them both in victory lane sooner rather than later.

For everyone involved, I’ll say the JRM rookies get a combined nine out of 10, the JGR duo gets a combined seven out of 10, and Sanchez and the Kaulig duo get a six out of 10 each.

Sheldon Creed (from JGR) and Sam Mayer (from JRM) to Haas Factory Team

We have another two-for here. Sheldon Creed has gone from Richard Childress Racing to Gibbs to now the rebadged Haas Factory Team, and joining him will be Sam Mayer, leaving JR Motorsports.

Gene Haas bringing on these two drivers to this team is a smart call, as Creed is consistent in finishing well (second, mostly), and Mayer has been able to win seven times in the past two years, though has had some down moments that have befuddled fans and other drivers. So, in reality

In all likelihood, this will either boom or bust. If this new Haas team booms, we could see Mayer continue to bring in wins, and maybe Creed will finally break through to get a much-needed win in the Xfinity Series.

If this busts though? It could set Haas back big time. This team will be fascinating to watch in 2025, and for that, I give them a collective nine out of 10 on the optimism scale.

Brandon Jones to Joe Gibbs Racing (Again)

The seemingly eternal Xfinity driver took a two-year break from Joe Gibbs Racing to go to JR Motorsports, only to return to Joe Gibbs Racing. Brandon Jones, welcome back to … something.

In all seriousness, I have no opinion on this move. Jones is entering his 10th full-time season in the Xfinity Series, and has only won five times in that span, with three of those wins coming in 2020. He hasn’t won since Martinsville (Va.) Speedway in 2022, and failed to make the playoffs both years at JRM.

But even when he has made the playoffs, the best Jones has done was sixth in that aforementioned 2020 season. At this point, Jones is going to be in the Xfinity Series as long as he has sponsorship money from Menards, among others, and though he is 27, I don’t believe he will ever make a proper leap in production enough to advance his career to the premier level. It’s a one out of 10 in optimism here.

Ryan Ellis to DGM Racing

This is a move that most will probably overlook, but I’d love to give a little spotlight to Ryan Ellis, who has done a very solid job in his time with Alpha Prime Racing.

Ellis has been racing in NASCAR’s national series ranks since 2012, making a plethora of part-time starts. The past two years have been his first full-time seasons in the Xfinity Series, with this year being his first full-time season in a singular car.

Ellis achieved plenty of top 20 finishes, almost finishing in the top 10 at the Daytona opener. There were other races where he could have done better if not for getting caught up in other people’s messes. Now moving to DGM, the question is, can he do better?

I’ll give Ryan a five out of 10 on the optimism scale, as I hope that he will be able to continue a rise in his career. At the same time, I don’t have enough optimism that he’ll make any big change in the Xfinity Series hierarchy.

Harrison Burton to AM Racing

The bringer of Wood Brothers Racing’s 100th win has dropped back to the Xfinity Series for the first time since 2021. Let’s be real though, this was bound to happen.

Harrison Burton objectively has had less superior stats than Ryan Blaney or even Matt DiBenedetto in the No. 21 Ford at the Cup Series level, and aside from his four wins in the Xfinity Series in 2020, he hasn’t really impressed all that much either.

Three part-time Craftsman Truck Series seasons followed by one full-time season in 2019, one part-time Xfinity Series season (also 2019) before two full-time Xfinity seasons, and then three full-time Cup seasons preceded by one start for Gaunt Brothers Racing in 2021 hasn’t made for an overly consistent sample size.

Now Burton is going to AM Racing, which was dysfunctional this past season, to say the least. I’m giving this a two out of 10 on the optimism scale, as I just do not know what this move will really do, for the driver or the team.

Kris Wright to Our Motorsports

Between ARCA, Trucks, and Xfinity, Kris Wright has only had one full-time season … the national ARCA Menards Series in 2024. Sure, he finished third in points there, but ARCA is not the ARCA of old, and it just feels like inflated stats as a result.

We’ve seen what Wright has done so far in both Trucks and Xfinity, and it’s not great. There’s a lot of bent sheet metal involved in that record. Maybe he can turn things around, but I do not have the optimism in me to think that such a thing will be possible. This gets a one out of 10.

In Closing…

There’s one series left with additional moves to take a look at, and that will be the subject of part four in this silly season column series coming up!

The opinions expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of Race Face Brand Development, Race Face Media, their staff, partners, or other subsidiaries.